Unknowing Torture

Yami raised an eyebrow at Bakura. "I take it this Shiroi person is not as reliable as he might be?"

"Not hardly," grumbled Bakura. "For a Blue Eyes White Dragon, he certainly doesn't have the dignity or reliance of one."

"He's a dragon?" Yami asked with slight awe. "You are acquainted with such a powerful being?"   

Bakura nodded, making an offhanded gesture. "My guardian spirit. Who, according to his note, is in the midst of being screwed by your guardian spirit."

Yami, to his credit, did not blush. "Oh." And he left it at that. He changed the subject. "So we're not able to leave this realm yet?"

"Not until tomorrow, I guess." Bakura grumbled. "If I still had the Millennium Ring, we could be out of here already, but it disintegrated when you died."

Yami raised an eyebrow, a silent request for more information. Bakura shrugged.

"Far as I can figure," said Bakura, "all your power was put into the Millennium items in Egypt, so you could take it with you to your next life. Then when you died in that life, all your power came with you here, and the empty vessels just… fell apart, since they weren't needed anymore."

"This is all far too confusing…" Yami muttered. "Well, so long as we're stuck here for the night, we might as well attend to something I know and understand." He walked out of the courtyard and down the hallway, followed closely behind by Bakura.

Trying to pretend he was not watching Yami's butt as the Pharaoh walked, Bakura asked, "And what would that be?"

"Relaxing," Yami said, smiling faintly at Bakura over one shoulder, his eyes glinting with that faint teasing sparkle Bakura knew so well. "It has been a long day, for both of us, I imagine."

Two young and pretty servant girls pulled open the curtains that covered the entrance to a lushly decorated bathing chamber. Yami paused to remove his sandals, walking barefoot over the polished stone floor to what Bakura assumed was supposed to be the bathtub. Which looked to be more of a nice sized swimming pool.

Bakura was struck dumb as the Pharaoh began to calmly undress, tossing his garments to one side as he slipped into the water. Frozen with shock, the thief could do nothing but stare and try not to drool.

Yami looked genuinely confused at Bakura's behavior. "Is there something the matter? Not in the mood for a bath?"

Finding his voice, trembling though it might be, Bakura muttered hastily, "Um, maybe I should just wait until you're done…?"

Yami laughed. "No need to be so modest, we're both boys here, nothing to worry about."

Nothing to worry about, he says. Bakura figured he'd better do something, and quick, before his legs gave out and he made an even bigger fool of himself. As Yami occupied himself with bathing, Bakura chastised himself for being a complete wimp, pulling off his clothes and getting into the water as well.

For all the intimacy of the both of them naked and relaxing in a warm bath, Yami seemed oblivious. It wasn't all that odd a thing in the ancient world, which was the only era Yami's memory could recall at the moment. Bakura was having a far harder time at pretending such an occurrence was no big deal.

He was starting to wonder if the situation he was in would classify the shadow realm as being more like heaven, or more like hell.  

***

Yugi was having a hard time falling asleep. So far their trip to Egypt was a total bust. They'd gotten to meet real live duel monsters, sure, but they'd been unable to help with getting Yami back. And Yugi didn't think Bakura was taking it very well.

Gently poking Seto in the side, Yugi whispered, "Seto? You awake?"

"No," said Seto. He opened an eye as Yugi started to shake him. "What's the matter, Yugi?"

"I want to check on Bakura," Yugi said, snuggling up to his boyfriend.

"Why?" asked Seto with a yawn.

"I'm worried about him," said Yugi.

"Why?" Seto asked again. He couldn't quite figure why Yugi cared so much for the tomb robber's well-being. Bakura certainly had never been nice to him, or any of them, really.

"Please Seto?" Yugi pleaded. "I just wanna check on him."

"Alright, alright…" Kaiba muttered, stretching before getting out of the bed. Yugi hopped out of the bed as well, near running to the door and out into the hallway. Still sleepy, Seto trudge along behind.

A very sleepy Ryou opened the door when Yugi pounded on it. "Y-yugi? Something the matter? It's three in the morning…"

"Is Bakura in there?" Yugi asked. "We just wanted to check to be sure he's okay…"

"Yugi wanted to check," Seto clarified, trying to cover up another yawn.

Ryou looked over his shoulder at the empty room, a little bewildered. "No, Bakura's not here… that's odd…"

"Not that odd," said Seto, following Yugi into the room. "We'll probably find him tomorrow morning, locked up in some Egyptian jail."

Yugi found Bakura's knife on the floor, the blood on the blade still fresh. Swallowing, he tentatively picked the weapon up. "Or an Egyptian morgue…"