I did not realize how hard it would be to change from first person to third and from present to past tense. Plus, my motivation levels are at a low, which is probably why it's going to take a while until this gets out.
Happy reading!
(Bakura to Ryou)
((((((LINE))))))
Malik reached the top of the stairs a few minutes after Yugi, his eyebrows rising at the scene in front of him. Yugi was sitting happily on Atemu's lap on the couch, but all things considered, that wasn't that surprising. What shocked Malik was that Akefia was bent over the arm of the couch, sitting as far away as possible from the two and making retching noises. Mariku was smirking widely, watching Akefia gag from his position in the armchair.
"Did I…miss something?" Everyone in the room turned to face Malik. The Egyptian paled, suddenly uncomfortable with all the attention focused on him.
He shifted to the side, which allowed everyone to see Ryou, who had been behind the other. Standing up from the couch, Akefia silently made his way over to the two. Malik scampered to the side, which the yami barely noticed.
(Ryou?)
Akefia scowled at the silence that followed. Yadonushi wouldn't ignore a direct question from him, especially if he used the other's name. That was reserved only for special punishments. So what if the vacant 'lights were on but no one was home' expression on Ryou's face was slightly – only slightly, mind you – nerve-racking? Yadonushi wasn't replying to him and he did not like insubordination.
He stared at Ryou, catching a whiff of the persistent stench of shadow magic. Meaning that someone else was the cause of the boy's insolence. Well, in that case, there was a punishment game that needed arranging.
The man grunted, before grabbing Ryou's wrist and pulling him over to the couch and sitting him down, the smaller's body sitting stiffly as he stared at the coffee table. Yugi made a small sound of surprise, alternating between looking at Malik, Ryou, and Akefia. "Hey, how come Ryou listened to Malik and Akefia, but didn't listen to me?"
"Let's get something straight, runt," Akefia rolled his eyes when Atemu glared at him when he made the insult, "I may still be the Thief King but that doesn't make me some long dead man who's probably a mummy by now. Call me Bakura."
Leaning into Atemu, Yugi let out a squeak. "Oh. Okay."
"It's how we all feel, Aibou. Marik prefers not to be called Mariku just as I prefer not to be called Atemu."
"Really?" Malik looked at all the yamis in the room, though his eyes only rested on Marik for a second. "That's an interesting way of looking at things."
"Well, I'm relieved!" Yugi let out a breath as if he had been holding it forever. "Do you know how hard it was getting to not call you Yami, mou hitori no boku?"
The man chuckled and shook his head, looking up from Yugi to stare at Bakura. "In any case, shadow magic is fickle, Little One, but it chose Bakura and Malik on purpose." He looked over at Ryou. "Have you figured out what type of spell it is yet?"
Bakura scoffed and rolled his eyes. "What do you take me for, an amateur?" He crossed his arms and glared at the obviously empty vessel of his host. "It's a soul displacement spell."
"I'm sorry, what?" Malik spoke up from where he was still standing near the entrance. "Is Ryou going to be okay? Can we get his soul back?"
Marik tsked, shaking his head slowly, though his eyes never left Malik. "Pick up the pace, hikari-pretty. Obviously the spell wasn't entirely completed, so Ryou's soul is probably still partially attached to his body. I'm sure he's floating around somewhere, listening to every word we say."
"But there's someone out there who tried to take Yadonushi's soul. And the Shadow Game that waits for them is going to be far from pleasant."
"What's wrong, Bakura?" Yami felt a smirk twitching at his mouth, and hearing Yugi giggle into his hand right next to him was not helping. "You've taken plenty of souls, why is it so different if someone else does it?"
"Because Ryou's soul belongs to me!" The man huffed and shifted his eyes to the side, staring at a spot on the wall. "And no one can steal something from the Thief King."
Yugi's giggling intensified, but Yami successfully kept a straight face as he nodded solemnly. "Sure, sure. We understand completely."
Marik stretched in his chair, letting out a yawn. "Whatever, let's just finish this. I want to spend some time with my hikari-pretty."
"One little problem," Malik tried to ignore the shiver that went up his spine at the thought of being alone with his yami, and made sure he avoided even looking in the man's direction, "how do we get Ryou's soul back?"
Yami hummed and examined Ryou and the lingering, almost transparent shadows that still hovered around the boy, his arms tightening around Yugi's waist. "Well, Marik's right that the spell wasn't finished. And it looks like it was combined with a bit of hypnosis so the caster would have control over Ryou's soul when it was separated from his body. Whoever was performing this is obviously very advanced in shadow magic..."
"Don't bother admiring their handiwork, Pharaoh. They won't be around for much longer." Bakura growled out, shifting his gaze to once again stare at his host. "Ryou was only able to listen to me because we're hikari and yami, and our link allowed me to push through the half-completed spell. But it's not enough to break it. Since Ryou followed Malik, I'm assuming that he was the one to interrupt the spell."
The blonde blinked, attention focused on him once again. "Well, yeah, but I don't see how that matters."
"All you have to do is tell Ryou to wake up, Malik-pretty. That should be enough to end the spell and allow us to banish any of the remaining shadow magic." Marik grinned at Malik, though the hikari still had yet to look at him for longer than a fleeting glance.
"Is it really that simple?" Yugi glanced at the three yamis, thinking to himself that it would've saved a lot of trouble if they had known that in the schoolyard.
Malik hummed and walked over to Ryou, Bakura moving away so that the blonde could stand in front of him. He bit his lip and stared into dulled brown eyes. "Um, Ryou? …Wake up."
For a moment nothing happened as the boy blinked silently and Malik began to think it hadn't worked. Then suddenly Ryou let out an ear-piercing scream, causing most in the room to jump. "Oh my god! I can move again! I can talk!" The albino looked up to Malik, smiling wide, before launching himself at his friend. Ryou latched his arms around the other's neck, squeezing tight. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You have no idea how frustrating that was!"
Malik let out a small chuckle, though it was strained. "You're welcome, now if you would please let go, you're kind of choking me."
Ryou released Malik with a sheepish look in his eyes, though he was still smiling. He stretched his arms, relishing in his freedom of movement. He looked over at Yugi, suddenly remembering whose lap his friend was sitting in. Of course, he had seen the two together while he had been drifting, but the realization of who had joined them in Yugi's living room was hitting him for the first time. His smile faded.
Yugi cleared his throat, already sensing the growing tension in the air. Now that Ryou had been restored, Malik was warily watching Marik, who had on a crazed smile as he looked at his hikari.
The smallest of the group opened his mouth to try and break the ice, but Ryou beat him to it. "Well, it's been great and all." He winced at the lameness of what he had just said and tugged on a strand of his hair nervously, blinking his eyes quickly to hide unshed tears. "Thanks again for saving me, Malik. But I think I have-There's, um, something that I need to check on."
Ryou sprinted from the room, making sure to give a wide berth to Bakura, who was watching him with narrowed eyes. Malik gave a small chuckle, nodding his head to himself. "Yeah, I think I remember what Ryou's talking about. We have to check on it together." The blonde followed his friend's example fleeing from the room like there was fire on his tail.
"Well, fuck." Marik frowned at the doorway, as if trying to decipher why Malik had run away.
Yugi let out a sigh and stood, much to Yami's disappointment. "I'm sorry. They're still a little jittery about everything that's happened in the past. They don't know about…well, about what you guys told me."
While the yamis and Yugi had been waiting for Malik and Ryou to arrive, and while Bakura had been busy retching from the lovey-dovey cuteness of the Pharaoh's reunion, Marik and Yami had explained to Yugi how the gods had allowed both the tomb raider and thief had been allowed passage into the afterlife and how they had all returned. It was suffice to say that Yugi was shocked to hear that Marik and Bakura had given up most of their hate for Yami. But before he could ask any questions, his friends had entered, and there hadn't been any time to explain why the two could trust their yamis.
Of course, it had been easier for Yugi to accept this, he didn't have the same experiences with Bakura and Marik's cruelty that his friends did. But looking at the albino glaring at the floor as if it was the reason for Ryou leaving and the blonde who was staring in complete confusion at the door, it seemed hard to believe that either of them had ever been a threat to the safety of the world.
"I guess I'd better go look for them, you can stay here for now if you'd like."
Bakura snorted and turned to the door. "That won't be necessary. Besides, Ryou and Malik went in opposite directions." Without another word, the man left, silently following behind his hikari.
"I'm going to go after Malik-pretty," Marik stood, his expression dark, "hikari-pretty and I need to talk."
Yugi blinked as the room emptied, before looking back at Yami. "Do you think they'll be alright?"
The man hummed, letting his chin rest on Yugi's shoulder. "Malik and Ryou don't trust their yamis, and for good reason. Bakura and Marik are both idiots, but they know when to take things seriously. They'll be fine."
Before Yugi could reply, there was a small groan and the violet-eyed boy turned to see his grandfather reach the top of the stairs. Solomon Muto looked over at Yugi and Yami and let out a small chuckle, ignoring the concerned looks he was receiving. "You youngsters, always running around like it's the end of the world."
"Are you alright, Grandpa?" Yugi watched as the elder stretched his limbs, bones creaking.
The man winced, lowering his arms with a small sound of pain. "Just the arthritis working up again. I think I am going to go lay down for the night though. I've closed down the shop for the night, just make sure you boys don't get into too much trouble."
Watching his grandfather leave, slightly blushing at the last comment, Yugi looked over at his yami as if asking what he should do. The man smiled, before closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath of cherries and water lilies. "I've missed you, Yugi."
He let out a small laugh and leaned in closer, reaching a hand back to hold Yami's, letting his eyes focus on the ceiling. "I missed you too."
The two sit together for moment, each thinking about everything that had happened that day. Yami would've been content to just sitting together with his Aibou, but he heard a small voice whisper, "Yami?"
"Hm? What is it, Yugi?" He kept his eyes closed.
"Did you…Did you like the afterlife, Other Me?"
Yami straightened, Yugi sitting up with him. "Why do you ask?"
"I know you told me that the gods let you come back, and I was wondering, I mean, if you liked the afterlife, did you come back because you wanted to or because you felt like you had to?"
The man hummed, and squeezed Yugi's hand in his own. "I will admit that I enjoyed the afterlife, the peace and calm was nice after everything…" He opened his eyes to watch as Yugi's head dropped and felt a smile grow on his face. "However, I would've traded in that peace and calm if I could've been with you again, Yugi."
The younger blushed, using the hand that was not being held to smack Yami lightly. "Stop exaggerating."
"But I'm not. The gods gave me a chance to return, yes, but I took their offer because I wished to not for duty." He smirked, and to get them off this sober conversation during their reunion, started to press his fingers into Yugi's sides.
The younger arched his back in surprise, his face turned away from Yami's as pain shot through him. But then the pain disappeared with the tickling and he shrieked, choking out a laugh before pushing off Yami and sprinting from the room. Yugi ran up the stairs to his bedroom, hearing his yami following close behind. He reached his room, quickly turning around to shut the door. However, a leather boot shoved its way in between the door and the frame, preventing it from closing.
Yugi let out another laughing scream, leaving the door for the safety of his bed. He vaulted onto the mattress, diving into his blankets in attempt to prevent the inevitable tickling. Curling up under the covers, he listened to the soft footsteps that had started to approach the bed.
The bed squeaked and shifted as another body joined the one already on it. Yugi stiffened as Yami neared him, but the hands that he expected to attack his stomach instead grabbed the top of the blanket and pulled it down so Yugi was revealed. Wide violet eyes blinked up at crimson ones and Yami smiled gently, leaning down to rub his nose with Yugi's.
Yugi rolled his eyes, but he was smiling as he returned the Eskimo kiss. The smile turned to a smirk as he tilted and lifted his head, pressing his lips against Yami's. The kiss quickly morphed again as Yami shifted to a more comfortable position, for him at least.
The hikari squeaked as he felt the other straddle his hips, but then hummed as a tongue darted out of newly parted lips and started to flick against Yugi's. The smaller's muscles turned to jelly, and he opened his mouth, accepting Yami's tongue. But he stiffened as he felt hands once again shimmying across his stomach.
"Ahahah!" Yugi broke the kiss, squirming as he tried to escape the hands tickling him to no avail, he was trapped by Yami's legs. "No fair! Hahaha! You cheated, Yami!"
"The King of Games? Cheating? I have no idea what you're talking about." Yami had on a smug smirk as he used one hand to hold Yugi's wrists above his head, which had started to bat away his own. "I merely played a card I never had before."
"Yami! Ahaha, stop!" There was no pause, and Yugi tried harder to break free but Yami seemed to be made of steel. "Ah! Fine! I give, you win!"
The man relented, though he didn't let go of Yugi's hands, keeping them pinned, though he did move his other hand up so that each of his hikari's wrists was being held separately. Yugi blushed as he caught his breath, pushing his lip out into a pout as Yami hovered over his face. "Do you mind?"
"Not at all, Aibou." The man's smirk had yet to fade and he leaned down to press a kiss on Yugi's jawline. "In fact, I kind of like where I am right now."
Yugi huffed, but didn't move away, closing his eyes against the tingles that were running up and down his spine as Yami moved down from his jaw to start kissing his neck. He let out a small whine as the other gave a short, quick nip before he pulled away.
Yami chuckled as he looked down at his hikari. "I'm sorry, what was that, Yugi? I don't believe I heard you."
Yugi opened his eyes halfway, staring at Yami with hooded lids. "I said 'Don't stop'."
The other sucked in a barely audible breath, trying to calm the raging hormones that told Yami to ravish Yugi right there. It was obvious that the hikari didn't know how much his words affected him, as he was still slowly blinking up at him, practically begging with his eyes. As if he needed to.
"As you wish." Yami brought his lips down once again, tilting his head so that their kiss wasn't stopped by their noses. He felt the pleasure spark in their mind link and he once again pressed his tongue against Yugi's lips.
Entrance was granted and the two twisted their tongues together, fighting over whose mouth they would reside in. It was obvious after a moment that Yami was winning and Yugi relented to let him sweep his tongue into his mouth. Yugi moaned, involuntary bucking his hips and earning a throaty sound from Yami that gave him the chills.
The yami finally let go of Yugi's hands, bringing them down and slipping them under the other's shirt. Even though it was the lightest of touches, Yami still felt the tiny flinch that he gave and the puff of air Yugi released from his nose. Realizing he hadn't been as discrete as he would have liked, Yugi moved his hands to caress Yami's face trying to distract him and bring him back into the kiss.
But Yami had already pulled away, sitting up to stare down at Yugi. He frowned and looked at where his hands still rested on Yugi's stomach, the other's shirt starting to shift up. He saw blue and black. Yami's scowl deepened and he lifted Yugi's shirt up further. He froze, feeling like an idiot for forgetting what Isis had told him. "Explain."
"Oh! Um, I swear it wasn't look like!" Yugi tore his shirt from Yami's grasp, pushing it back into place. "It's, uh, we're-we're learning judo in gym! That's what it's from!"
Yami narrowed his eyes at the lie. "I know the truth, Yugi. Now explain."
The hikari's lip quivered and he looked away to stare at the wall. "It's just a couple of boys from my class that-"
"Do you know their names?"
Yugi blinked at the question, looking up at Yami for a moment before his eyes shifted to the wall again. "No, but-"
"I guess that doesn't matter. I can find them by appearance from your memories."
The other watched as Yami got off of him and sat on the edge of the bed, crossing his legs and rubbing his chin. He sat up, pouting at his yami's back. "But, wait, Yami-"
"Of course, I'll probably have to wait until after the weekend when they'll be at school. They'll be easier to find then."
"Yami!" Yugi shouted out, sick of being ignored. The other looked over his shoulder at him and he huffed. "It's okay. I only have a couple of more months of school. Then I'll never see them again."
Yami scoffed and shook his head. "That doesn't matter. They've hurt you, Aibou. They have to face the consequences."
"Why? I can deal with it until graduation; I don't want to be a problem." Yugi clenched his hands in his lap, frowning down at them.
There was a short, clipped laugh and Yugi felt the bed shift as Yami came back to him, lifting his chin with a gentle hand. The yami searched the other's eyes, his lips in a straight line. "I would never consider you a problem, Aibou. Yugi…I love you."
((((((LINE))))))
o.0 This story has changed so much in details (plot-wise not much has changed, but still). This chapter so far has been the one with the most changes, tell me what you think!
Please review?
