Chapter Three
Isis wasn't kidding about not cutting him any slack.
It had been a month since Yugi's first conversation with the former tomb keeper and, over the past few weeks she had been slamming the class with enough readings and assignments to make Yugi's head spin. He could barely keep his head above water.
It probably wasn't helping that when he wasn't with Yami, he was spending most of his time with Jou, his friend eager to help him work through the revolving door of emotions that he felt for Yami and the magic of the bond that bound the two together.
"It's time for dinner," Yami said.
Yugi looked up from his book, and the older boy was frowning, leaning against the doorframe in sweat pants, bare chested as he watched him.
"Why aren't you wearing a shirt?" Yugi said. He marked his place in his book, ignoring the flutter in his stomach as he refused to survey the duelist king's lack of clothing.
Yugi was seated at the dining room table in the apartment, books spread around him. Yami's apartment was gigantic, with high ceilings and dark wooden floors, the older boy having told him it had been almost impossible to find a single bedroom, let alone a practically sized one, in the wealthy district close to Kaiba Corp headquarters.
"You insist on keeping the heat at a ridiculous temperature," Yami said, shrugging. "I'm hot."
"Are you trying to distract me?" Yugi said.
Yami lifted his eyebrows a fraction.
Yugi was close to finishing the massive assignment that was due to Isis tomorrow. He'd been working on it non-stop for the entire weekend, nose in his books as he scrambled to complete his assigned research.
Yugi picked up his pencil. "I have to finish this before tomorrow," he said. "And, 70 degrees is not hot – ask any person with a normal body temperature. It's not my fault you would keep it subzero in here if I let you." He went back to his book, restarting his sentence as Yami walked around the table.
The older boy stopped beside him. His energy wrapped around Yugi, and it took all of his concentration to diffuse the smoke that fought to consume him.
Yugi sighed, turning to glare at Yami. "Do you want me to fail this assignment?" he said.
"I want you to eat something," Yami said. He raised his arm, looking down at his watch. "You've been sitting here for eight hours and, I haven't seen you eat anything."
"That's not true!" Yugi said. "I ate…breakfast." Now that he thought about it, he was a little hungry, a lot hungry actually. "I don't have time for a break, and I am not even hungry."
Yami narrowed his eyes at him.
"Don't give me that look," Yugi said. He turned back to his books, ignoring the older boy.
Yami sighed. He disappeared down the hallway to their bedroom, returning a few minutes later wearing a shirt, and toting his jacket and shoes.
"I'm going to pick up dinner," Yami said. He buttoned up his jacket, meeting Yugi's gaze. "And, you will eat something when I return. Find a place to take a break."
Yugi rolled his eyes as Yami picked up his keys, jingling as he made his way to the door. The older boy had a bad habit of telling him what to do, and Yugi had an even worse habit of doing most of what he told him.
"No promises!" Yugi yelled after him. He deflated as the door shut, bolts clicking as Yami locked up.
Yugi stared back down at his books, words swimming together on the page. Maybe he did need a break. He moved to another reading, having immersed himself in a chapter on recent artifacts discovered in Iran when someone knocked at the front door. Yugi huffed, pushing back from the table. The universe was against him finishing this assignment.
Standing on his tiptoes, Yugi looked through the peep hole, finding Ryou. He stepped back, unlocking the door and yanking it open.
"I didn't know – " Yugi said, stopping as he looked at his friend.
Ryou's clothes were covered in dirt. His normally pressed attire wrinkled, and his hair ruffled up on one side. Skin paler than usual, a dark hickey stood out on his neck, barely hidden by the collar of his coat.
"What happened?" Yugi said. He gestured his friend inside.
Ryou was trembling as he entered the apartment, his entire body shaking with the force of his shivers.
"Should I call the police?" Yugi said. He led his friend to the living room, urging him to sit.
The room was wide, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the thirty stories to the street below. With two couches arranged catty corner to each other, the furniture was sparse, a ceiling lamp illuminating the space in a warm glow.
Sinking onto one of the couches, Ryou shook his head.
Yugi joined him. "Ryou?" he said. "Talk to me - tell me what happened."
"I – " Ryou said. He cleared his throat, trying again. "Someone stole my wallet."
"You were mugged?" Yugi said. "We need to call the police." He moved to stand but, Ryou held out his hands.
"No, I don't want to involve the police," Ryou said. "I'm fine – just a little shaken. I was close to your building so - I just needed a minute before I walked home." He was still shivering, his eyes dark as he stared at his hands.
"Did they hurt you?" Yugi said.
"It was one man," Ryou said. "He didn't hurt me but, he - touched me." He rubbed his hands down his thighs, smoothing the wrinkles in his pants.
Yugi watched his friend, the pieces clicking together – the hickey, Ryou's askew clothing. "Are you – okay?" Yugi said. Ryou was tall, but he was thin enough that he could easily be pushed around by any man of an average body mass.
"He looked like me," Ryou said. He was mumbling to himself now. "Uncanny resemblance actually."
Yugi's eyes widened. Yami had once assured him that his and Yugi's similar appearance was no coincidence, the magic of their bond having everything to do with the twists of their DNA.
"At first he was just staring at me," Ryou continued. He shook his head. "It was like he could see right through me," he said. "It was very strange." His shivers had subsided, and he crossed his arms over his stomach, hugging himself.
Yugi bit his tongue, wondering how to proceed. The door opened behind him, and both boys turned to find Yami standing in the door, a takeout bag in his hand. His eyes flicked from Yugi to Ryou, his eyes lingering on Ryou's haggard appearance.
"Ryou-san," Yami said. He closed the door behind him, balancing the bag in the crook of his elbow. "Are you alright?"
"Someone attacked him," Yugi said. "Someone that looked like him." He widened his eyes at the older boy. It had to have been his yami, he thought.
Yami set down the bag on the coffee table as he joined them, sitting on the adjacent sofa. "What happened?" he said.
"It happened so fast," Ryou said. "I was waiting for my friend at a restaurant, and this man showed up. He sat next to me, and he started getting…handsy." He cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was uncomfortable so I left and, he followed me out onto the street. Next thing I know, he's pulling me in an alley, and by the time he was gone, I realized my wallet was missing."
Yami closed his eyes, massaging the bridge of his nose. "You said he looked like you?" he said.
Ryou nodded.
"Did he ask you about the Millennium Ring?" Yami said.
"No, he just – well – he didn't say much," Ryou said. He shifted on the sofa, yanking up the collar of his jacket.
"You should stay here tonight, Ryou-san," Yami said, looking up. "If this man did steal your wallet, then he now knows your identity, and it will be easy for him to find you."
Ryou paled. "You think he will look for me?" he said.
"It is possible," Yami said.
"Come on, Ryou," Yugi said. "You should take a shower and change. You have dirt all over your clothes." He stood from the sofa, waiting until his friend followed suit.
By the time, he got Ryou a change of clothes and showed him the bathroom, Yami had moved to the kitchen, gathering plates from the cabinets.
"It must have been his yami!" Yugi said, whispering as he neared the older boy.
Yami nodded. "It sounds like Bakura," he said.
"Is he dangerous?" Yugi said.
"He is a thief and a criminal," Yami said. He leaned back against the counter, folding his arms over his chest. "But, he will not hurt Ryou."
Yugi took a deep breath, mind spinning. He had been wishing that Ryou would find his yami, but he never imagined his friend would be assaulted in the process. In fact, he'd never even considered that the other yamis were much different than his yami, let alone aggressive.
"Ryou said that the man touched him," Yugi said. He took a spot next to the older boy, shoulder brushing his.
Yami sighed. "Bakura never had any impulse control," he said. "The draw is powerful. It doesn't surprise me that he couldn't control himself."
"What do you mean?" Yugi said. He turned to the older boy, hip against the counter.
"The draw I feel to you is intense at times," Yami said. His eyes were dark as he pinned Yugi with a stare. "It takes time to get used to, but it only grows with time."
Yugi swallowed, mouth dry. The older boy's fingers had moved to his hip, tracing his side.
"Ryou is here," Yugi said. His heart was racing in his chest.
"We should be discreet then," Yami said, silencing the younger boy's protests as his lips pressed against his.
Yugi's mind went blank as the older boy claimed his mouth, his hands roaming his stomach. Delicious heat spread through Yugi, weighing him back against the counter.
Yami's energy filled him, his desire rolling through the younger boy. Yugi jerked as Yami's fingers played down the front of his jeans, inhaling sharply. He grabbed the older boy's shoulders, legs shaking as Yami's hands moved to his backside, pressing Yugi up against him.
The bathroom door creaked open, and Yugi's eyes shot open. He pushed his hands against Yami's shoulders, but the older boy wouldn't budge, lips glued to his. Yugi pushed harder, and Yami moved from him, hands slipping away as he frowned.
Yugi ran his fingers through his hair, straightening his clothing. His body was throbbing with a thrum that was almost painful, a feeling that was becoming more and more common when parting from the older boy. Yami pushed a strand of Yugi's hair into place, his fingers trailing sparks on his skin before dropping to his side, eyes searing through him.
Ryou joined them in the kitchen a moment later, and Yugi hoped that his blush wasn't obvious as he took the plates to the table, moving his school papers to the side.
"You should eat something, Ryou," Yugi said. He offered his friend a chair, unpacking the takeout on the table. Yami had gotten more than enough to feed three of them.
Goosebumps raised on Yugi's arms as Yami joined them, his hand resting on the younger boy's back.
"You should eat, Ryou-san," Yami said. "Hunger can become troublesome when ignored." His fingers were moving up Yugi's spine, sparks dancing under his skin.
There was no way Yugi was getting his assignment finished tonight.
"Bakura is making a fool of himself," Yami said.
He was sitting across the table from his cousin, Seto as they waited to meet a potential client for lunch. The restaurant was located in one of the wealthier districts of Kyoto, a large, squat space packed with business people dressed in designer labels, discussing deals and office politics over 20 dollar salads.
Seto watched him across the table. Towering over six foot, his cousin was lean with broad shoulders and sharp features. He was a man of few words but, the intensity of his focus spoke volumes as icy blue of his eyes leveled on Yami.
"He assaulted his hikari in an alleyway last night," Yami said.
Everything about Ryou's story had Bakura written all over it. The Thief King was selfish and cruel, with calculating intelligence. He would have no problem forcing Ryou into any myriad of compromising situations without any regards to his hikari's feelings.
Still, Yami wouldn't be surprised if Bakura had stumbled across his hikari by chance and had been so unprepared for the shock, that he'd lost his head as the draw to his lighter half overtook him.
When Yami had first found Yugi, the intensity of his hunger for the younger boy had shook him. It had taken all of his willpower to give the boy his space, and even then, he'd succumbed to the intensity of his desire to pleasure his hikari the first time they entered the Millennium Puzzle.
He could feel Yugi's yearning to move further with him, but the younger boy was still holding back. Yami's legendary control was working down to a thread, and though he would never force himself on his hikari, the ache that consumed him every time they parted was becoming a constant pain in his chest.
The waitress came to take their drink orders, and Seto glanced at his watch. Their client was five minutes late. Seto was a genius, an incredibly brilliant inventor and businessman, but when it came to placating clients, he was helpless. Yami usually handled the executive business development for the company alone, but the client had requested both of them at the restaurant.
The client had called Yami's office directly, telling his secretary that he was looking to work with Kaiba Corp to build his already million dollar business. His history had checked out, but Ryuji Otogi, the founder of Dungeon Dice Monsters was late and, Seto looked annoyed as he took a sip of his water, eyes narrowed.
"Jou has been good for Yugi," Yami said, hoping to distract his cousin.
The two friends had been spending much of their time together since they'd been reunited a month ago, and Yami could see the strain easing from his hikari the more that he and Jou shared. The more time he spent with those who knew the secret of the millennium items, the faster Yugi would continue to adjust to the reality of their situation.
Seto's face softened, just slightly, at the mention of his partner's name.
"He's been more open with me since Jou began speaking with him," Yami said.
Seto watched him. Some of his annoyance seemed to have drained as they switched to the topic of his boisterous lover. The waitress brought them two cups of tea, steam rising from the cups, and the pair busied themselves with the drinks as they waited.
After a few minutes, a man approached their table, a folder tucked under his arm and his strides quick as he crossed the dining room floor. He was tall and lean, his dark hair pulled back into a ponytail and a dice earring hanging from one ear. He stopped in front of them, bowing deep.
"My apologies for being late," the man said. "I am Ryuji Otogi. Thank you for meeting me." Ryuji was beautiful in a rugged artist sort of way, his cheekbones high and his eyes saturated with emerald green.
He took a chair at the table, setting his folder down. He surveyed both of them, flinching as Seto's stare turned on him.
"What is the purpose of my attendance here?" Seto said. He was scowling at Ryuji.
"I wanted to warn you both," Ryuji said. He sat up in his chair, glancing around the room before continuing, voice lowered. "Pegasus Crawford wants you out of business, and he's trying to blackmail me to help make that happen."
Yami straightened. He had been close to dethroning Pegasus, the Industrial Illusions CEO and owner of the Millennium Eye, at a Duel Monsters tournament a few months ago, but Yami had been taken out the running after passing out during a semifinal match. Pegasus' existence remained a constant threat, with the deranged billionaire often using his power to seal innocent souls in the Shadow Realm.
"How does Pegasus expect you to assist him?" Yami said.
"He wants me to seduce your boyfriend," Ryuji said. He met Yami's eyes. "Once I gained Yugi's trust, he wanted me to bring him to him, but he was pretty adamant that I needed to get him to mess around with me first – something about weakening your bond – I don't know. The guy is crazy. I'm not even gay and, I'm definitely not a big enough douche bag to screw around with some kid just to expand my business."
Images of Ryuji's hands on his hikari, his mouth pressed against his, his fingers inching down his body, Yugi's face flushed beneath him, flashed through Yami. Jealousy burned through him with such an intensity that his hands shook. His magic snapped at its chains, demanding punishment for even the insinuation that someone could take his hikari from him, touch him, pleasure him. The shadows rattled inside of him with such a ferocity that Yami almost forgot where he was.
Yami's spine was wired straight as he stared at Ryuji, trying to calm himself. The Dungeon Dice Monsters CEO was pale-faced in his chair, as if the maelstrom roaring inside of Yami was visible by just looking at him.
"Pegasus told me that if I didn't go along with his plan, he would run me into the ground," Ryuji said. "I didn't know who else to go to."
"Get a hold of yourself," Seto said to Yami. He was pinning the duelist champion with an icy stare, slicing through his raging thoughts. Seto flagged down the waitress for the check before turning to Ryuji. "We will finish this conversation in private, and then you can fully explain to me what that moron, Pegasus is up to. I'm sure this isn't the only ridiculous step in his plan."
The shadows continued to trash inside Yami as Ryuji stood. He'd never felt such rage, and the more he considered Ryuji attempting to seduce his hikari, the more that the anger twisted, burning through him. Yugi was his. He would always be his, and no one, not even Pegasus, would threaten his claim on his lighter half.
A/N: I am posting a one-shot, The Thief's Hikari, in my profile of the scene of Bakura and Ryou's first meeting (aka the events that take place shortly before Ryou comes to see Yugi in this chapter). I'm a little more open with details in the one-shot so, it has been rated M for safety.
