Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh.

Summary: When Marik begins stalking Téa and ruining her life, Ryou Bakura offers up his home. He wants her safe at any cost, but Ryou is continuously plagued with illnesses. Téa finds herself left with only Yami Bakura for protection, but the tomb robber is far from anyone's savior. As Marik's attacks grow worse, Téa finds that not everything is as it seems...

Sanctuary

By: Chi Yagami

Téa was relieved to finally be released from the hospital. She had a doctor's note for the school nurse, as she still had to wear the horrible neck brace, a note saying she needed someone to carry her backpack, and an elevator pass. Why she needed an elevator pass was beyond her knowledge (it was her neck that ached, not her legs), but Téa figured it was kind of cool that she didn't have to take the stairs. She was so not wearing that neck brace though, that thing was itchy and tight and annoying! Spring Break had just started though, so hopefully when school started again, she wouldn't need any of those.

Currently, she and Ryou were on their way to her house, where she would drop off her things, including the brace, and then they would head out to… uhh, somewhere… They pulled up into the driveway, and Téa quickly got out, threw (yes, threw) her stuff into the house, and got back in.

"So, where are we headed?" she asked, strapping on her seat belt.

Ryou paused. "Hmm… my house sound good?"

Not if your blood-thirsty look-alike is lurking around, she thought. No one had seen Bakura since he had attacked her, and she thought it should stay that way. Bakura would do the world a favor if he never showed his face again. And if he did, Téa would kill him. She didn't care what prison she ended up in, that freak deserved to DIE. Okay, that was a lie... she didn't really want to end up in prison. However, she wished Yami Yugi could banish him to the Shadow Realm. Which reminded her... Téa hadn't seen Marik again yet either. She hoped he had been in town for a one-day vacation. Thinking about him sent shivers up and down her spine.

"Téa, are you getting out of the car?"

She looked up to see that they had arrived at Ryou's house. It was a small, quaint little place, like something out of Snow White. But not exactly a cottage. It only had one story and two extra bedrooms. After Bakura and Ryou became separated, they had gone and bought a bunk bed. Téa couldn't even imagine the two of them trying to share a single bed; Bakura would have killed Ryou in two seconds flat.

She followed Ryou into the house. It was very messy on the inside. Téa plopped down on the couch and began changing the channel. It had been on wrestling, but now it was on ice-skating.

"Téa, do you want anything to eat?" he called from the kitchen.

Not really. She had lost her appetite. Téa hadn't been eating much lately anyway. Just the other day, she had stepped onto the scale in her bathroom and saw that she had lost five pounds in one week. It wasn't that Téa thought she was fat or anything, she just hadn't really been hungry. She had a nagging feeling it had something to do with stress, but again, she wasn't going to let it get to her.

"Well, are you eating something?" she asked.

"No."

"Then I'm fine. Hey, can I use your bathroom?"

"Yeah."

She went down the hall and stopped in front of Ryou's bedroom. She pondered the thought of Bakura being asleep in there. Just out of curiosity, Téa opened the door and peered inside. Nothing. Maybe Bakura was still out roaming the city, attacking other people. Maybe he was drunk somewhere and getting high. Maybe he was—

EEP. Maybe he was right behind her!

"Woman, what are you doing!" he growled. She backed into the room, getting as far away from him as she possibly could. Bakura seemed to like the fact that Téa was afraid. Well, she'd show him.

"Stop calling me woman!"

"What would you rather have me call you? Something worse?"

Oooh, he REALLY knew how to push her buttons. Téa looked around and picked up one of Ryou's old baseball bats. Bakura rolled his eyes.

"Do you actually intend on fighting me? If it's about the other day, well, I am sorry."

Sorry? He didn't know the meaning of the word! Téa wanted to chop his guts out and spoon-feed them to Kaiba's guard dogs. Bakura inched closer and closer, until he had backed Téa into a corner. Well, she did still have the bat, but he had the Millennium Ring, so she clearly couldn't win this one.

"Listen, I didn't mean to hurt you," he explained. "I… I let my temper get the best of me."

Téa lowered the bat in shock. He actually sounded sincere. Even with all of the horrible things the tomb robber had done, something in his voice told her to believe him. However, there were still some questions to be answered.

"Are you the one who bloodied up my locker?" she asked, still suspicious.

Bakura was stunned. "Me? If I wanted you dead, trust me, you'd be dead already."

"Are you sure?" she questioned, crossing her arms.

"Did I stutter?" he mocked, annoyed at her stupidity. "I wouldn't leave some cheesy clue lying around in the open. I'm much smarter than that."

Téa huffed. "I wouldn't be too sure about that…" she muttered to herself. But not quietly enough.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY, MORTAL!"

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!"

It was high time to evacuate the area before he blew a fuse. She practically burst out of the room, only to find a concerned Ryou holding two cups of iced tea. Hearing the evil spirit rant behind her, she walked straight past Ryou, through the kitchen towards the front door. She could hear Bakura's footsteps following her all the way.

"You'll pay for that! No one walks out on me!" he shouted.

But Téa just had—

¡SMASH!

A plate flew over her head and shattered against the door. Damn albino freak! She turned to see him in the kitchen, ready to fire another dish. Giving him a nasty look, Téa wrenched the door open, and—SMASH—ran away! Hell no was she staying around to see what happened next! That maniac was throwing plates at her! She continued to run, past the baker's shop, past her own neighborhood, and straight to the park.

The sky had grown dark when Téa finally slowed down. Collapsing on a swing, she began to cry. She didn't know what was wrong with her lately. The past few days had been a blur, and her emotions seemed to be getting the best of her. It was as if there was a sudden ball of raw energy inside of her that had just decided to make itself known. She was lashing out at people, doing things she knew would cause trouble, and probably being a pain in the ass to those few who cared to notice.

Maybe Téa was overreacting. Technically, it WAS Bakura's fault. He didn't have to be so rude. Although he did have a point to know why she had been in his bedroom, he still didn't need to chunk china across the kitchen! Téa couldn't stop crying. She didn't know why but she honestly couldn't stop. And as the rain fell harder on her unprotected face, she wished someone would come and take away all the pain. Her body was cold and wet, but that was not the pain she was feeling. The usual neglect of her parents had always been there, tucked away in the back of her mind where she wouldn't be affected by it. But now there was a psycho after her, and she couldn't seem to keep the stress under control. As much as she had wanted her friends to notice her, she hadn't wanted it to be this way. She didn't want them to worry like this.

"Gardner?"

She jumped at the sound of someone's voice; Téa glanced over her shoulder and spotted Seto Kaiba, an umbrella shielding him from the weather that tore at her soul.

"Kaiba," she stammered, her mouth numb from the cold rain, "what are you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same question. Why are you out here in the rain at night? Alone?"

Why was it any of his business? Just the other day he had insulted her in front of everyone at the arcade. He and Bakura were both acting weird. Guys were so moody.

"I, uhh, I…"

He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped off the seat next to her. Surprisingly, he sat down on the swing, keeping the umbrella over his head. Téa wished they could share it; she was soaked.

"So what brings you here?" she asked curiously. Kaiba was the last person she expected to see right now. He stared up at the sky for the longest time. Téa couldn't feel her fingers anymore, and she was wishing she had run home instead of to the park.

"I was driving by and happened to see you. It's not everyday you see someone drowning themselves away."

She supposed he was trying to make a joke, but it sure didn't lighten the mood. And if he wasn't going to share his umbrella, why was he still here? …Was he the person who wanted her dead?

"Kaiba, you aren't the guy who attacked my locker, are you?" she asked hesitantly, careful not to provoke his anger.

He turned his gaze from the sky onto Téa. His icy blue eyes seemed to stare straight into her very being, as if evaluating whether or not her question was worthy of answering, whether or not she was worthy to be alive.

"Why would I waste my time threatening you? I have no motive to do so, and the publicity would be bad on my part."

That was a no then, she concluded. The two continued to sit there in the rain for some time. Téa glanced over at Kaiba several times, wondering what he was thinking. He probably thought she was a loser. A pathetic girl who was falling into depression. He would be on the right track. Finally, she couldn't stand the silence anymore.

"Well?"

He narrowed his eyes at her vague question. "Well what?"

"What now?"

He shrugged and closed the umbrella. His brown hair became darker with each raindrop that fell upon it. With the water in his hair and on his face, he actually looked pretty sexy.

…

Several crickets chirped nearby.

Had Téa just thought SETO KAIBA looked SEXY?

Those three words should NEVER be used in the same sentence! What was wrong with her? Téa snuck another peek at the CEO. Damn! He was still sexified! It was probably just all the cold weather freezing her brain. Yeah, that had to be it. Or did she actually have a crush on Mr. Moneybags?

No, no way. She just thought he looked sexy.

"Well, I better be off," Kaiba announced, breaking her train of thought.

"Oh. Where are you going?" That was a stupid question. He was obviously going home.

"Do you need a ride?"

"That'd be—"

"Téa! I found you!" she heard Ryou call out, and she turned to see him running towards them. Damn. He was wearing a tight white shirt. And it was raining. Who knew Ryou was so buff?

Téa knew she was beet-red. The water must be seeping into her brain... first Kaiba, now Ryou.

"Well then, now that your friend is here, I'm leaving," Kaiba interrupted. She watched him get into his limo and drive off.

"Téa, you're sopping wet! I'll walk you home."

Once inside her house, Téa offered to make Ryou some hot chocolate. He, however, said he would make the drinks while she took a warm shower. Téa wasn't on board with that idea. It was the girls in the steamy showers that always were killed off in scary movies. She could see her stalker breaking into the house, knocking Ryou unconscious, and then murdering her in the bathroom.

"I'd rather not."

"You're not scared, are you?" he asked teasingly.

Of course she was.

"No. I'm just not in the mood to take a shower. I'll go get us some towels."

While Téa was in the laundry room, the power flickered on and off. Great, she thought as she heard a rumble of thunder, now it's storming. Grabbing the towels and a few flashlights, she returned to the main room. Ryou smiled sheepishly and took the flashlights. They sat on Téa's couch and talked about things, mostly school. They still needed to decide on something for the geometry project. Ryou had just begun to talk about gym when the power went out.

"Oh great. Could you turn on one of those flashlights?" Téa asked, probing around in the darkness for one herself. There was a soft click, and a beam of light went right past her face.

"I've come to suck your blood," Ryou said, trying to imitate one of those old movie vampires. They both laughed.

"Well, now what shall we do?" he inquired, shining the light on the wall and making shadows with his hand.

"Don't you need to get home?"

"Yeah. But if the rest of the city is dark, too, I might get lost…"

"Ryou… you still get lost in the city?"

He was hopeless. Téa said he could sleep on the couch. After that, she went upstairs to change and get some extra blankets. She was really tired and cold. But she was still too scared to take a shower, so she merely threw the wet clothes on the bathtub and pulled on some warm pajama pants. Crap, where was the matching top? Her room was such a mess…

Téa froze. She had definitely just heard something… what if it was the stalker!? And she didn't have a shirt on! The innocent girl was always murdered with clothes missing! Téa could hear something moving around in her bedroom, and it was scaring the shit out of her! AIEE. She felt something on her leg!

"RYOU!"

She screamed and ran out of her bedroom. Dashing down the stairs in search of a flashlight, she crashed into Ryou at the bottom step. His cup of hot chocolate flew out of his hand and his eyes were as big as saucers as Téa collided into him. They went tumbling and hit the floor.

Ouch. That hurt.

"A-Téa," Ryou stuttered, blushing madly, "…shirt!"

HOLY TOMATOES! SHE STILL DIDN'T HAVE A SHIRT ON! Ryou's eyes were wide, and he was just staring at Téa's chest like a transfixed zombie. PERVERT! She jumped off of him and grabbed the nearest thing she could find, which happened to be a pillow.

"Stop looking at me!" she demanded, clutching the pillow to her chest.

"You're the one who came running down the stairs screaming my name!" Ryou replied, both teenagers as red as roses.

"Because I thought the killer guy was in my room!"

"Really?"

No… she had come down here, topless, on purpose to seduce Ryou. Ugh… that would be gross. She tried to rid her mind of that thought. Ryou was her friend. Sure, she thought he was good looking, and there may have been a point back in sophomore year when she'd been crushing on him, but that was over. She liked him as a friend, and only as a friend. At least she thought so. No! Just a friend!

"I think I'm gonna sleep down here with you," she told him. Realizing her innuendo, her face heated up again. "Uhh, after I put a shirt on, that is."

. . .

Why Téa was at the mall with Yami and Yugi was beyond her knowledge. Racking her brain, she assumed it was because Ryou was busy today. It had turned out that there was nothing in her bedroom except a smelly old sock; hadn't she felt stupid? Well, she needed to ditch this Egyptian… Yugi was too naïve to realize that Yami was following her around like they were newlyweds. She wasn't even sure where the short stuff went. He was probably looking at video games. However, she was merely walking around, trying to avoid the taller pineapple head.

"Téa," he pleaded, walking right behind her, "why can't we go do something romantic?"

Creep! She decided to lose him in the women's undergarments section of a large department store. She wished he would leave her alone. Yami was so love-struck over her that he didn't even realize Téa didn't feel the same way about him. She checked over her shoulder again. Good, he wasn't following her anymore. She sighed with relief and trudged to the food court. For once, she felt like eating.

Someone grabbed her arm and jerked her around. OH CRAP.

"I told you we'd meet again, my sweet."

. . .

So, think you know who the killer is? Snaps for you if you can figure it out! But I wont tell you…!