Love me so Tender
Back in Domino City Arc
A Chiba-kun and starrrrii story!
I wanted to post this last week but I learned that my grandmother had passed on early that morning. I apologize for posting this later than expected. I hope you guys understand.
YGO is ours. In a parallel universe.
Chapter 38: Incognito.
The pharaoh was feeling utterly conflicted. His hands were in his pockets, simply staring at the ground as he walked towards Domino High. He still promised to Yuugi that he will meet him by lunch and well, it was nearing noon anyway. 'Whatever happens, Yuugi... Please know that I love you with all of my heart. I was foolish and careless for doing such deed,' he said through the mind link as he contemplated on how to tell the small boy about this. Yuugi was always beaming with happiness and excitement- especially when they reached his hometown. Yami was standing on the courtyard when all of the students ran outside for their lunch. His partner was no exception as well, grinning like he just won the lottery. He wrapped his arms around the smaller boy, eyes looking so sad. "A-Aibou... I have to tell you something. It was a mistake and I would not let it happen again," he started out, looking at the boy ever so sadly. He took a deep breath before looking away from the boy. "I-I... lost the spare key you gave me."
When Yuugi finally caught sight of his Yami, he practically ran up to the other and tackled him, wrapping his arms around the slightly taller man's neck. "You came!" He cheered. But he pulled away a second later, not liking the sound of what his Yami had said... and especially after what he had heard leaking through the mind link a few moments ago. "Is everything okay?" He asked, worry very clear in his voice. But he waited anyway, and when he heard what the mistake was, Yuugi couldn't help but frown. Something seemed off about that, but who was he to question his other self? Atem wouldn't lie to him, would he? "Are you sure that's all? Because I can always get you another key..."
He wasn't sure what it was, but Yuugi had a bad feeling about all of this.
The pharaoh frowned the moment he saw Yuugi's face. He looked as if he was utterly concerned about the pharaoh. Atem was not questioning it at all though. He knew that he was guilty and he knew that he should not even be worthy to hold on his partner like this. He sighed reluctantly before sitting down, pulling Yuugi in his lap. His arms tightened around the boy protectively and for those few moments, they were the only people in the world. "You have the right... To leave me, Yuugi. I-I... did something that I am not proud of. I did something that would break your heart in two- I know mine did when I realized what I did," he started, eyes looking at him sadly. Atem looked as if he was going to break down any moment now; however, he knew that this was the right thing to do. He had to inform his partner of his misdeed. His story was blunt and simple- telling Yuugi everything that had occurred while he was in lock down in Kul Elna. By the time the pharaoh was finished, he had already buried his face against Yuugi's neck in order to stop himself from shedding any tears.
"If you want me to leave, I would. I just... needed to tell you because you had to know. Also, it was for the sake of my sanity."
Yuugi's eyes widened as the Pharaoh explained what had gone on in his chamber after he had been kidnapped. What he heard appalled him, and yet he still could not find it in him to hate his Yami. There had to be a good reason, right? He wasn't himself, or his judgment had been clouded by lust... or something like that, right? It had been the dark god using Seth's body, not Seth himself, hadn't it? Maybe that was why this had happened.
Yuugi looked away, at his hands. He knew he was just making excuses for the Pharaoh, but in truth he didn't seem to mind that. If anything, he was glad that this wasn't something Atem was trying to hide from him... but then again, why hadn't he said anything earlier? What made him want to spill his heart now? The boy smiled sadly and wrapped his arms around his other self. Yes, this news hurt, but he was willing to forgive the Pharaoh for what he had done. "I couldn't leave you, even if you did do that to me. I know it wasn't to hurt me." Having Atem admit this himself was enough to convince the boy of that. He pulled away for a second and looked behind him. "Oh, right. After school, Jounouchi-kun and everyone else are coming over again. They're worried about me because they noticed I don't have the Millennium Puzzle..." he trailed off, once again averting his gaze from his Yami's. He wasn't even sure if his other self wanted to reveal his separate existence yet, and besides, there was something else gnawing away at Yuugi's mind.
"Th-they don't know about Bakura-kun yet, but they suspect something since he hasn't come to school today. They want to see him, but I don't know if that's a good idea... What do you think?" Because if his Yami thought it would be okay, then Yuugi knew he could trust his judgment. But he still was uneasy about Bakura.
A frown grazed the pharaoh's lips the moment he looked at Yuugi. The boy did not seem to mind the deed he just committed- and it somewhat troubled the pharaoh in great extents. Why was the boy reacting so calm and collected even after learning that his lover- his pharaoh- cheated on him with another? If it were Atem, Yuugi would have been tossed out somewhere else and he would forever have his wrath for thinking that he could get away with cheating on him. He sighed before stroking the smaller boy's cheek. 'I fail to understand how you can be so forgiving. I do not know as to why you can stay with someone like me,'he said through the link even though the comments were more rhetoric than he wanted. Their lips connected in a simple kiss- just so Atem had a chance to have the boy's innocent lips on his. He missed him so for it felt like ages since they had last touched. Atem could not help but let out a breathy sigh the moment his lover asked something of him. It might not be a good thing to bring the boy in Bakura's house, seeing what happened the last time that he was there but at the same time, the pharaoh knew that Yuugi was also worried about his friend.
"If you're that worried about Ryou, then we'll go. However, if this is only a wish of your friends, we shall do what you want. You should never have someone else dictate your actions for you, Yuugi," he cooed before pressing against the boy. "You have no idea as to how much you tempt me right now," he whispered, his hand snaking underneath the boy's shirt but not enough to do something utterly disgraceful.
Yuugi only shrugged at his other self's thoughts. "Well, I don't want to lose you. You're the most important person to me, Atem. Even if... I... I don't think I could go on without you." He had cut off his sentence with much unease, having thought briefly about how he knew he couldn't stay with the Pharaoh forever. He knew that he had to send his lover to the afterlife eventually, but... for now, he could be selfish and just take what he was getting. It had hurt that his other self had slept with Seth, but it wasn't something he could change, and, like he said, he was able to forgive him.
That wasn't the issue right now, though. Yuugi laughed a bit and swatted Atem away from him playfully. "There are so many people around now!" He exclaimed. "It'll be hard enough to explain why I suddenly have a twin, but if people see him trying to shove his tongue down my throat that could really raise some questions. Besides, you know how I'm not exactly... you know..." He blushed a bit, remembering all the times he had been bullied. Really, Yuugi was just looking out for both of them by refusing Atem's current passes. Later, okay? After we get back from Bakura-kun's, I'll let you do whatever you want to me.
The idea of going to Bakura's home still filled him with anxiety, but he intended to go anyway. He had from the very start, if only because his friends were so worried. But what would happen if they found out that the Spirit of the Ring was back, and had been the one leaving those marks on Ryou all along? What would they think of their friend? But what worried Yuugi even more was the thought of what both Ryou and the Spirit were capable of doing now. They had been in some really close calls while in Egypt...
Atem sighed somewhat exasperatedly before looking at Yuugi. The boy just looked so tempting- so alluring just staring up at him like that. The pharaoh purred against the boy's ear, giving it a nibble before he heard a soft clearing of the throat. "Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu," he stated, regarding the three with a curt nod. He thoroughly disliked the fact that he was cut from his time with Yuugi, but then again, these people helped control his urges in a way. At the very least, Atem tried to control himself now that their friends were here- staring at them. 'I don't think I can last that long, Aibou,'he stated through the link before sending some vivid images that were flowing in his mind. Needless to say, none of them were appropriate for young boys but Atem figured that Yuugi wouldn't mind the images much, now would he? The pharaoh's arms wrapped protectively around the shorter boy as if to state the status of their relationship (which was basically confirmed by the way Yuugi was sitting on the pharaoh's lap in the first place).
Atem maneuvered so that he was able to stand before guiding his partner to stand as well. "Seeing as you all have P.E. next, why don't you get off early so we can visit Baku- I mean R-Ryou," he stuttered before sighing lightly. He felt somewhat guilty for the fact that Yuugi was never able to call his friend by his name. He knew that he somewhat influenced the boy to do that- with his hatred of the thief king running through every fiber of his being. Those thoughts aside, he knew that Yuugi could at least try to be friends with Ryou- given that the white-haired boy was still considered as Bakura's total 'opposite'. "I haven't known you for a long time- well, I kind of did considering that you were inside Yuugi's body- but I like you a lot, pharaoh!" Jounouchi exclaimed, a wide grin present on his face. "I like the way you think. C'mon guys, it's better if we can get time off from Interpretative Dance," he said with a slight shudder, "I don't think I can act out being the tree another day."
Though Yuugi felt bit bad for just skipping out on their classes like this, he was at least relieved that everyone seemed to accept the fact that the Pharaoh now had a body of his own.
Would they realize that Bakura and the Spirit of the Ring were the same, or would Ryou insist on trying to hide that fact? He supposed it was really up to their friend, but he didn't like the thought of possibly deceiving the rest of his friends. And if the Spirit of the Ring wanted to hurt them... then he couldn't just stay silent! All these thoughts went straight to Atem; hopefully he would have some sort of input on this.
Marik could not help but tap his foot in irritation the moment he heard those noises again. "Worse than rabbits," he muttered, mostly because of his little jealous fit. In truth, he did not care much about his sister anymore for even after their duties to the pharaoh had ended, she had insisted that they should continue with their family's rituals and ceremonial duties. He closed his eyes before staring at his darker counterpart. "What would they do if they see you? From the conversation that we had a while ago, you seem to be well acquainted with the two keepers of the Ring. How do you know them?" he asked, trying to understand as to when they all met. In truth, the Egyptian was still curious as to why Yami Marik was still here in the first place. Was he not supposed to be in the Shadow Realm? Nonetheless, Marik enjoyed having him around- not because he felt something just like the two lights that fell for their darkness. No, he just finally understood the feeling of completion that Ryou was looking for the night he saw the boy alone in the living room.
Dark Marik followed his other self into the house, staying quiet until they were in. "How do I know them? Well, let's just say a lot of things happened in Egypt. If you want the real details, have your plaything tell you once he's yours." The Yami's eyes narrowed in amusement, showing that he knew a lot more than he was letting on. He relished in the fact that he could hide something from his light counterpart, even though they were technically the same person.
Ryou stretched, tugging on the thief's wrist before smiling. "Creampuff?" he asked, remembering that the thief still had a few dozen creampuffs left in the fridge. The boy was smiling, fingers interlaced with the thief king's as they made their way downstairs. Immediately, his smile fell the moment he saw the tomb keeper... with the other Marik. "You just don't die easily, do you?" he spat out, glaring at him. It was apparent by now that some of the thief's abrasive attitude had rubbed off on the boy just as how the boy imparted his loving gestures on Bakura.
When they were joined by the two white-haired boys, Marik raised an eyebrow. Interesting, he thought, upon seeing Bakura's appearance changed back to look like Ryou's, and the way the Hikari spoke to him just now. "Dying isn't something I'm interested in, Yadonushi." Again, that mocking use of the term of endearment Bakura often used. "I'm here for the same reasons you are. I was alive in ancient Egypt, and when you came back, so did I. It's as simple as that." He was smirking now, noticing the look of anger on Bakura's face. Said thief was not exactly subtle in his emotions right now. Always at the worst time!He screamed in his head. But he stayed quiet and just listened to the conversation in front of him, finding it more interesting than he should have.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, not knowing as to what he should use to refer to him now that there were two Mariks in the room. Ryou stepped closer towards them, parting from Bakura as he looked at Marik's eyes. They looked different from the ones that he used to control. "M-Marik," he whispered, referring to the lighter being of the two, "W-What are you doing with him, exactly?"
The tomb keeper simply grinned in amusement before running his tan hand in Ryou's long locks, "I brought the Items here, didn't I?" he stated, causing the boy to widen his eyes. 'H-He touched the Key...' he thought, now frightened as to what could possibly happen. He killed Marik's sister off and now, he had nothing to use against Marik. This simply made the boy even more curious than before. "T-Then why didn't you run to the pharaoh or something if you remember everything?" Marik looked at his other self before mimicking that smirk of his, "Simple. I want something here."
At Marik's confession, the thief king stepped forward, in front of Ryou and putting an arm out in front of him as if for protection. "Wonderful," he breathed. That dangerously crazy look had come over his face again; Bakura looked almost murderous right now. "Then since you've served your purpose and can decide what to do for yourself now, there's no reason to keep you around. You've been far too much trouble for us as it is." His grin expanded a bit and he took another step forward, at least until Marik's darkness stepped in from of his light counterpart in protection, imitating what Bakura himself had just done. "Sorry, Bakura, but I can't let you kill him. You see, he's not the only one that wants something here..." Bakura's eyes widened. He was beginning to see just what was going on - at least, he knew what the true Marik wanted. His gaze didn't move from them.
Ryou, he started through the mind link, The Millennium Items. We might need to find a new hiding place. Go check on them. Now that he thought about it, nothing was safe here. And though he didn't think that the Items themselves were really in too much danger of being coveted by the two Egyptians in front of them, the thief wanted his Hikari out of the room for a moment. When he was gone, Bakura growled deeply. "I'm not going to let you simply take what you want," he hissed. "If either one of you lays a hand on him, you'll be met with an eternity of suffering."
Ryou was about to retort to what the other Marik said when the thief asked him to look after the Millennium Items. He looked at Bakura, somewhat hurt that he actually thought that it was better for the boy to run away instead of staying there- at least trying to help. His lips contorted into a small frown before nodding, scurrying up to his room in order to get the items that he needed. When he touched the Millennium Key, he got an idea. The Millennium Key was able to make someone invisible, right? He gripped on the Ankh-shaped item before it started glowing. Ryou's surroundings changed in color, causing Ryou to look around. It looked as if everything was frozen when in reality- he just could not be seen.
After stuffing the golden items in his messenger bag, he looked around to see what he could do to leave the house. He was thinking of ridiculous ways to get out- like going through the doggy door or just walking out. 'No, going near them is risky. They'd still notice me,' he thought. It was then when Ryou found the window. Heck, they did it in movies before so he was sure that he could survive it, right? Ryou lifted the lower half of the window before gulping. For a moment, he actually forgot that he was on the second floor. But Ryou was one damned lucky guy for there was a tree right next to the room. He took a deep breath before jumping towards the tree. The boy could not hold back the scream that was obviously heard by the three people in the house.
If only he was in a better position right now to collect his thoughts or something.
Ryou looked like he was going to fall any minute now, legs and arms gripping on a tree branch. He let his feet dangle before placing all of his weight on his arms, only to have the tree branch snap at his full weight. Another yelp and a soft thud when Ryou landed on another branch. He was happy to have this tree near his house after all! That is, until the branch snapped again but this time, he landed on his feet, causing him to blink once or twice. Some of the leaves were stuck on his hair right now, the Millennium Key falling with a soft thud.. He turned around, only to notice the three Egyptians there- staring at him.
The first shout Bakura heard from Ryou made him wonder just what was going on upstairs, but he soon got a pretty clear idea. When he saw exactly what had happened, the thief sighed. He was trying really hard not to laugh, but at the same time he was trying even harder not to look exasperated. It didn't exactly work, and ended up in one of the strangest facial expressions Bakura had ever pulled off (and that was saying a lot). He let Ryou go without saying a word, out loud or in his mind, because the thief was truly left speechless at what he had just seen. When the boy had gone, that was when Bakura's hand met his forehead. "Damn it, Ryou, what the hell were you thinking?" He mumbled to himself. He was still trying hard not to laugh.
'So much for staying incognito,' he thought before turning away and dashing from the house. He had to go somewhere- anywhere to hide the items but from the looks of it, they were going to be hot of his trails soon, right? He cursed under his breath when he realized that this was his fault in the first place. He kept yelping and screaming due to the branch snapping and all that. He could hear Marik whispering to his darker half, and when said dark personality's expression changed to a very disturbing smirk, Bakura knew that something bad was about to happen. The Egyptian took his leave without saying a word. Ryou, be careful; I think Marik's going to be following you. Just don't let your guard down. He was genuinely concerned for the boy, not wanting him to get hurt again. If Marik was involved (...either of them, really - Bakura made a mental note to find different names for them), then Ryou getting hurt in some way or another was surely going to be the result. It had been so far, right?
Ryou was still looking behind him when he heard a loud horn towards his direction. He lifted his head only to see a speeding car…
Meanwhile, Marik's lips were contorted in a small smile at the skit he just saw. "Quite a handful, isn't he?" he whispered before looking at his darker counterpart, "You should locate as to where he's going to hide the items. Follow him. Don't worry, I can take care of Bakura," he stated before urging the other Egyptian to eventually leave. His eyes fell on the thief before smirking lightly. "You know what I want, Bakura. And I will not stop until I get what I want."
He glared at the blond that was still next to him. "Yeah, I know. But that doesn't mean I'm going to let you just take whatever you want. Unlike you, I care for my possessions." That uncanny look had come over his face again: Bakura was sneering, eyes narrowed and smirk so wide and smug that it showed his teeth. Any idiot would have recognized that this was a warning signal, and any sane person would have noticed that this look had passed 'warning' a long time ago. By now, it was just downright terrifying. He took a step forward, eyes never leaving Marik's.
Marik raised an eyebrow the moment he heard what the white-haired thief said about Ryou. "So you do think of him as a possession," he muttered with much disgust in his voice. It was obvious that the Egyptian was quite infatuated with the boy- possibly lusting for him if anything else- but Marik had a feeling that it was because he wanted to get something that Bakura had. Maybe it was a form of pay back for manipulating him or something, but Marik truly wanted to get something so precious to Bakura- it just turned out that Ryou was the one for the picking. It was quite obvious how much Ryou just meant to Bakura - even though the former is still quite oblivious of the latter's obvious addiction to him - and Marik knew that if he were to grab hold of Ryou's touch- of Ryou's love, then it would surely send the thief's rage in an all time high.
"I can make you stop," he breathed. Bakura's voice was low and dangerous, another warning sign. "Tell me, Marik, how are you going to protect yourself now that your other personality is gone? He's really the only thing that comes between you and your death, you know... regardless of whether he's inside or outside your mind." Bakura continued to advance on Marik. He desperately wished he had grabbed his knife before coming out here, but he would make do without it if he had to. He huffed before crossing his arms. "Even if you say that you would kill me, just one snap and Ryou's as good as dead," referring to the hold his darker counterpart had on the boy.
Before Bakura could even retort to what was being said, or take another step towards attacking Marik, he heard the doorbell go off. He wondered who would be looking for Ryou right now, because it sure as hell wasn't Ryou himself ringing his own doorbell. Immediately the thief knew to fall back and try to hide himself, and what better way to do that than to mimic the person that wasn't home right now? He had fooled those closest to Ryou before, so it wouldn't be a problem now.
When Marik opened it, his right eye twitched when he saw the group of four- no, five enter the room. The pharaoh looked as if he did not even want to be there, staying as far away from Bakura as possible while the others went in with big smiles and grins. "A-Anou... R-Ryou's in the living room," Marik stated, pointing at the thief king. He gave a pleased look to Marik (one of Ryou's expressions) when he saw the Egyptian try and tell him to act like Ryou. He was already one step ahead of him in that. He smiled at Ryou's friends, secretly hating that he had to act so civilly towards them. He had thought that, with his own body, he would be able to stop that altogether. Looks like he was wrong.
After preparing some sandwiches (and bringing out some creampuffs that Bakura PURPOSELY left for Ryou to have), the gang sat on the empty seats. Marik smiled before looking at the 'gentle' face that Bakura had. It was that angelic face that Ryou had with the same doe eyes that he was obsessed with. Marik placed an arm around him, pulling him closer before pressing his lips against his cheek. "I've been... taking care of him the whole day, if you know what I mean," he said with a playful wink.
"Hi, everyone!" He greeted, gesturing for them to sit down. He took his seat as well, not really caring what Marik was doing in the kitchen at the moment. At least until he brought out the sandwiches and Ryou's cream puffs, that is. Bakura almost scowled, but thankfully he was able to keep his composure. He knew he would have to eat one to keep up his act as Ryou, but they weren't his. Normally such a way of thinking wasn't like a thief, let alone the king of thieves, but the whole reason the creampuffs were even there was because Bakura had gotten them for Ryou.
Jounouchi's jaw dropped before clearing his throat. "First You and Bakura... Then, it's Yuugi and the pharaoh... HONDA! Don't you dare go after me!" the blonde exclaimed before engaging in a short fight with him. "Hey, Bakura! You haven't even touched your cream puff yet! You love those stuff don't you?" he asked, pressing the other duelist off of him. He had avoided one up until Honda had said something, but thinking quickly, the thief said, "Yes, I do... but I have a really bad stomach ache today. There's been a few unpleasant things I've had to face today and it's not doing me much good." He smiled at Marik at this, making it seem to Yuugi and his friends that he was grateful to have help, but the real meaning behind Bakura's words was more like a subtle jab at Marik. But, to keep up this little 'act' they had going, he shifted so that he was even closer to his 'lover', taking his hand and squeezing it - maybe bit too hard, but it wasn't something that anybody else would notice. Marik took a second glance at Bakura only to have his hand gripped too tight for his liking. Marik gripped back, suppressing that scowl from even spreading across his face. True, Bakura looked like his fantasy but at the same time, the aura around the boy was just wrong- too wrong for his liking. He hated even acting this close to Bakura in the first place- given that he was about to chop the thief's head off if the group did not enter the house.
Yuugi's head tilted to the side curiously. That's weird, he thought. Bakura-kun is acting kind of strangely... and he's still with Marik? But I thought... He frowned a bit, glancing at his other self. "Bakura-kun isn't even with Mariku..." He muttered under his breath, but managed to stop himself. He hoped nobody else heard him, but he didn't miss the look that the Ring's owner gave him just now. He looked surprised, almost afraid, something that was just all too common on Ryou's face. kissing Bakura's ear as Marik attempted to hold back his urge to hit himself for acting this way in the first place. "Is this not the look of a young couple, Yuugi-kun?" he cooed, giving the thief a slight lick. The group of five (save for the two puzzle keepers) suddenly looked away from the sweet couple long enough to hide their flushed figures.
Yuugi coughed a bit and looked around, hoping that the subject would change soon. Thankfully, Bakura managed to do it quite well. "So, what are you all doing here anyway? I appreciate the visit, but don't you have class right now?"
Marik pulled Bakura even closer, pressing his lips against the thief's ear before looking at Yuugi. "We got worried, 'Kura!" he exclaimed, biting the corner piece of his third sandwich. "You're not one to suddenly cut class and all that. You always have your nose in the books! We were concerned, is all," he stated, shrugging. Bakura forced a smile. He hated what Marik was doing to him, especially since he was playing two different roles now in all the wrong ways. Being the one to kiss and lick at 'Ryou', playing dominant, then doing something as silly and submissive as to nuzzle against him! Luckily it didn't affect Bakura in the same way it would have if his Yadonushi had been holding him like this. And the question posed by Jounouchi was enough to distract him from this uncomfortable feeling, but it also raised a different sort of discomfort. Maybe Ryou's friends did care something for him, after all. But he didn't need to tell Ryou that... it would only make him second-guess himself, and that simply wouldn't do.
Jounouchi frowned, "Psst. Hey Bakura? Is the Spirit of the Ring bothering you or something?" he whispered before grinning sheepishly. "Oh! Th-thank you for your concern, then, Jounouchi-kun," He exclaimed. The thief made an effort to look surprised at the next question. Ryou wasn't even supposed to know about the Spirit, was he? Or had Yuugi told them that he remembered something? It was probably best to play along and just insist that nothing was bothering him - Ryou, that is - seeing as the last thing the Spirit of the Ring was doing was bothering his host. No, Ryou didn't seem to mind being 'bothered' at all.
Marik continued nuzzling him, burying his face on the crook of the thief's neck- something that he saw Ryou did to the thief king. Maybe it would look more believable to them if he actually acted like how Bakura's lover would actually act like. He could not help but purr, recognizing the scent that was attached to Bakura as of the moment. It was the scent that he got from Ryou when the boy held him near before they left for Egypt. "You need not worry about those things anymore. The thief king was banished to the shadow realm... By me," he stated- accomplishing two things at the same time.
He didn't get a chance to say anything before Marik chipped in. He looked away, and, still playing his part to the best of his ability (so almost flawlessly, really), said, "Yes... you may be able to send him away, Mariku, but... the Shadow Realm has never held him for long. He'll come back." It was a counter-threat, and quite obvious, too. This may have alarmed Ryou's friends, but Yuugi already knew the truth and the others didn't care enough anyway. They knew that Marik could possibly have a handle on things by staying so close to their friend, and if he couldn't do anything, then the Pharaoh certainly could.
"Even if he returns a million times, I will still protect you and have you in my arms," he cooed, making sure that the thief king got what he was trying to say. Honda could not help but clear his throat, feeling uneasy about seeing his friends doing these things in front of him. "Man, Marik. You really can't keep your hands off of Bakura, can you?" he stated before laughing. Marik took this time to look at him before smirking even more, "But of course. Without a doubt I am taken very much by him and I know that I will be able to keep him by my side." By now, the thief and the tomb keeper were exchanging really tight squeezes on each other's hands. It was quite obvious that Marik was threatening the very existence of the Ring Keepers' relationship. From the looks of it, Bakura was not taking this exchange lightly.
First, the Egyptian managed to fool the group- or at least it looked like he did. The pharaoh furrowed his eyebrows before pulling Yuugi to his lap, his arms wrapped around him protectively. His lips were pressed against the back of Yuugi's neck as he glared at the white-haired thief. 'Bakura's not gone. I should know.' Still completely unaware of what was going on before him (namely the King of Thieves playing a subtle game with Marik), Yuugi leaned back into the Pharaoh's touch. I know he's not gone, Yuugi agreed. We saw him just this morning... so why is Mariku lying about this? Unless he did manage to send the other Bakura away... but I don't think that's possible for him right now.Something was definitely going on here, but whatever it was, Yuugi just could not figure it out. There were too many strange happenings all occurring at once, making it impossible to point out one single thing or bring them all together in his mind.
The pharaoh's arms pulled the boy closer, planting soft kisses on the boy's neck. He was doing such acts mostly because he felt too nervous in this house. Something was just off about the situation and he could only assume that it was because of the Spirit of the Ring. "We should go off soon. Yuugi and I still have to watch over the Game Shop," he stated before standing up and bringing the boy in his arms closer (if that was actually possible). The group of three then proceeded to stating that they should go with the Puzzle Keepers in order to keep them company and. Soon enough, they started filing out of the house as the lovely couple bade their farewell to them.
There was something definitely different about the Ryou in their presence right now. Before Atem left, he managed to look back at the white-haired boy, finally noticing that tiny glint of mischief in his eyes. 'That's the Spirit of the Ring, Yuugi- not your friend,'he stated before close his eyes. How could he not notice that Bakura's eyes were still deep red in shade?
Yuugi's eyes widened. He never would have guessed himself that he wasn't talking to Ryou, but now that it had been pointed out, that must have been what had seemed off to him. Now he felt terrible for not realizing it sooner - and come to think of it, there was that air of irritation around the Spirit of the Ring, meaning that his Yami was right and it would be a good idea to get out of there. He looked shocked even as they left the house, and only after they had parted ways from the rest of their friends did Yuugi finally say something. "But he looked different this morning!" He cried. The poor boy was seriously disturbed by this now. Who knows what could have happened? Had Marik helped them by holding the thief king back, or was it only a matter of time before both of them did something? He clutched tightly to his other self and buried his face in Atem's chest. "I... I can't believe I didn't realize sooner...! B-but wait, where's the real Bakura-kun, then?"