Chapter Fourteen

Apparently, Joey dueled and beat Rex Raptor. I missed everything because I was busy trying to sleep through my nightmares and guilt. He won a new, very powerful card. It was night and there was full moon by the time everyone reached camp. I was just waking up and was starting to feel better, aside from the stinging of the cuts.

It was nice to have everyone there with me.

After telling ghost stories to try and ignore our hunger, Mai Valentine showed up and offered to share her food with us. She organized everyone and got a campfire going. Joey started to cook and she showed Tea where a makeshift shower was. While we stood guard outside the shower, Mai chatted to Tea, trying to be friendly.

I showered quickly after Tea and changed into jeans so I wouldn't bother the cuts. We met back around the campfire and ate slowly.

When Yugi tried to talk to Mai, she snapped. "Any duelist in my way is going down!" she declared. "Now, if no one minds," she stood up, "then I'm going for a walk."

"Man, she can really ruin a meal," Joey said, as Mai walked away.

When we were done eating, the bushes began rustling.

"Come on out, Mai!" Joey said.

The bushes began to rustle again and someone walked out.

Bakura.

"Bakura?" I asked, shocked. "Oh, my gosh! I tried so hard to find out if you were coming here. Why didn't you tell me?" I hugged him tightly.

"I told you I saw Bakura!" said Tea.

"Geeze, Bakura," said Joey. "You really gave us a scare. For a second, we thought we had something to worry about."

Bakura only smiled and we offered him what we had left of the food.

We all sat around the campfire and Joey looked through his deck. He showed me his new red eyes black dragon card and I congratulated him.

"What happened to your face, Olive?" asked Bakura, motioning to the cut.

I sighed. "It's a long story," I said. "But I ended up running through the forest and some of the branches cut me. You should see my legs."

"I'd love to," he said, teasingly. He grabbed my calf and knocked me backwards. I caught myself with my elbows and laughed.

"Joey," said Yugi suddenly. "You've been staring at that card for almost an hour. What gives?"

"I'll tell you," said Joey. "But you have to promise not to make fun of me. Sometimes, when I'm in a duel, I pretend it's me out there on the field swapping blows with whatever card my opponent has out." He laughed. "Isn't that dumb?"

Bakura smiled. "Well, if you were, which card would you want to be, Joey?" he asked.

Joey picked the flame swordsman. Tristan said his favorite was the cyber commander. Tea looked through a deck and picked the magician of faith as the card she could identify with. And Yugi picked the dark magician.

Bakura looked at me. "What about you, Olive?" he asked.

I laughed. "I don't identify with any of them," I said. "I don't even know how to play. If we were talking about historical figures or mythology or something then maybe I could identify, but no duel monsters."

"So which card do you care about most, Bakura?" Yugi asked

Bakura held up a card. "This card is my favorite," he said.

"Isn't that the change of heart card?" asked Yugi.

I studied the picture. It was a girl who had a heart floating above her palms. Half of her was shadows and had a black, bat-like wing. The other half, in light, had an angel wing.

"Interesting," I said.

"That's sort of a weird looking picture," said Joey.

"I like it," I said, making a face at him. I wanted to stand up for Bakura, whose eyes had narrowed every so slightly.

"Oh, I forgot," said Joey. "Olive likes her life bipolar."

"If you want to see how it works," said Bakura, ignoring both of us, "we could have a duel right now. It wouldn't be for star chips. It'd just be for a little fun."

"Sure," said Joey. "I'm down with that."

"Why don't you guys put your favorite card into Yugi's deck?" Bakura suggested. "Then it will be like you're all dueling together."

"I'll sit this one out," I said, scooting back a little bit.

"Okay," said Bakura, with a sideways glance at me. "Don't be too sad if you miss out on the action, Olive."

"Don't worry," I said. "I won't."

"With this all star team of cards, we're going to be tough to beat," said Yugi.

"True," said Bakura. "But maybe I'll surprise you."

From a little ways back, I watched the way the fire threw shadows across Bakura's features. Something in his eyes seemed different.

"Are you sure you don't mind dueling alone?" asked Tea.

"Not at all," said Bakura.

"Don't worry," said Joey. "We'll go easy on you."

"Thanks," said Bakura. "Before we get started, there's a little something I'd like to share with you all."

That was when I saw it. Something in Bakura's features and demeanor transformed. You could see the change in his eyes and in his smile. It was like when Yugi dueled, only this time, it was much, much darker. Bakura held his hands over his chest and the air seemed to shimmer. A millennium item appeared around his neck.

"No," Yugi said, suddenly looking fearful. After what had happened with the millennium eye, I felt my heart skip a beat too.

"Bakura," I said, quietly, moving closer to them.

"The magic of my millennium ring will take us to the shadow realm," said Bakura.

"Bakura!" I cried out. "Don't do this."

"Shut up, gorgeous," said Bakura, in a rough voice. He grabbed my wrist. The air shimmered and suddenly, everything around us was shadowing and dark.

"Man, I hate magic," Joey murmured.

"Why are you doing this, Bakura?" Yugi asked.

I tried to pull my wrist away, his grip was too strong.

"You have something I want, Yugi," he said. "And I aim to take it!"

I watched Tea, Yugi, Tristan, and Joey freeze and then collapse.

I screamed. "What happened?"

Four beams of light shot into Yugi's deck.

"Bakura," I said, still trying to pull away from him. "What did you do? What have you done?"

He stood up and grabbed my other wrist. He pulled me towards him until I was close enough for him to grab me firmly around the waist. We were so close. He pushed my hair out of my face and pushed our hips together, grinding against me, with a grin.

"Do you know how much he wants you?" Bakura asking, tauntingly. "This mind that I possess? He thinks about you all the time. I don't think you understand, but it's such a strong desire. It drives it into my mind. Makes me crazy. Drives me wild. It makes me want you too. At least he picked someone beautiful," he murmured.

I tried to get away from him, but he held me tightly. "You can't do this," I whimpered. I closed my eyes. "People don't get possessed," I said. "This isn't real, this isn't happening. There is no such thing as magic."

I felt his breath on my face as he leaned closer to me. He touched my face, running his thumb over the cut that hadn't healed yet. He pressed harder and, for a second, it felt like he was pulling the cut open again. I felt a little blood trickle down my cheek. And then I felt his tongue on my face. He licked the blood up.

"What are you doing?" I asked, trying to pull away.

"Tasting you," he said. Then he threw his head back and laughed. He pushed me to the ground and shadows twisted my arms behind my back and over my legs so that I couldn't move. "But, I'll save you for later," he said. He walked over to the unconscious bodies of my friends and looked down at them. "Their souls have been locked away," he explained to me, "and now, after waiting for centuries, the millennium puzzle will be mine." He reached for it.

The puzzle began to glow and Yugi sat up. Yami sat up.

"No!" Bakura cried. "It can't be!"

"If you want my millennium puzzle, you're going to have to duel me for it," Yami told him. "But if you lose, you have to free my friends' souls and let Olive go. She does not belong to you."

He glanced at me. "Oh, she will," he said, his eyes glittering darkly. "I can promise both of you that."

"Why didn't Olive's soul get locked away as well?" asked Yami.

Bakura circled me, surveying m thoughtfully and smiled. "She is an ancient soul," he said. "Can you not sense it? She has great power."

"And power is something you lust after," Yami spat.

He laughed. "It is not the only thing I lust after," he said.

"Bakura, why have you done this?" asked Yami. "Why have you taken us to the shadow realm?"

Bakura laughed. "Bakura," he said. "Bakura is no longer here."

"If you're not Bakura, than who are you?" asked Yami.

"I am a thief and a stealer of souls," said Bakura. "I have done terrible things in my quest to possess the millennium items. You do remember the legends, don't you? Whosoever wields all seven millennium items will possess power unimaginable. Before I'm done with you, your millennium puzzle will be mine."

"That's not going to happen," said Yami.

The first card Yami played was the cyber commander. Only when it appeared on the field, it was Tristan. Bakura quickly attacked and destroyed him. Bakura laughed.

"Looks like that card has been defeated," he said. "And your poor friend's soul was trapped within it." He turned his head toward me and smiled. "What do you think so far, my love?" he asked. "I know you love that I am powerful." I opened my mouth to respond, but he snapped his fingers and the shadow stuff covered my mouth like a gag.

"What did you do with Tristan?" asked Yami.

"Your friend is gone. He's on his way to the graveyard, as we call it in duel monsters," Bakura said, darkly. "So, which of your friends will you sacrifice next?"

Yugi played Joey's favorite card next. The flame swordsman. Joey attacked the first card and then sprung one of Bakura's traps. Both of them had to draw new hands.

"With a new hand comes new perspective," said Bakura, laughing to himself.

Yami played the dark magician, which turned out to be the small Yugi.

He turned and looked up at Yami.

"I knew it," I thought. "I knew there were two of them. How did I know that? What did Bakura mean that I was an ancient soul?"

The duel continued until Bakura played the change of heart card. Bakura's favorite card. He explained, spitefully, to Yugi that he was going to use it to make him kill his friends.

"I won't. I refuse," said Yugi.

"You won't have a choice in the matter," said Bakura. He glanced at me. "Comfortable, Olive? How do you like your front row seat? Maybe one day I'll show you how to experience the change of heart card first hand."

The change of heart card appeared and it was good Bakura.

"I want to help, but we must act quickly, Yugi," said good Bakura. He floated into the card that his evil counterpart had on the field. "I am controlling one of his cards, instead so you can attack me and win this."

"I can't," said Yugi. "It would send you to the graveyard."

"I don't care," said Bakura, with pain in his eyes that made me want to cry. "It's better than being enslaved by an evil spirit. Do it!"

"Be quiet!" the evil Bakura snarled at him.

"I have a better idea," said Yami. His millennium puzzle began to glow and good Bakura switched places with evil Bakura. "Listen, Yugi," said Yami to the little Yugi-Dark Magician down on the field. "Use the power of the dark magician. Send him to the graveyard."

Evil Bakura looked at me and smiled a very evil smile before stumbling back and screaming as he was destroyed.

The shadow realm faded away. I was left kneeling on the ground, free to move again. Shakily, and nervously, I walked over to Bakura and hugged him. He hugged me back.

"Are you okay, Bakura?" asked Yugi.

"I am now, thanks to you," said Bakura, smiling.

Yugi smiled. "Good," he said. Then he asked, "Where did you get your millennium ring?"

"My father picked it up on one of his trips," said Bakura. "He said it's from ancient Egypt. I think that's where they're all from. He was shopping in a merchant bazaar when the millennium ring caught his eye. The man who sold the ring to my father said it had something to do with duel monsters, but that never made any sense to me since the card game is new and the ring is clearly ancient. When my father got back, he gave it to me. He said he felt I was destined to have it."

"Possession," I commented, dryly. "What a great destiny."

We heard Tristan, Tea, and Joey begin to wake up and looked over at them. Tea was rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"I just dreamt Bakura went totally mental," said Tristan.

"Same here!" said Joey. "Last time I snooze with dueling cards under my pillow."

"Sleep well, guys?" asked Bakura, with a big smile.

"Bakura!" Tristan and Joey yelled, jumping into each other's arms and then pushing each other away. Everyone laughed.

"I dreamt we were dressed at duel monsters," said Tea. "Except for Olive. She was tied up by…darkness. And there were two Yugi's."

Bakura and Yugi laughed nervously.

They were about to say something, when a scream cut through the night.