Ok, I almost didn't write this, but thanks to a few late reviewers, I managed to delve back into this world for the sake of this chapter. Of course, now I want to do more, and I'll include a bit of a teaser at the end of this one. I'm not going to thank all my reviewers individually this time, because quite frankly, I really want to get this out there. One or two chapters more on this one I think, and I may, may do a sequel.
But to the two who really gave me that recent shove, those without whom this chapter would never have happened, SkaleFlapper15 and IkutosGirl, I thank you.
Everyone else rocks too! 3
'Kay, i admit, I'm drawing off Queen Of the Damned almost exclusively for this chapter. If I write another, it'll be more Charlotte centred, and will go back to the Witching eliment. Everyone was confused about Ryou so... taadaa is an explaination!
And Then
An overnight flight, a limousine traveling in darkness, brought Ryou, Charlotte, and Andrew to the Talamasca motherhouse in London. Ryou had said nothing, clutching the puzzle and staring out the window, or perhaps at the specks of dust on the window. Charlotte assured Andrew that she would not be missed, her only living relation was her sister, who lived with an Aunt across town.
They would return for the funerals, but for now, time was needed. No one was unscathed, no soul unchanged. They had to take stock, to put the past into the past, so that, each in their own way, they could move on to the future. The long, luxurious car carried them up the lengthy drive of a huge mansion.
Charlotte ran her fingers through her technicolor hair. She had slept on the plane, while Andrew stared forward, lost in thought, or watched the silent Ryou. Her eyeliner was smudged, the least of her worries at the moment. They'd had time to change clothes during a layover, so Charlotte was wearing simple tight fitting jeans, and a black t-shirt. Andrew had chosen the clothes for Ryou from the bag they'd had the hotel forward to the airport. Ryou himself was uninterested in the whole procedure, refusing to release the puzzle despite the difficulty it created. He's ended up in a simple blue top and darker blue pants of ambiguous material. He'd curled up in the car, his feet on the seat, his hair falling around himself like a veil. Andrew was back in the suit and tie ensemble, having replaced the torn shirt he'd used to bandage Charlotte.
The car came to a smooth stop. Their driver opened the door, and one by one, they stepped out. Andrew led the way, completely at ease. In the night, the lawn was lit throughout, revealing the complex and beautiful landscaping. Through the large Oak front doors with their elaborate handles they passed, into a classic English entryway, with comfortable chairs and a long soft rug covering most of the dark wood floor. Here and there were people in the chairs, a lamp lit behind them, and books or file folders held in various comfortable manners.
"I will return in a moment; I must secure rooms for you both. There are always plenty to spare in the Motherhouses; they are so big, after all. Ryou's will, of course, be one of those we've set aside for others like him. Yes, there are others. We will talk later, you and I." He climbed a large solid staircase at the other end of the entranceway, not bothering to glance into any of the doorways to the left or right. He knew his way.
Ryou and Charlotte stood abandoned in the middle of the room, both distinctly aware of the other people, or, more specifically, aware of the general effort to avoid staring. Andrew had called ahead, they remembered that, and it seemed to explain the abnormal number of people awake at this time. There was the lingering feeling that everyone's thoughts were on them.
It wasn't long, thankfully, before Andrew returned. He'd brought a woman with him, middle aged and not stern, not mean, yet… strong. That was really the best way to describe her.
"Charlotte, this is Bernidette. She will escort you to your room, and if you would be so kind as to talk to her, she is here to help you. She will explain things more fully than I have thus far. Ryou, you will come with me." Andrew placed a hand on Ryou's shoulder, as Charlotte was led away by this new woman, both of them ascending the wooden staircase.
Ryou and Andrew, however, passed through a door on the left, finding themselves in a huge library.
"You can feel free to browse here at your leisure for nights to come, if that is your wish. There are a few specific volumes I would like you to look at in particular, but all in good time. For now…"
They wound through isles of books, coming to a large thickly constructed shelf near the back. Andrew slid this aside, revealing an ascending stone stairway.
"This ensures that you are not stumbled upon. We do not want another situation like… like Mark's, I'm sure you understand. While under our roof, you will harm no-one, unless they are here for that expressed purpose."
Ryou nodded as they climbed, but the reminder brought thoughts to the foreground, desire and a thirst that refused to be ignored.
"What is happening to me?" He mumbled brokenly.
Andrew looked upon him with pity. After all, few of us have much say in our lot in life, but Ryou had had none at all. This curse was thrust upon him, and now, the boy had only two options. Live with it… or die. So many like him had chosen the second option., but then really, there was only one other truly like him. Or was she?
At the top of the staircase, a doorway opened to a cosy room. There were chairs, but no bed. A bookcase stood full of an assortment of texts, from popular fiction to encyclopaedia references. Along one wall was a large hearth, deep, designed for the burning of wood. A pile of logs and kindling was there now, at the ready.
"We try to keep this room prepared at all times, to offer shelter to those in need." Andrew explained, lighting a match and starting the fire. He turned to Ryou, Andrew silhouetted by the growing flames.
"You must have many questions. I will answer as best I can, for that is our paramount goal. I ask only one thing in return; that you freely and openly answer those questions of my own." Andrew sat in a large, comfortable red armchair by the fire, and gestured cordially that Ryou should take the seat opposite him.
Cautiously, Ryou did sit, though he shied away from the fire. The glare was… not painful, no but, uncomfortable. The thirst, the craving rose in him again, at the sight of firelight dancing across the curve of Andrew's chocolate skin.
"Resist, Ryou. Know that you would kill me if you give in to it." Andre cautioned.
Ryou nodded, eyes wide. "But, I don't understand what… what's happening, why do I… and where is Bakura?"
Andrew sighed. "The full explanation is a very long story, you can find it buried within those books, on the middle shelf. The shortened version, however, is this. Once, long ago, a king and queen attempted to confront a bloodthirsty demon. They were attacked, not by the demon, but by traitors within their own court. This was in the early days of the Egyptians.
"Those traitors accidentally provided this demon exactly what it wanted; blood, and in large volumes. He entered the Queen's very bloodstream, the tiny cells and particles that form him merging with hers and changing until he was no longer himself, and her blood was no longer blood. The core of the powerful spirit, his seat of consciousness, became one with her heart, her mind. In that moment, her wounds were healed, and a powerful thirst sprang up. She took her husband and drank his blood, but in despair of his dying, she gave him the blood back through her wrist. The nature of the spirit in her was huge, virulent. It spread, making his remaining blood like unto its own. The core remained in her, however.
"She created a religion from this, gave her curse to others, and in time, rebel drinkers of the blood sprang up, spreading over the earth. Only recently, this queen was destroyed, and the core taken into another, lest the entire line be destroyed."
Ryou shook his head, confused. "What has all this to do with me?"
Andrew frowned, thoughtful. "Well, nothing. And everything. Nothing, in that you are not of this line. If the current queen, the current mother, dies, you will not. However, I believe that the same sort of event that changed Akasha, the queen, so many years ago, has also changed you. In fact, I am almost certain of it. However, you may differ from them. It was a different spirit after all, and he entered your blood for a different reason. He may have been seeking more strength, or perhaps he sought to heal you, to save you, though through need of you or concern for you, I do not know. Whatever the matter, the result is the same. He is no more, save for the part of him that resides in you. The part that animates you, and in fact, now keeps you alive. Your body is dead, Ryou, and only your blood lives. Your blood, his blood, running through every muscle, through your brain, your eyes and ears, this blood that demands more of itself, more blood to use, to continue the change upon your flesh that is ongoing. The sun will probably kill you; it kills the others unless they are very old. That is why there is a chamber beneath the floor here, utterly closed off from the light, where you can sleep for the day. The bars on the windows are for your protection; often the Blood-drinkers come here seeking safety from their enemies."
Ryou stared, open mouthed. He didn't have obvious fangs, Andrew noted, until his eyes drifted again to the curve of the Investigator's neck. Then, like those of a snake, two thick points hinged forward from sheaths of flesh at the roof of the mouth.
"That's different." Andrew muttered.
"What is?" Ryou asked, snapping out of his temporary stupor.
"Your teeth. The others have modified eyeteeth, the third from the centre, often called the canine teeth. You… are somewhat more elaborate."
Ryou groaned.
"Are your attempting to tell me that I am some sort of Vampire?" Ryou asked, disbelieving, with a half-laugh. He remembered only too clearly what he's done to Mark, however.
Andrew looked very serious, grave. "Some sort, yes, I believe you've phrased it well."
"Well what do I bloody do now? You say this blood is all that's keeping me alive, and I can very well guess how I'm supposed to feed it, but I'm not a murderer!" Ryou had risen, and paced back and forth as he shouted, gesturing animatedly in a way that was most unusual for him.
"Calm down, Ryou. We don't want anyone hurt, and I don't want you breaking furniture."
Ryou's eye twitched, he looked almost ready to explode. In fact, his attitude was very much like that of…
"Ryou. Control yourself. I need you to tell me, who was this Bakura to you? Why did this spirit borrow your appearance, and attach himself to you?" Andrew asked, rising from the chair to tower over the angry pale one.
"He was my dark, my other half! He was me, I mean, in ancient Egypt, he was me, but a ritual sealed his darkness within the ring. The light was left to re-incarnate, until finally, the ring, he, came to me. He told me about it. The same thing happened to Yugi and Yami." Ryou choked. Yugi and Yami.
He calmed down a great deal then, plopping himself back into the chair. Andrew, relieved, resumed his seat as well.
"So, this may be seen in another light now. Perhaps he did what he did… to be whole again. He was not a foreign invader, an alien spirit attaching itself to a complete soul. He was, without being aware of it I'm sure, bringing the two halves of your soul together. His core and your core are one. As a result, I suspect a slight change in your personality. You are him, in a very real sense, and he is you." Andrew spoke as if he were just realising what he was saying as he said it.
"No, he isn't me! I am NOTHING like him!" Ryou slammed his clenched fist into the chair's arm. He broke it.
Ryou started sobbing. "He killed my friends. How can I accept that he is part of me now? That means I killed them, doesn't it?"
"No, it does not. You are not him, the violent, the mad. Nor are you yourself, the meek, the pure. You are who you were meant to be. Balanced, save for this new reality that has been thrust upon you. You may need his instability, his calculating darkness, to survive what is to come, whatever that may be. I know one thing, though. If you do intend to live, you will have to kill. On that note, I have advice. Prey only upon those who are truly evil and corrupt. The murderers, rapists, drug dealers, you know the type. This will save your conscience, and mine as well." Andrew leaned back in his chair, pressing his fingers together to form a kind of steeple.
"We can store your golden artefacts in our vaults if you would like, and we will return them to you at your request."
Ryou was startled. He'd forgotten about the sennen items. They were here though, the ring and the puzzle. "Thank you for your offer. You may keep the puzzle here, but the Ring… that is mine. I will not surrender what is mine."
He hung the ring around his neck, comforted by its golden weight.
"Ah. It would appear that he is in you, after all." Andrew commented.
Ryou's eyes flashed to him, a deadly warning clear behind them. Ryou was not angered by a lie, though. He was furious, because Andrew could see the truth, and now, Ryou could as well.
"The others. Tell me about the other kind. Are they a threat to me?" Ryou asked, politely, but with force.
"They could be. There are places you should avoid, individuals who guard their territory fiercely. I do not know your strength, but I can assume it is more than a fledgling among them, yet not nearly the strength of one who is even two hundred years old. You are just starting on your path. What you will be able to do in time, no one can tell you."
Ryou nodded. "So for now, I should avoid them? And you said two hundred… how long can they live exactly?"
"Forever. Or so we assume. Most kill themselves, to be honest, but some have survived since the time of the Queen. Like marble, they are the red-haired twins."
Ryou lapsed into silence, mentally processing all he had been told. Slowly he became aware of an agitation. His eyes drew away from the window of their own accord, and a dim light in the room itched at his eyes like grains of sand.
"I-I think the sun is rising." Ryou said uneasily, glancing toward the spot in the floor where he could escape it.
"Then I will leave you to you rest. I must see how Charlotte is coming along, though she has probably fallen asleep long before now." Andrew rose, and crossed the room to the stairway. He paused at the top, and turned back.
"Know this. We do not normally allow those such as yourself to harm any under our roof. Your situation is, however, unique. You will not be safe for us until you have fed. When you awake, there will be a suitable man waiting for you." Andrew frowned in distaste, as if he found the whole thing quite appalling but was too polite to show it more plainly.
"Farewell, until tomorrow night." Andrew descended the stairway, disappearing from sight. Ryou slid the stone slab on the floor loose, escaping the growing light the only persistent thought on his mind. He did not cringe from the narrow place, but slid gratefully into it, using his palms to lift and slide the stone back into place. Rubber seals blocked out all light. His eyes closed, and he slept.
So,
Remember that teaser I promised? More an idea that popped into my mind, really. Yami died in Yugi's body. Yugi was in the puzzle at the time. Soooo… oh ho the intrigue! And Ryou will still be around when Yami re-incarnates, right? OHOHO!