Bakura felt disgruntled as he washed himself for what felt like his hundredth shower in the dirty, scummy shower of Cabin 1. Although Bakura had not intended to take Marik's advice literally, the water was much colder than what he was accustomed to. The freezing water did nothing to soothe his aching muscles from sleeping on the ground, nor his frustration. Frankly, Bakura was sick of being cock-blocked. Granted, the more rational part of Bakura's brain knew that he had smelled like garbage during his first attempt to hit on Marik and covered in tomato juice for his second, but he couldn't help feeling the slightest hint of hurt.

Bakura pushed his troubled thoughts to the back of his mind. After rinsing his body of soapy residue for the fifth time, he lifted his arm and sniffed the underside. He smiled in relief when he could not distinguish the scent of either tomato or skunk. Turning the faucet, he climbed out of the shower and grabbed the towel hanging on the wall. Bakura smacked his lips as he wrapped the towel around his waist. The rotten taste in his mouth reminded him of his rather unorthodox dining experience in the woods. He brushed his teeth with a liberal amount of toothpaste and gargled some minty mouthwash for good measure. Looking around the small washroom, he realized that he had forgotten to grab a change of clothes on his way in. He met a surprise as he entered the sleeping room of the cabin.

"Oh, hey Bakura!" Marik chirped as he lay on his stomach in his bottom bunk, reading what looked suspiciously like Yaoi.

"Hello, Marik," Bakura droned dully. He began rummaging around in his bag that lay near his and Marik's shared bunk bed, not bothering to come on to Marik this time. "Where are Ryou and Melvin?"

"I think Melvin said something about having an ice cream from the cafeteria 'on' Ryou. I guess he's making Ryou pay for it or something."

Bakura shook his head. "I'm must have a serious talk with your yami, before he gets my hikari pregnant." He pulled out a pair of velvety gray sweatpants. Marik shoved his comic book under his pillow and rolled over, averting his eyes while Bakura dressed. The cabin's lack of air conditioning made the room so hot and humid that Bakura opted to go without a shirt.

"Going commando today, Bakura?" Marik asked, still facing the wall.

"I usually do, Marik." Bakura slid the pants on.

"I'll keep that in mind."

Bakura ignored the flirtatious tone in Marik's voice. "You know, I should probably go check on my yadonushi."

"Wait, don't go."

"…Why?"

Marik rolled back over, a mischievous smile on his lips. "I have something to tell you."

"What is it?"

"Come closer."

Bakura grunted, but he decided to play along. He stepped close to the bed.

"Come on, closer…"

Bakura leaned forward, close to Marik's face. "Now, tell me, what- Mmph!"

Both of Marik's hands shot up to grab fistfuls of Bakura's wet hair, pulling him into a hungry kiss. Any resentment that Bakura may have been harboring for Marik melted away. His eyes fluttered closed as he kissed back passionately. The hands released their vicious grip on the clumps of Bakura's saturated locks and grabbed his shoulders. One pull was enough for Bakura to climb into the bed on top of Marik. Marik smirked into the kiss, trailing his mocha hands further down Bakura's creamy back. Bakura smiled as well, pleasantly surprised by Marik's forwardness. Bakura licked Marik's bottom lip. Marik's lips parted, allowing Bakura's tongue to slither inside. Their tongues pressed against each other playfully, and each thoroughly explored the other's mouth. Suddenly, Marik rolled over, reversing their positions. He pulled back for a moment, panting.

Marik grinned broadly, staring into Bakura's eyes. He nuzzled into Bakura's neck, taking a deep sniff. "Mmm, you smell like you again, Fluffy."

Bakura smiled teasingly. "We could have done this sooner, you know."

"No way, you stunk! I was afraid that I would throw up on you or something," Marik countered. He lifted his head and softly kissed every bit of Bakura's face, from his cheeks, to his forehead, to his nose.

"Well, I suppose you have a point," Bakura mumbled, closing his eyes. He lay peacefully, preferring a shower of Marik's kisses over a real shower. Marik shifted down and nipped playfully at Bakura's neck. Bakura angled his head to give Marik more access, but he refused to open his eyes. He was in pure bliss.

This serenity was interrupted when Marik gave Bakura's neck a long slurp, from the collarbone to the jawline. Bakura's eyes shot open as a moan bubbled past his lips.

"Marik! Oh, Marik, I love you!"

Marik paused and lifted his head to look at Bakura. Bakura turned at least four different shades of red upon realizing what he had said in the heated moment. They stared at each other for a second before Marik gave a deviant smirk.

"Oh, so you like that, huh Kitty?" Before Bakura could protest, Marik shifted his body further down, effectively allowing their crotches to rub together, which cut off Bakura's complaint with another groan. Marik's head hovered over Bakura's chest, his pink tongue poking out ever so slightly. He looked up at Bakura teasingly while Bakura panted.

"Well, get on with it!"

Taking Bakura's invitation, Marik lowered his tongue until it just barely grazed Bakura's chest. He opened his mouth and licked slowly, leaving a trail of saliva from the left side of Bakura's chest to the right. Bakura shuddered as Marik licked sensually at his right nipple. He finally closed his mouth around it and sucked, careful not to use his teeth, while he pinched the other lightly. Bakura arched his back into Marik's touch. "This couldn't get any better."

Of course, just as Bakura mentally predicted, it didn't get better after that. The door slammed open. A tiny gasp was heard before obnoxious laughter rumbled through the cabin.

"Oh… oh my."

"Yeah, way to go hikari!"

Marik glared up at his yami. "Melvin, can't you see we're in the middle of something?!"

It looked as though Ryou and Melvin had just finished doing 'something' as well. Ryou's face was flushed, and his hair was so ruffled that it almost looked like his yami's. Melvin's clothes were also a little rumpled, and his smile was far too big to be about anything innocent.

"Ryou, you have some whipped cream left on your neck," Bakura commented drily.

Ryou blush grew deeper as he moved a hand to wipe it off. "Oh, let me get that, Ry-Bunny." With an impish smirk, Melvin swooped down and left a sloppy and wet kiss on Ryou's neck.

Ryou jolted at the contact and gave Melvin a light shove. "Mel- Bear, not in public, please."

Marik chuckled. "Oooh, Mel- Bear?"

"Ry-Bunny?" Bakura raised an eyebrow.

Ryou smiled sheepishly and put a hand behind his head. "Yes, well, we just wanted to let you know that Ann and Marie want to speak with you."

Marik rolled his eyes and groaned. "Ugh, fine, we'll be out in a minute."

Melvin gave them a nod before scooping Ryou up bridal-style in his arms. "Come on, Ryou-kun, I think you deserve an ice cream 'on me' this time." He carried Ryou away before he could protest.

Once they had left, Marik reached his hand over the side of the bed and rummaged around in Bakura's bag, refusing to get out of their current position immediately. He pulled out a plain white t-shirt and handed it to him, placing one more kiss on Bakura's pale chest before climbing off of him. After Bakura pulled the shirt over his head, he and Marik exited the cabin only to find Ann and Marie waiting for them directly outside. The counselors' decision surprised the pair.

"You're sending us home early?" Marik asked, his eyes wide.

Marie nodded. "Yes, your bus will be here soon to pick you up."

Bakura tried not to look too relieved. "Why are we leaving?"

Ann stared at him in disbelief. "You two have caused trouble ever since you arrived! It isn't fair for us to jeopardize the enjoyment of the rest of the campers just because you can't behave!"

"That, and, we felt a little sorry for you guys. You really have some rotten luck," Marie added, smiling sympathetically for once.

Ann sighed, calming down slightly. "Besides, it's clear that you two have already fulfilled the purpose of this camp. You've worked together and spent time with your partner to form a stronger bond."

Marik sweat-dropped. "Yeah, um, I guess I can't argue with that. Although, technically, we didn't really use teamwork when I saved Bakura's butt over and over."

"Hey, I saved your butt just as many times as you saved mine!"

"Yes, but my rescues were much more impressive."

"What are you talking about?! Those bees could have killed you! The snake that you 'saved' me from wasn't even venomous."

"So? I still saved you from a bear. A frigging bear!"

"I saved you from a rabid skunk!"

"Please, I would've been fine if you hadn't overreacted. And it wasn't rabid, just very protective of its mate."

"Which you were too busy cuddling to even notice the vicious animal about to tear into your flesh!"

Marie perked up at the mention of the skunks. "Wait, did you say that you were cuddling a skunk?"

"Yes, it was unusually friendly."

"And, it never tried to spray you?"

"No…do you know this skunk, Marie?"

Marie smiled sadly. "I used to have a domesticated skunk that liked to roam. You say that she has a mate?"

"Yes, at least, we think they were mates."

"I guess that's why she never came back…" Marie looked towards the woods, her expression thoughtful, before she glanced at the road down the hill. "Oh, it looks like your bus is here. You'd better get your stuff together."

Bakura and Marik gathered their belongings and loaded them onto the bus. Ryou and Melvin stood outside near the bus and waved as it left. Melvin donned a devilish grin, probably happy that Bakura would no longer be able to interrupt his 'activities' with Ryou. None of their other classmates seemed particularly affected by the pair's departure, however.

Marik leaned his head against the window. "Thank Ra, it looks like our luck is finally turning around!"

"What's wrong, Marik? Weren't you the one that said camping would be fun?" Bakura teased.

Marik wrinkled his nose in distaste. "Are you kidding? We've been on some pretty boring field trips before, but none of them were as excruciatingly painful as this one! Everything went wrong."

"Oh, come now, Marik. Surely you can think of one part of this field trip that went right." Bakura shifted so that his leg grazed Marik's.

Marik looked up at Bakura, giving him a small smile. "Alright, maybe something did go right." He gave Bakura an affectionate kiss on the ear. "I did get you to admit that you love me."

Bakura felt his face ignite at the memory. "Th-That was purely a physical response!"

"I don't know, that was a pretty comprehensive statement to simply be a 'physical response,'" Marik purred, nibbling and sucking gently at Bakura's ear. Bakura grunted and turned his head, effectively taking his ear out of Marik's reach. He didn't want Marik to see his red face, the result of both Marik's valid accusation and his sensual touches.

Bakura felt Marik grab his hand, lacing their fingers together. He turned to look down at their hands before turning back to Marik. Marik's sweet smile was enough to weaken Bakura's gruff façade. He smiled slightly and squeezed Marik's hand.

"Florence?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too," Bakura blurted out, the words tumbling out before he could stop himself.

Marik let out a little squeal, wrapping his arms around Bakura's neck. "I knew it! Aw, you big softie."

Bakura growled quietly, still feeling embarrassed. "Whatever, anyway, we're going to be on this bus for the next five hours. What do you say you cut the chatter and make that mouth of yours useful?"

Marik nodded, his smile growing. He kissed Bakura tenderly on the lips, but he pulled away before they could deepen it. "Hey, wait a second, I just thought of something."

"You were thinking? That sounds dangerous."

Marik ignored the comment. "I've been kissing you this whole time. I want you to kiss me."

"Uh…" Bakura looked away, suddenly shy for some reason. "Maybe I don't want to kiss you."

"What? Why not?"

"Well, Ra, just because you're so eager to slobber all over me doesn't mean I necessarily have to do it too."

Marik smirked. Even if Bakura hid his face, Marik could still see the back of his pale neck burning. Without warning, Marik slipped his hands under Bakura's shirt and started tickling him.

Bakura jumped at the tingly sensation. "Ahahaha!- M-Marik!-Ahahahah!- S-Stop that!" He tried in vain to scoot away from Marik's fingers without toppling from his seat.

"Not until you give me a kiss!" However, Marik's attack didn't last for more than a few moments before Bakura began tickling his exposed midriff. "Ahahahahaha!- Ba-Ahahahaha!-Bakura!"

Bakura smiled evilly, backing Marik up against the window under his relentless barrage of tickles. Marik made unsuccessful attempts to grab Bakura's hands or start tickling him again, but in the end, all he could do was try to cover vulnerable parts of his body.

Meanwhile, Bakura thoroughly enjoyed having Marik sweaty and out of breath under his ministrations. After a while, he forgot about what had started this tickle fight in the first place, and, pinning Marik's wrists, he leaned down and planted soft kisses on his midriff. Marik smiled triumphantly as he panted. He didn't remind Bakura that he had won, since he knew that Bakura would stop if he called any attention to it. Besides, Bakura himself was worth more bragging than the result of any argument.

Author's Note: Alright, so this was the end of Bakura and Marik's experience at camp. Do not worry, the final chapter, a brief epilogue, is coming soon!