Disclaimer: I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh GX
Title: Of the Darkness: Chapter 12: Speaking Shadows
Family: Ryou & Shou
Other Characters: Camula
Word Count: chapter: 1,031||story: 13,648
Genre: Family, Supernatural||Rated: PG-13
Challenge: Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section J, #006, multi-chapter with 15-25 chapters; Written for the One Sibling Boot Camp, prompt #50, shade
Notes: It's an AU. It involves vampires.
Summary: Shou invites his brother in after Ryou returns from a long trip away. That is his first mistake. It only gets worse from there.


From the shadows surrounding him came a deeply amused laugh. No matter how Shou twisted and turned, he couldn't find where it came from, much less who it came from. He twisted himself around in the chair, trying to at least get comfortable while he figured out what was going on, still staring into the shadows.

He might have been right about how strong you are, the voice mused, and Shou could not help but associate it with the feeling he'd had whenever that awareness he'd never liked stared at him. Though you're not nearly as strong as you should be, being his brother.

Shou's head snapped up and he glared in the direction he thought the voice came from. "What are you talking about?" His memories hadn't fully filled themselves in yet, but he knew that he had a brother and that his brother cared deeply for him, and vice versa.

You still don't remember, of course. I am not surprised. He very nearly sated his thirst with you. As he should have. The words sliced through the air, though Shou also could not have said if he heard them with his ears or his mind. They seemed a strange mixture of both.

"Make some sense!" he demanded. "Who are you and what do you know about my brother?"

I know that he belongs to me, and that you belong to him now. Again there was laughter, and it wasn't any more truly amused or happy than any other time had been.

"I am not anyone's property!" He knew that quite well, regardless of what else he didn't now. "What makes you say that?"

Ghostly fingers touched the side of his neck. Shou jerked around, staring, still hoping to get some glimpse of whoever this was. He thought he saw a fleeting shape, an image that could possibly be that of a woman, but nothing more, and the shadow, if that was even what it was, faded away the moment he noticed it.

Because it's true. He did not change you, but he has tasted your blood and you have tasted his. You will do as he says. Again a smooth, amused chuckle. Not that you ever did otherwise. But now you have no more choice in the matter.

Shou shook his head, ignoring the pain that surged in his neck when he did so. "You're still not making any sense!"

Only because you no longer remember what you saw or what has been going on. But if you did, you would know exactly what you are now: his slave. You will serve him without question, protecting him to the best of your ability.

Shou wanted to protest even more, but the words refused to pass his lips. The idea of not helping his brother in any way that he could just wasn't one that he could actually think. That didn't have anything to do with being a slave, no matter what this strange woman insisted. It was just what was right in the first place.

Of course you think that. You always would. Such a good little slave you are. Almost as good as he is to me. The slave of a slave? I doubt that's happened very often. It wasn't meant to happen now.

He thought she sounded annoyed by that. Shou still couldn't move around a great deal; working his way to the chair took more of his energy than he'd thought it would. Now that he was there, he saw something else that he didn't like. Or to be precise, he didn't see something and the fact he didn't see it he didn't like.

He'd wanted a window to look out on the world through. There weren't any windows in reach of the chair. He'd thought there were, but either his memory – such as it was right now – proved faulty or he'd seen things in the first place. He had no idea of which it was.

I have never tried to command a slave of my slave, the voice mused onwards, as if speaking to herself more than to Shou. I wonder if I can. Stronger than ever, that presence turned attention toward him and Shou knew without a doubt that she was that presence. Oh, yes. I watched you as he does. I can see whatever he sees, hear what he hears. He is my puppet, my sweet little doll.

Shou threw his head back and forth even harder. "Leave my brother alone!" The harder he fought, the more he could feel memories trickling in, starting with days of long ago, when he and Ryou had been children.

No, child. My little pet belongs to me, and since you belong to him, that means you're mine as well. I look forward to seeing what I will have to do in order to make you understand both of those facts. It shouldn't take too long.

Shou tried to get to his feet, but his legs refused to work properly, doing little more than shuffle against the flagstones. He tried harder, hoping this wasn't something that she was doing to him to keep him where he was. If it was because of his weak he was, then he could get over that, he could get stronger again, but if she were causing it?

"Shou?" His brother's voice. Shou looked around eagerly before he recalled that the other presence, her presence was still there. He started to shake his head.

"Ryou -" And a sensation as of a long-fingered, cold hand pressed itself against his throat.

No, little slave. I think it's time that you both acknowledged who your queen is. You'll say nothing at all. While Shou could only feel the hand and not see it, that feeling was as strong as if flesh itself touched him.

Ryou's footsteps hadn't changed, as silent and absent as the grave. One moment he wasn't there and the next he was, looking first at the bed, then turning until he saw Shou seated in the chair.

"Shou, what are -" His own words cut off, his eyes widening with a shock of fear that Shou found far too familiar. "Camula..."

To Be Continued