Chapter 21: Playing the Witch( Give or Take the Letter 'B')
Akefia smiled brightly.
"NOW! Melvin, do you have everything?"He asked, beaming with excitement as he looked to Melvin.
Melvin checked his bag, and resisted a sigh. They were leaving to go get Kyrah today, and it was something he was not looking forward to. Especially because the night before, he had to stay in his own room, which Tamara wasn't happy about.
"Not quite. I'll be right back."
"I'll be waiting out here!" Akefia called, making calls to certain people about jobs he was postponing.
Melvin crept past Tamara's room, praying she was still asleep, and went into his room, giving a sigh of relief as he made it into his room without anyone bothering him.
He quickly scanned the room and through drawers, looking for something.
"Looking for this?" Tamara asked, standing in the doorway to his closet, holding the small bag, one of the drawstrings hooked around her index finger.
Melvin sighed, and walked over to her.
"Yes. Why do you have it?" He asked, and she looked up to him with angry eyes. He took a different approach.
"I know you're upset that I have to leave right after you got your voice back-"
"It's not about my voice, dammit! It's about you trying to leave without telling me goodbye, you ass!" She snapped, and Melvin rolled his eyes.
"I knew you'd act brash towards it, so I avoided it for the better health for everyone."
"You mean avoiding me?" She scuffed, and glared.
"No, Tamara, for everyone's better health! Fighting about it isn't healthy, and you're wasting my time now, Akefia's waiting."
"I don't give a fuck about Akefia!"
"Please, may I have the bag?" He asked, holding out a hand for it.
Tamara dashed around him, running to the other side of the room.
"NO." She hissed, and Melvin lowered his eyebrows in an annoyed way.
"I don't have time to play games, Tamara. Please, just give me the bag." He extended his hand again, but she tried to run again, this time being caught by Melvin.
He had tackled her and pinned her to the floor, his teeth barred.
"I don't have time for games Tamara, now give me the bag." He repeated and Tamara huffed.
"No. It's the least you owe me...For trying to leave-"
"Fine. Keep it, but just don't lose it." Melvin said, and let her go, walking to the door.
"That's it?" Tamara asked, baffled.
"I don't have the time to play your games. I have to leave in a few minutes, so you can spend that few minutes fighting me for attention, or just telling me goodbye." Melvin said, and turned to look at her.
Tamara's jaw was dropped, and she looked surprised.
But it turned sour, and she glared at Melvin.
"Fuck you!" She spat, giving him the finger and running to her room, slamming the door.
Ryou walked into Melvin's room with a sympathetic look.
"I'll take care of her when you're gone..."He mumbled, and Melvin nodded.
"Thanks." Melvin nodded, and walked out to meet Akefia.
"About time. Let's go." He hopped into the forest, but Melvin looked back at the lab before following.
When he came back, this place wouldn't be the same.
He sighed, and followed Akefia.
Allen sat in Isis' kitchen, waiting.
"So you know? You've known this whole time?" Allen asked, and Isis nodded, sitting down.
"Before he even knew it was happening. My brother's smart, just not too accepting with how he feels...Something happened some time ago, and even though it wasn't his fault, he doesn't want it to happen again. He's cautious with everything..."
"But with her...?"
"My brother, I'd like to say, loves her more than anything he could describe. He'll protect her until the day he dies, like he protects me..."
"So he loves her like a sister...?"
"No, I mean, he loves me like a sister, because that's what I am, but with her, it's different. With her, he loves her in a way that he doesn't want anything to happen. Her being her age, and from what you've told me, strengthens that. I'll ask him more when he gets back though, if it will please you."
"I personally don't care, I just want to know they're both going to be okay."
"Yes, I assure that they will...The best way I can assure...My brother will let nothing bad happen to her, and I'm sure he's worked some type of safety net into her brain before he left..."
"Safety net?"
"Something to keep her safe and away from trouble. Even though this is Tamara, my brother has his way with keeping people the way he wants without them noticing. Makes me wonder what he's worked on Tamara while he's gone."
Allen fell silent. His 'worries' were for nothing, but that wasn't the reason he was here.
"Isis...I have a question."
"Don't worry, I'm free." She smiled, and he sighed.
"Saw the future?"
"Yup. You wanted to ask me out, Friday we're going out to 'shadow hike'. It's going to be fun." She smiled, and Allen chuckled.
"You read me like a book."
"Correction, I read the future like a book."
"Either way, it's a book you're reading."
Ryou knocked on Tamara's door, and she shot him a glare.
"What?"
"I heard you and Melvin today..."
"You eavesdropped! Dammit Ryou!" She spat, and Ryou sighed.
"Look, I was actually on my way to see Melvin by myself, I didn't mean to...But...You know why he didn't want to say goodbye right?"
"He told me exactly why. I don't need to hear it from you." Acid dripped from her words, but Ryou ignored it.
"He didn't want to have to see you hurt..."
Tamara stopped. What was in the bag? He carried it with him everywhere, never left it anywhere, especially not somewhere she could find it. She only rarely saw him look at the small silk bag, and when he did, he thought she was asleep. But to leave it right there? In the open? Didn't seem like him.
Maybe he knew that she knew about it, and decided to let her keep it? But he came back for it before he left, that couldn't be it...
She sighed, and looked at the bag. Maybe this was him testing her. To open it, would mean invading his privacy and secrets. But what secrets was he hiding? Did he want her to open it? Did he want to keep it away from her? What was inside it?
"Hey, you wanna' go out? Your caretakers gone for a week or two, why not party with us?" Marik asked, coming into Tamara's room. She quickly stuffed the bag into her pocket and looked at Marik.
"Depends where we'll be going."
"We're going to hit this big party Bakura got invited to by one of his buddies in town. Wanna come?"
"Well, Melvin and the Phoenix-"
"Oh come out and have some fun!"
"I really shouldn't...Besides, I'm tired, I'd rather just go to sleep." Which was true enough. Tamara wanted to just sleep...But with the mystery in the bag, she wasn't sure that was possible.
"Killjoy." Marik scuffed, and walked down the hall.
Shortly after Marik left, Bakura came into the room.
"You're too uptight, and you're coming tonight."
"No. I want to sleep, not get the fuck out of my room." Tamara demanded, but Bakura shook his head.
"You're coming with us, you need to have fun after suffering from Melvin. Come on." Bakura dragged her to the party, Marik trailing behind them.
"Dammit Bakura! I didn't want to be here!" She snapped and Bakura smirked.
"You'll thank me later, no go mingle!" He laughed, pushing her into the crowd.
Tamara wandered to a corner, where she was away from anyone's sight, and looked at the bag in her hands.
She decided not to open it, and instead stuffed it into her pocket.
"Hey, you look like you need a drink!" A man called, handing her a red cup of some random substance.
"You look like you're desperate." Tamara spat, and flicked the cup away, knocking on the ground. She left the party without another word to anyone.
Akefia smiled his best smile, happy with the results of their trip.
Not only had he found that Kyrah was still alive, he found where she lived, and all current information on her.
"And she's married, Akefia. You think she's just going to leave her human life here?"Melvin tried again to talk Akefia out of this.
"She's going to remember...She will, Melvin. I just know it." He reassured, and rang the door bell.
And it opened.
"Hello?" A blonde woman asked, her gray blue eyes filled with wonder.
"Are you Kyrah?" Akefia asked, as her eyes wandered from Akefia's face to Melvin's.
"Yes...Can I help you?" She nodded, and Akefia chuckled.
"I think we can help ourselves..."Akefia's ego inflated.
"Excuse me...?" Kyrah asked, a bit offended.
Melvin saw her hand reach behind the door, and stepped in.
"He means it as a joke. We're here to ask you some questions about a college you went to..We think he's gone to the same one, and was trying to reconnect with his peers." Melvin worked quickly, and her hand moved away.
"Oh, sure! Although I don't remember you..."
"Well, it's been a while, and people do change." Melvin said, and she smiled, stepping aside to let them in.
"Can I get you anything to drink?" She asked, and Akefia nodded.
"Some coffee would be nice, cream with it too please." She nodded and walked down the hall into another door.
"Thank you..."Akefia whispered to Melvin who sighed.
"She doesn't remember us Akefia, we can't take her..."
"Yes, we can. Once she's back there, she'll remember."
"And how do you plan on getting her back?" Melvin hissed, and Akefia smirked.
Before Melvin knew it, They were traveling back with Kyrah, Who Akefia had knocked out with a rag drenched in one of Ryou's poisons, and were in front of the lab. It was nighttime, but neither of them were really tired.
"You're sick." Melvin sighed, acknowledging what they had done again, and Akefia laughed.
"It was the only way to get her back here. Hey, we should be happy, no one burnt down the lab while we were gone." Akefia nudged Melvin, who gave him an indifferent look.
Akefia took Kyrah into a resting room, and Melvin went the way to his room.
As soon as Akefia was in another room, Melvin quickly crept to Tamara's room, knocking lightly on the door.
"I told you I don't want anything to do with anyone." She spat, and Melvin came in.
"Leave. Me. Alone." She hissed, turning around to see Melvin.
She gaped for a bit, and he took one long step to her, wrapping his arms around her and picking up the bag she hid in her hands.
"Huh...What's this?" He smiled, playing. Tamara's shock wore off, and she glared as he took the bag.
"Yours." She hissed again, and Melvin opened it, taking out a crystal stone, cut into the shape of a heart.
"Seems you've kept my heart safe with you while I was gone...Thank you." He laughed and kissed her neck.
"What? That's all that was in there? You're kidding me! This whole time!" She gaped, taking the heart in her hands and studying it. Melvin chuckled, letting her go and laying on the bed.
"Yup."
"But...You acted like it was so important that you had it with you at all times!"
"Exactly. Although it is somewhat metaphorical, having it with me means I had no one to leave it with. No one to guard it but myself...I left it out for you on purpose, Mara. You didn't open it? I'm surprised you kept it safe AND didn't even open it...Weren't you curious?" He asked, and she gave him a look that told him she thought he was insane.
"YES! But I though if I opened it, you'd get angry at me!"
"How would I have known?"
"I don't know! Some type of psychic power connection thing, I guess." She looked at the heart in the moon light, but it was just a rock, nothing special.
Melvin chuckled, pulling her into his arms and whispering in her ear.
"The only thing I'd want a psychic connection with is you..." His words drifted through out her body, making her shiver and wrapper herself further into his arms.
"Why would you want that?" Tamara asked, playing with one of his hands, studying a cut on his hand.
"So I would be able to tell you things from a distance, so you wouldn't freak out..."
"Tell me things?" Tamara questioned, and turned to face him.
He gave a smirk, and put his lips to he ear.
"Like how much I love you...How much I missed you...That I left my heart with you..."He chuckled and Tamara sighed, resting her head on his chest.
"I missed you too..."She mumbled, her arms wrapping around him, attaching herself to Melvin.
Melvin smiled, his hands resting on her hips as he kissed down her bare arm.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, and Melvin sighed, lifting his head to shoot her a look.
"Mara..." He warned but she ignored it, holding onto him tighter.
Melvin almost broke away, but decided it was harmless enough.
Melvin awoke to a female screaming, and Tamara gone.
He was where the commotion was in three seconds.
Kyrah was awake, and back to normal.
"Melvin!" She exclaimed and everyone turned to him.
"You're a late sleeper...You always used to be the first one up...Late night?" Kyrah asked in her cocky tone. Melvin didn't say anything, and looked around for Tamara.
"Hey! I was talking to you!" Kyrah shouted, right behind him.
Melvin took a deep breath, and spun around quickly, glaring.
"I'm busy. Go away." He demanded in a deathly quiet tone. Kyrah looked at him for a minute, a confused and scared look on her face.
"What happened to you? You aren't fun anymore." She spat and ran back to the kitchen.
Maybe Kyrah was just like Tamara...?
Melvin sighed, but carried on looking for her.
When he came to the roof, and saw her bright red hair, he half smiled.
"I thought you'd be here..."He mumbled, and She shrugged.
Melvin sat next to her, looking at Tamara from the corner of his eyes.
"I don't like her. She's loud, obnoxious, and a huge bitch." Tamara explained, and Melvin laughed.
"Yup. That's Kyrah."
"I've never seen you so...Alive, Melvin." Tamara said, and Melvin fell silent.
"Well, I've been alive. Just not...Emotionally and not completely mentally alive. Somehow, being with you, wakes up the old me...Makes it feel natural...Even after so long." Melvin laughed once, and looked to Tamara, who glared at him.
"You really shouldn't play like that. It's not funny. No one can do such a thing...No one can be the one who's responsible for so much change in a person.." Tamara sighed, and looked out to the sky.
"You don't believe you changed me?"
"No, not at all. People don't change."
Melvin nodded, agreeing.
"But you didn't exactly change me...You woke me up." He pointed out and Tamara's eyes went wide, but then back to glaring at the sky.
"I'll see you later. I'm going to go for a fly."
"Can't I come?"Melvin laughed.
"Isn't it daytime?" Tamara played back, but went to the edge of the building anyways.
"Yeah. But Akefia's got Kyrah to keep him busy..." Melvin laughed, his wings stretching. Tamara rolled her eyes, calling her dragon.
"You aren't flying on your own?" Melvin asked as Tamara's dragon landed.
"Please, Chili offered." Tamara scuffed, and off they went.
When they passed the pool of water, Melvin gave her a questionable look.
"We're going somewhere else..."Tamara said, and Melvin saw Chili smile.
Melvin rolled his eyes, but followed Tamara and Chili, which led him to a wide open field.
"What's here?" Melvin asked, and Tamara smiled, getting off Chili and looking at Melvin.
"Nothing." She laughed, and Melvin raised an eyebrow.
"Why are we here?"
"Chili likes it here." She looked back at Melvin, and Melvin stared at her.
Chili pranced around, and flopped down in a bunch of wheat, starting to snooze off.
Melvin pulled Tamara into his chest, and looked into her eyes.
"Tamara, I hope you know that this place is full of gremlins. You aren't safe here. We need to leave."
"Melvin, please. Gremlins may be repopulating, and if they want my blood, they can come try. Chili killed his first gremlin before I even named him, and that was a week after I got him. With these Phoenix marks I can control anyone it burns. I'm not running anymore...You don't have to protect me, we can fight together." Tamara rambled, and Chili raised his head at the mention of his name, staring at the couple.
Melvin sighed, and looked away from Tamara.
"I was chosen by the Phoenix to protect you from anyone and anything dangerous-"
"Forget the Phoenix! She's the one who taught me to mark creatures! I can protect myself!" Tamara huffed, and Melvin sighed.
"You don't understand-"
"Your loyalty to the Phoenix is inconceivable... Is that the only real reason you spend time with me?"
"You're jumping the gun, Mara..."Melvin pulled her close and whispered in her ear.
Tamara shivered, but tried to push away. Melvin held her tighter.
"Mara. Please, stop this...You're an idiot if you think the reason I protect you is for the Phoenix. You're blind to the fact that it's because I love you." Melvin whispered, and Tamara's face ran hot.
She'd jumped the gun, and to the wrong reason.
Tamara looked to Melvin, and Melvin smiled back, resting a hand under her jaw.
"I'd be happy to fight with you, but I want to spend time with you without having to watch what's around us...Can we go to the secret spot?" He asked, and Tamara blinked a few times in embarrassment .
"Why-Why are you asking me? You're the older one! And...Kind of...One of my bosses." Tamara looked down and away from Melvin, making him smile.
"My position of power in the team has nothing to do with my relationship with you. We're equals in my eyes, despite our age difference, there's nothing I can do that you can't."
"You can handle Akefia, get him to do what you want."
"If I could do that, Kyrah wouldn't be here, and he would be as far away from you as I could push him." Melvin spat through his teeth, and Tamara looked at him.
"I thought you two grew up together..."
"We did. But this isn't the place to talk about that..." Melvin kept his eyes away from Tamara's, and looked around him.
Chili still looked towards the couple, and Melvin smiled.
"Chili seems to find us interesting..." Melvin said, and Tamara looked to Chili, who looked back and forth from her to Melvin.
"He doesn't understand...I'm only this way with you, and we're away form everyone else...I have to explain to him not to tell anyone..." She whispered, and Chili watched her lips mover dangerously close to Melvin's.
Melvin couldn't help but hide a smile, which was difficult as the dragon watched them with alert eyes, waiting to see what would happen.
Tamara's hair fell in front of their faces, covering them up.
"How much longer until he walks over to find out what we're doing?"
"About three to five seconds..."
"That's enough time..."
"For what?" Tamara asked, and looked up at him, confused.
"This." He said, quickly kissing her and wrapping his arms around her.
Tamara's eyes went wide as his arms wound themselves around her body, pressing her into Melvin, her soul rising just beneath her skin to merge with Melvin's.
Chili squawked, close to them now, and Melvin smiled.
"He's found us..."
"Yeah, but we'll have a little longer soon..."
"And why's that?"
"Because I'm sending him to his stable." Tamara chuckled, turning to the curious Chili.
Chili looked from Tamara to Melvin again, eying Melvin with a look of slight approval. As Tamara spoke to Chili in Dragoon, Melvin waited.
Soon, Chili flew off, and Tamara smiled up at him, then resting her eyes on her lover.
Melvin's yellow eyes greeted her, his teeth slightly pointed in this form, but the smile was still star strikingly beautiful.
"You know, sometimes, you are such a tease." Tamara sighed, rolling her eyes. Melvin laughed, and raised an eyebrow with a smile.
"And why's that?"
"Because your so proper and have so many morals...But yet, you're extremely hot, You're untouchable." Tamara blushed a deep red and looked away from him. Melvin laughed jovially, and shook his head.
"Tamara...Let's get somewhere safe and talk about your silly fantasies." He joked, and stepped away a little bit, spreading his wings widely.
Tamara nodded, and spread her wings out, the flames spreading wide as the wings formed.
Melvin watched Tamara transform into her half Phoenix form, finding the unique transformation appealing to watch. Although fire was most known for destruction, it had a beauty to it, it brought on a whole new look and light to the world. As the flames washed over Tamara from her marks like waves over sand, smoke rolling off her skin and into the air, the flames replacing her tan skin and coloring her into the pallet of fire, Melvin was in awe.
"What?" Tamara asked, growing insecure as Melvin looked her over.
"There's a reason the Phoenix chose you, a reason that's unclear. But there's more then a million reasons that my soul loves you, that I love you...And I must say, I am glad that fate has chosen us to be together. To find love in such a hopeless place..." Melvin smiled, speaking his mind as he often found himself doing while in the presence of Tamara.
Tamara blushed a deeper red then her hair, and looked away.
"M-Melvin! Maybe that's a little too much to say-"
"It isn't Tamara. I love you, accept that. You've said it before, and you were the first to say, now why do you think whatever I say about it is too much?"
"Because...My past...My instinct tells me to deny it...I've not allowed myself to trust anyone, let alone with this much of myself..."Tamara wandered off, but looked to Melvin continued, "But with you, everything that says that seems to just melt away, and I find myself...More in love with you then I even thought was possible. And that coming from me is something really unusual..." Tamara trailed off as Melvin's hand placed itself gently on the side of her face, his mouth meeting hers quickly.
Despite the flames so close to his skin, Melvin ignored the marks heat on Tamara's skin, burning with her delight in being in his arms. Melvin's arms wrapped around Tamara, pulling her on his feet so she was the same height as him. As her arms wrapped around his neck, he couldn't help but smile, slowly opening his mouth to take things a bit further then before.
Tamara's eyes flew open, Melvin laughing, but instead she went with it.
Tamara pulled away, gasping for air, and Melvin kissed her cheek, brushing his skin against hers in an affectionate way. Tamara giggled, placing her hands on both sides of his face, looking into his eyes.
"And what was that?"
"You proving things can be like that and not trying to jump my bones." Melvin laughed, and Tamara rolled her eyes in a playful way.
"Normally, it's the man who tries to get the woman into his bed...Yet, you come willingly to mine." She joked, having separate meanings in her words.
"You can't put those two together like that, Tamara. I sleep in your bed with you because you asked me to. You want me there."
"Don't act like you don't want to be there." Tamara rolled her eyes again, and Melvin wagged a finger at her.
"Nothing was said about me wanting to be there, this is about you adding two completely different meanings and trying to play them off as one."
"But you want to be there-"
"I didn't I say I didn't want to be there."
"Do you?" Tamara asked, tired of him focusing on what she meant instead of if he wanted to be there.
"I really appreciate you asking and not jumping the gun, honestly." Melvin said with a smile, and Tamara shot him a warning look.
"Well, do you?" She pressed again, her voice firm.
Melvin gently placed his hands on her hips, bending his face dangerously close to hers.
"Let's leave this conversation with a simple, brief answer. It's more then a...desire..." Melvin whispered into her ear with a smile, the heat rushing to Tamara's face again.
Melvin chuckled, looking at Tamara in a devious way as he back up, his wings taking him into the sky at a low level, levitating just above ground.
"Time to go?" Tamara asked, and Melvin nodded considerably, extending a hand.
Tamara took it, and off they went off to the secret spot of theirs.
Authors note:
Well, that's chapter 21, and the bitch- I mean the "witch" is back! But what will happen? Why did Melvin act so rudely? There's more the that back story?
R and R?
What could happen next?
Yu-Gi-Oh character references that I made and Alternate Universe Characters from(The original idea for them) © Their creators
Alternate Universe Characters, Tamara, Kyrah, and the Dark Side of the Moon © ME.