A/N: I was asked how many more chapters there are for this story by a couple of people. I can't really say, not because I don't want to but because I honestly don't know. Enjoy!
Yuugi didn't go straight back to the room. She could feel Yami's concern bubbling up in the back of her mind but she didn't want to talk to him, not yet. Actually she didn't really want to talk to anyone, but that turned out to be not an option. Jou caught up to her she turned into the bathroom and slammed his hand down on the door before she could close it, preventing her from locking herself inside. It was truly tempting to yell at him but Yuugi bit her lip at the last minute, swallowing her instinctive reaction down. It would not benefit anyone if she and Jou got into even more a fight, she knew that, which was why she regarded him as calmly as possible, waiting for him to make the first move and set the tone.
"I'm sorry," Jou said simply, letting his arms hang limply at his sides. He leaned against the door, likely for extra support as much as it was to keep her from shutting it. "I shouldn't have said that the way I did. I didn't mean it. Well, I meant it, but not the way it came out. I just..." He scrubbed a hand through his hair and sighed. "You gotta understand how frustrating this is for me, Yuugi. I know that I don't have any shadow magic but that doesn't mean I don't want to be there for you, and it hurts when I can't."
"Jou…" Yuugi closed her eyes for a moment, searching for patience. Jou had been there with her since the very beginning. He'd been involved so often that she couldn't help but understand how he felt at now being left out. But his desire to be helpful didn't change how dangerous Yami Malik had been. It didn't change the fact that Jou couldn't help. "Listen - "
"No, I know it's stupid," he said, cutting her off. "I know you're going through a lot right now, what with Yami and being a girl and all that, and I don't mean to add to that. I'm just… not used to being left behind."
"I was trying to protect you," Yuugi replied, looking down at the floor so that she wouldn't have to meet his eyes, half-afraid of what she might see there. "You're my best friend, Jou, and you said it yourself. You haven't got any shadow magic. You've managed to come out alright so far but every fight is another risk that you'll be hurt. And as much as I appreciate your willingness to sacrifice yourself for me, I can't let that keep happening. It's not fair to you."
"I hate that I was born human," he muttered, startling a laugh from her. He smiled sheepishly.
"Don't hate it, enjoy the fact that you didn't have to come," she said with a shudder. She would never apologize for having left Jou, Anzu and Honda behind, just like she would never give them the real details of what had happened. They didn't need to know how close Yuugi and Ryou had come to never returning. "Seriously, Jou, I really do appreciate the fact that you wanted to come that badly. I know that Yami does, too. It means a lot to both of us. You're a really good friend."
He studied her for a moment. "Your best friend, you said."
"Well, yes." Yuugi blinked up at him, surprised. Hadn't she just said as much? It took her a second to understand the odd look on his face: the resignation tempered with just the slightest hint of envy. "Jou, are you... are you jealous of Ryou?" she asked slowly.
Jou fidgeted and glanced away, a faint flush rising in his cheeks. "No."
Yes, he was, Yuugi realized. Suddenly a lot of his behaviour during the past few weeks made more sense. He was jealous that there was now something between her and Ryou that would connect them for the rest of their lives. She and Ryou would always share an unbreakable bond that came from being not only hikaris, but also males who had been magically turned into females. This explained a great deal and she couldn't believe it hadn't occurred to her before; she had been spending an awful lot of time with Ryou, and how must it have looked when she and Ryou had chosen to run off on an adventure without anyone else? It was a weird feeling to realize that someone was actually jealous of her friendship, especially when that someone was the one person who would never have to worry about it.
"Jou," Yuugi said, stepping forward. She wanted to take his hand but she was still very conscious of the odd tension that still lingered between them. "You don't have to be jealous, okay? Never, not you. Ryou is... she's like my sister, but you're my best friend. My brother. And just because I'm a girl and Yami is back that's not going to change, even if you do have to stay home instead of coming along with us on adventures. I have enough people trying to protect me, you know. Sometimes I just need to know that I can still come back to you and you'll be here just the way you always are. The fact that I can depend on you to be that person means more to me than you'll ever know."
He looked at her for a long time, seemingly stunned by the level of emotion in her voice, and then he sighed and gave her a tiny smile. "I'm sorry, Yuugi. I've been a real idiot about this, haven't I?"
"Well, everyone gets a pass to be an idiot once in a while," she answered, trying her best to smile when the familiar prickling of tears was making itself known behind her eyes. God she hated that about being a girl. Jou would undoubtedly freak out if she cried now so she did what she could to hold it back. "Seriously, I didn't mean for you to ever think that you had been replaced or something like that."
"I knew I was being stupid," he admitted. "I was trying to push past it and not let it affect our friendship but that's… well, obviously it didn't work out so well. Knowing how different you are now, it's…" He trailed off and made an awkward hand motion between them. "It's going to take some time for me to adjust to everything that's happened and how this changes… stuff."
"And I understand that," she said gently. "I'm still getting used to it, too. Sometimes I walk by a mirror and it still shocks me to see what's staring back." That, at least, was the honest truth. She didn't know if she would ever get used to seeing a female body in the mirror.
"You could always look at the bright side," he said with a smirk.
Yuugi eyed him warily. "And what would that be?"
"You finally know what a girl looks like naked."
"Jou!" Yuugi exclaimed, hitting him on the arm. He burst into laughter and she couldn't help laughing too, giddy with the realization that eventually their friendship would be just fine.
YY
She was back in the bed. Ryou was aware of that before she even opened her eyes, if only because she knew that there was no where else that she would feel this impossibly safe. She could hear low voices speaking and it took a moment for her to be able to discern that it was Bakura and Yami, both of them obviously making an attempt to keep from waking her. It was amazing to think that the two of them had come so far that they could actually occupy the same bed and not want to kill each other. Granted, the bed was enormous and there was a hikari sleeping in between them, but still.
Before she could focus on what they were saying the two of them went quiet. She sighed. /You don't have to stop speaking on my account,/ she told Bakura. The thought went through before she could stop it and immediately she stilled, troubled. They hadn't actively used their mind link since Bakura had returned. Only unbidden emotions and the occasional stray thought had slipped through. At first it had been fragmented by the separation but now, whether due to their visit to the Shadow Realm or some other force, it appeared to be back and fully formed.
\Didn't anyone ever tell you that eavesdropping is not good?\ he asked, and she could feel his amusement, warming her from the inside out. Slowly she relaxed against him.
/Yes they did, but I rather think it's pretty hypocritical for you of all people to say that,/ she replied. Okay, so she hadn't made it home and her father was likely still furious at her. But if the pay off was being able to wake up next to a Bakura who was in a surprisingly good mood, then it was totally worth it. /Considering you've done a lot worse than eavesdrop./
He smirked. \That's different,\ he said, shifting next to her. He winced and she felt the brief but strong flash of pain that came from his ribs. Immediately she put a hand out, resting it lightly over his stomach in an effort to keep him from moving. Right away she could tell that the doctor's orders of rest in bed would not be fulfilled. Bakura absolutely hated having nothing to do. She thought it probably came from the years of being trapped in the Ring. It would be a nightmare trying to keep him in bed until his ribs had healed enough that they didn't cause him pain when he walked.
/Stay still,/ she scolded. /You're hurt and you're going to make it worse if you try to move around./
He made a scoffing sound but, surprisingly, fell quiet under her touch. The door opened and all three of them looked up, squinting in the surprisingly harsh light, to see that one of the Kaiba maids was standing there with a full tray of food. She gave them a tentative smile and carried the tray over to a little table, setting it down carefully. Right behind her was another maid, this one carrying a tray laden with a pitcher of milk, juice, tea, coffee, plates and silverware. Neither one of them said a word, just gave curt little bows and walked out of the room, leaving behind the tantalizing smell of freshly cooked food. Ryou's stomach growled hungrily, reminding her of just how long it had been since she'd eaten.
She started to pull her hand away so that she could get up and was startled when Bakura's grip tightened, pinning her hand in place. A moment later, though, he released her hand and rolled over as though it had never happened. Ryou stared at him in bemusement and if it hadn't been for the fact that Yami was right next to them she might've done something foolish, like lean over and kiss him on the cheek. The thought made her blush and she hurriedly slipped out of the bed, wincing as she padded over to the table. Her feet ached even worse than before if that was possible, apparently not having yet recovered from her brief journey down the hall with Malik. Still, she was too hungry to wait for Yuugi return.
"Who wants what?" she said, studying the trays more closely. There was a lot of food, too much for four people to eat though they'd like give it their best shot. Instead of doling out the food she carried the tray over to the bed and then dragged the table over for their drinks. She sat down, curling her feet under her, and picked up a sausage as Bakura grabbed a pancake and Yami picked up an apple. She could get used to this.
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