A.A.- Hey there. It's Chapter Ten! And you know what that means…uh…it means…it's Chapter Ten! Yay!

Reviewer Responses From A.A.:

Princess of Thieves- Haha…ouch. Why does it seem all my readers are getting hurt? I hate sunburn. Here in the beautiful state of NJ, it's not warm enough to get sunburn…sadly. I hope you're skin feels better! Thank you for the review!

Dark Magician Grrl- Same, same. Marik is- a lot of things. ;;; But ugly is not one of them, sadly. –sighs- Why do all the baddies have to be so shexy? (like my lovely Baku-kun!) Anyway, thank you so much for the review!

Cutehelenjames- Ack, that's not good. If someone called me fat..I'd probably throw something large and heavy at their head. Like a computer…or maybe my bookshelf. Thanks again for the review!

MaiValentinefan- Awww…I'm happy you liked it! Yeah, it will be coming to an end soon, but do not fret…enjoy whatever's left. Yeah. Gosh…spaced out there. Thanks for the pretty review!

Also thanks to everyone else: Dragonknighttara, hometweethome, Celestialfae, WillowFae, Mysteriya, Vladimir Lenin, Eternal Eyes, cherryblossms24, and everyone else who reviewed!

A.A.- Okay, I hope you enjoy the first double-digit chapter of this story: TEN! Yay!

Thanks to everyone!

X,X

Previously:

"Come now, dear," Marik whispered. "There's work to be done."

Tea's eyes filled up with tears as she reached her arm out to Malik, who by now, was on his feet.

"Tea!" he cried.

She sobbed. "Malik!" she called. Her body too, however, began to fade, and in only a matter of seconds, Marik was gone.

And so was Tea.

End.

X,X

Chapter Ten

The Shadow's Effect

Started: March 13, 2006

Completed: April 9, 2006 (What can I say? I've been busy. ;)

Darkness.

It was all that surrounded her: besides Marik, that is. She turned her head away from the vicious sprit whose hold was now on her left wrist by his right hand. He was clasping it so tightly, leaving a livid indent on Tea's skin.

The "apricot" shivered and bit her tongue. Marik looked around the darkness for a minute as he seemed to be looking for something- or someone.

Without any warning, Marik tugged Tea forward, and she tripped into his arms. He just chuckled quietly as he began to walk, pulling the little dancer with him.

They strolled along what seemed like hours of nothingness- a mixture of purple and black and gray- scintillating eerily.

X,X

They arrived at a building, large and golden, surrounded by shadowy gardens. Marik halted, and Tea, not knowing to stop, continued, but was stopped by the force on her wrist.

With an 'omph!', Tea was pulled backwards, tripping into Marik's arms. He nuzzled his head against hers, whispering something in Tea's ears. She instantly turned red as a shocked look appeared on her face.

He began to stroke Tea's hair, his muscular fingers running through her silky chocolate hair like a hand sifting through sand.

"Here we are, dear," he whispered to her, his mouth by her ear. She closed her eyes tightly, refusing to look at her "home."

Marik didn't quite care if she didn't respond, however. He laughed and nudged her forward with his head, adding a small kiss on the back of her neck.

Tea cringed and suppressed all sounds, falling forward a few steps, to the house's gate. Marik took hold of "his women's" hand, and pushed her inside, looking around quickly to see if any spirits had followed.

They had not.

He gave a small chuckle as he shut the large wooden door behind him.

Tea, too, peered behind her. However, it was not to see if there was an intruder…she was looking for a savior. In the back of her head, though, she knew no one would come.

X,X

He led her to a room. It was concealed by a wooden door, ramshackle with age. It seemed to cry out as Marik turned the knob of the door, revealing the inside.

"Welcome home, little apricot."

Tea cringed. She couldn't stand how the word 'apricot' slid off his tongue- so smoothly, so sickly.

The room itself was dark. The walls were built of brick, Tea observed, also worn with age. The rocks had various cracks and chinks, and the reddish tile was dented and fractured. There was a single bed in the corner. It was king sized, and covered by a large quilt. The quilt was a dark purple color, perhaps Marik's inspiration for his Rare Hunter's robes. The pillows were soft, white, and somewhat inviting.

There was also a small desk on the other side of the room. It's grayish tint made Tea believe it would topple over at any moment. There was a matching chair beside it. Scrolls lay carelessly on the writing table, covered in hieroglyphics. Seeing Marik's back turned, Tea slowly ran her finger over the unknown lettering. She let a small whispered cry as she felt Marik's arms wrap around her waist from behind. She cringed as she felt Marik's mouth come to her ear.

"This is…our room," he whispered.

Tea slouched in his grasp. She had given up hope weeks ago- weeks ago when she was in his reach for the first time. She felt herself drift deeper and deeper in this darkness that he called home.

He took one of his hands from his waist and stroked her cheek, brushing away the tears from her red cheeks. His muscular hand then ran through her sandy brown hair, chucking as he did so. His hands moved away, and she stumbled forward, her head gazing downward. She placed her hands on the wall; her remaining tears fell to the ground. She blocked out all sound as she fell to her knees, crumpled in a small ball.

When she turned around- he was gone.

X,X

He, indeed, was gone- out of the room- disappeared- whatever easy name you want to input. Tea's eyes were blank, however, the brown color still shown dimly from the inside. She held her head as dizziness overcame her. Ishizu was right: she was going insane…she was going to break soon.

Her purple top and skirt were stained in blood and tears, but Tea didn't care. It didn't really matter anymore. Her bare feet were dry from contact with the tough ground, and her eyes were red from crying.

Her sore eyes slowly closed as she slumped to the ground into an uneasy slumber that took her into the world of dreams.

X,X

She didn't know how long her period of pleasurable sleep lasted. It was over took quick, though, Tea confirmed.

She was no longer on the cold ground, however. Her body was on the large bed she had seen before. Tea felt strong arms around her. Also, she was sitting in a lap. She assumed it was Marik, and tightly closed her eyes again, not wanting to be "awake" in his eyes.

He laughed at her foolish attempt, taking his fingers and caressing her cheek from behind. Out of pure instinct, Tea melted into a puddle…involuntarily, of course. Marik chuckled once more at her body's reaction as his arms. She finally pulled away, staring at him as she turned around.

"Don't…touch me," she whispered, holding herself.

"Hm?" Marik asked casually.

"I said, don't touch…me!" she yelled, a confidence revealing itself from deep within.

He just laughed, brushing a piece of sandy blonde hair behind his ear. His hand reached forward to caress her cheek once more, but Tea's hand had stopped it.

He moved forward again with both hands, but Tea slumped back while glowering.

A loud sound echoed throughout the air.

Tea gaped.

She had slapped him.

The result rested before her. Marik stood in shock, a red spot on his cheek. He glared at her, a slight smirk crossing his face.

"I-I don't have to deal with you!" Tea stated, backing away. Marik chuckled as he approached her. Tea squealed and turned around, running out the door of the room, slamming it behind her.

She wouldn't let this happen. Never. He had already done enough to ruin her life.

X,X

Tea raced down the hallway, her sobs echoing throughout the gloomy darkness. She could hear his laughter bouncing off the walls behind her, but she chose to ignore it. She chose to, but to her dismay, it still affected her. She covered her ears, her heavy breathing filling her head.

She continued racing down the corridor for awhile, endless hallway after endless hallway- until she saw a door.

The door, itself, must have been seven feet tall; either that, or Tea had shrunk. It was a rich copper color, evenly painted over a rusty metal. The knobs each possessed a large eye- that of the Millennium Items.

Tea turned her head. Marik was catching up to her. She could see it psychotic figure about twenty meters away. She quickly jerked her head forward again and reached her hand out to grasp the eye. With a small groan, Tea twisted the old knob. She pulled with all of her might. It seemed to look her over for a moment: the door that is, to see…to see who she was? Tea's puzzled look continued as the door opened slowly for her.

The other side of the door was scintillating before her. A mixture of bright colors, nothing more, was on the other side. Holding her breath, Tea stepped through, and hear the door close behind her.

The last thing she heard was Marik's voice glowering at the door in anger. She prayed to herself that it wouldn't let him pass.

X,X

"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep."

Tea feverishly opened her eyes, waiting to see where she was.

"Beep. Beep. Beep."

The annoying sound continued. Tea's azure eyes peered around. She found herself in a hospital room. A figure stood in the corner, arms crossed, almost asleep in its standing position.

She thought she recognized the wild hair.

"M..Ma..Mal..ik?" she managed to whisper. Her throat throbbed in dryness.

The figures head turned, its eyes narrowing, and a smirk crossing its face.

Its white hair bustled behind it as it gave a small chuckle.

Tea's eyes widened.

She scowled, her voice becoming more confident.

"Bakura."

X,X

A.A.- I almost didn't write that ending. Haha…I was going to make this second to last chapter, really. But it's thanks to the reviewers that strange things like this happen. If anyone has any suggestions about how the next few chapters should go, please do tell me!

Oh, and lately I've been signing PMs and reviews "A.A." No, that's not my name. My name is actually Maddie. That's besides the point though- I'm sure you realized by now that A.A. is AnimeAddict99, shortened. So there.

Anyway, please review! I love reading them- and yes, I read them all! I also will respond to the ones that I feel need responding, as well as super nice ones. And flames! I respond to flames! (But that doesn't mean you should flame me. )

Till next time, happy reading!

3 A.A.