Author's Note: I am so sorry about the delay. I suffered a combination of writer's block and school overload. But I have managed to fix all that so I should be able to make more updates consistently. I am so sorry for keeping you waiting. I sincerely hope this chapter is worth the wait.
Just to be safe, here's the disclaimer once more: The only thing I own is the plot and the original characters. Everything else, including other characters, references, or specific vocabulary does not belong to me!
Hotaru stared up at Yami with her confusion evident on her face. She hadn't been able to understand anything he said other than his name. But his hitting her head did manage to stop her hysterics and cleared her thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she extended her hand carefully to him. "Pleasure to meet?" Yami glanced at her hand for only a second before he slapped it away. "Do. Not. Touch. Me." He growled before turning and striding out of her apartment. His exit was accompanied by the violent slamming of her door as he shut it behind him.
Bakura sighed before looking up at Hotaru. Her face appeared to be frozen in a mixture of confusion and hopefulness. "Aoimori-san, are you okay?" He asked quietly, reaching up a hand to touch her shoulder. She turned her head quickly and stared at him for a moment before a small smile broke out on her face. "I okay, Ryou-san. Thank you."
He shook his head and smiled at her, pointing at her cheek. "You should put some ice on that to help the swelling." He said as he walked towards her kitchen. A few minutes passed before he returned, carrying a couple of ice cubes wrapped in his handkerchief. "Here." He gently placed the ice against her skin. Hotaru flinched at the sudden coldness but she reached up a hand to hold it in place with a small smile.
A dark thought suddenly burst in Bakura's head: if Yami was the one to bruise her, I'll kill him. How could he hit a girl, and in the face no less? He shook his head, trying to clear his brain. Yami was violent and had a bad temper, but he wouldn't hit a girl. It would be too much effort for the Thief King; he'd just kill her and be done with it. With a grimace, Bakura recognized the truth within his own musings and sighed again. If Yami really did intend to keep her alive, he must see some purpose for her. Therefore, the only problem would be identifying the purpose he sees. And with Yami, it could be anything ranging from a servant to using her for bait for the rare hunters.
At that last thought, Bakura grabbed Hotaru's wrist, forcing her to make eye contact with him. "Do you know what the rare hunters are?" Hotaru flinched and looked away, her eyes darting around the room. "No…" She finally murmured, tugging her wrist away from him.
"Aoimori-san…" At the tone of his voice, she looked back up at him, anxiety and confusion written plainly on her face. "Aoimori-san, I'm not angry with you. I just need to know what you do. I can't help you otherwise." Hotaru shook her head and wrapped her arms protectively around herself. "I no need help. Thank you." She said, still shaking her head. "Ryou-san, now to leave. Please."
Not much else he could do without upsetting her, Bakura sighed and turned for the exit. "If you need anything, I left my number by your phone." That said he left her, her door quietly clicking shut after him.
Hotaru rose and went straight to the door, locking it and sliding the dead bolt in place. She was in no mood for any more surprises that night. After looking around her home for a minute, she ran her hand through her hair and sighed. The day had been awful, to say the least, and she didn't quite know how to handle it. So instead of dwelling on it, she walked to her room and collapsed on her bed, falling almost instantly into a much-needed sleep.
Bakura, on the other hand, couldn't stop himself from dwelling on the day's events. As he walked home, he mentally reviewed each and every issue. The first and most important concern, in his mind, was the obsession the rare hunters seemed to have for Hotaru. This was twice now they had come after her and caused her serious bodily harm.
While he knew the group to be malicious and vindictive, they hadn't reached this extreme level the last time he was forced to deal with them.
Second had to be her involvement with the rare hunters. It was well known that the rare hunters didn't bother people whom they both believed to be weak and saw no profit from harassing. Judging from what he saw of both her deck and skills, Bakura decided that she couldn't possibly have anything of extreme value in her deck nor did her skills to be exceptional to attract that kind of attention. What Bakura couldn't even begin to guess about was why she acted so strangely when he questioned her about the rare hunters. She had seemed panicky and nearly threw him out of her apartment the moment he had finished asking her.
Bakura signed and glared up at the sky, as if the solutions to these issues were supposed to have magically appeared by now. Oddly enough, he wasn't too worried about Yami having his own body. He reasoned that it was probably due to the facts that one, Yami had assured him that it was temporary, and two, Yugi and Atemu were never too far away to be able to stop Yami if he decided to return to his old ways. Not to mention, the spirit constantly acted like he despised Hotaru, so he determined that the Thief King would avoid her always now that he the chance to actually do so.
Meanwhile, Yami was circling a park, glaring at the pavement and stepping as if each fall of his foot was crushing some annoying matter. In short, this had to be one of the most ridiculous days of his life. And that was saying something considering just how long his life truly is.
"She manages to get herself kidnapped, again! She fought against the first set, why couldn't she stand up for herself this time?" He grumbled, balling his hands into fists. When he realized what he had just said, Yami stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and smacked the side of his own head.
"What the fuck am I saying? What do I care if she gets hurt? I should have let her die! Better yet, I should have killed her! That stupid foreigner has been nothing but trouble since the day she arrived! All she does is get in the way and cloud Bakura's judgment!" Yami growled as he glared up at the sky, silently cursing whatever entity caused this mess.
Eventually, the two teenagers returned to Bakura's apartment, arriving within minutes of each other. After a brief awkward silence when Yami realized he couldn't open the door without the key and glared sullenly at Bakura while he unlocked it, the two sat down in the living room, both of them knowing it was far from over.
"So start again, how were you able to get your own body?" Bakura questioned once he had made himself comfortable on the couch. Since he knew Yami had nowhere else to go, he figured he might as well settle himself in for a long conversation. "Why weren't you able to do this before?"
Yami groaned and ran his hands through his hair. While his lighter half was easily more docile, the teen had proven himself to be as stubborn as a dog with a bone when it came to certain issues. Apparently, that girl would remain a 'certain issue'. "I already told you, I don't know how it happened exactly. One second I was beyond pissed at the rare hunters, craving their deaths, and the next I was standing there in the flesh and able to beat the shit out of them." It was an honest answer, he just omitted it was seeing Hotaru battered that triggered his rage.
Before he could answer the second half of the question, there was a knock on the door. His face unreadable, Bakura crossed to the front door and opened it. From where Yami was sitting, he couldn't see whoever was at the door but he could clearly hear Bakura welcoming whoever it was.
A minute passed before Bakura returned to the living room, this time with Atemu in toll. "What the hell?" Yami was up on his feet; his fists raised and ready to fight. Instantly, Bakura was between the two Ancient Spirits, his hands raised as if to separate them.
"Easy Yami. I called and asked if Atemu would know anything about why you were able to disconnect and reappear in a physical form. He's not here to fight you." Bakura soothed, hoping that for once, his darker half would listen to him.
During this exchange, the Pharaoh just stood still with his arms crossed, an amused expression on his face. While he and Yugi were best friends and able to coexist peacefully, in his opinion Bakura and Yami merely behaved like children. Since Yami had stopped planning the destruction of the world as they knew it, it was slightly amusing to see his former enemy being kept by a mere child.
"It seems to me that in order for this break to have happened, Yami must have been motivated by something more than anger. Remember, we have seem him past the point of murderous rage while he has shared your body, Bakura." Atemu stated as the two lowered their hands and turned to him. Albeit, Yami had crossed his arms as well and was staring nonchalantly at the wall as if the Pharaoh's words mattered nothing.
"Yami. What are your intentions and feelings towards Aoimori?" Atemu questioned, fixing the Thief King with a piercing glare. Bakura started, surprised. "What does that matter?" At the same time Yami stated: "That is your business how?"
"I believe your feelings, whatever they may be, to that girl are what triggered you to channel enough energy and magic to create a body. So it is imperative that we label what they are in order to resolve this issue." When Yami continued to look reluctant, he added: "The sooner you cooperate, the sooner I will leave your home."
Yami scowled at Atemu for a moment before sighing and crossing his arms even tighter across his chest. "I hate her. I want her dead and gone. Preferably burned and scattered so that Bakura cannot drag me to her resting place. Not since you have I hated someone so much."
Atemu smirked while Bakura gaped opened mouthed at Yami. He knew his darker half disliked the girl, he didn't think it was to this extent however. Atemu, on the other hand, seemed to have expected that answer. "Are you sure it is hatred you feel towards the girl?"
"What else could it be? Every time I hear the wretch stammer I develop a headache."
"I believe you are in love with the girl. Or at the very least feel strongly enough to protect her at all costs."
