Hi! This is a sequel/prequel thing to "I Didn't..." Sorry I promised this so long ago, but I kinda ran into a few personal problems and couldn't seem to find time to do this! I hope that this is worth the wait! Um... Italics are Yami Bakura and reg. font is Ryou's. Have fun. REVIEW! I originally posted these two parts seperately, then I realized it would be a whole lot easier if I just posted them as one =) Enjoy the story, I want to write another Bakura story, but I want to hear you suggestions on what I should do first, ok?
//Yami to Ryou//
/Ryou to Yami/
[thoughts]
I can feel reality slipping away from me slowly. It's as if reality were many grains of sand and they were falling between my fingers to be lost to me. I am still awaiting my trial to find out if I am "True of Speech," of course I won't be, though. I was a tomb raider at one point in my life. When I was caught I should have been impaled but I had escaped. I have done nothing in my life but lie and cheat and hurt. I cannot remember once when I was actually kind toward another living being. Well... I was at one time somewhat nice to my light.... Although I realized my true feelings a bit too late, it seems.
He's dead now, Bakura. Forget.
My mind seems to demand this more with every grain of reality that slips away. That is all right, though. When he died, his memories were given to me by Osiris as a gift. Perhaps it could also be considered a curse? I now know just how much damage I had done to the boy with my anger and temper. It's a wish of mine that I could turn back time. It will never happen, though. I know now what had happened to him that night. I know this now because I have viewed it through his memories, or are they mine now? I do not know, I do not care. I just want my trial to come so that my heart may be fed to the "Devourer of Hearts" so that I can cease to exist. So that finally I might see him again. I want so badly to appologize to him for all my ways.
I sigh and can easily hear the sound eaten hungrily by the swirling shadows that have surrounded me since the day I saw him off to the next world. I can see and hear his last days even now, how I regret that I hadn't done anything to help him...
The boy sat silently in the corner of the library as he carefully took down some important points from the book infront of him. His long white hair fell into his eyes, and he tried in vain to clear it away. His brown eyes scanned the pages quickly, looking for key words relating to his report. A pile of multicolored books lay beside him on the table, partially blocking him from the view of others. From his position near the window, he could hear the melody of the rain as it struck the glass forcefully.
This boy was named Bakura Ryou, he was a Freshman in highschool and usually attracted quite a bit of attention with his odd colored hair and english accent. Although, after nearly a year of living in Japan, his accent was beginning to fade, much to his disliking. His voice was one of the few reminders he had of his past home. He hardly owned anything to begin with, his room at home was unusually void of posters or items of the sort. He had a desk, a single book shelf, and a bed. That was it. Even his comforters provided little hint to his thoughts with their bland white coloring.
A sigh slipped between his lips as he closed the book softly and began on yet another. He checked his watch quickly and realized he had already been there for three hours. Ryou would have to hurry if he was going to finish this before the library closed in an hour. His hand ached from the fifteen pages of notes he had written in his small handwriting. Even with living here for a year, he still wrote in english when he was in a hurry. But who could blame him? Ryou had lived there for nearly fourteen years of his life. Surely some habits of his old life were going to be hard to break.
The librarian walked over toward Ryou an hour later and told him that he would have to leave now.
"All right. Good night, ma'am." Ryou replied with false cheerfullness as he gathered his books up and checked them out. He then walked home slowly, dreading what was sure to happen when he got home. The rain fell around him, soaking him through and through in what seemed like seconds of walking outside. He hadn't brought an umbrella with him to school that day, knowing that it was going to rain. He loved the rain, and if he fell ill, oh well. The few people out at this time of night all either held umbrellas, or wore those rediculous rain ponchos. A sad smile crossed his face for a moment as he thought of home.
Ryou's father was an archeologists and was currently in Egypt, studying an ancient tomb of one of the great pharaohs. Ryou couldn't seem to recall the name of the pharaoh at all. All the boy knew about it was that the king had been a boy, and his name was ereased from history. A collegue of Mr. Bakura had been the one to stumble, quite litterally, across the small tomb that had mostly been burried in the sands. With his father gone, Ryou was alone in the two story home they owned. You see, his mother had died nearly three years ago. Their move was somewhat related with her death. Ryou suspected that his father could no longer bear walking down the streets he had walked with her and going to the stores they had visited together.
Ryou never was one for large groups of friends, or even one friend at a time. He had always been off in his own little land, watching his life pass him by as if from the eyes of another person. He hadn't actually minded be on the fringes of reality, not until he had been given this curse. Only then had he realized that he would not survive his ownership of the Ring unless he had a friend. Little did he know that it was the Ring itself which made it possible for him to collect such a large group of friends. A weak smile crossed his lips as he thought of Yuugi and the others. It was a nice image for him, one he never thought he would be part of.
The smile faded from his face in the blink of an eye, however, when the sneering voice in his mind spoke once more.
//Smiling now, are you? What for? Because you have friends? Ah, Ahou... You're an idiot. They're not being your friends. Yami Yuugi probably convinced them all to keep an eye on you since you hold the Ring. Don't fool yourself with such ideas of friends.//
Ryou cringed mentally and chose to ignore his Yami, regardless of the conscenquences he knew he would face. Soon, he would be home. Soon, he wold be away from peaople. And soon, he wold receive his punishment for ignoring Yami Bakura.
In the privacy of his soul room, Yami Bakura let out a low growl and spoke of many nasty threats that he was sure to full fill before the night was through. Ryou's expression shifted back into it's usual mask of gloom. He knew that tonight would be quite horrible for him, but what could he do? As Yami Bakura was constantly pointing out, he was far too weak to even live. Yami Bakura was probably being merciful in letting him live.
Ryou snorted as his eyes betrayed how bitter he felt.
[Oh yes, Yami is merciful in letting me live with all of the pain I've been given. He was merciful with his constant tauntings and harmful words. Oh, indeed, Yami Bakura should be quite a bit of competition for Mother Teresa.] Ryou scoffed mentally as he watched the sky above him.
//Careful, Ahou. You don't want to have anymore thoughts like that or you may not live to see the sunrise today.//
Often times, Ryou had found himself cursing his father for giving him the ring, and he silently cursed Yami Yuugi for even choosing Yami Bakura to seal in the Ring. What were the odds that he would be the one destined for the Ring?
Lost deeply in his thoughts, Ryou uncharacteristically bumped into someone. This person had been running toward Ryou's direction, and appearantly had looked behind them when they ran into Ryou.
"Go-gomen!" Ryou appologized quickly as he stood and hurriedly helped the other stand. The other didn't respond, he simply turned his large grey eyes upon Ryou, scrambled up, and ran. Ryou could only stare after the other and wonder what had scared him so much.Only that cursed voice that plagued Ryou so horribly was able to snap him out of his thoughts,
//Ryou.If I get sick because you stood out in this rain for twenty minutes, I swear, as soon as I get better---//
The threat was never completed, though, because Ryou swiftly put up his mental shields. This surprised Yami Bakura greatly, seeing as he had no idea his light could put up such strong shields. With a final growl Yami Bakura retreated to his Soul Room, putting up his own shields against Ryou's. If the little ahou wanted to play that game, Bakura would. And he would win. And when he did, Ryou would pay. His dark laughter filled the black void that was his Soul Room.
The house was dark, as Ryou knew it would be. It had been dark each time he returned home for the last two years. No one was there to turn on a light or two for Ryou. No one was there at all. His home was at the end of the street, quiet and secluded from the others. It had the largest yard which Ryou used to work in at least once a day. When Yami Bakura came into his life, he started to work in it once a week. Then once a month. Now he only worked in his garden when he could. Weeds that taken over the lovely flower beds, giving a slight impression of a neglected home. The stairs leading to the front door creaked and groaned under the slightest pressure, and the front door tended to jam.
Ryou would normally have fixed such things right away, things like this irritated him to no end. Yami Bakura, though, never let him. Each time that Ryou had enough time to call someone do such tasks as fix the stairs and door, Yami Bakura would come. He would teach Ryou whatever "lesson" he thought should be learned that day. Each time after their "school time" Ryou wouldn't be able to call for someone to fix everything. He was too afraid of whoever was sent asking questions about his bruises. Nearly all of the time that cursed lesson had been how to lay quietly and be beaten. A deep sigh slipped out from between his lips as he neared the door.
It was unlocked, but Ryou thought nothing of it. He had been in a large hurry this morning, and it would not have really surprised him if he found out he had not locked it. He pushed open the door and began to walk inside when he heard a crash. His eyes widened as he wishfully began thinking that maybe his father was home. The he was just going to try and surprise Ryou.
He missed his father. Two years is a long time to have not seen someone. Especially when that someone is a parent. Your only parent remaining...
"Father?" Ryou called though the house as he went room to room, turning on all of the lights. Not a soung was heard aside from the click of lamps as their switch was turned, Ryou's footsteps, or Ryou's calls.
Ryou had searched all of the house, accept the kitchen. A soft smile played on his lips as he thought of his father and walked towards the kitchen.
As he flipped on the light, Ryou gasped. A man dressed in black stood in the kitchen, he seemed ready for Ryou, judging from the way he warily held the kitchen knife in hand. Ryou's eyes grew wide as the light reflected off of the weapon.
"Kid, I'm really sorry to have to do this..." The thief whispered in a sincere tone as he approached Ryou menacingly. Ryou's eyes became glazed over as he dropped his shields instantly.
/Yami! Yami Bakura! Yami Bakura! Help me! Please, God, Help me!/ His pleas were not heard. He used all of his strength as he pounded on the stone shields his Yami had raised.
/Yami Bakura! Yami Bakura! Please! You have to help me!/ The only response was the echoe of his own voice, and his fists pounding against the rugged stone. His Yami was not going to answer him.
He fell to his knees, his hands clutching at his stomache in pain and shock while the cowardly thief ran into the night through the window.
A soft thud was heard as Ryou fell to his knees, his head leaning against the stone wall as he breathed in heavily. Breathing hurt far to much. Something wet coated his fingers thickly as he held onto his stomache. The knife was imbeded in his false form, as well as physical. The pain was immense.
/Yami.... Yami..... Please.... Please.... For the love of God..... Yami./
His mind voice cracked and finally fell away, as did his false form. The energy used to keep himself in the Soul Room's corridors was much needed.
Ryou was panting hard when he came back to reality, a cold sweat had covered his body and a small pool of crimson had formed below him. He now lay on the cool white tiles, unable to stand, to even lift a finger. His little strength was leaving him rapidly.
His memories carry on for the last few hours of his life. I cannot bear to view them, for I cannot even stand to remember what happened. But, for the sake of sanity and honesty, He died.
Bakura Ryou died that night, he died because I had chosen to ignore him. To keep my shields up. I had felt his pain, though it was dulled because of my stone shields, I had felt his fear, and yet I did nothing. I had not heard him screaming for me to help him, I had not heard him pounding for all he was worth against my barriers, but I know now that he had.
It pains me to think that I could have saved him. I could have gotten him to hospital sooner. I could have saved him from that filthy thief all together. In all honesty, I hadn't put up my barriers to keep him out. I had used them because I didn't want him to notice. I didn't want him to notice how his ignoring me had hurt. It stung. Not as a knife to skin would, but something similar to that.
Yami Yuugi will never forgive me, and even though I had denied killing him at his funeral, in a way I had. I had murdered my light by being selfish. I, however, am not that self-centered Pharaoh. I do not think of the consequences of my actions when it comes to certain matters, I do not plan three steps ahead of myself. I prefer to do things as I please. I am not saying that I will never plan anything ahead of myself, I had done that quite often. In the years since his death, while I wait for my trial, I have not planned a damn thing. I do not care what I say at my trial. I do not deserve to live in the underworld. Whether I am True of Speech or not, I should be fed to the Devourer. I should cease to exist. Perhaps I will. Perhaps the Gods share me point of view.
He died for no reason. I could have easily saved him... And yet... He's dead. He's lying in his grave at the age of seventeen. He wasn't even an adult yet. I have lived for countless millenia, I would have gladly traded positions with Ryou. I would have gladly died if it meant that he could live. That he could experience adulthood. He never got to know it at all. I killed him... No matter what I told the Pharaoh, I killed him....
Ahou - Fool
