A/N- Here we go, folks, this story is almost done. You should be able to
guess who the tiger is now. All I have to say other than what wonderful
reviewers/readers you all are is that you are one heck of a lot more
perceptive than my friend is. He read my POV stuff and was totally in the
dark about the identity of the characters. I applaud/thank you greatly for
making it this far into the story and not just forgetting about it. Oh, and
you know the warning I had for part 6? Well it applies to this chapter and
the last one. Okay? Okay. Sorry about this, but if you really want to read
this, you can. There's nothing remotely explicit, as the rating indicates.
Not even hinting really...but still, the mild warning stands, so you can't
accuse me of anything except keeping you all waiting for a long time.
Disclaimer- If I owned Yu-Gi-Oh, then this is what you would be seeing on your screen. Unfortunately, I don't think they allow anything remotely near this odd on, or even near, the television to be viewed by innocent (or not so innocent) viewers.
Memories Come Flooding Back
// No one can stay here forever, Seto. Not even me. //
The tiger's earlier words lingered in Seto's mind. Humans were not meant to live here forever... did that mean the tiger was human? Or was it simply his mind playing tricks on him again, like it had so many times in the past. Seto glanced at the tiger and was astonished by how much it had changed.
The tiger seemed to change beneath his very gaze, as though defying his wishes for it to remain as it had been, becoming even more tired looking than before. Its whiskers and tail drooped ever so slightly and its crimson eyes lacked the usual luster they had once been known for. Even the tiger's stripes were different. The elegant obsidian marks appeared to be changing, almost melting, blurring at the edges with the white fur to become gray. Only marginally different, but it was a change all the same.
//I don't want to go back. There is nothing waiting for me in the real world except pain, anguish, suffering, regret, hatred, and more pain. They all hate me.//
Once again, there was the quizzical look that very often graced the tiger's face.
//Who is they?//
Images flitted through Seto's mind. Faces and colors and shapes and noises all blurring together, dancing just out of his mental grasp.
//...I don't know...//
//That is the work of the Dreamscape. It's protecting you.//
//But from what?//
The tiger twisted to shift his unblinking gaze towards Seto. Seto paused. The change in the tiger was becoming more evident even as he thought about it. There was a distinct color variation present now. About half the whiskers surrounding the pink nose and mouth had altered, becoming a rich golden color, and the uppermost tips of the two peaked ears had been edged with scarlet as if the tiger had been painted at one time, but the red had worn away with age.
The inky black stripes themselves seemed more melted looking than ever, becoming more concentrated and clustered around the throat and ankles. The annoying feeling he got when he knew he'd forgotten something was back again in full glory. And he desperately hated it. The tiger looked so different, yet so familiar...
//Only you know the true answer to that question.//
Seto glared at the tiger, who remained placid, ever tranquil and undisturbed. And yet, to Seto, the tiger was a symbol of power and wisdom here. The omnipotent, all-seeing ruler of the Dreamscape. But at the same time he knew it wasn't true. The tiger didn't belong here any more than he did. He could sense it the moment he began to remember.
//Where are you from?//
It was a question he should have asked long ago. It had never occurred to him before to ask for someone or something's background, but it made sense to now.
//You keep insisting I called you to me. This may be true, but if it is, then where were you before?//
There was a moment of silence. The tiger seemed to be contemplating an answer, attempting to word it in a way that would be acceptable to the waiting jackal in front of him. It had never done that before.
//I was in a void. A vast expanse of nothingness and everything all at once. A place like here where time has no meaning and there are no others around you. A place that is the epitome of ancient evil and power and darkness, all rolled into one.//
There was another moment of silence. Seto turned this new answer over in his mind. It sounded like something he had heard someone else say a while ago. Realization dawned on him like the sun rising over the mountains at dawn, shedding light on everything it touched. Only two pairs of people that he knew ever talked telepathically. He could see it more clearly now, the fog of denial seeming to lift from his clouded mind. He remembered were he had heard almost the exact same thing before. A pair of eyes completed the mental image that had eluded him for so long. The only eyes that had ever held any power over him were there.
//I remember.//
//Are you to go back now, Seto? Ready to go home?// A sad look graced the tiger's eyes. Eyes that Seto had finally realized could only belong to one person.
There was one last pause. One last look around the land he had learned to love. The trees, the mountains, the deserts, the lakes and streams, and the rolling plains. The land he had learned so much in. It had taken a trip to the Dreamscape to teach him how to feel again, and a guide from another time and place to take him through it. His time was up. He was complete now. He was whole again. Seto looked onto the tiger's crimson eyes.
//I'm ready now.//
A/N- It's not quite over yet. The final part is still to come. Many of you were correct in guessing the tiger's identity, and I'm overjoyed that you liked this story. Review me, please? One last time before the end is here...
Disclaimer- If I owned Yu-Gi-Oh, then this is what you would be seeing on your screen. Unfortunately, I don't think they allow anything remotely near this odd on, or even near, the television to be viewed by innocent (or not so innocent) viewers.
Memories Come Flooding Back
// No one can stay here forever, Seto. Not even me. //
The tiger's earlier words lingered in Seto's mind. Humans were not meant to live here forever... did that mean the tiger was human? Or was it simply his mind playing tricks on him again, like it had so many times in the past. Seto glanced at the tiger and was astonished by how much it had changed.
The tiger seemed to change beneath his very gaze, as though defying his wishes for it to remain as it had been, becoming even more tired looking than before. Its whiskers and tail drooped ever so slightly and its crimson eyes lacked the usual luster they had once been known for. Even the tiger's stripes were different. The elegant obsidian marks appeared to be changing, almost melting, blurring at the edges with the white fur to become gray. Only marginally different, but it was a change all the same.
//I don't want to go back. There is nothing waiting for me in the real world except pain, anguish, suffering, regret, hatred, and more pain. They all hate me.//
Once again, there was the quizzical look that very often graced the tiger's face.
//Who is they?//
Images flitted through Seto's mind. Faces and colors and shapes and noises all blurring together, dancing just out of his mental grasp.
//...I don't know...//
//That is the work of the Dreamscape. It's protecting you.//
//But from what?//
The tiger twisted to shift his unblinking gaze towards Seto. Seto paused. The change in the tiger was becoming more evident even as he thought about it. There was a distinct color variation present now. About half the whiskers surrounding the pink nose and mouth had altered, becoming a rich golden color, and the uppermost tips of the two peaked ears had been edged with scarlet as if the tiger had been painted at one time, but the red had worn away with age.
The inky black stripes themselves seemed more melted looking than ever, becoming more concentrated and clustered around the throat and ankles. The annoying feeling he got when he knew he'd forgotten something was back again in full glory. And he desperately hated it. The tiger looked so different, yet so familiar...
//Only you know the true answer to that question.//
Seto glared at the tiger, who remained placid, ever tranquil and undisturbed. And yet, to Seto, the tiger was a symbol of power and wisdom here. The omnipotent, all-seeing ruler of the Dreamscape. But at the same time he knew it wasn't true. The tiger didn't belong here any more than he did. He could sense it the moment he began to remember.
//Where are you from?//
It was a question he should have asked long ago. It had never occurred to him before to ask for someone or something's background, but it made sense to now.
//You keep insisting I called you to me. This may be true, but if it is, then where were you before?//
There was a moment of silence. The tiger seemed to be contemplating an answer, attempting to word it in a way that would be acceptable to the waiting jackal in front of him. It had never done that before.
//I was in a void. A vast expanse of nothingness and everything all at once. A place like here where time has no meaning and there are no others around you. A place that is the epitome of ancient evil and power and darkness, all rolled into one.//
There was another moment of silence. Seto turned this new answer over in his mind. It sounded like something he had heard someone else say a while ago. Realization dawned on him like the sun rising over the mountains at dawn, shedding light on everything it touched. Only two pairs of people that he knew ever talked telepathically. He could see it more clearly now, the fog of denial seeming to lift from his clouded mind. He remembered were he had heard almost the exact same thing before. A pair of eyes completed the mental image that had eluded him for so long. The only eyes that had ever held any power over him were there.
//I remember.//
//Are you to go back now, Seto? Ready to go home?// A sad look graced the tiger's eyes. Eyes that Seto had finally realized could only belong to one person.
There was one last pause. One last look around the land he had learned to love. The trees, the mountains, the deserts, the lakes and streams, and the rolling plains. The land he had learned so much in. It had taken a trip to the Dreamscape to teach him how to feel again, and a guide from another time and place to take him through it. His time was up. He was complete now. He was whole again. Seto looked onto the tiger's crimson eyes.
//I'm ready now.//
A/N- It's not quite over yet. The final part is still to come. Many of you were correct in guessing the tiger's identity, and I'm overjoyed that you liked this story. Review me, please? One last time before the end is here...