Bakura sighed, walking by the familiar surroundings. He was supposed to meet Yugi's friends and Yami, but his need for solitude had kicked in again, and he didn't really want to go right now.
/They are YOUR friends, too/ Yugi reminded him. He didn't reply.
Just hurry and get there, Yami Bakura snapped. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave.
The teen sighed again. Just ever so slightly, he quickened his pace. He decided it was best not to argue with him.
As he continued to walk, however, something caught his attention. As Bakura looked on, he realized he was staring at a children's playground. Curious, he approached the seemingly deserted area.
Questions filled both Yugi and Yami Bakura's minds as Bakura walked around the recreational area, examining everything. His eyes finally came to rest on the swing set.
It was a rather large swing set, the two lonely swings probably big enough to carry someone as tall as himself. Rolling the idea around in his mind, the snow-haired teen finally came to a conclusion, and sat on one of the swings.
At this point, Yami Bakura finally received the information he needed to understand why his light was doing what he was doing, and why, so he closed the link between them, deciding to stay out of it. Yugi, however, was still curious, and trying to be polite and not read Bakura's mind, waited to see what his friend would do and if he would explain.
Leaning back, Bakura swung his legs forward, trying to get himself to elevate. The breeze he created by rocking back and forth such as that caused his hair to be blown around, from into his face to back in its original place. He ignored his white tresses as he attempted to go higher. When he figured the swing had reached its maximum peak, he jumped.
Time seemed to slow down, the moment he left the swing seemed to last forever. The wind pushed his hair back, as the sun shone around him, giving him the look of a silver-haired angel suspended in the air. For that split second, the rest of the world seemed to disappear, as Bakura seemed to understand how birds feel when they fly.
And just as suddenly, without warning, time returned to its normal pace, as the teen felt the ground firmly beneath his feet. He let out a rather sad sigh, looking back at the swing as it began to slow to a stop, before moving on.
As he walked, he came across a sandbox, abandoned toys lay halfway buried in the dirt. An amused smile crept over Bakura's lips as he sat on the edge of the box, picking up one of the nearby sand buckets. Looking at the plastic tower castle, he grabbed the nearby spade and filled the container with sand. When it was full, he flipped it over, gently pulling it away to admire his sand tower.
A soft breeze came upon him suddenly, as he stared at the tower, reminding him of when he was younger. Oh, he used to have such big hopes and dreams then. When he was a child, he wanted to do and achieve so much. And his mother had been there to support him in everything he wanted to try. But. . . . . . the day she was taken away from him. . . . . . all his wishes, plans, and desires were taken along with her.
/Your mother died/ Yugi asked suddenly, causing Bakura to jump slightly. Then, the other boy added, /I. . . . . I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude./
'No, it's all right,' the snow-haired teen replied gently. 'You can't really help it anyway. Yes, my mother died years ago when I was much younger. That was before my father and I moved to Domino City.'
/I'm sorry./
'There's nothing to be sorry about, really. She left us, and ever since then, my father has moved us from city to city. We've never really settled in just one place, and it gets so hard to just. . . . . .'
/To just make friends/ the younger boy suggested.
Bakura chuckled sadly. 'You've figured me out, Yugi. And to answer the question that you're thinking about, yes, that IS why I'm found by myself most of the time. Moving around so much the way we do never gives you an opportunity to get to know your peers better, and therefore making it almost impossible to make friends.'
/But doesn't it ever get lonely/
'Sure, it gets lonely, but after living this way for so long, one just gets used to it.'
/No one should ever 'get used' to being by themselves, Bakura. It's not right./
He didn't respond.
A few minutes passed in continued silence. Finally, Yugi decided to break it. /So, you've been around the world/
'Yes. After my mother passed away, it was like my father wanted to be anywhere but there. And, of course, he took me along with him, and we moved from country to country.'
/But did you want to stay where you were living before/
'In England? Yeah. It was where my mother was buried, after all, and I wanted to be able to visit her whenever I could.'
/Did you tell your dad that/
'No. Father made it clear that he wanted me to come with him. We would move somewhere, then he would work out of that country a lot, and then we would move somewhere else.'
/So you're often by yourself at home/
'Well, you've seen that my father is never at home.'
/Yeah. Gosh, I'm sorry./
'It's all right. I'm used to it.'
/I. . . . . I kinda know how that feels, too./
Bakura blinked. 'Do you?'
/Yeah. Sort of. None of my parents died or anything, and again, I'm sorry, but I think it's a little better than my case./
'How so?'
/Well, even though your mom is gone, at least you knew that she loved you. My dad left when I was really young, and I never got the chance to know him. You can't love people you don't know./
The snow-haired teen didn't say anything.
/My mom works a lot too, so I don't get to see her that often./
'I guess we're more alike than just being the lighter hosts of darker spirits,' Bakura mused.
Yugi let out a little laugh. /Yeah, I guess so./
Drawing up a little more sand, Bakura made another sand tower. Then, standing up, he wiped the stray grains of soil from his hands, ready to get going.
Suddenly, the teen's ears picked up faint, familiar sounds some distance away. The sound of children's laughter followed closely behind.
/What is that/ Yugi asked.
'I have an idea,' Bakura replied, his curiosity getting the better of him as he went to investigate.
Bakura leaned against the railing of the wooden fence, a small smile formed on his lips as he watched the horses trotting along with their children passengers.
'I didn't know we were so close to this ranch,' he thought.
/Do you come here often/ Yugi wondered.
'Yeah, or at least I used to. It was when I first moved here, and I was looking around. I came across this ranch and became very captivated by it, and I used to come here almost every day.'
/Can I ask why/
'Well, one of the things I wanted to do when I was younger was go horseback riding. One day, for my birthday, my mother took me to a ranch similar to this one, back in England. I asked her if she would take me again, and she promised she would. But. . . . .'
/She died before she could take you again/
Bakura nodded.
/I'm really sorry./
The teen shrugged. 'It's all right. There was nothing that could have been done to prevent it. Besides, that happened a long time ago.'
Yugi didn't say anything.
As Bakura looked on, he pointed out to Yugi, 'That stallion is my favorite one.'
/Which one? The white one/
'Yes, the one with the black mane and tail. I don't know, but for some reason he stands out against the other horses.'
/Yeah, he seems a bit different./
'He's the fastest one in the group, and can run the longest.'
The said steed perked its ears up, lifting its head from grazing the pasture. Its eyes finally rested on the snow-haired teen, and he carefully began to walk towards him. The stallion stopped in front of the boy, its eyes never removing its fix.
Reaching out his hand, Bakura gently placed his hand on the horse's muzzle. 'It's been a while since I've been here,' he thought, 'but it seems that it still remembers me. I would used to come here and feed this one.'
/You really like this horse, don't you/
'Yes. I can't explain it, but it seems different from the others. Special, you know?'
/Yeah, I can imagine./
Bakura smiled, as he continued to pet the horse.
Unknown to Bakura, hidden by the brush of the bushes, stood a man watching him, his pale blue eyes sparkling with surprising knowledge.
"I know where you're hiding," the man said quietly to himself. "Don't you worry. You're soul will be under my possession once again. . . . . Mutou Yugi."
TBC