Bakura quickly discovered that he was right. He had absolutely no idea what he was dealing with when he agreed to work with Marik. The kid was both helpful and hindrance at the same time in the most baffling way. Bakura should have taken it as a warning sign when Marik's 'private place to investigate' was Marik's apartment that he shared with his older brother. Bakura called him an idiot for this and insisted they worked elsewhere. However, when Marik asked if that meant they would research at Bakura's place, Bakura quickly decided that Marik's apartment was good enough.
To make things even weirder, Odion and Marik were quite accepting of this new addition in their lives and Marik even asked Odion to get Bakura a key to the apartment. It was only when Odion informed his younger brother that only tenants and occupants could have keys did Marik drop the issue. The fact that Marik was willing to trust Bakura, a relative stranger, to keys to his flat was ridiculously stupid. The fact that Marik also knew that Bakura is a professional thief emphasized his stupidity. Bakura could hardly promise the brat that if he were given keys to his place that he wouldn't clean house in a few hours.
And so began Bakura's odd schedule of visiting Marik's apartment most days of the week. He initially insisted on only coming over when Marik was home, but Bakura quickly realized it was a pain trying to keep up with Marik's college schedule. And instead of a home visit from Marik, which would truly be the seventh circle of hell, Bakura could force himself to spend his time researching on his laptop from Marik's apartment.
Truth be told, Bakura didn't mind these quiet times when Marik was at classes. Normally during this time, Odion was either working as a security guard at the mall or reading at home. In both situations, Odion was a rather quiet presence. Both men didn't talk to each other and instead left the other to their own devices. Bakura stayed strictly in either the living room or the kitchen for meals. Though he knew where their bedrooms were, Bakura had no real desire to spy in on their lives anymore than he was already. This was a business operation after all.
It was as Marik was coming back from his classes that Bakura let out his frustration during his research. "Goddamn it. Schroeder lost the fucking Ring. He's so bloody useless – why the hell was he even hired?" Bakura grumbled out loud as Marik entered the apartment. "Who's Schroeder?" Marik asked as he kicked off his shoes. Bakura didn't turn to look at Marik, but instead leaned back on the couch, closing his eyes. "Someone who is even more effeminate than you and far too incompetent to be working in this field. He was picked off by some damn scavengers."
"Effeminate? What the hell Bakura? I'm not effeminate!" Marik dumped his bag as he went to the kitchen. He grabbed two sodas and tossed one to Bakura, who managed to catch it. Unfortunately for Bakura, Marik didn't stock alcohol in his fridge. That's a shame. It would have helped me with this headache this idiot is giving me. Whether Bakura was referring to Zigfried or Marik, he wasn't sure. "Do you really want to start this again, Marik?" Bakura closed his laptop as he fiddled with the soda in his hand.
"Start this? You were the one who started this!" Marik snapped as he plopped himself rather angrily next to Bakura, reaching over to the thief's laptop. Bakura smacked his hand away, giving him a rather threatening look. Marik only glared back. For as much as Bakura enjoyed the silence of the apartment, things became complicated when Marik came home. Their partnership was definitely a rocky one.
Gone was Marik's hesitance and modesty. Apparently how Marik had been acting around Bakura before was him being hesitant and modest. Instead, Bakura now dealt with a rather egotistical and outgoing youth who refused to be talked down to. That is when Marik realized he was being talked down to. Marik no longer tolerated being disrespected by Bakura and his insistence on being helpful sometimes ended up making him more of a pest than anything else. The two were still struggling to find the middle ground a week after agreeing to work together.
"Just drop it Marik." Bakura grumbled as he popped the can open. Immediately soda started to spritz out and Bakura quickly dropped the can to the table. Fucking hell. Of course the soda had been shaken up. Marik struggled to hide his laughter and Bakura gave him a deadly glare. "So is this Schroeder guy important?" Marik tried to conceal the smile on his face as a pensive look. "Not anymore. He initially had the Millennium Ring. But that arrogant son of a bitch was picked off by fucking scavengers. He's such an imbecile, it's frustrating."
Marik nodded for a moment, thinking. "Okay… what are scavengers though?" Bakura opened his eyes, realization crossing his face. Oh yeah. "Scavengers are professionals like us, but instead of excavating or extracting, they ambush, kill and take plunder for themselves. Instead of stealing from the elite, they'd rather wait for someone like me figure out the whole schematics and extract something. Then they target a professional thief in a vulnerable position and kill them, take their prize and run."
Bakura grimaced, let his face show his anger. "They let specialists like myself do all the hard work before pouncing at the last minute to lay claim, hence the name scavengers. They take what's leftover. That's why they're all cowards." Marik furrowed his eyebrows, but didn't reply. He seemed to think about what Bakura told him. Bakura continued to glower until Marik broke his thoughts again.
"Should we be worried about scavengers?" Bakura glanced over at Marik momentarily. "Not particularly. You always need to keep an eye out on then, but so long as we keep a low profile, it shouldn't be a problem. Schroeder wouldn't know what discretion was if it came up and slapped him in the face." Marik cocked his head at that one. "But wouldn't that be an oxymoron. We have to be scavengers to take out scavengers to get the Ring. How is that any different from what they did? It's kind of oxy-moronic." Bakura just rolled his eyes. "You're oxy-moronic," he muttered under his breath.
Marik's head flipped around as he glared at Bakura, but decided to ignore the comment. "So we need to figure out who these scavengers are. That's the place start then." Bakura chuckled softly. "Luckily for us, Schroeder was in Domino to meet with a correspondent when he was robbed. And there are only two scavengers of note in Domino who would be on this case – Rex and Weevil. Fucking scum of the earth." Bakura spat out that last part. This would be a pain in the ass, but at least they knew whom they were dealing with.
Marik gave Bakura an unimpressed and annoyed look. "You're going to have to be way more specific than just names, Fluffy." Bakura growled, but decided to flip open his laptop. He clicked through his files until he found a document, pulling up details on the two lower-class thieves. "Just read this. I don't feel like talking to you." Marik just rolled his eyes as Bakura before leaning down to read.
Bakura grabbed his soda, which had calmed down and was finally drinkable. He leaned back and closed his eyes. Marik was not a particularly quiet person – he would tell Bakura when he was done reading. It was fairly simple and straightforward. Weevil and Rex had formed a partnership. They would research and spy on their fellow thieves to get the scoop. They picked their target, waited for them to make their move. In Domino, Bakura was constantly aware and careful. Nothing was more embarrassing and degrading than to be taken down by a scavenger.
As for the individuals themselves, Rex and Weevil were fairly similar individuals. Both were rather short and spiteful. It was bizarre that these two individuals who were known for backstabbing many in their field had formed a partnership. Weevil often acted as the intelligence operations while Rex focused more on the technical side. Bakura was familiar with how they worked. He had always kept a careful distance to stay out of their view. But now, it appears he would have to track them down. Thankfully, he wasn't entirely lead-less.
"Rex was a doctorate student in paleontology? Why the frig is he a robber now?" Marik asked out loud, his face betraying his complete bewilderment. Bakura just shrugged. "Don't know and don't really care. Weevil was an entomologist before ditching the lab coat for a lock pick. Don't question the motives of your enemies. People make their choice and have to live with the consequences." He glanced at Marik who nodded slowly, but his thoughts seemed lost elsewhere. Bakura watched the youth reflect on his words, wondering what might be going through that confounding mind of his.
"So we have to track these guys down. Any idea where to start?" Bakura smirked, glancing over at Marik. "Hypothetically, two places. Grab your coat. We're going for a walk." He got up and didn't wait for Marik. He threw on his black jacket and kicked his shoes back on as Marik scrambled behind him. "Hey! Just where the hell are we going?" The young Egyptian demanded as he grabbed his jacket. Bakura laughed out loud, enjoying Marik's frustration.
"We're going to go see a magic show and afterwards, we'll check out that American pub off near the city square." Bakura walked out of the apartment and didn't look back, his white hair flowing behind him. He heard Marik quickly follow in step. "Isn't it a bit early to get drunk?" Marik asked dryly as he zipped up his coat. "Not for drinks, you idiot. We have a couple of rendezvouses with some folks who might be able to help…"
That Friday afternoon flew by quickly and soon it was nearly nightfall. Bakura fell in step next o Marik, holding a plastic cup with some flat beer in it. Marik had yet to end his incessant chatter, talking about his classes and humming songs. Why Bakura hadn't just left Marik at this point was beyond him. Perhaps he was still feeling rather depressed on their unsuccessful afternoon of research. And by research, Bakura meant interrogation.
Absolutely nothing. Five hours of standing around and questioning and hassling for nothing. They had paid a visit to Arkana before his show that evening, cornering him and demanding for knowledge. The man knew nothing of Rex and Weevil. To make things worse, afterwards they went to the American bar, where the bartender Keith Howard apparently had made recent contact with Weevil and Rex. However, apparently "Bandit Keith" was nothing more than a show name to give him street cred – he never had met the two thieves in question.
So much for that lead. Fucking Seeker probably made up those tips to get me off his case. He had gotten the information from another source that he dogged for information. Seeker had played hard ball and Bakura had thought he came out triumph when he confessed to knowing something. These leads ended being dead ends. Either his leads were wrong or he was just stringing Bakura. I don't even have time for this bullshit. I need to find Rex and Weevil before they make contact with their seller.
Bakura had been careful to leave this part out to Marik. When scavengers steal a product, they usually go for an immediate transaction to make a quick buck. Whichever buyer makes the best bid in a short amount of time wins. Rex and Weevil won't hold onto that Ring for long. They likely had a week or two before they would sell the Item. Once that happens, there would a shit ton more planning and preparation for infiltration and extraction. It was best to catch them before the trade.
At this point, it pretty much came down to Bakura to figure this out as far as he could tell. Marik wasn't going to be particularly helpful. He didn't know anyone in town. He didn't know the right questions to ask. What Marik had was monetary funds. This confused Bakura as the brat didn't seem to come from money. But when Bakura mentioned wanting a rather expensive program to protect his server, Marik had been eager to help pay for it. Bakura didn't know much about Marik's past. The same could be said about Marik regarding his knowledge of Bakura's past. But it's hints like that made Bakura suspicious and frustrated. If only he had some actual skills.
"Bakura! Are you even listening to me?" Bakura finally stopped and forced himself not to roll his eyes. Speak of the devil. Marik had stopped walking behind him and Bakura had walked passed him unaware. "What do you want Marik? I'm not in the mood to deal with your antics right now." Perhaps Bakura was becoming too honest for his own good in dealing with his partner. "But Bakura! Look!" Bakura sighed, dreading what he might see.
Of all things to expect, Bakura had not anticipated seeing Marik pressed up against the glass looking into a store. "Doesn't this place look amazing?" Bakura raised a brow and started walking towards the window. It took him a moment before he quickly recognized the store. "You stopped me to look at a game shop? Seriously?" He stared down Marik as he looked excitedly into the store window at all the games and merchandise.
"Can we check it out? I just want to look!" Marik asked unable to disguise the excitement in his voice. Bakura just gave an exasperated sigh. "No we cannot. I'm tired and I don't feel like standing around in a store waiting for you to look at toys." Bakura just closed his eyes as he ran a hand through his hair. "You don't have to come inside! You can wait here and I'll run in and take a look." Bakura paused momentarily before replying. "It never works that way with you. I'll eventually have to go in and drag you out of the store. And frankly I don't feel like doing that today."
Bakura was careful to mention the other reason why he didn't want to go into the store. This shop happened to be the Black Clown game store – the same store where Ryou worked. Bakura had avoided the topic of family with Marik and never once mentioned his secret twin brother that he guarded. Though he suspected that Marik was rather harmless by himself, he did not want Marik knowing about his family. Not to mention the horror of Ryou realizing this is the same Marik that has been calling Bakura all week. Damn brat is making even my home life a nightmare.
"Come on, Bakura! Just a quick peak and then we'll be out!" Marik whined, still not giving up. Bakura felt the twitch of a headache coming on. He decided it was time to get moving again before Marik really got going. He walked next to him. "No. Let's go Marik. Don't make me drag you." Marik turned his head to pout at Bakura, but still didn't move from his spot looking into the store. Bakura just glared at the youth in the glass, but Marik didn't say anything as he continued visually exploring the store. That's it. "Come on! You fucking ass…" Bakura grumbled, placing a hand on Marik's back to herd him along.
The reaction was instantaneous. Marik spun around and quickly smacked Bakura's hand away. There was a panicked look on Marik's face as he backed against the glass, away from Bakura. Bakura pulled his hand away, but didn't move or say anything, instead watching the youth. Marik's lavender eyes were wide, almost shocked by the action before averting his eyes. He turned his face slightly to avoid looking at Bakura, wrapping his arms around his stomach.
"Umm… please. Don't do that." Marik's voice sounded so soft and quiet compared to his usual energetic self that Bakura wasn't sure how to handle the situation. He carefully studied the defensive posture Marik took, unsure how this all happened. His first guess was that Marik didn't like to be touched, but that didn't explain why Marik's touchy-feely attitude, constantly touching Bakura or invading his personal space. Bakura never tried to do the same, but it still didn't explain Marik's stiff position. The hell…
Whatever the reason was, Bakura knew it was his fault. Although Marik was rather annoying and the idea of suffocating him in his sleep definitely seemed appealing at times, Bakura didn't like the scared and almost sad look on his face. He suspected if he asked Marik what this was about or tried to push for answers, he wouldn't get far. He probably would make the situation worse. Bakura pushed his hands into his pocket, looking away from the cowering youth. Damn. What the fuck do I do now?
After several moments, Bakura decided to do something to break the intense silence. "Five minutes." Marik looked up, startled by Bakura's voice. "What?" Bakura sighed, closing his eyes. "Five minutes. In the store. That's it. Got it?" Marik stared at him for a moment before a grin grew on his face, his arms dropping to his sides. "Yes! Thanks Bakura!" He smiled at Bakura before running to the front door. Bakura closed his eyes. This damn kid is making me go soft. Fantastic. It's better than dealing with a mopey Marik, I suppose.
Bakura followed into the store, dreading the moment when Marik meets Ryou. He supposed it was inevitable, but all the same, it would have been nice to keep that a secret. It would definitely make things complicated. He looked around the store as Marik looked all sorts of different games, unable to decide. From card games to Monster World to Dungeon Dice Monsters to video games to everything in between – Marik flitted from shelf to shelf with the enthusiasm of a child.
As he walked around the store, he noticed strange dark decorations, like a grotesque fun house. He heard Justin Timberlake playing through the store. He found it odd that the store emphasized Dungeon Dice Monsters, seeing more promotional material for that product than anything else in the store. Bakura couldn't think of anyone he knew who played the game, but then again, he wasn't an avid gamer. Not like his brother. Speaking of which…
Bakura glanced up at the cash register, expecting to see his brother. Instead, he was grateful to see Ryou's boss, Ryuji Otogi. He leaned casually against the counter with a bemused look, surprised to see his employee's twin in his store. Bakura didn't usually visit this shop. "Ryou isn't here, you know." Otogi gave him a dry smile, his green eyes glistened with amusement. Bakura smirked back. "Oddly enough, I'm glad he's not here. Then he wouldn't have to deal with my pain in the ass friend over there." Bakura jerked his head back at the curious and energetic Egyptian behind him.
Otogi leaned over to glance at Marik, chuckling. "The great Bakura has friends now? You always struck me as the loner type, not a pack wolf. Especially not one with a lively friend like that." Bakura just rolled his eyes. Otogi occasionally saw Bakura from time to time, but seemed okay with the cool and somewhat polite understanding they had. They didn't particularly push into each other's business. In Bakura's book, individuals like that rank high in his list of least annoying and tolerable people.
"He definitely isn't my type. But time and circumstances lead me to make strange companions, as unfortunate as they may be." Otogi gave him an understanding look, as if he understood what it meant to deal with annoying people. Bakura glanced back at Marik, his face filled with delight as he tried to solve a puzzle ball. Although Bakura wouldn't admit it, he definitely preferred an energetic and happy Marik over the depressed and scared one he saw earlier. It was strange – he thought he would enjoy seeing Marik suffer. In some ways he did – Bakura loved to get under Marik's skin and annoy him. But seeing Marik act like a hurt puppy rubbed Bakura the wrong way.
"Fair enough. I know enough business assholes to know what you mean. So how's life otherwise?" Otogi stretched his arms about his head, his black bangs falling back from his face. They fell back into his place, his dice earrings shaking slightly. Otogi was such a pretty boy – Ryou had described him as every teenage girl's heartthrob. Bakura always found it odd how young his twin's boss was. He appeared to be no older than him, and yet he owned a game store. He remembered Ryou mentioning that Otogi also was a game designer, but Bakura couldn't remember what games he worked on.
"Not too bad, I suppose. Could be a lot worse. Business has been good though." Bakura smirked to himself. Otogi had no idea what Bakura did for a living. Ryou told him that his twin was a freelance technician and an avid collector. What he collected was up for debate. "That's good to hear. Things have been rather slow lately. I'm actually supposed to meet with a potential client to help advertise one of our store products, but he delayed our meeting."
Bakura nodded his head sympathetically. "That sucks." Otogi snorted and nodded along with him. "Yeah it does. Not to mention, I've been having problem with people loitering outside the shop. Just yesterday, two short, nerdy jackasses were hanging around hassling some kids who wanted to come in. Ryou had to practically drag those two idiots away." Bakura instantly perked at the description. Two short, nerdy jackasses? Could it be… "Rex and Weevil are in the neighborhood?" he repeated the question he asked mentally, trying to keep the interest out of his voice.
Otogi nodded, looking a bit surprised that Bakura knew whom he was referring to. "Yeah, they used to be big name competitors a couple of years ago, so I'd seen them around here quite often. But maybe two years ago, they stopped competing and I guess they got into some real shady shit now. I hadn't seen them in awhile, but it looks like they are back in this neck of the woods. They were loitering around on Tuesday, and they were back yesterday, scaring away customers. Which is exactly what I don't need." Otogi sounded very bitter, spitting out the last sentence.
Bakura was quickly thinking over what Otogi just told him. Rex and Weevil were around here recently. Maybe they were looking for a buyer? Whatever the case, Bakura could work with this. He could keep an eye on the streets. They would likely frequent this area a few more times looking for customers. The only problem was Bakura was a fairly well known professional. Most common people wouldn't know it, but Rex and Weevil knew who he was. He would have to be careful in his approach.
I'll figure it out. I can work with this. There were details he would need to iron out, but this was the best lead he had on the two scavengers. Once he got visual of them, he could track them and effectively spy on them. Once he gathered Intel and prepared his equipment, they could go in for the extraction. They could steal the Ring from those damn scavengers. It would likely be more dangerous – other thieves in the field are usually armed and aren't afraid to fight dirty – but Bakura could do it.
The two men stood in silence as they watched Marik run about the shop, each with their own thoughts. Bakura figured he had given a sufficient amount of time for Marik and it was time to herd him out of the store. He pushed off the counter and walked over to Marik. "All right. Time's up. Let's go Marik." Marik nodded, but didn't move away from the game he was looking at, his eyes narrowed in concentration. "Okay. How does this game work?"
Bakura glanced down at the box in Marik's hands, and almost laughed. "It's a Pop-Up Pirate game. You take turns sticking the plastic knives in the barrel until the pirate is launched out of the barrel. Then that person's out and whoever is left wins. R- I used to play this with my friends back in grade school." Bakura carefully smoothed over the slip-up, thinking fondly of the times him and his twin used to play this game.
Marik's face lit up. "That sounds awesome. Can we play?" Bakura paused for a moment. What? "Marik, this is a game meant for kids. You're technically an adult. Try acting like one for once." Marik turned to meet Bakura's eyes, his eyes large and his face pleading. Oh fuck no. I'm not dealing with this. "Bakura, please! This sounds like fun!"
Bakura quickly snapped back, his calm demeanor quickly deteriorating to anger. "Fuck no. We're not getting the game!"
Marik just pouted. "Fine. We won't. I'll get the game then!"
"Go right ahead. It's your own damn money you're wasting."
"Yeah… about that… Bakura?"
"Fuck. No. I'm not buying you that game."
"But Bakura! Please! I don't have the money on me to buy it. I won't ever ask you for anything again!"
"Like hell you won't. You'd ask me to buy you every meal, every day."
"Bakura! I'll stop bugging you if you buy it for me!"
"What part of 'fuck no' did you not understand?"
"Bakura! Aren't we friends?"
"That's irrelevant to the conversation. I said no. Now let's go."
"But I want the game! Please!"
"No!"
"Bakura, plea-"
"FINE!" Bakura was so far gone at this point that he didn't even care. He didn't give a shit if Marik actually got the game – he was trying to make a point. Apparently that had been useless. Marik cheered as he ran to the counter with his Pop-Up Pirate game, Bakura slowly following. He pulled out some cash and ignored the bemused smirk on Otogi's face. Great. Now him and Ryou will be gossiping about my personal life. Fan-tucking-fastic.
Otogi thanked them for their service and Bakura found himself trailing Marik back to his apartment. It was already dark. Bakura would have left to go home if it weren't for the fact that his laptop was at Marik's apartment. So he unfortunately was stuck with the brat for a little while longer. The entire time, Marik was talking excitedly to Bakura about god knows what. He suspected it was something related to the new game that he carried back. I enable him. There's my problem right there.
When they got to the apartment, Bakura brushed past Marik, setting out to pack up his stuff. Marik sat down to set up his new game, sitting in the middle of the living room. Bakura maneuvered around him as Marik was fully engrossed in his task. Before Bakura could reach the door to leave, he heard a nasally voice call his name. "What the hell do you want now, Marik?"
"We're going to play Pop-Up Pirate!" Bakura was beyond being angry. He was just tired now. He wanted to go home. He would have to get up and do research tomorrow. He needed a break from Marik. "Not now, Marik. I'm tired and I want to go home." He heard the distinct sound of a whine. "But Bakura…" Oh no. Not this again. Bakura just growled in frustration.
"Fine! Fucking fine! One game and then I'm out!" He dumped his bag unceremoniously on the floor and plopped down across Marik, glaring at the plastic barrel with a pirate inside. Marik cheered over his victory, a rather smug smile on his face. He knows he's getting to me. Great. Just what I need. "Great! Okay! I'll be blue, you can be red! Let's do this!" Marik took on an intense look, carefully studying and staring down the barrel. Bakura recognized that look as the one Marik would make when he researched. There was something amusing about the intensity in which Marik took his games. He'd get along great with Ryou. Not that those two would ever meet.
Bakura snorted and took his red plastic knives. He stuck one in at random, knowing that it was luck more than anything that would win the day. A couple of turns later, Marik jumped back as he stuck one of his knives in and the pirate came popping out, startling the youth. Bakura chuckled at Marik's reaction. "Looks like I won." Marik just shrugged and laugh. "Care for another round?"
Bakura raised an eye, waiting for the whiny tone or the pleading look. He didn't get that. He saw Marik as relaxed and happy as he ever is. Normally, it would piss him off to no end. But there was something carefree about it. Something about Marik's attitude that was actually helping Bakura unwind. Normally he felt defensive and prickly, as if Marik in a good mood was always the enemy. Instead Bakura felt comfortable.
He sighed. "Fine. One more game. That's it." Marik gave Bakura a warm smile. Bakura got an odd sensation, but brushed it off as he raised an eyebrow. He nodded his head for Marik to start the game. One more game wouldn't hurt.
