Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

A/N: First let me say yes I know its been a very long time since I've posted for this fic. This chapter has actually been sitting about half done on my computer for almost a year and I finally managed to get it put together. The chapter is on the shorter side for this story but where I ended it seemed like the perfect stopping point. As always I'd love to hear what you have to say about this story.

Dinner was a painful affair. Yami spent more than half his time at the table just pushing his food around his plate, despite the fact that he hadn't eaten since this morning he had no appetite at all. His life was over, or it might as well be.

'At this point I might as well jump overboard and just be done with it.' Yami depressedly thought to himself.

And worse still he couldn't even JUST blame that damn spirit.

That whole mess with Kaiba...that was almost completely on him. Yami sighed as he pushed his pasta around the plate with his fork, his eyes starring fixatedly on the plate because he knew if he were to look at his father then he'd break.

His father would get out of him what was wrong. It'd begin with him telling all about the mess with Kaiba, which he was sworn to secrecy on. And then it'd turn to the whole mess with Anzu. Yami internally winced. Yeah. That mess.

And that wasn't even getting into the whole new bodymate...thing. And the stolen artifact that very likely caused the hole mess.

Yeah, the solution was simple. He just needed to jump off the boat and hope that a croc was waiting right there to swallow him whole.

I mean, hey it happened to Captain Hook so, hopefully Yami was as lucky.

"You're very quiet Yami. Are you feeling alright?" Atemu said, drawing Yami's gaze briefly up to land on his father, who by the looks of things had been watching him for some time, his own plate already clean.

Yami sighed, his gaze drifting back down to rest back on his plate, "Yeah. I'm fine." Yami mumbled halfheartedly as he forced himself to take a bite. The food was good and his stomach was certainly appreciative of finally getting SOMETHING to eat since breakfast over twelve hours ago.

Atemu snorted, "You're lying to me." Atemu said.

Yami clenched his hand tightly around his fork as he wanted to just scream at his father to butt out. To leave him to wallow in his own mess. He'd clearly messed everything in his life up so it was up to him to deal with all the never ending consequences. Alone.

However, no words came out and just like twice before Yami suddenly found himself floating beside the table. His bodymate having taken over.

NO! Yami shouted, not that anyone could hear him as he watched his bodymate begin shoveling in food, like he was actually starving. On the bright side, at least as of this second the spirit or whatever it was hadn't grabbed a knife.

Atemu cleared his throat and the spirit looked up briefly from his meal, his eyes locking with Atemu. The body frowned. "Is there something you wanted PerAa? That cannot possibly wait until I've finished my evening meal?"

Atemu's eyes widened in apparent surprise at both the strange address and the severely disrespectful tone Yami's bodymate had chosen to address him with. "Yami, you're really beginning to worry me." Atemu said.

"And? You act as if your unnecessary worry is somehow a matter of my concern."

Yami, however had had more than quite enough of this nonsense and put his own body in practically a headlock. 'GIVE ME MY BODY BACK!' Yami growled into his own ear. An action that he really tried not to think about too closely.

And then without warning the spirit suddenly gave in and Yami found himself thrust back into his body with so much force that his forehead actually collided with the table, knocking over his glass of water and flipping over his now empty plate.

"Fucking bodysnatcher." Yami grumbled as he slowly straightened back up, rubbing his throbbing forehead.

Atemu slowly rose to his feet, his rose red eyes blazing with emotion, an emotion that Yami honestly couldn't even put a name to.

"We're going to my room where you're going to tell me what in name of god is going on with you." Atemu hissed.

Yami shook his head, his hand still lightly robbing his forehead, "Ummm, if its all the same to you dad, I'd really rather just go to bed."

"Its not all the same to me. As I said I'm done with these games and you are going to tell me what is going on and you aren't leaving until you do." Atemu growled.

Yami groaned as he slowly got to his feet, a million different lies flitting across his mind as a way to get away from having to speak to his father. 'I don't feel good.' or a couple of possible variations, 'I think I might be a bit seasick' or 'I think I ate too fast' were all quickly dismissed. Telling his father, who had been asking quite frequently how Yami was feeling wasn't going to just suddenly say 'oh, by all means go to your room and lie down'. If anything, those lies were likely to make his father MORE concerned, not less. Another possible lie, 'I need to go and talk to Anzu' was also doomed to failure and if anything was likely to merely redirect his father's attention onto something Yami really wished his father would just forget about. And saying that Pegasus or Chono-sensei needed to see him for some reason was just plain dumb. There was absolutely no chance his father would believe that for even a second.

And so, feeling not unlike a chained man being led towards his doom Yami followed after his father. Vaguely contemplating his practically nonexistent chances of success if he just turned and ran for it, hoping to lose his father on the ship. After all, there would only be so many possible places Yami could really hide and it would just be delaying the inevitable and would no doubt just end up making his father that much angrier.

Yami reluctantly followed his father back up to the fifth floor, the same floor that Yami had encountered his father perhaps only an hour prior. He refused to allow himself to think about what he'd been doing up on this floor before since he just couldn't. It was all just too MUCH!

"I can't do this." Yami muttered before he, as stupid as it was turned his back on his father and instead started sprinting up the stairs as fast as he could. After all, his whole life was utter and complete shit so why not toss some torturous stairs into the mix on top of it.

"YAMI!"

Yami winced as he continued to push himself to run as if his very life depended on it even as his lungs continued to burn and his legs throbbed and his far too full stomach all voiced their displeasure at sprinting like this right now.

Yami ignored the protests of his body as he pushed open the door which allowed him out onto the roof deck of the ship. His eyes darting left and right as he continued to jog already keenly aware that this was essentially the end of the line. He had no where left to run. There weren't even any structures he could have attempted to climb not that he'd have any luck doing so.

Yami came to a stop as his body collided with the railing, his eyes drifting down to the water below. From this high up jumping into the river would undoubtedly be painful. A brief thought flashed across Yami's mind questioning if that would truly be a bad thing when once again the specter took over his body.

Yami was shocked to find his spirit or at least that's what Yami guessed it was, essentially dumped flat on his ass as the specter continued to just calmly stand beside the railing.

Yami slowly got back to his feet to fight the specter once more for his body when he caught sight of his father bursting through the doors onto the roof deck himself, his red eyes narrowed in fury like Yami hadn't seen in a very VERY long time.

"YAMI AMIR SENNEN!" Atemu snarled as he marched towards Yami who watched as his body calmly turned to face his father, his chest was heaving both from the exertion and his anger. The specter did nothing and said nothing, allowing Atemu to harshly grab a hold of Yami's arm and drag him back towards the doors.

"What are you doing?" Yami hissed as he jogged behind his body, demanding to know what the hell the spirit was up to.

The spirit refused to answer and as Yami once again wrapped his spectral arms around his own throat, fighting for control of his body Yami felt the spirit resist. The spirit continued to fight Yami for control until Atemu had dragged Yami into his room and slammed the door shut behind him. Once Atemu had done so the spirit immediately relinquished his control muttering "you're welcome princess."

Atemu released his hold on Yami's arm and instead pointed firmly towards the edge of his bed. "Sit. Now. Or so help me Yami you are not too old for me to put you over my knee." Atemu growled.

Yami winced at the threat as he slowly made his way over to the bed he almost dared to challenge his father on the threat...telling him that some would consider that abusive behavior but even thinking of suggesting such a think felt wrong. His father had not and never would abuse him. No matter how much Yami wanted to put this off it didn't change the fact that, if he looked at this from the outside he one THOUSAND percent had earned his father's ire.

So, Yami found himself sitting silently on the edge of his father's bed watching as his father seemed to be taking a few deep, calming breaths in an effort to be able to deal with Yami. Yami could hardly remember the last time he'd seen his father this angry. He had been what? Six? Seven? It was Christmas 2nd grade when he'd almost in his father's words 'gotten himself killed'. He'd decided that he wanted to prove to his classmates that Santa was real and what better way to prove than to sneak out of his bedroom skylight and end up falling asleep on the snow covered roof and ending up hypothermic and spending Christmas with his parents at the ER. Looking back he probably would have died if his father hadn't decided to peek in on him before they were going to bring the presents downstairs.

And if memory served Yami once he'd been released from the hospital his bottom ended up stinging as a reminder not to do something so utterly STUPID again.

Once Atemu had sufficiently calmed down he spoke. "I want you to tell me what the hell is going on with you Yami. And you aren't leaving this room until you do." Atemu declared, his voice coming out as a growl but he wasn't yelling. He didn't need to. His tone of voice and the look on his face were both more than enough to convince Yami his father was furious with him.

Yami sighed how in the world was he supposed to answer his father? None of the issues he was currently facing were things that he could discuss. His choices were, it appeared, either going to be fold or double down.

"I'm afraid that isn't really any of..." Yami began before once more Yami found himself dumped aside.

The spirit then cleared his throat, "My apologies PerAa...I'm not sure what came over me. You do have every right to be concerned. My mind as of late has sought passage into Osiris's realm. There isn't much sense to be made of my actions. Let alone logic to sufficiently defend them." The spirit said, his tone not only respectful but actually managing to sound contrite. Yami was so surprised that it actually took him a moment to come to grips with everything and once more battle for control, control the spirit once again immediately ceded.

Yami rose a brow as he looked at his father whose complexion had turned a bit ashen as he stared at Yami. Yami's mind drifted back over the nonsense the spirit was muttering...passage to Osiris's realm. Wait, Yami's eyes widened in shocked realization. Wasn't Osiris like the god of the dead? Did the spirit just tell his father that Yami was contemplating SUICIDE? How was he supposed to fix this new mess?

'And is if homicide if the person I'm seeking to murder is already dead?' Yami darkly thought shuttering lightly as he heard laughter in the back of his head as an answer.

Yami mentally snorted. Yeah, there had to be a method that existed to kill a ghost. Evil spirit. Whatever.

Atemu took another deep breath however before he spoke Yami interrupted him, "Sorry dad. I know this isn't exactly the time for me to be joking with you. I absolutely deserve it if you tan my hide. Suicide isn't a laughing matter." Yami spluttered.

Atemu rose a brow, "Mood swings. Risky behavior. Intentionally driving away friends. Changes in appetite. Those are all signs of someone who is contemplating suicide and to be honest Yami, after you mentioned it you do display every single one of them." Atemu said.

Yami shook his head quickly. "No, no no no no dad I'm not...honest I'm not. And I'm sorry if you think I am." Yami said.

Atemu walked over and lightly sat down on the bed beside Yami who was almost pleading with his eyes for his father to believe him that he wasn't actually going to kill himself. Yes, the thought HAD crossed his mind but, he didn't honestly consider it as an option.

"Why don't you tell me about your strange outbursts then? And why you have randomly started calling me PerAa?" Atemu asked.

Yami's gaze drifted down to rest on his lap, "I can't tell you that." Yami whispered.

"And why can't you? Yami...I can't help you if you don't tell me what is going on." Atemu said.

Yami sighed, "You wouldn't believe me if I did." Yami said.

Atemu snorted, "Try me." Atemu replied.

Yami snorted, 'well...here goes nothing.' "Dad, I think I'm being possessed by some crazy ancient eygptian spirit that thinks your some Pharaoh from thousands of years ago that he wants to murder." Yami said before looking his father square in the eye as if he was daring Atemu to call him a liar.

Balls in your court dad. If you really want to help me I'm giving you a chance.