The Magicians' Realm Chapter 91: Safe Spaces, a yu-gi-oh fanfic

Chapter 91, everybody, and Happy Labor Day! Yes, I'm back finally! :D Writing juice just wasn't with this fic, and when it was, it wasn't with the next couple of chapters (stalled for the longest time on the ending of this chapter). :\ The next several chapters are in various stages of completion, so I'll be trying to get that and my other active fanfics going this month, because we've had long enough without updates. ^^;

Yes, I know the reference I made with the chapter title, but it does fit so we don't have to mention colleges treating people like they're two (had that with my first college—from experience, we didn't need safe spaces, we needed soundproof rooms where we could scream our frustrations out). Yami also references the saying 'the moon is made of green cheese'—it's an old statement, mentioned as early as the 1600s, with various stories relating to it across countries. Wikipedia explains it as an example of extreme credulity, which may say a lot about Yami's character.

Went and saw a handful of movies with my parents this summer before finally saying I didn't want to go to any more this year—the movie theater basically looks like Attack of the Clones (and I don't need to give my money to people who insult me based on who I voted for). Before cutting it off, here are the four movies we went and saw, in order of enjoyment:

The Equalizer 2—The one I enjoyed the most out of the selection, mostly because I LOVE the whole impending-storm aesthetic. We also get some more of Denzel Washington doing his Equalizer thing, although it does get bloody at times. :O

Hotel Transylvania 3—Colorful, fun animation, but with some new designs that are off-putting and at least one joke that goes on for way too long. Personally, I want at least a short about Drac and friends back in the day—we missed the first minute or so and walked in on them fleeing Van Helsing on the train, and that whole opening looks like it could belong to a storyline I'd like to watch.

The Incredibles 2—After fourteen years…you'd think we'd have a better storyline. Basically a 'Mr. Mom' storyline—Elastigirl's story I really didn't pay much attention to in favor of Bob's struggle, because Bob at least had a story arc—Helen ran on a linear pattern, and sounded more like me calling Mom from college than a mom off working. Edna didn't feel in character, and Jack-Jack…just got ridiculous. I expect to have my disbelief suspended when watching a show, but this strained it to the breaking point. Also, it wasn't advertised, but during some of Screenslaver's scenes I repeatedly had the thought this wouldn't be good if anyone in the audience had epilepsy. BIG trigger scene for that at one point. It's big, it's loud, it's good popcorn fare, but it's substandard compared to what we've learned to expect from Pixar.

And the Bao short in the beginning raised a lot of questions too—is the husband and wife estranged? Where is he during this whole dumpling thing? Is this a fantasy because she can't have kids? HOLY COW SHE ATE THE KID WHY? It gets explained in the last minute or two, but it was a major question mark during the whole thing—having a scene showing the empty bedroom to set up the empty-nest syndrome would have cleared up a LOT.

Jurassic World 2—Bottom of the barrel for a number of reasons, mostly related to not learning any lessons from the first movie. I had sworn I wouldn't see it, but we decided to give it a go after seeing the Mosasaurus commercial. Like with the first movie, the first…ten? First ten minutes was great. After that, like the first movie, it went downhill so fast it made a whistling noise. Someone please, tell me what's so appealing about an angry PC woman who gives off the impression that she hates everything? Why were we supposed to feel for this woman? Why hasn't the characterization improved any? Why did Chris Pratt have his hand in the lava are you INSANE!?

Also relating to the last one—please, if you're taking kids to the movies, 1) be sure they can handle the movie you're taking them to, and 2) cover basic etiquette, please. I heard and saw maybe half the movie because this lady had a group of 8-to-12-year-olds that talked through the whole thing and got up and ran through the theater as well.

Angiembabe, thanks for the review! Good to be back—even though I vanished again for a couple of months; I need to work on that. :| Yes and yes, and that'll probably be the last we hear about this topic for now. I'm sure! I spent the last two years seeing just how cruel sore losers can be—despite preaching equality, if it doesn't walk, talk, or squawk like them or whatever's in that year, they're all for death by stoning. Don't worry about me though, I can take care of myself. :) Me too….

Fromtheashtrees, thanks for the review! Yes and yes—Anzu brings this up this chapter. Hey, it kept you busy, didn't it? :) Nah, they just came with an uppity 'tude—kind of like the other day when they came and chopped down our willow tree that has been in the same place for THIRTY-FIVE YEARS because someone complained that they couldn't see down the street. Um, hello, you want to go down to the next corner and complain about the house blocking the view? Or perhaps pick any intersection in a twelve-mile radius and try to get a clear view—if I can learn to drive with that, then whoever called it in can too. The jokes on them though—they left the stump, so the willow tree is growing back. :D

FluffyIdiotIsI, thanks for the review! I am! Huzzah! Yes…fun fact: owls actually have more neck bones than giraffes, which have the same number of neck bones a human has (seven)—this enables them to twist their heads around like they do. Yes….OOH, shots fired! Yup—also mention it in another fanfic of mine here on FF: The Frost King. Although in there we're never really given a clear description of what happened (I like to touch on the same threads across my stories). The characters threw it out to me, but…okay, I'm going to be honest, I've spent the past three months brainstorming your suggestions into the story because those points have always been a tad vague to me and what you said is 100% better than what I did have planned. :O Anzu knows where it's at. We'll find out this chapter, now that it's finally here. ^^;

References:

Original characters, + setting © Kineil D. Wicks (myself, not the girl in the story)

"You seemed to be in a bit of a hurry to get out of there."

"What gave you that impression?"

"Well for starters, I'm pretty sure I would have remembered us having dinner plans."

"Okay, so maybe I wanted to get out of there," Teana admitted.

"So we don't have dinner plans, or we do?" Yami asked.

"I'd rather we didn't, but knowing you, I sort of doomed myself to dinner."

"Don't sound so thrilled about it. And I did warn you beforehand that you might find their topics uninteresting."

"Less uninteresting and more disturbing—I don't like the idea that we're related to those things."

"I'll remind you that you met one of those things and he was…okay, so he had no tact, but still."

"It's still concerning."

"I never said it wasn't—but you must keep in mind that at least one doctor there likes to farm frogs as a hobby."

"And believes that there are people living on the moon."

"That would be interesting," Yami agreed. "I wonder what they grow up there—cheese, definitely. Green cheese."

"And now I see how you get along so well with them."

"I like listening to them," Yami admitted. "You should hear them when they meet up with Doctor Mallard from up in the Capitol—they get a whole thing going."

"But I noticed you got antsy back there."

"It's hard to enjoy myself when I notice you not enjoying yourself."

"Well…."

Yami draped an arm around her. "Don't worry, I know just the thing: florist's and then dinner. You're wanting to buy more of those daffodils and doom me, aren't you?"

"A field of them is definitely tempting, but then we'd never be able to walk anywhere."

"Yes, that would be a problem—but I'm sure we'd be able to work around that. Raised beds or walkways or something like that."

Teana smiled, leaned into him some as they walked down the street. "So. Any luck in finding a place where nobody knows you?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure you want to commit to a trip to the moon just yet."

Unfortunately, that was probably true in every sense of the word.

*/*\*

They ran through the streets, Horus held with his head resting on Yuki's shoulder. There were two warring wants at the moment—find Yami, or find safety.

Safety eventually won out, if for no other reason that it was stationary.

Hence why they were on the Montgau's porch, breathing heavily from the exertion and scanning the skies for any big black birds. None were apparent, so they sagged onto the porch swing in relief.

That relief was short-lived.

"Where did you guys summon him?" Anzu asked.

"In our room, why?" Yuki asked.

"Then doesn't he know where you live?"

Yuki digested that, having apparently not considered that.

Anzu, meanwhile, had something else to digest.

Hadn't she had an extended conversation with a bird that looked precisely like Horus just this morning? Birds like Horus weren't exactly common—if Horus had had a fight with a big black bird that was really Yami Skellington….

Then she had been talking with Yami Skellington himself, just this morning. It had to have been him—he had answered to Yami. She had thought she was talking to Yami Montgau. She had been wrong.

That—was more than a little concerning, and she found herself turning the whole event over in her mind, gnawing at her thumbnail as she did so. Had his expressions been calculating? What on earth could his angle have been? He couldn't have known that she and Yami were a thing—so what purpose did he have in talking to her?

And better yet…that moment, when he had sounded almost wistful…what awaited a person whose bones were banished?

And then Mrs. Montgau came out.

"What are you kids doing out here?" she asked, blinking in surprise at them.

"Uh," Anzu noised, unsure what to say.

Yuki was more immediate. "Horus got into a fight with another bird."

"Do what?" Mrs. Montgau asked, putting down the basket she was holding and coming over, arms out. Yuki handed Horus over, gently lifting him so his beak didn't hook on his jacket. Watching her take him and tuck him under her arm, Anzu had a general idea where Yuki might have gotten his love for birds.

"What started this then?" Mrs. Montgau asked, gently feeling Horus' neck and lifting his head up.

"It's involved," Horus said weakly.

"I'm not even going to ask what bird insults constitute. Come on, you two, and someone grab my basket."

Yuki retrieved the item in question as they followed her into the house—Anzu had a moment to consider the open door to the parlor and the way the hall opened into the living room before following her into the kitchen.

"Yuki, get some blankets," Mrs. Montgau said as he put the basket on the table. "And the hot water bottle."

Anzu watched him dash off, feeling useless. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked, turning back to Mrs. Montgau.

"I'm not sure—what do you know about bird care?"

"I haven't the foggiest."

Mrs. Montgau shrugged. "You could get into the fridge and pull out some lunch, I suppose—we might as well have it a bit early. Fill the coffee pot with water and put it on the stove first though—we need to fill the hot water bottle."

Anzu glanced at the wall clock, a little stunned—barely eleven. The morning had felt like an eternity.

Yuki came back with a bunch of blankets and put the hot water bottle next to the stove by the time Anzu had done as she asked—milk and a loaf of sliced bread was already on the counter, and Anzu wavered before pulling out cheese and some mayonnaise, figuring it was easier than grabbing the jam and then hunting down peanut butter.

"You know, you don't have to cook me, I'm not dead," Horus objected.

"Well, you must be feeling better—your mouth is working again," Mrs. Moutou observed wrily, still with him nestled in her arms. "But until such time as Yami comes and patches you up properly, you'll find that the heat will make you feel better."

Horus grumbled, but nestled his head in the crook of her arm.

"Does it have to be Yami that does it?" Anzu asked. "Can't you or Yuki do it?"

There was a moment of aggravated conflict on her face—fleeting before Mrs. Montgau quashed it. "Yes, unfortunately."

It struck Anzu as a little odd that the Head Mage would have a wife who didn't do magic—it wasn't like Commoners didn't use the odd spell or two.

"There's some cold cuts in the fridge drawer," Mrs. Montgau said, glancing at what Anzu had pulled out. "Unless we're really having cheese sandwiches for lunch."

Anzu ducked her head and looked, pulling out some ham as the water started boiling. Mrs. Montgau handed Horus off to Yuki for a moment as she filled the water bottle, and a few moments later saw them with sandwiches and Horus sitting in the basket looking disgruntled.

"I am a Magician's familiar," Horus announced. "Sitting in a basket with blankets on me is undignified."

"Do you want this ham or not?" Mrs. Montgau said, pausing in slicing up a piece.

"I'll be good," Horus said quickly, resting his beak on the edge of the basket.

A few minutes after Grace, the back door banged open and Yami and Jonouchi barreled in, skidding to a halt when they spotted everyone sitting at the table.

"What's this?" Jonouchi asked.

"Lunch," Mrs. Montgau said. "Yami, Horus went and got himself into a bind, and I think he wants a more dignified approach to fixing him up."

"I want the ham first," Horus said, focused on Mrs. Montgau.

"Why, what happened?" Yami asked, crossing over. "Hi Anzu."

Anzu waved, partially because she was certain any response would be biting at the moment, partially because her mouth was full.

"Horus got into a fight with a big bird," Yuki supplied.

Yami blinked. "Do what?"

"It was a really big bird," Horus said stiffly. "And he attacked me from behind, so there." And then, after a piece of ham: "Said something about skeletons."

It was a roundabout way of informing Yami of who it was, and got across properly, if his expression was anything to go by.

"We ran into a wonky cat earlier," Yami said. "Must be the season for weird animals."

"Must be," Anzu said, still feeling thrown by her earlier realization. "Um, I really have to get back to work—can I take this to go?"

"Sure," Mrs. Montgau said. "Take a few paper towels. And don't worry, Horus will be all right."

"That's good to know," Anzu said, taking a few paper towels and wrapping her sandwich up. "Nice seeing you all."

"I'll walk you out," Yami said, moving with her down the hall; he waited until they were at the door before asking her in an undertone: "What's your plan then?"

"I'm going back to work," Anzu said.

Yami blinked, apparently not expecting that answer. "What? Why?"

"Because there isn't a single adult who knows that Skellington is out, and it's either I tell Miss Binder that he is or I'm out of a job for not showing up with a good explanation as to why. If I don't get back to work, she'll think I'm negligent."

"I think she thinks more highly of you than that."

"Be that as it may, I'm also not fond of running around chasing someone dangerous without some sort of plan. There is a plan, isn't there?"

Yami hesitated, which told her all she needed to know.

"Right," she said. "You either come up with a good plan, or tell your parents. This has seriously gone on way too long."

"It's been one day."

"It's been a dangerous day—Skellington talked to me this morning!"

It had been said as a hiss, but Yami recoiled as though she had screamed. "Do what?"

She took a deep breath, continued in a whisper. "This morning, there was a big bird that looked like Horus at the library. I thought it was you, it answered to Yami, it kind of sounded like you—"

"I don't know how to turn into a bird—that sort of magic isn't allowed anymore."

She shook her head. "I didn't know that. But we agreed that his old beau looked like me, right?" When Yami nodded: "Which means that the longer you fool around like this, the longer I'm personally in danger. And I can't stand that, okay? I have to be concerned with self-preservation."

"And I don't?"

"Yami, I don't think your parents will kill you for this if you explain it to them. I can't say the same thing about Skellington. Look what he tried with Horus."

Yami glared at an end table, apparently not wanting to acquiesce this point.

"Just—have a plan before you get me involved again, okay?" she asked, opening the door. "And tell your parents, okay?"

"I'll agree to the first, but the second is still fraught with peril," he told her.

"Right," she said flatly. "I'm just going to pretend the rest of this day has been a bed of roses."

"Roses have thorns."

"And you can have the last laugh. Goodbye, Yami."

And with that, she was off for the library as fast as she could go, giving the skies frequent glances and trying not to feel bad about what she had just done. But Yami needed to hear that—needed to hear that he had to admit his mistake and seek help that knew what it was doing.

Because she knew this wasn't a fiction book—they weren't going to outsmart Skellington without help.

And that left them just sitting ducks.