Angel: ::Gasps:: Kanterkid's trying to strangle Casia for not writing another chapter of Elfstone... I've gotta make this quick so I can go break them up (who knows WHERE Kit is - probably trying to convince the Digimon 04 gang to make a guest appearance on her show). OK, this is when we finally get to go to Bakura's! ::Sighs dreamily:: He is so hot... Do you like Yugi's hairstyle? White Rider/ Truth Holder says that he doesn't, but I think it's cute. It's what makes Yugi Yugi, just like Tai from Digimon just wasn't Tai without his crazy hair cut (I can't believe he cut it at the end of 02! WAAH!). Oh yeah, and if you want info on Digimon 04 (yes, it should be out in september! I knew it was coming, yay!) then go to pojo.com! The American dubbed names and ages haven't been decided as of yet, so you'll have to live with the japanese info till then. But the best site for Yuugiou (the japanese spelling of Yu-Gi-Oh) is Yu-Gi-Oh! Dungeon and Yugioh/Yu-Gi-Oh/King Yugi/Le Roi Yugi. Spoiler alert!
Bakura's dream in this chapter has some different things than it did in the first, so be sure to read it. It may seem odd, but I have a plan...
I FINISHED THE OUTLINE FOR THE ENDING!!! Not just of this book, but of BOTH!!! It's really cool, if I do say so myself. Sorta sad ending, for me at least. I'm a life-is-da-bomb person but I also read too many stories where people get their hearts entirely stomped on so I've got a bit of a split-personality. Anyway it's very dangerous ::sniggers:: just to keep you all in suspense. I'm so evil. My name contradicts me.
PS: Thanks to the reviewer who informed me that Malik is one of the other Millennium Item holders! I've read like 50 yugioh fanfics with Malik in them, and each time he was either Yami Bakura, a new character, a new Millennium Item kid, or an oracle dude. If anyone knows which episode he shows up in first it would be greatly appreciated! (But I know a lot more about him and Isis now so they come into the story in book 2.) I have renamed Yami Bakura Kerihk.
Although I have taken a few creative liberties in the creation of this story, I still intend to include Takahashi's own Millennium Item bearers, so don't get thinking that my made-up ones are replacing them.
Miya! Yuugi can also mean "friendship!" So Yami Yugi also means "Dark Friendship!" Kewl, huh? Or "Naaaa!" as Misaki Suzuhara from Angelic Layer would say!
OK. I don't think I've done a disclaimer for a while, so... All this stuff belongs to Konami and Kazuki Takahashi. OK? OK. So there's no mix ups. Oh joy.
/ - Any Hikari talking to his or her Yami in his or her mind
// - Any Yami talking to his or her Hikari in his or her mind
Hikari No Yuugi
Play of Light
by Angel
Chapter Four: Bakura Kyojuu
Bakura Residence
"Yugi! You should've waited for me!" Jonouchi cried angrily, hands balled into fists. He, Anzu, Bakura, and Honda were over Yugi's house that night. Anzu had just returned from Yokohama, and heard from Bakura on the street that Yugi had been beaten up pretty badly by two bullies after school that day. Together they had gathered up Jonouchi and Honda and headed over to the game shop even though it was nearly nine o'clock.
Now, Yugi sat miserably on his bed, a bandage around his left arm and numerous small scratches elsewhere. Jonouchi was glaring down at him, more mad at himself than with even the bullies.
"Kamui told me what happened," Bakura said anxiously. "I was really worried, so I came down here as soon as I could."
"I was worried too," Jonouchi added.
"I'm sorry. I meant to wait for you," Yugi said, "but I was curious, so..."
Worry lined Anzu's face. "Still, you shouldn't go picking fights to big for you! I mean, Jonouchi's one thing, he never thinks before he leaps -" Jonouchi shot her a Look "- but you..."
"I'm sorry," Yugi said again.
Jonouchi shook his head. "There's nothin' to be sorry for," he said. "You were just tryin' to help Midori. If anyone should be sorry, it's me."
"Nani?"
"I shoulda been there for you. Honda somehow always gets there for me, but I'm never there when my friends need me the most. I can't believe how pathetic I am, man!"
"Jonouchi, it's not your fault at all!" Yugi argued.
"Yeah, I second that," Honda nodded. Anzu and Bakura murmured their agreement.
"No, you don't understand!" Jonouchi cried, looking extremely upset with himself. "I knew you were on your own! I was already outta detention by then, but I didn't hurry out there like you woulda for me, Yuge! I was hangin' out with Tetsuya Gotoh. We have a lot in common, ya know? It's like - I never think about anyone but myself!"
"Jonouchi!" Yugi cried, bewildered. "Don't be like this! Besides," he added thoughtfully and a little resentfully, "I don't always need to be protected. I'm not a wimp."
Bakura came to the rescue. "Jonouchi, if it was your fault for not being there for Yugi, then it would also be my fault for not taking him home with me even though you couldn't come anyway, Anzu's fault for going to Yokohama, Honda's fault for getting sick, Hikaru's fault for leaving when she did, and Takehiko's fault for waiting a while to use his Millennium Sword!"
Jonouchi looked away. Bakura had made his point, and it had reached Jonouchi clear enough.
Yugi smiled. "Anyway, it's not like this sort of thing hasn't happened before," he said cheerfully, as if this prospect would cheer everyone up. "I'll be fine tomorrow."
"That's not the prob-"
Anzu was interrupted by the creek of Yugi's bedroom door. A lavender eye peeked through the crack, covered slightly by rich brown hair.
It was Hikaru.
"Um, hi, can we come in?" she asked timidly.
Surprised to see her there, Yugi nodded. "Er, sure, Hikaru. But why are you here?" They had only just met, and she was already over his house!
Hikaru walked into the room, wearing a black and pink sleeveless shirt and pink shorts. Her short hair was pulled back with a pink barrette, and a strange golden pendant on a golden chain hung around her neck. The pendant was shaped like the Millennium Eye, and the pupil of the Eye was a crystal of rose quartz. Behind Hikaru were Naoko Takaya wearing a white and purple shirt and purple skirt, Tetsuya Gotoh was still in his school uniform, Ryoku Saito in his brown jacket, white shirt, and black jeans, and Ai Itsuko in a brown uniform with a blue tie and a brown pleated skirt, with her glossy brown hair swept up with a large black butterfly clip. Yugi noticed the Millennium Mirror dangling from her belt.
"We've just been to see Takehiko," Hikaru said. "Dajan Hada was there, and they told us what had happened, so we came to see if everything was okay."
Yugi was touched that they had thought of him even though they hardly knew each other. "I'm fine, thanks for asking," he said sweetly.
"Mmm.... chau-chan, you don't look it," Ai said, bending down to look him in the eye. Yugi recognized an Osaka dialect in her voice. Her eyes were hazel-colored, almost golden-brown. Yugi felt Yami suck in his breath, and knew that the ancient pharaoh was more confused than he had ever been in his entire lifetime of three thousand years.
Yami stared through Yugi's eyes, somewhat disgusted with himself for knowing so little. He could see Kiara through Hikaru's eyes, his little sister, the love of his life. If he only knew the name of the spirit inside Ai's magical mirror, he would finally be able to piece together more of the past.
Ai then smiled at Yugi, and stood up to back away, accidentally bumping into Bakura. "Oh - sorry," Bakura said apologetically.
Ai looked at him like she was surprised to see him there. "S-sorry, sorry," she breathed, turning red for some reason. Naoko giggled mischievously.
Bakura's Millennium Ring then began to glow uncontrollably. It materialized in front of his chest, the rays pointing and whirring at Hikaru and Ai.
"Oh, that's helpful," Yugi said. "It isn't like we couldn't tell that Ai and Hikaru had Millennium Items."
Everyone but Ai looked surprised at this statement. "You mean you guys have Millennium Items too?" Hikaru asked, clutching the Millennium Pendant.
"Yahh, Bakura and Yugi do," Ai said. She took out the Millennium Mirror. "I saw you in the mirror. And we're not the only ones - Takehiko and Dajan have Millennium Items as well. I'd bet the others are living in this city as well."
"You think?" Ryoku asked, startled.
"I dun know," Ai replied, "but it's possible. It's high time we got to know each other."
"Definitely," Bakura said, nodding. "Why don't you all come to my house after school
tomorrow? Yugi, Honda, and Jonouchi were going to today, but due to the circumstances, they couldn't. It would be a good time to 'get to know each other,' like Ai said."
Jonouchi looked at the others grumpily. "We went through all the trouble to get to Bakura's today, and look what happened. Now we've gotta do it all over again."
"C'est la vie," Ai said. When Jonouchi gave her a questioning look, she added, "It's French for 'Well, that's life, that's how it is.' It's my favorite phrase 'cause it's really true."
Everyone laughed at this, and smiling, they turned to leave.
"See you, Yugi."
"Hope you feel better."
"G'nighty-night!"
"Ciao!"
"Mata aimashou!"
Anzu closed the door of the Muto's house. Jonouchi, Honda, Tetsuya, and Ryoku took off in a different direction, their houses being just across the street and down the block, which left Naoko, Anzu, Bakura, Ai, and Hikaru.
Hikaru turned to Bakura. "Your name's Ryou Bakura, right?" she asked timidly.
Bakura blushed and nodded.
Hikaru smiled. "I noticed a lot of people just call you Bakura. Do you mind if I call you Ryou?"
"No... but why?"
"I've just got this thing about calling friends by their first name. It makes our relationship seem friendlier, more intimate. So, if you don't mind..."
"No, I don't."
Hikaru smiled cheerfully, and pointed ahead. "There's our dorm, guys!" she cried to
Naoko and Ai. To Bakura, she said, "The students of Tôru get to use the dorms because we're so far from home. It's a lot of fun. Ja ne, Ryou!" She waved, and ran inside, Ai following close behind.
Bakura smiled, feeling strange. But he could tell the feeling wasn't his own.
/Kerihk?/
//What do you want, baka?//
/Who is she?/
//She's Kiara.//
/Um... who's Kiara?/
//Yami's little sister.//
/He has a sister?/
//You of all people! You read so much on Egypt, I thought you knew that the pharaohs usually had many wives and many children!//
/Oh - oh yeah./
//Kiara was Yami's only full sibling. Everyone else were half sisters and brothers, so naturally, they were very special to each other.//
Bakura couldn't believe it. Kerihk had only called him "baka" once so far! This was the first time he'd gotten this much out of the tomb robber.
/So, why are you acting so weird?/
THAT was a mistake.
//I am NOT acting WEIRD! I can't even remember what she used to LOOK like!//
/Gomen! I didn't mean to-/
//Oh, go soak your head!//
With that, Kerihk slammed the door of his soul room as a reminder to Bakura to not intrude.
Bakura sighed on his way home. Kerihk was a mystery himself.
Naoko and Anzu talked for a while longer before Naoko decided to follow Hikaru and Ai inside. The subject was at first Ai.
"Osaka dialect?" Anzu said wonderingly.
Naoko nodded. "Yeah, her mother is a famous model in Osaka. Ai spent most of her life in Osaka, so she can't shake the dialect. Now she works for Kokoroe Fujishima's electronic company. It's partnered with Kaiba Corp."
"Working at her age?" Anzu gasped. "I mean, I work too, but not at a big company like that! So that's why she was wearing the weird uniform."
"Ai's a very hard worker, even if she does have Osaka dialect," Naoko nodded.
Naoko and Anzu laughed together when they realized that Anzu and Hikaru went to the same theatre arts school.
"I had no idea!" Anzu cried. "I knew there was a Hikaru in the jazz and voice class, but I didn't know she was the same as your Hikaru!"
"Hikaru spoke highly of you, but I guess she didn't put two and two together either," Naoko giggled. "She said that last semester you danced to 'The Prayer' and won the 'Dancer of the Year Award.' She also said your friends called you 'The only one who ever knows what's going on,' 'The one the guys listen too,'" - here Anzu laughed loudly - "and 'The perfectionist.'"
"That's true, but Hikaru won the 'Singer of the Year Award' for her performance of Richard Marx and Donna Lewis's 'At the Beginning.' Her troupe called her 'The little angel,' 'The one who's always smiling,' and 'Everyone's friend.'"
Naoko nodded. "I saw you dance in 'The Prayer.' You were great."
"The singing was a nice touch," Anzu said.
Naoko smiled. "You like Yugi, don't you?"
Startled, Anzu almost fell over the railing she was leaning on. "Ex - excuse me?" she cried. "Isn't that a bit off topic?"
Laughing, Naoko replied, "You wish he had come to the dance, don't you?"
"Yeah, but it was sold out," Anzu sighed. Then she brightened. "He bought the video, though. That cheered me up."
"So you're admitting that you do like him?"
"... a little."
"A little?"
"... sort of."
"Sort of?"
"OK, I like him. Happy now?"
"Genki," Naoko chuckled. "I could tell so easily. The way you were looking at him... He's a sweet kid." She winked. "Doesn't it feel better knowing that you can talk to someone about it now?"
"I guess. But what if you squeal!"
"I'm offended! I wouldn't dream of it!"
The two girls laughed and bid farewell. Anzu went home with thoughts directed to Yugi, and Naoko went straight to bed, not thinking about anything at all.
Yugi tossed and turned in his sleep. His shoulder ached in pain for no apparent reason. Clutching his sheets, he groaned and retreated to his soul room. Lying in his futon, Yugi breathed heavily as the piercing pain shot up his shoulder again.
"Y-Yami..." he gasped, trying to sit up.
At once Yami was in his soul room. The steel door burst open - Yami had heard him call. He rushed over to Yugi's side and pulled him to his feet.
"Yugi, wake up! Are you all right?"
Yugi's eyes snapped open. The pain instantly vanished. "Y-yeah..." he mumbled. "Weird..."
~*Bakura found himself once again standing on the rock in the middle of the water. Slowly turning his head, he wondered if he was again dreaming. The strange mist blinded his view, and every now and again he'd feel a rain drop reach his skin. The mysterious flute tune was playing in the distance. He knew the song, but couldn't quite place it.
A strange noise was suddenly heard along with the flute music. It was the cry of a raven, and the coo of a dove. One black bird, and one white. Bakura stared at them in awe. The dove suddenly swooped down and soared around his head. Its bright white eyes seemed to be calling out to him. He reached out to stroke it...
The raven cried louder and darted down, pecking at the dove. Bakura cried out in anguish as he felt the pain the dove was bearing. Smeared in its own blood, the dove fell by Bakura's feet, and he saw that its blood was note red, but glowing white, like its eyes. Bakura hugged his body in pain. Tears pricked his eyes as he knelt beside the dove.
~Anaiyu...~
The raven's glowing red eyes sparkled maliciously as it soared higher.
~Oleu...~
Another bird appeared. This one was smaller than the others, lavender-colored with amethyst eyes, and weak in appearance. It bravely fought with the raven even when its shoulder was pierced by the raven's claw. At last the raven flew away, leaving, to Bakura's astonishment, the smallest of the birds the victor...
~Niku...~
There was more. There had to be...
His deep amber eyes shifted upward, staring through the fog that shrouded his vision. The birds were gone, but another picture was becoming clearer. It was a young girl standing on a cliff, appearing to be colored only white, holding a strange staff with a glowing star in the center. He watched her a bit longer as she opened a strange black book with the Eye of Truth emblazoned on the cover. Then he unconsciously turned the other way.
Behind him stood a lady with long, flowing black hair holding a strange silver bell. He couldn't see her eyes. She smiled, and rang the bell. The sound pierced Bakura's heart, and sent chills up his spine. The girl on the cliff looked up, and jumped to the ground, still clutching the book. She dropped it on the ground, and reached down her shirt, pulling out a glowing pink pendant. It glowed brightly, and -
Bakura was now standing in a room made entirely of gold, the nine Sennen Sets (Millennium Items) floating around him, along with several indistinguishable glowing balls of light. Strange voices were chanting, and every now and then the voices would say a word but it would sound fuzzy and slurred to Bakura. The words he did hear were, "Pazuru... Enjin... Tarekazari... Tsurugi... Saji... Munekazari... Kagi... Kagami... Tangan... Pazuru... Enjin... Tarekarazi... Tsurugi... Saji... Munekazari... Kagi... Kagami... Tangan... HIKARI NO YUUGI!"
With that last shout, all the Sennen Sets began to glow different colors. Yelllow, purple, pink, green, red, bronze, turquoise, blue, silver, and golden. He saw the Sennen Ring spread out two of its rays, and attach them into the Sennen Puzzle and the Sennen Pendant. The rest of the Sets attached themselves to those two, and when a complete circle was made, bright white light engulfed them, shaping into a diamond. Bakura shaded his eyes with his hands; the light was blinding his eyes.
The flute music played on.
He was back on the rock above the sea. White ribbons emerged from the water and fluttered around him, pressing against his face. Then they lowered near to the water, and wrapped themselves around his legs, pulling him under.
Though he couldn't breath, he wasn't panicking. He looked up, and watched as the light above the water slowly disappeared.
The flute music was becoming louder as he neared the ocean floor. The song... what was it?
That woman...
That girl...
That song...*~
"And so you divide the plane into four parts, like great slices of cheese cake. Does anyone know what these four parts are called?" Ms. Tsumura asked during math class the next day.
Bakura's hand was the first in the air. It always amazed Jonouchi at how smart Bakura was, but he guessed that having the math teacher for a stepsister had something to do with it.
Hikaru's hand was waving above her head. She was totally into this. Jonouchi sighed. When - WHEN - would he ever need to know about the Cartesian plane in his life? WHEN?
"Miss Daichi," Kamui selected.
"They're called quadrants," Hikaru said.
"Correct."
Gosh, this class was so boring! Kamui tried to make it fun, of course, but for someone as stupid at maths as Jonouchi, it was mere torture (a/n: I'm not making fun of anyone bad at maths - I'm not so hot at them myself. I mean, my year's average was a 94, but that's like, a super grade for me. I don't know HOW I got it. Good is an 85. I stink at it, really).
Jonouchi looked over at Yugi. Of course, the kid was busy taking notes. Jonouchi sneaked a peak at his notebook, and read
M- Cartesian coordinate system - divides into four parts (quadrants)
Jonouchi then discovered how unorganized his friend was with his schoolwork. Underneath the Cartesian plane, Jonouchi found
WC - world civics report on Belgium due Friday - three pages, double spaced, also number pages, cover page, works cited, outline, and pledge page
M - the absolute value of a number is the is the distance it is from 0
M - simple interest formula - i = prt (interest equals price times rate times time)
M - TEST ON THE QUADRATIC FORMULA AND LESSONS 7.1 - 7.11 THURSDAY!!!
LIT - Izumi Shikibu was a famous poet in the tenth century; she was in the emperor's court
M - 2x + 88 = 5x + 7² is four terms, subtract 2x and 5x
M - a²y + 4a²y are common terms (arithmetic pg. 188)
M - what are polynomials? FIND OUT BEFORE TEST!!!
HIS - William the Conqueror - WHO???
SCI - herbaceous plants - non-woody, science pg. 76
LIT - tanka - five lines (5, 7, 5, 7, 7), usually on emotions. WRITE ONE FOR MR. JAITO!!!
JP - persuasive thesis outline due Monday
Hey, everyone's got SOME bad habits.
"Mr. Jonouchi, do you know?"
Jonouchi face-faulted. He'd been caught off guard again! "Uh... um... eetou..." He looked pleadingly at his friends for help.
Bakura was scribbling something on a piece of paper, which he handed to Yugi. Yugi unfolded it and pointed it to Jonouchi, pretending that it was just a piece of scrapbook paper.
Jonouchi looked at the paper and read in Bakura's neat script
52 cu cm
"Fifty-two coo c-m... Oh -" Jonouchi gulped as he remembered, and said hurriedly, "I mean, fifty-two cubic centimeters."
Kamui eyed him suspiciously, but admitted that he was correct.
Jonouchi sighed and slumped back in his seat, snatching the piece of paper from Yugi and scribbling under the answer
52 cu cm
Domo arigatou, Bakura-chan, I owe you.
This he passed to Yugi, who passed it to Bakura. A minute later it was returned to Jonouchi, now reading
52 cu cm
Domo arigatou, Bakura-chan, I owe you.
Don't mention it.
Jonouchi then stuffed the note in his binder, in case Kamui found out about the note.
After school that day, everyone (including Hikaru and her gang of friends, even Ro and Makimura) met Bakura and Kamui outside the school.
"Ready to go?" Bakura asked, smiling. Everyone nodded, and chatted as they walked to the home of the Bakuras.
Anzu and Naoko soon started another giggly conversation, and Jonouchi, Honda, Tetsuya, and Ryoku argued over which was a better card, Flame Swordsman or Cyber Commander. Tetsuya eventually said that Gaia the Fierce Knight was cooler, but Ryoku said Kagemusha of the Blue Flame was his favorite, so the conversation took a new direction.
Bakura and Hikaru were deep in conversation, talking rapidly with each other. Something had struck Bakura about Hikaru's bold inquiry if she could call him by his first name. She seemed to be a rather shy girl, but she hadn't been afraid to ask him that. He wanted to find out more about her.
Yugi was talking more with Takehiko and Dajan, and he found out that Dajan was a very nice boy, not to mention Takehiko's cousin. He and Takehiko were also best friends, and each of them had a Millennium Item (Dajan had the Millennium Key; Takehiko, of course, had the Sword). Yugi was also surprised to learn that Takehiko had four brothers (Izumi, Kyosuke, Tsutemu, and Shota), all of whom were older than him, but Dajan was an only child. They couldn't have been more opposite.
Ro and Makimura Fujishima decided to tag along, having nothing better to do. They knew Ai very well (she used to baby-sit Makimura), but Ai wasn't conversing with them this time. Naoko noticed the slightly jealous looks she was sending Hikaru behind her back. She had never seen Ai look at Hikaru that way. They had always gotten along really well (except for the one time when Ai thought Hikaru wanted to steal her Millennium Mirror so she decided to raise the stakes of their duel, but that's another story) It must have something to do with a silver-haired boy who was totally amazed by Hikaru...
"Here it is," Kamui said, pointing to a large home near the park.
"WHHHHOOOAAA!!!"
It was almost a mansion. Mr. Yamamato Bakura had inherited a small fortune when his grandfather-in-law had died, and that, along with the money he made for his archaeological findings, helped him make his house look almost as good as Seto Kaiba's. There were many windows and balconies, along with a picnic table and a pool (think Tomoyo Daidouji's house on CardCaptor Sakura). There was also a large black gate with an intercom by the lock. Kamui pressed the button on the intercom.
"Who is it?" said a strange female voice through the intercom.
"Kamui Tsumura. I've brought company."
"Kochira e douzo."
To Yugi-tachi's amazement, the black gates opened wide automatically. Kamui led them inside the house, stopping to yell, "Tadaima!" before taking them to the kitchen, where Bakura's stepmother, Miyuki, was reading the Yomiyuri Shinbaum and drinking coffee.
"Welcome back, dear," Miyuki said with a smile when she saw Kamui.
"Kaasan," Kamui said lovingly, hugging her mother. "It's my first time back at home for the whole afternoon," she explained to her friends. "Yesterday I spent the whole day at the school and went straight to bed when I finally got home at eleven."
"Thank you for having us," Ro said, bowing to Miyuki. Makimura did the same, imitating her older brother. Yugi could hardly believe how much Ro reminded him of Kaiba - tall and silent, hard-hearted and cool. Both of them only went soft around their younger siblings, and both of them were very smart. (Yugi had recently found out that Ro worked for the same company as Ai did, a large electronic company. It had surprised him that the two of them were working at such a young age, but neither of them wanted to talk about why. Yugi also knew that Ro had been considered the second best Duelist in Japan next to Kaiba, and now, Yugi.)
Yugi then realized that Bakura was no longer with them. He looked around, and saw Bakura setting up the stove to make tea. At that moment, a pretty young maid with dark, wavy hair entered the kitchen.
"Ryou-kun, I'll do that," she said sweetly, batting her long eyelashes. "I'm an expert." She made a move to grab the kettle, but her hand missed and she grabbed Bakura's arm instead. Was it an accident? She didn't seem fazed.
"That's okay, Umi," Bakura replied, turning pink. Yugi thought he heard a bit of a groan in his voice. "I can do it myself. Gomen nasai," he added to Yugi-tachi.
"Umi, that's really all right, Ryou can do it," Miyuki said. "Why don't you go watch TV?"
"But Miss Miyuki -"
"Really, Umi, that will do."
Umi pouted a bit, but she slid into the living room and flicked on the television set (which had multi-channels and a satellite).
Jonouchi slapped his forehead. "This is all yours, Bakura?" he asked, astonished. "Whoa, I had no idea you were so rich!"
Bakura was considering using tea leaves instead of tea bags. "Yeah, it was a surprise when Tousan found out that my great-grandfather had left his entire fortune to him. I was born in Australia, you know, and I lived there until I was seven. That was when we found out about Great-grandfather's small fortune. Dad had wanted to return to Japan for many years, but we didn't have enough money back then. It was like a dream come true for him. Which reminds me, for the past few nights -"
"RYOU!"
The kids, Kamui, and Miyuki jumped. Bakura nearly spilled the tea (he had finally decided to use tea bags). He mumbled something like, "My father..." and shouted up to what appeared to be the first story roof, "I'll be right there!"
Turning to his guests, he blushed and explained, "Uh, I think Dad wants something.
Chotto mattekudasai." He prepared to dash up the stars.
"Don't let him bully you, Ryou," Miyuki said in a small voice.
Bakura stopped. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and refused to look at Miyuki. "Deep breaths," he told himself, "deep breaths." He forced a smile. "I'll be right back."
Then he disappeared up the stairs.
Miyuki stood up, traces of sorrow on her face. "He always treats me like I'm the enemy," she sighed. Although she appeared to be talking to herself, Yugi heard her words. "Can't he just let go of Yumiko and let me be his mother?"
Jonouchi stared at the large ceiling. "Man, this house is big!" he exclaimed.
"Big? I think you mean, humongous!" Honda corrected, equally awed.
Takehiko and Dajan just gaped, at loss for words.
Suddenly Yugi face-faulted. "Um... Mrs. Bakura?" he inquired timidly. "Is there a... bathroom nearby?"
Miyuki stared at him, then gave an embarrassed laugh. "Yes, the only unoccupied one is upstairs," she said. "The maids are using the bathtub in the downstairs one. They're filling it with soup or something," she added to Kamui as Yugi, Honda, Jonouchi, and Anzu rushed upstairs.
"Soup? What's with that?" Kamui asked. Miyuki shrugged.
Anzu, Honda, and Jonouchi leaned against the wall as they waited for Yugi to come out of the bathroom. They could distantly hear two voices arguing in another room. One was Bakura's and the other must have been his father's.
"Wonder what they're fighting about?" Honda said.
"Dunno," Jonouchi replied. "Maybe Bakura flunked a test or somethin'. My dad sure
screams like that when I get anything below a C."
Honda looked dubious.
Anzu was walking up and down the hall, looking at all the interesting pictures in the house. There was one door with RYOU BAKURA written on it on white posterboard. It was definitely Bakura's room, and the door was wide open.
"What'cha found there, Anzu?" Jonouchi's voice came out of nowhere, surprising Anzu. She looked around and saw Honda, Jonouchi, and Yugi coming her way from the bathroom.
"Just Bakura's room," she replied, trying to shove them away. Knowing Jonouchi and Honda they'd probably decide to snoop -
"Bet he's got some interesting stuff in there," Jonouchi said. "Let's take a looksie."
Anzu groaned. She hated always being right. "But he might have guy stuff in there!" she shrieked, blushing bright red.
Jonouchi looked at her like she was an alien. "Of course there'll be guy stuff in there, Anzu, what did you expect? Dolls and pink dresses? He's a GUY!"
Anzu thought about telling Jonouchi what was bothering her but figured the subject was too disturbing. She forced herself to follow her friends into Bakura's room.
It was a light blue, good-sized room with a large window above a desk, sunlight pouring through it. There were bunk beds in one corner of the room, the top one with dark blue covers and the bottom one with royal purple sheets. Yugi stared at the beds. How come there were two? Was one just a guest bed?
A mahogany dresser stood next to the bed, covered with glass animals and other collectibles. In the bookcase were many books on Egypt, as well as some fiction and comic books (mostly CLAMP manga, such as "Magic Knight Rayearth" - love that manga). There were many other things in the room, pictures, toys, and notebooks (along with a pretty nice PC), but, luckily, Bakura had put away all his "guy stuff."
Anzu was looking at the photographs in the frames on Bakura's desk. She gasped and pointed to one in a round, brown frame. "Guys, check this out!"
"What is it, Anzu?" Yugi asked as he, Jonouchi, and Honda hurried over to her.
The picture Anzu was pointing to was of Bakura hugging a girl Yugi had never seen before. She was slightly smaller than him and looked like she was his twin with her long, silver hair and deep amber eyes. Bakura looked about ten or so, as did the young girl. They were dressed in kimonos and standing under a Kaya tree strung with lights. In the background was a large shrine. The picture must have been taken at a festival.
"I know that place!" Anzu exclaimed, speaking of the shrine. "It's the Fudo Shrine! It's near my house!"
Jonouchi blinked. "It can't be. Bakura looks like a little kid in this picture. He wasn't at our school back then."
Anzu rolled her eyes. "Duh! Bakura was going to a different school! He's a transfer student! He still lived in the same house but I think he said he went to Trinitia, and the kids of Trinitia don't usually merge with us public-schoolers!"
"Oh. Nanto."
"Nanto? Jo-"
"I wonder who this girl is?" Yugi interrupted the argument, picking up the picture.
"Maybe she's his cousin or something," Honda suggested. "She looks exactly like him."
A high-pitched yell suddenly brought them back to reality. "Who screamed?" Anzu asked. Honda, Jonouchi, and Yugi shook their heads and the group raced back downstairs.
It was that strange, dark-haired maid, Umi. She had accidentally knocked the pot of tea over, and it was seeping all over the floor. Jonouchi and Honda couldn't help but snigger at the comic scene as Miyuki slapped her forehead and Umi wailed her apologies.
"I'm soooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!" she sobbed. "I'm so sorry! I didn't see it there, really!"
"It's all right, Umi, really." Miyuki grave a frustrated chuckle.
Umi and a blonde maid named Noriko grabbed towels and cleaned up the mess, and Noriko started a fresh pot of tea.
"Thank goodness Ryou didn't see that," Umi whispered to Noriko. "He would hate me if he knew I messed up the tea he was making for his friends." She sniffled. "Come to think of it, he seems as if he's avoiding me lately. Could it be that he doesn't like me?"
"You sure are sharp," Noriko mumbled.
"No-ri-ko!" Umi whined, placing tea bags in the pitcher. "You know I like him sooooo much! How can you be so *sniff* mean?"
At that moment Bakura can downstairs, gingerly touching a red mark on his cheek. Yugi's eyes widened. "Kerihk?" he whispered, speaking of the mark. "He hit you?"
Bakura made a face. "No, not Kerihk."
"Who?"
"... my father."
"Oh," Yugi said, and bit his lip. It didn't sound like a subject Bakura really wanted to talk about.
Noriko and Umi slipped out of the kitchen as soon as they saw Bakura come down the steps. Indifferent to any of the goings-on while he had been with his father, Bakura smiled and asked the group to head into the living room. "I'll be there in a minute," he said. "I want to talk to you about something."
Nodding, Yugi-tachi left the kitchen and entered the living room. Plopping himself on a couch, Yugi considered the words Bakura had just said, "... my father." So not only did Bakura have to deal with Kerihk's semi-madness, but his own father didn't treat him too well either. And he didn't seem to have much of a soft spot for his stepmother, either.
"Odd," Yugi murmured to no one in particular. "He's usually really nice and easy-going. Wonder why?"
Anzu and Naoko shared a sofa near the large television. Ai, Hikaru, Ro, and Makimura sat on the same couch as Yugi, and Ai took out her watch for ten-year-old Makimura to play with. Dajan and Takehiko took to the floor in front of the TV, which was playing an infomerical for zit cream. Tetsuya, Jonouchi, Honda, and Ryoku sat in some comfy chairs near Yugi's couch (Yugi was amazed at how many chairs were in that living room). Kamui also took a seat in a blue chair with her mom's copy of the newspaper, the Yomiyuri Shinbaum.
A moment later, Bakura entered the living room, smiling and holding a silver tray with matching tea cups and pitchers of tea. "Here's the tea," he said, handing everyone a tea cup. Everyone thanked him, but Jonouchi took his cup at glared at it, as if he suspected Bakura had poisoned it.
"What kind is it?" he asked doubtfully.
"Chinese herbal," Bakura answered, slightly confused.
Jonouchi made faces at his tea as if it was his loathsome enemy. Bakura looked at his strange expression and laughed.
"Um, Jonouchi?" he giggled, holding up the tray. "Milk and sugar?"
Jonouchi's eyes brightened as he scooped sugar into his tea. "Thanks Bakura, you're a pal."
Anzu, Honda, and Yugi exchanged glances, and burst out laughing.
***
"It's been reocurring for the past week," Bakura said, explaining about his dream. The others listened intently (but they still took time to drink their tea). Yugi had brought up the concern of a certain raven-haired lady sitting near them (Kamui to you people with less than -55 IQ), but Kamui said, "You don't have to worry about me. I'll look the other way."
(Don't sweatdrop.)
"Go on," Hikaru said gently. "It's only us."
"Yes, well, you see, I was told that when something is repeatedly in your mind without your effort and if it fills you with dread, then you should really pay attention to it because it might not stop bothering you until it comes true. In this dream, a lot of it takes place around a cliff by the ocean. The Millennium Items are involved, and there's also this strange golden room. Also, this song plays in the distance, but it's too far off for me to recognize it. And there are these weird birds, one black, one white, and one purple. The black one defeats the white, but the purple makes the black one fly away. Anyway, then there's this book with the Eye on the cover, and the inscriptions inside it glow, like if you read it, everything will... light up or something. This bell rings and I feel like I'm being sucked into a - a gap, a dark hole. There, all the Items combine into one big ring, only it's shaped like a diamond. It glows brightly, and then I'm back at the beach. These ribbons come out of the water and pull me down. I'm drowning, but I'm not afraid, and that - that music keeps playing... It's really freaky," he added, blushing.
Ro's face twisted. "The ocean and a floating book? Ribbons coming out of the water? Are you taking sleeping pills or something? There are side effects to those things, you know."
"No!" Bakura shook his head furiously. "I don't take sleeping pills!"
"Prescription medicine? Aspirin? Steroids?"
"Of course not - steroids? Before bed? You have got to be kidding."
"Maybe not steroids. How about Coca Cola? I've heard rumors that Cola gives you nightmares -"
"NO!"
Everyone else sweatdropped.
Yugi scratched his head. "That's very... unusual."
"Mmhmm," Hikaru added. "How long have you been having it?"
Bakura sighed. "Gosh, I don't know. I said a week earlier, but it may have been longer. It really started getting clear the day I met you guys." He nodded at Hikaru and her friends.
"The weirdest part," Ai put in, "was when all the Millennium Items started floating around. Does that mean that we've gotta go find the other bearers and hold hands with 'em? That's a little sick, and I am not holding hands with any pokie Pegasus!"
"Pokie?" Naoko inquired.
"He's a teeny-weeny-pokie-pooh if you ask me!" Ai sneered.
"Let's stop quoting CardCaptor Sakura," Anzu pleaded.
"The part that most interests me," Naoko muttered, "is why Bakura's having these dreams and no one else."
No one heard Naoko's comment. Only one with very sensitive ears could've made it out. One who wasn't as preoccupied as the others. But she held her tongue and didn't respond.
"I wonder if it means something," Hikaru said softly.
"What do you think it means, Hikaru?" Takehiko said slowly. A smile spread across his face. "That soon Bakura will fall out of his bed from nightmares too?"
Takehiko and Dajan laughed. Ai frowned at them. "What do you mean?" asked Yugi.
Hikaru looked embarrassed. "Well... for the past three nights, at exactly midnight, I've been falling out of my bed. It was exactly midnight each time, like I said. I'm not known to do that often, so it was sorta bothering me. I felt like I was under some kinda pressure or something..."
Bakura looked shocked. Midnight? That was the time he always woke up from his dreams? But - but -
"I woke up at midnight last night too," Yugi said with a nervous smile, "but that was because I had some pain in my shoulder. It didn't mean anything."
Dajan sighed. "All this because of the Millennium Items... I'll never forget when I found the Key in my uncle's antique desk. He let me have it, and after that, nothing was the same..."
*DAJAN REPLAY MODE*
Dajan looked around the cells. There were many people in them, most of which seemed to only be bodies because Pegasus had trapped their souls. He remembered the soul cards Hikaru had found earlier - an old man in overalls, the two Duel Monster champions, a boy with long black hair, a girl undoubtedly Ro's sister, and Hikaru's brother. This was where most of their bodies were being kept.
At that moment, there was a high shrieking sound and the room filled with an enormous roar. Dajan clutched at his ears until the sound passed. Looking up, he realized that Pegasus's prisoners were waking up out of some trance. Almost in a daze, Mokuba Kaiba ran into his brother's arms, and the others wondered where they were.
After much explaining, Dajan wondered how he was going to free them without the key to the cells. He snapped his fingers. "I've got it! I'll try using the Millennium Key!" With a little hope he pushed the golden key into the lock and turned it. It worked, and the door opened!
The effect of the Millennium Key was very helpful - it could unlock any lock!
*DAJAN REPLAY MODE END*
"That's cool, but I'll never forget what my Millennium Sword was able to do," Takehiko said. "My brother Izumi gave it to me, believe it or not..."
*TAKEHIKO REPLAY MODE*
Hikaru-tachi gasped as they heard a rustling in the bushes. "What's that?" asked Ai, sounding worried.
"I don't know," Hikaru said, stepping backwards.
Out of the bushes came two kids, dark-haired Dajan and fair-haired Takehiko. They looked around. "Hi, guys," Takehiko said.
"It's Midori and Hada!" Tetsuya exclaimed.
"What're you two doing out here?" Ryoku asked.
"Same as you," Dajan said. "We're here for the tournament. Well, Takehiko is,
anyway. I'm just cheer leading."
They all gathered around the fire and talked about the tournament. Takehiko said he had entered it for the prize money so he could pay for his second oldest brother's college tuition.
"That's all?" Tetsuya sniggered. "That's why you duel? Ai duels for her "almost-sister,"
Makimura, and Hikaru duels for her brother, but you duel for money? How lame!"
"Tetsuya, it's important to him, and that makes it a worthy cause," Hikaru jumped in, defending Takehiko. But after that Takehiko wondered if his cause was worthy after all.
Not long after, Takehiko, Ai, and Hikaru came up with ten star chips each, but on the way to the castle they were trapped by four strange minions of Pegasus's led by one "Jyor-lang." Jyor-lang and Yami Hikaru were tied to ropes and were playing a game with the duel monsters cards. Whoever could pick the card with the highest attack power would get to climb toward the top. The first player to reach the top would win. Unfortunately, Jyor-lang didn't follow the rules and tried to pull Hikaru down.
Full of rage, Yami Takehiko took out his Millennium sword, allowing the spirit inside of him to guide it. He slashed at Jyor-lang's rope and saved Hikaru from his wrath.
"Thanks, Takehiko," Hikaru said breathlessly. "But now, how do we get back to the others?"
It was then that Takehiko realized he and Hikaru were trapped on a plot of land over a canyon. Suddenly the eye symbol on the hilt of the Sword began to glow, and a string of light reached out from the cliff and onto the land. Takehiko and Hikaru were able to climb across the canyon.
*TAKEHIKO REPLAY MODE END*
"I was given my Millennium Pendant from Naoko's mother," Hikaru said...
*HIKARU REPLAY MODE*
"You look so much like my Chiaki," Tamayo Takaya sighed in bliss, looking at Hikaru. "She always said, if she had a daughter, she would name her Hikaru. Chiaki was my best friend in high school..."
Tamayo reached behind her and pulled out a small golden box. "Hikaru, your mother wore this on her wedding day. She always meant it for you."
Hikaru opened the box. Inside, on white velvet cushion, was a beautiful golden pendant on a chain. In the center of the pendant was a crystal of rose quartz. Hikaru gasped in delight.
"That's pure gold," Tamayo said. "It's worth a lot of money, but it belongs to you now. It's an heirloom I would never sell."
"My mother wore this?" Hikaru said softly. She smiled up at Tamayo. "Arigatou, Mrs. Takaya. I'll keep it forever."
*HIKARU REPLAY MODE END*
Ai laughed. "You three got your Millennium Items easily enough, but it was strange the way my Mirror came to me..."
*AI REPLAY MODE*
"Ai! Hurry up!" Ai's friend Emi begged. "They'll leave without us!"
Ai adjusted her hat and followed Emi outside to the digging site. "This is going to be a fun field trip," Emi said happily.
"I guess so," Ai replied, feeling that this trip would be anything but fun. "But you never find anything except rocks on these archaeology field trips. We're just kids and can't do anything right." She glared at her digging shovel like it too was sure this trip would be fun.
In the river where her eighth grade Osaka class was digging for "artifacts," Ai spotted something gold glinting between the rocks. Curiously, she bent down and began to dig for it. Finally she felt a smooth handle brush her hand.
"Emi, I think I've found something," she called, waving Emi over. Together they pulled the golden object out of the river. It was a mirror, a golden mirror.
"Shitari!" Emi cried. "I think we've really got something!"
Ai hid the mirror from the man waiting to take all the fossils the class had found. She took it home and stared at it, amazed by its unique appearance. Suddenly the glass began to fog up and her reflection disappeared.
"What da heck?" Ai gasped.
//"What da heck"? What does that mean?// said a voice.
Ai screamed. "Who's there?"
//Your worst nightmare.//
*AI REPLAY MODE END*
"That was the only time I saw my reflection in this Mirror," Ai said. "Usually it shows an approaching enemy or something."
Ryoku looked confused. "But remember when we first met Takehiko and Dajan?" he asked. "They showed up in your mirror, but they weren't enemies."
Yugi made a face. "I think... all Millennium Item holders are natural enemies of each other," he said slowly. "So the Mirror reacted to the Items."
Anzu looked anxious. "But... that doesn't mean we have to be enemies, does it?"
Everyone smiled at each other in a way that clearly meant, no, they don't have to be enemies.
Ro stood up. "Well, I'm a logical guy, and all this talk about magic is making my head spin," he said. "Besides, I've got to get back to work. Come on, Makimura, Ai."
They proceeded to walk out the door. "Thanks for having us, Bakura," Ai said, blushing slightly.
"Yeah, thanks," Makimura added. Ro nodded.
"No problem," Bakura smiled.
Dajan and Takehiko exchanged a glance. "We'd better get going too," Takehiko said.
"It's almost dinner time."
One by one, everyone decide it was time to leave. Not really wanting to be left alone with just his thoughts after that strange visit, Bakura decided to walk home with Yugi.
Outside, the whole group (except Ai, Ro, and Makimura who had had a head start) chatted about other things, like school, classes, and family. Yugi laughed as Naoko told about the trick her little sister Natsuko had played on her older sister, Nobuko. It felt great to be part of an ALMOST normal group.
Anzu looked up at the sky. "It sure is red tonight," she said.
"What's red?" asked Jonouchi.
"The sky!" Anzu exclaimed. "A really bloody red color."
"Don't be so dramatic," Naoko laughed, but she was really feeling nervous...
Something was about to happen.
Naoko shook off the feeling and went back to her story until they at last reached the Tôru girl's dorm.
"Well, bye, everyone," Hikaru said as she and Naoko prepared to go inside.
"Yeah, bye," Takehiko said as the others began to walk away.
Suddenly Yugi gasped. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He looked up, and saw the red clouds swirling in a spiral shape. He gulped.
"What's going on?"
Angel: Omigosh, I think that was the longest chapter I ever wrote! FOURTEEN PAGES! I am now at 32 pages worth of YGO fanfic. It usually takes me longer to write this much! YAY!!! Oh, and before you ask, I DO have a plan for those weird birds in Bakura's dreams. Mwahahaha!!! But it'll be dangerous. I'm having trouble fitting everything that needs to be said into my story. All the more reason to finish book 2's outline. ::Sighs:: I'm making a doujinshi! (fanfic manga.) And it's gonna be on a yugioh shrine soon (hopefully). It's already seven pages long (one front page, one section page, five manga pages). I think it's cool.
Yami: It is NOT cool! I have to let Yami Bakura give me a PIGGY-BACK RIDE!
Kerihk: Well, it wasn't MY idea!
Angel: Shut up, you two. Now, where's Malik?
Malik: ::whistles and tries to be inconspicuous::
Angel: There you are! Are you ready?
Malik: Why can't I do the translations LATER? I don't come in the story till book 2!
Angel (pouting): But I wan't you here NOW!
From the Desk of Malik Ishtar:
Nani - what
chau-chan - an Osaka phrase meaning "no-no"
mata aimashou - see you later
baka - idiot, fool
gomen - sorry
genki - happy
Anaiyu, Oleu, and Niku - I made 'em up!
sennen - millennium
Izumi Shikibu - was a real Japanese poet!
eetou - a word said while thinking
domo arigatou - thanks a lot
-tachi - and company
kochira e douzo - this way, please
tadaima - I'm home, said when entering the house
Yomiyuri Shinbaum - Japanese newspaper
Kaasan - mother
gomen nasai - I'm very sorry
Tousan - father
chotto mattekudasai - please, wait a little
kaya tree - nutmeg tree
nanto - whatever
Ueno Zoo - zoo in Tokyo
shitari - good heavens!
CHARACTER OF THE DAY:
Today's Character of the Day is Hikaru Daichi, age 15. As the spirit inside of Hikaru's Millennium Pendant is the Egyptian princess Kiara, Yami's younger and only full sister, she is nearly the same size as Yugi and looks much like him (even going as far as to wear the same tight black outfit, only feminine-styled!). Hikaru is loving and very naive (you could even go as far as to call her "airheaded") and has an easier time making friends than Yugi. Her parents died when she was a baby and she was sent to an orphanage until she was seven, when Takashi Katsura adopted her because she reminded him of his deceased wife, Hana. Other than a father, Hikaru also acquired an four-year-older, over-protective brother, Keikeru Katsura. At a summer camp for girls when she was eleven years old, Hikaru met Naoko Takaya, who joined her on her adventures in Duelist Kingdom and was more in tune with the magical realm than most normal humans. It was soon discovered that Hikaru's mother, Chiaki, and Naoko's mother, Tamayo, had been best friends in their high school years. When Chiaki had died, Tamayo had offered to adopt Hikaru, but her husband, Yamazaki, was against it because they already had two daughters (Nobuko and Naoko; the third, Natsuko, was born later). When Tamayo met Hikaru, she fell completely in love because Hikaru looked so much like Chiaki. She gave her the Millennium Pendant, which she had been holding on to since Chiaki's funeral. She told Hikaru that Chiaki had worn it at her wedding, and now it was to be passed on to Hikaru. Keikeru recognized the symbol of the Egyptian goddess of love and laughter, Hathor, emblazoned on the back of the Pendant. Keikeru himself had the power to see into the spirit realm, so he knew something was up. Eventually, Pegasus captured Keikeru just as he had done with Yugi's grandfather, forcing Hikaru to go to Duelist Kingdom even though it was against her will. Three of Hikaru's friends, Naoko Takaya, Ryoku Saito, and her best friend Tetsuya Gotoh, joined Hikaru on her journey. They also met up with three other Millennium Item holders, Ai Itsuko, Dajan Hada, and Takehiko Midori. Although Hikaru-tachi missed the final tournaments because they got trapped in an underground cave, they eventually dueled Pegasus anyway and though they didn't defeat him they were able to get Keikeru back, along with Seto Kaiba's young friend Kokoroe Fujishima's little sister, Makimura, whose role had been much like Mokuba Kaiba's.
Hikaru is sometimes a scardy-cat and a cry-baby because her kind heart hates violence ever so much and she hates seeing people shed tears of pain even more. But she can always be counted on to come to the rescue when her friends are in need. She is very gifted in math and phys. ed., and she loves to sing and act. Still, she can't play a note on any instrument and dancing isn't her strong point. Hikaru's spirit, Kiara the princess of Egypt, is a mysterious and complex character who hides her emotions but seems to care deeply for Hikaru and her brother, Yami. The most noticeable thing about Kiara's personality is she appears to have regrets from her past life. Whether or not this is true shall be revealed later in the story.
Next time: Chapter Five, Oikoshi no Kurayami (as told by Kaiba): When Yugi's gang came to me asking for help, their excuse was some of their friends had been captured by Pegasus! At first I thought it was a little fishy, till Misaki jumped in and said otherwise. I decided to loan them a ship to Duelist Kingdom on one condition - I get to go too. I mean, it's not like I wouldn't mind getting to kick Pegasus's sorry butt too! But there is no way Mokuba's coming. No way. No matter how much he begs... or gives puppy-dog eyes... or cries... OKAY, OKAY! He can come. Um, why is it so dark, and why are there two Yugis? Not to mention two Bakuras, too Hikarus, two Misakis... I think we might need double the amount of provisions.
Bakura's dream in this chapter has some different things than it did in the first, so be sure to read it. It may seem odd, but I have a plan...
I FINISHED THE OUTLINE FOR THE ENDING!!! Not just of this book, but of BOTH!!! It's really cool, if I do say so myself. Sorta sad ending, for me at least. I'm a life-is-da-bomb person but I also read too many stories where people get their hearts entirely stomped on so I've got a bit of a split-personality. Anyway it's very dangerous ::sniggers:: just to keep you all in suspense. I'm so evil. My name contradicts me.
PS: Thanks to the reviewer who informed me that Malik is one of the other Millennium Item holders! I've read like 50 yugioh fanfics with Malik in them, and each time he was either Yami Bakura, a new character, a new Millennium Item kid, or an oracle dude. If anyone knows which episode he shows up in first it would be greatly appreciated! (But I know a lot more about him and Isis now so they come into the story in book 2.) I have renamed Yami Bakura Kerihk.
Although I have taken a few creative liberties in the creation of this story, I still intend to include Takahashi's own Millennium Item bearers, so don't get thinking that my made-up ones are replacing them.
Miya! Yuugi can also mean "friendship!" So Yami Yugi also means "Dark Friendship!" Kewl, huh? Or "Naaaa!" as Misaki Suzuhara from Angelic Layer would say!
OK. I don't think I've done a disclaimer for a while, so... All this stuff belongs to Konami and Kazuki Takahashi. OK? OK. So there's no mix ups. Oh joy.
/ - Any Hikari talking to his or her Yami in his or her mind
// - Any Yami talking to his or her Hikari in his or her mind
Hikari No Yuugi
Play of Light
by Angel
Chapter Four: Bakura Kyojuu
Bakura Residence
"Yugi! You should've waited for me!" Jonouchi cried angrily, hands balled into fists. He, Anzu, Bakura, and Honda were over Yugi's house that night. Anzu had just returned from Yokohama, and heard from Bakura on the street that Yugi had been beaten up pretty badly by two bullies after school that day. Together they had gathered up Jonouchi and Honda and headed over to the game shop even though it was nearly nine o'clock.
Now, Yugi sat miserably on his bed, a bandage around his left arm and numerous small scratches elsewhere. Jonouchi was glaring down at him, more mad at himself than with even the bullies.
"Kamui told me what happened," Bakura said anxiously. "I was really worried, so I came down here as soon as I could."
"I was worried too," Jonouchi added.
"I'm sorry. I meant to wait for you," Yugi said, "but I was curious, so..."
Worry lined Anzu's face. "Still, you shouldn't go picking fights to big for you! I mean, Jonouchi's one thing, he never thinks before he leaps -" Jonouchi shot her a Look "- but you..."
"I'm sorry," Yugi said again.
Jonouchi shook his head. "There's nothin' to be sorry for," he said. "You were just tryin' to help Midori. If anyone should be sorry, it's me."
"Nani?"
"I shoulda been there for you. Honda somehow always gets there for me, but I'm never there when my friends need me the most. I can't believe how pathetic I am, man!"
"Jonouchi, it's not your fault at all!" Yugi argued.
"Yeah, I second that," Honda nodded. Anzu and Bakura murmured their agreement.
"No, you don't understand!" Jonouchi cried, looking extremely upset with himself. "I knew you were on your own! I was already outta detention by then, but I didn't hurry out there like you woulda for me, Yuge! I was hangin' out with Tetsuya Gotoh. We have a lot in common, ya know? It's like - I never think about anyone but myself!"
"Jonouchi!" Yugi cried, bewildered. "Don't be like this! Besides," he added thoughtfully and a little resentfully, "I don't always need to be protected. I'm not a wimp."
Bakura came to the rescue. "Jonouchi, if it was your fault for not being there for Yugi, then it would also be my fault for not taking him home with me even though you couldn't come anyway, Anzu's fault for going to Yokohama, Honda's fault for getting sick, Hikaru's fault for leaving when she did, and Takehiko's fault for waiting a while to use his Millennium Sword!"
Jonouchi looked away. Bakura had made his point, and it had reached Jonouchi clear enough.
Yugi smiled. "Anyway, it's not like this sort of thing hasn't happened before," he said cheerfully, as if this prospect would cheer everyone up. "I'll be fine tomorrow."
"That's not the prob-"
Anzu was interrupted by the creek of Yugi's bedroom door. A lavender eye peeked through the crack, covered slightly by rich brown hair.
It was Hikaru.
"Um, hi, can we come in?" she asked timidly.
Surprised to see her there, Yugi nodded. "Er, sure, Hikaru. But why are you here?" They had only just met, and she was already over his house!
Hikaru walked into the room, wearing a black and pink sleeveless shirt and pink shorts. Her short hair was pulled back with a pink barrette, and a strange golden pendant on a golden chain hung around her neck. The pendant was shaped like the Millennium Eye, and the pupil of the Eye was a crystal of rose quartz. Behind Hikaru were Naoko Takaya wearing a white and purple shirt and purple skirt, Tetsuya Gotoh was still in his school uniform, Ryoku Saito in his brown jacket, white shirt, and black jeans, and Ai Itsuko in a brown uniform with a blue tie and a brown pleated skirt, with her glossy brown hair swept up with a large black butterfly clip. Yugi noticed the Millennium Mirror dangling from her belt.
"We've just been to see Takehiko," Hikaru said. "Dajan Hada was there, and they told us what had happened, so we came to see if everything was okay."
Yugi was touched that they had thought of him even though they hardly knew each other. "I'm fine, thanks for asking," he said sweetly.
"Mmm.... chau-chan, you don't look it," Ai said, bending down to look him in the eye. Yugi recognized an Osaka dialect in her voice. Her eyes were hazel-colored, almost golden-brown. Yugi felt Yami suck in his breath, and knew that the ancient pharaoh was more confused than he had ever been in his entire lifetime of three thousand years.
Yami stared through Yugi's eyes, somewhat disgusted with himself for knowing so little. He could see Kiara through Hikaru's eyes, his little sister, the love of his life. If he only knew the name of the spirit inside Ai's magical mirror, he would finally be able to piece together more of the past.
Ai then smiled at Yugi, and stood up to back away, accidentally bumping into Bakura. "Oh - sorry," Bakura said apologetically.
Ai looked at him like she was surprised to see him there. "S-sorry, sorry," she breathed, turning red for some reason. Naoko giggled mischievously.
Bakura's Millennium Ring then began to glow uncontrollably. It materialized in front of his chest, the rays pointing and whirring at Hikaru and Ai.
"Oh, that's helpful," Yugi said. "It isn't like we couldn't tell that Ai and Hikaru had Millennium Items."
Everyone but Ai looked surprised at this statement. "You mean you guys have Millennium Items too?" Hikaru asked, clutching the Millennium Pendant.
"Yahh, Bakura and Yugi do," Ai said. She took out the Millennium Mirror. "I saw you in the mirror. And we're not the only ones - Takehiko and Dajan have Millennium Items as well. I'd bet the others are living in this city as well."
"You think?" Ryoku asked, startled.
"I dun know," Ai replied, "but it's possible. It's high time we got to know each other."
"Definitely," Bakura said, nodding. "Why don't you all come to my house after school
tomorrow? Yugi, Honda, and Jonouchi were going to today, but due to the circumstances, they couldn't. It would be a good time to 'get to know each other,' like Ai said."
Jonouchi looked at the others grumpily. "We went through all the trouble to get to Bakura's today, and look what happened. Now we've gotta do it all over again."
"C'est la vie," Ai said. When Jonouchi gave her a questioning look, she added, "It's French for 'Well, that's life, that's how it is.' It's my favorite phrase 'cause it's really true."
Everyone laughed at this, and smiling, they turned to leave.
"See you, Yugi."
"Hope you feel better."
"G'nighty-night!"
"Ciao!"
"Mata aimashou!"
Anzu closed the door of the Muto's house. Jonouchi, Honda, Tetsuya, and Ryoku took off in a different direction, their houses being just across the street and down the block, which left Naoko, Anzu, Bakura, Ai, and Hikaru.
Hikaru turned to Bakura. "Your name's Ryou Bakura, right?" she asked timidly.
Bakura blushed and nodded.
Hikaru smiled. "I noticed a lot of people just call you Bakura. Do you mind if I call you Ryou?"
"No... but why?"
"I've just got this thing about calling friends by their first name. It makes our relationship seem friendlier, more intimate. So, if you don't mind..."
"No, I don't."
Hikaru smiled cheerfully, and pointed ahead. "There's our dorm, guys!" she cried to
Naoko and Ai. To Bakura, she said, "The students of Tôru get to use the dorms because we're so far from home. It's a lot of fun. Ja ne, Ryou!" She waved, and ran inside, Ai following close behind.
Bakura smiled, feeling strange. But he could tell the feeling wasn't his own.
/Kerihk?/
//What do you want, baka?//
/Who is she?/
//She's Kiara.//
/Um... who's Kiara?/
//Yami's little sister.//
/He has a sister?/
//You of all people! You read so much on Egypt, I thought you knew that the pharaohs usually had many wives and many children!//
/Oh - oh yeah./
//Kiara was Yami's only full sibling. Everyone else were half sisters and brothers, so naturally, they were very special to each other.//
Bakura couldn't believe it. Kerihk had only called him "baka" once so far! This was the first time he'd gotten this much out of the tomb robber.
/So, why are you acting so weird?/
THAT was a mistake.
//I am NOT acting WEIRD! I can't even remember what she used to LOOK like!//
/Gomen! I didn't mean to-/
//Oh, go soak your head!//
With that, Kerihk slammed the door of his soul room as a reminder to Bakura to not intrude.
Bakura sighed on his way home. Kerihk was a mystery himself.
Naoko and Anzu talked for a while longer before Naoko decided to follow Hikaru and Ai inside. The subject was at first Ai.
"Osaka dialect?" Anzu said wonderingly.
Naoko nodded. "Yeah, her mother is a famous model in Osaka. Ai spent most of her life in Osaka, so she can't shake the dialect. Now she works for Kokoroe Fujishima's electronic company. It's partnered with Kaiba Corp."
"Working at her age?" Anzu gasped. "I mean, I work too, but not at a big company like that! So that's why she was wearing the weird uniform."
"Ai's a very hard worker, even if she does have Osaka dialect," Naoko nodded.
Naoko and Anzu laughed together when they realized that Anzu and Hikaru went to the same theatre arts school.
"I had no idea!" Anzu cried. "I knew there was a Hikaru in the jazz and voice class, but I didn't know she was the same as your Hikaru!"
"Hikaru spoke highly of you, but I guess she didn't put two and two together either," Naoko giggled. "She said that last semester you danced to 'The Prayer' and won the 'Dancer of the Year Award.' She also said your friends called you 'The only one who ever knows what's going on,' 'The one the guys listen too,'" - here Anzu laughed loudly - "and 'The perfectionist.'"
"That's true, but Hikaru won the 'Singer of the Year Award' for her performance of Richard Marx and Donna Lewis's 'At the Beginning.' Her troupe called her 'The little angel,' 'The one who's always smiling,' and 'Everyone's friend.'"
Naoko nodded. "I saw you dance in 'The Prayer.' You were great."
"The singing was a nice touch," Anzu said.
Naoko smiled. "You like Yugi, don't you?"
Startled, Anzu almost fell over the railing she was leaning on. "Ex - excuse me?" she cried. "Isn't that a bit off topic?"
Laughing, Naoko replied, "You wish he had come to the dance, don't you?"
"Yeah, but it was sold out," Anzu sighed. Then she brightened. "He bought the video, though. That cheered me up."
"So you're admitting that you do like him?"
"... a little."
"A little?"
"... sort of."
"Sort of?"
"OK, I like him. Happy now?"
"Genki," Naoko chuckled. "I could tell so easily. The way you were looking at him... He's a sweet kid." She winked. "Doesn't it feel better knowing that you can talk to someone about it now?"
"I guess. But what if you squeal!"
"I'm offended! I wouldn't dream of it!"
The two girls laughed and bid farewell. Anzu went home with thoughts directed to Yugi, and Naoko went straight to bed, not thinking about anything at all.
Yugi tossed and turned in his sleep. His shoulder ached in pain for no apparent reason. Clutching his sheets, he groaned and retreated to his soul room. Lying in his futon, Yugi breathed heavily as the piercing pain shot up his shoulder again.
"Y-Yami..." he gasped, trying to sit up.
At once Yami was in his soul room. The steel door burst open - Yami had heard him call. He rushed over to Yugi's side and pulled him to his feet.
"Yugi, wake up! Are you all right?"
Yugi's eyes snapped open. The pain instantly vanished. "Y-yeah..." he mumbled. "Weird..."
~*Bakura found himself once again standing on the rock in the middle of the water. Slowly turning his head, he wondered if he was again dreaming. The strange mist blinded his view, and every now and again he'd feel a rain drop reach his skin. The mysterious flute tune was playing in the distance. He knew the song, but couldn't quite place it.
A strange noise was suddenly heard along with the flute music. It was the cry of a raven, and the coo of a dove. One black bird, and one white. Bakura stared at them in awe. The dove suddenly swooped down and soared around his head. Its bright white eyes seemed to be calling out to him. He reached out to stroke it...
The raven cried louder and darted down, pecking at the dove. Bakura cried out in anguish as he felt the pain the dove was bearing. Smeared in its own blood, the dove fell by Bakura's feet, and he saw that its blood was note red, but glowing white, like its eyes. Bakura hugged his body in pain. Tears pricked his eyes as he knelt beside the dove.
~Anaiyu...~
The raven's glowing red eyes sparkled maliciously as it soared higher.
~Oleu...~
Another bird appeared. This one was smaller than the others, lavender-colored with amethyst eyes, and weak in appearance. It bravely fought with the raven even when its shoulder was pierced by the raven's claw. At last the raven flew away, leaving, to Bakura's astonishment, the smallest of the birds the victor...
~Niku...~
There was more. There had to be...
His deep amber eyes shifted upward, staring through the fog that shrouded his vision. The birds were gone, but another picture was becoming clearer. It was a young girl standing on a cliff, appearing to be colored only white, holding a strange staff with a glowing star in the center. He watched her a bit longer as she opened a strange black book with the Eye of Truth emblazoned on the cover. Then he unconsciously turned the other way.
Behind him stood a lady with long, flowing black hair holding a strange silver bell. He couldn't see her eyes. She smiled, and rang the bell. The sound pierced Bakura's heart, and sent chills up his spine. The girl on the cliff looked up, and jumped to the ground, still clutching the book. She dropped it on the ground, and reached down her shirt, pulling out a glowing pink pendant. It glowed brightly, and -
Bakura was now standing in a room made entirely of gold, the nine Sennen Sets (Millennium Items) floating around him, along with several indistinguishable glowing balls of light. Strange voices were chanting, and every now and then the voices would say a word but it would sound fuzzy and slurred to Bakura. The words he did hear were, "Pazuru... Enjin... Tarekazari... Tsurugi... Saji... Munekazari... Kagi... Kagami... Tangan... Pazuru... Enjin... Tarekarazi... Tsurugi... Saji... Munekazari... Kagi... Kagami... Tangan... HIKARI NO YUUGI!"
With that last shout, all the Sennen Sets began to glow different colors. Yelllow, purple, pink, green, red, bronze, turquoise, blue, silver, and golden. He saw the Sennen Ring spread out two of its rays, and attach them into the Sennen Puzzle and the Sennen Pendant. The rest of the Sets attached themselves to those two, and when a complete circle was made, bright white light engulfed them, shaping into a diamond. Bakura shaded his eyes with his hands; the light was blinding his eyes.
The flute music played on.
He was back on the rock above the sea. White ribbons emerged from the water and fluttered around him, pressing against his face. Then they lowered near to the water, and wrapped themselves around his legs, pulling him under.
Though he couldn't breath, he wasn't panicking. He looked up, and watched as the light above the water slowly disappeared.
The flute music was becoming louder as he neared the ocean floor. The song... what was it?
That woman...
That girl...
That song...*~
"And so you divide the plane into four parts, like great slices of cheese cake. Does anyone know what these four parts are called?" Ms. Tsumura asked during math class the next day.
Bakura's hand was the first in the air. It always amazed Jonouchi at how smart Bakura was, but he guessed that having the math teacher for a stepsister had something to do with it.
Hikaru's hand was waving above her head. She was totally into this. Jonouchi sighed. When - WHEN - would he ever need to know about the Cartesian plane in his life? WHEN?
"Miss Daichi," Kamui selected.
"They're called quadrants," Hikaru said.
"Correct."
Gosh, this class was so boring! Kamui tried to make it fun, of course, but for someone as stupid at maths as Jonouchi, it was mere torture (a/n: I'm not making fun of anyone bad at maths - I'm not so hot at them myself. I mean, my year's average was a 94, but that's like, a super grade for me. I don't know HOW I got it. Good is an 85. I stink at it, really).
Jonouchi looked over at Yugi. Of course, the kid was busy taking notes. Jonouchi sneaked a peak at his notebook, and read
M- Cartesian coordinate system - divides into four parts (quadrants)
Jonouchi then discovered how unorganized his friend was with his schoolwork. Underneath the Cartesian plane, Jonouchi found
WC - world civics report on Belgium due Friday - three pages, double spaced, also number pages, cover page, works cited, outline, and pledge page
M - the absolute value of a number is the is the distance it is from 0
M - simple interest formula - i = prt (interest equals price times rate times time)
M - TEST ON THE QUADRATIC FORMULA AND LESSONS 7.1 - 7.11 THURSDAY!!!
LIT - Izumi Shikibu was a famous poet in the tenth century; she was in the emperor's court
M - 2x + 88 = 5x + 7² is four terms, subtract 2x and 5x
M - a²y + 4a²y are common terms (arithmetic pg. 188)
M - what are polynomials? FIND OUT BEFORE TEST!!!
HIS - William the Conqueror - WHO???
SCI - herbaceous plants - non-woody, science pg. 76
LIT - tanka - five lines (5, 7, 5, 7, 7), usually on emotions. WRITE ONE FOR MR. JAITO!!!
JP - persuasive thesis outline due Monday
Hey, everyone's got SOME bad habits.
"Mr. Jonouchi, do you know?"
Jonouchi face-faulted. He'd been caught off guard again! "Uh... um... eetou..." He looked pleadingly at his friends for help.
Bakura was scribbling something on a piece of paper, which he handed to Yugi. Yugi unfolded it and pointed it to Jonouchi, pretending that it was just a piece of scrapbook paper.
Jonouchi looked at the paper and read in Bakura's neat script
52 cu cm
"Fifty-two coo c-m... Oh -" Jonouchi gulped as he remembered, and said hurriedly, "I mean, fifty-two cubic centimeters."
Kamui eyed him suspiciously, but admitted that he was correct.
Jonouchi sighed and slumped back in his seat, snatching the piece of paper from Yugi and scribbling under the answer
52 cu cm
Domo arigatou, Bakura-chan, I owe you.
This he passed to Yugi, who passed it to Bakura. A minute later it was returned to Jonouchi, now reading
52 cu cm
Domo arigatou, Bakura-chan, I owe you.
Don't mention it.
Jonouchi then stuffed the note in his binder, in case Kamui found out about the note.
After school that day, everyone (including Hikaru and her gang of friends, even Ro and Makimura) met Bakura and Kamui outside the school.
"Ready to go?" Bakura asked, smiling. Everyone nodded, and chatted as they walked to the home of the Bakuras.
Anzu and Naoko soon started another giggly conversation, and Jonouchi, Honda, Tetsuya, and Ryoku argued over which was a better card, Flame Swordsman or Cyber Commander. Tetsuya eventually said that Gaia the Fierce Knight was cooler, but Ryoku said Kagemusha of the Blue Flame was his favorite, so the conversation took a new direction.
Bakura and Hikaru were deep in conversation, talking rapidly with each other. Something had struck Bakura about Hikaru's bold inquiry if she could call him by his first name. She seemed to be a rather shy girl, but she hadn't been afraid to ask him that. He wanted to find out more about her.
Yugi was talking more with Takehiko and Dajan, and he found out that Dajan was a very nice boy, not to mention Takehiko's cousin. He and Takehiko were also best friends, and each of them had a Millennium Item (Dajan had the Millennium Key; Takehiko, of course, had the Sword). Yugi was also surprised to learn that Takehiko had four brothers (Izumi, Kyosuke, Tsutemu, and Shota), all of whom were older than him, but Dajan was an only child. They couldn't have been more opposite.
Ro and Makimura Fujishima decided to tag along, having nothing better to do. They knew Ai very well (she used to baby-sit Makimura), but Ai wasn't conversing with them this time. Naoko noticed the slightly jealous looks she was sending Hikaru behind her back. She had never seen Ai look at Hikaru that way. They had always gotten along really well (except for the one time when Ai thought Hikaru wanted to steal her Millennium Mirror so she decided to raise the stakes of their duel, but that's another story) It must have something to do with a silver-haired boy who was totally amazed by Hikaru...
"Here it is," Kamui said, pointing to a large home near the park.
"WHHHHOOOAAA!!!"
It was almost a mansion. Mr. Yamamato Bakura had inherited a small fortune when his grandfather-in-law had died, and that, along with the money he made for his archaeological findings, helped him make his house look almost as good as Seto Kaiba's. There were many windows and balconies, along with a picnic table and a pool (think Tomoyo Daidouji's house on CardCaptor Sakura). There was also a large black gate with an intercom by the lock. Kamui pressed the button on the intercom.
"Who is it?" said a strange female voice through the intercom.
"Kamui Tsumura. I've brought company."
"Kochira e douzo."
To Yugi-tachi's amazement, the black gates opened wide automatically. Kamui led them inside the house, stopping to yell, "Tadaima!" before taking them to the kitchen, where Bakura's stepmother, Miyuki, was reading the Yomiyuri Shinbaum and drinking coffee.
"Welcome back, dear," Miyuki said with a smile when she saw Kamui.
"Kaasan," Kamui said lovingly, hugging her mother. "It's my first time back at home for the whole afternoon," she explained to her friends. "Yesterday I spent the whole day at the school and went straight to bed when I finally got home at eleven."
"Thank you for having us," Ro said, bowing to Miyuki. Makimura did the same, imitating her older brother. Yugi could hardly believe how much Ro reminded him of Kaiba - tall and silent, hard-hearted and cool. Both of them only went soft around their younger siblings, and both of them were very smart. (Yugi had recently found out that Ro worked for the same company as Ai did, a large electronic company. It had surprised him that the two of them were working at such a young age, but neither of them wanted to talk about why. Yugi also knew that Ro had been considered the second best Duelist in Japan next to Kaiba, and now, Yugi.)
Yugi then realized that Bakura was no longer with them. He looked around, and saw Bakura setting up the stove to make tea. At that moment, a pretty young maid with dark, wavy hair entered the kitchen.
"Ryou-kun, I'll do that," she said sweetly, batting her long eyelashes. "I'm an expert." She made a move to grab the kettle, but her hand missed and she grabbed Bakura's arm instead. Was it an accident? She didn't seem fazed.
"That's okay, Umi," Bakura replied, turning pink. Yugi thought he heard a bit of a groan in his voice. "I can do it myself. Gomen nasai," he added to Yugi-tachi.
"Umi, that's really all right, Ryou can do it," Miyuki said. "Why don't you go watch TV?"
"But Miss Miyuki -"
"Really, Umi, that will do."
Umi pouted a bit, but she slid into the living room and flicked on the television set (which had multi-channels and a satellite).
Jonouchi slapped his forehead. "This is all yours, Bakura?" he asked, astonished. "Whoa, I had no idea you were so rich!"
Bakura was considering using tea leaves instead of tea bags. "Yeah, it was a surprise when Tousan found out that my great-grandfather had left his entire fortune to him. I was born in Australia, you know, and I lived there until I was seven. That was when we found out about Great-grandfather's small fortune. Dad had wanted to return to Japan for many years, but we didn't have enough money back then. It was like a dream come true for him. Which reminds me, for the past few nights -"
"RYOU!"
The kids, Kamui, and Miyuki jumped. Bakura nearly spilled the tea (he had finally decided to use tea bags). He mumbled something like, "My father..." and shouted up to what appeared to be the first story roof, "I'll be right there!"
Turning to his guests, he blushed and explained, "Uh, I think Dad wants something.
Chotto mattekudasai." He prepared to dash up the stars.
"Don't let him bully you, Ryou," Miyuki said in a small voice.
Bakura stopped. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and refused to look at Miyuki. "Deep breaths," he told himself, "deep breaths." He forced a smile. "I'll be right back."
Then he disappeared up the stairs.
Miyuki stood up, traces of sorrow on her face. "He always treats me like I'm the enemy," she sighed. Although she appeared to be talking to herself, Yugi heard her words. "Can't he just let go of Yumiko and let me be his mother?"
Jonouchi stared at the large ceiling. "Man, this house is big!" he exclaimed.
"Big? I think you mean, humongous!" Honda corrected, equally awed.
Takehiko and Dajan just gaped, at loss for words.
Suddenly Yugi face-faulted. "Um... Mrs. Bakura?" he inquired timidly. "Is there a... bathroom nearby?"
Miyuki stared at him, then gave an embarrassed laugh. "Yes, the only unoccupied one is upstairs," she said. "The maids are using the bathtub in the downstairs one. They're filling it with soup or something," she added to Kamui as Yugi, Honda, Jonouchi, and Anzu rushed upstairs.
"Soup? What's with that?" Kamui asked. Miyuki shrugged.
Anzu, Honda, and Jonouchi leaned against the wall as they waited for Yugi to come out of the bathroom. They could distantly hear two voices arguing in another room. One was Bakura's and the other must have been his father's.
"Wonder what they're fighting about?" Honda said.
"Dunno," Jonouchi replied. "Maybe Bakura flunked a test or somethin'. My dad sure
screams like that when I get anything below a C."
Honda looked dubious.
Anzu was walking up and down the hall, looking at all the interesting pictures in the house. There was one door with RYOU BAKURA written on it on white posterboard. It was definitely Bakura's room, and the door was wide open.
"What'cha found there, Anzu?" Jonouchi's voice came out of nowhere, surprising Anzu. She looked around and saw Honda, Jonouchi, and Yugi coming her way from the bathroom.
"Just Bakura's room," she replied, trying to shove them away. Knowing Jonouchi and Honda they'd probably decide to snoop -
"Bet he's got some interesting stuff in there," Jonouchi said. "Let's take a looksie."
Anzu groaned. She hated always being right. "But he might have guy stuff in there!" she shrieked, blushing bright red.
Jonouchi looked at her like she was an alien. "Of course there'll be guy stuff in there, Anzu, what did you expect? Dolls and pink dresses? He's a GUY!"
Anzu thought about telling Jonouchi what was bothering her but figured the subject was too disturbing. She forced herself to follow her friends into Bakura's room.
It was a light blue, good-sized room with a large window above a desk, sunlight pouring through it. There were bunk beds in one corner of the room, the top one with dark blue covers and the bottom one with royal purple sheets. Yugi stared at the beds. How come there were two? Was one just a guest bed?
A mahogany dresser stood next to the bed, covered with glass animals and other collectibles. In the bookcase were many books on Egypt, as well as some fiction and comic books (mostly CLAMP manga, such as "Magic Knight Rayearth" - love that manga). There were many other things in the room, pictures, toys, and notebooks (along with a pretty nice PC), but, luckily, Bakura had put away all his "guy stuff."
Anzu was looking at the photographs in the frames on Bakura's desk. She gasped and pointed to one in a round, brown frame. "Guys, check this out!"
"What is it, Anzu?" Yugi asked as he, Jonouchi, and Honda hurried over to her.
The picture Anzu was pointing to was of Bakura hugging a girl Yugi had never seen before. She was slightly smaller than him and looked like she was his twin with her long, silver hair and deep amber eyes. Bakura looked about ten or so, as did the young girl. They were dressed in kimonos and standing under a Kaya tree strung with lights. In the background was a large shrine. The picture must have been taken at a festival.
"I know that place!" Anzu exclaimed, speaking of the shrine. "It's the Fudo Shrine! It's near my house!"
Jonouchi blinked. "It can't be. Bakura looks like a little kid in this picture. He wasn't at our school back then."
Anzu rolled her eyes. "Duh! Bakura was going to a different school! He's a transfer student! He still lived in the same house but I think he said he went to Trinitia, and the kids of Trinitia don't usually merge with us public-schoolers!"
"Oh. Nanto."
"Nanto? Jo-"
"I wonder who this girl is?" Yugi interrupted the argument, picking up the picture.
"Maybe she's his cousin or something," Honda suggested. "She looks exactly like him."
A high-pitched yell suddenly brought them back to reality. "Who screamed?" Anzu asked. Honda, Jonouchi, and Yugi shook their heads and the group raced back downstairs.
It was that strange, dark-haired maid, Umi. She had accidentally knocked the pot of tea over, and it was seeping all over the floor. Jonouchi and Honda couldn't help but snigger at the comic scene as Miyuki slapped her forehead and Umi wailed her apologies.
"I'm soooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!" she sobbed. "I'm so sorry! I didn't see it there, really!"
"It's all right, Umi, really." Miyuki grave a frustrated chuckle.
Umi and a blonde maid named Noriko grabbed towels and cleaned up the mess, and Noriko started a fresh pot of tea.
"Thank goodness Ryou didn't see that," Umi whispered to Noriko. "He would hate me if he knew I messed up the tea he was making for his friends." She sniffled. "Come to think of it, he seems as if he's avoiding me lately. Could it be that he doesn't like me?"
"You sure are sharp," Noriko mumbled.
"No-ri-ko!" Umi whined, placing tea bags in the pitcher. "You know I like him sooooo much! How can you be so *sniff* mean?"
At that moment Bakura can downstairs, gingerly touching a red mark on his cheek. Yugi's eyes widened. "Kerihk?" he whispered, speaking of the mark. "He hit you?"
Bakura made a face. "No, not Kerihk."
"Who?"
"... my father."
"Oh," Yugi said, and bit his lip. It didn't sound like a subject Bakura really wanted to talk about.
Noriko and Umi slipped out of the kitchen as soon as they saw Bakura come down the steps. Indifferent to any of the goings-on while he had been with his father, Bakura smiled and asked the group to head into the living room. "I'll be there in a minute," he said. "I want to talk to you about something."
Nodding, Yugi-tachi left the kitchen and entered the living room. Plopping himself on a couch, Yugi considered the words Bakura had just said, "... my father." So not only did Bakura have to deal with Kerihk's semi-madness, but his own father didn't treat him too well either. And he didn't seem to have much of a soft spot for his stepmother, either.
"Odd," Yugi murmured to no one in particular. "He's usually really nice and easy-going. Wonder why?"
Anzu and Naoko shared a sofa near the large television. Ai, Hikaru, Ro, and Makimura sat on the same couch as Yugi, and Ai took out her watch for ten-year-old Makimura to play with. Dajan and Takehiko took to the floor in front of the TV, which was playing an infomerical for zit cream. Tetsuya, Jonouchi, Honda, and Ryoku sat in some comfy chairs near Yugi's couch (Yugi was amazed at how many chairs were in that living room). Kamui also took a seat in a blue chair with her mom's copy of the newspaper, the Yomiyuri Shinbaum.
A moment later, Bakura entered the living room, smiling and holding a silver tray with matching tea cups and pitchers of tea. "Here's the tea," he said, handing everyone a tea cup. Everyone thanked him, but Jonouchi took his cup at glared at it, as if he suspected Bakura had poisoned it.
"What kind is it?" he asked doubtfully.
"Chinese herbal," Bakura answered, slightly confused.
Jonouchi made faces at his tea as if it was his loathsome enemy. Bakura looked at his strange expression and laughed.
"Um, Jonouchi?" he giggled, holding up the tray. "Milk and sugar?"
Jonouchi's eyes brightened as he scooped sugar into his tea. "Thanks Bakura, you're a pal."
Anzu, Honda, and Yugi exchanged glances, and burst out laughing.
***
"It's been reocurring for the past week," Bakura said, explaining about his dream. The others listened intently (but they still took time to drink their tea). Yugi had brought up the concern of a certain raven-haired lady sitting near them (Kamui to you people with less than -55 IQ), but Kamui said, "You don't have to worry about me. I'll look the other way."
(Don't sweatdrop.)
"Go on," Hikaru said gently. "It's only us."
"Yes, well, you see, I was told that when something is repeatedly in your mind without your effort and if it fills you with dread, then you should really pay attention to it because it might not stop bothering you until it comes true. In this dream, a lot of it takes place around a cliff by the ocean. The Millennium Items are involved, and there's also this strange golden room. Also, this song plays in the distance, but it's too far off for me to recognize it. And there are these weird birds, one black, one white, and one purple. The black one defeats the white, but the purple makes the black one fly away. Anyway, then there's this book with the Eye on the cover, and the inscriptions inside it glow, like if you read it, everything will... light up or something. This bell rings and I feel like I'm being sucked into a - a gap, a dark hole. There, all the Items combine into one big ring, only it's shaped like a diamond. It glows brightly, and then I'm back at the beach. These ribbons come out of the water and pull me down. I'm drowning, but I'm not afraid, and that - that music keeps playing... It's really freaky," he added, blushing.
Ro's face twisted. "The ocean and a floating book? Ribbons coming out of the water? Are you taking sleeping pills or something? There are side effects to those things, you know."
"No!" Bakura shook his head furiously. "I don't take sleeping pills!"
"Prescription medicine? Aspirin? Steroids?"
"Of course not - steroids? Before bed? You have got to be kidding."
"Maybe not steroids. How about Coca Cola? I've heard rumors that Cola gives you nightmares -"
"NO!"
Everyone else sweatdropped.
Yugi scratched his head. "That's very... unusual."
"Mmhmm," Hikaru added. "How long have you been having it?"
Bakura sighed. "Gosh, I don't know. I said a week earlier, but it may have been longer. It really started getting clear the day I met you guys." He nodded at Hikaru and her friends.
"The weirdest part," Ai put in, "was when all the Millennium Items started floating around. Does that mean that we've gotta go find the other bearers and hold hands with 'em? That's a little sick, and I am not holding hands with any pokie Pegasus!"
"Pokie?" Naoko inquired.
"He's a teeny-weeny-pokie-pooh if you ask me!" Ai sneered.
"Let's stop quoting CardCaptor Sakura," Anzu pleaded.
"The part that most interests me," Naoko muttered, "is why Bakura's having these dreams and no one else."
No one heard Naoko's comment. Only one with very sensitive ears could've made it out. One who wasn't as preoccupied as the others. But she held her tongue and didn't respond.
"I wonder if it means something," Hikaru said softly.
"What do you think it means, Hikaru?" Takehiko said slowly. A smile spread across his face. "That soon Bakura will fall out of his bed from nightmares too?"
Takehiko and Dajan laughed. Ai frowned at them. "What do you mean?" asked Yugi.
Hikaru looked embarrassed. "Well... for the past three nights, at exactly midnight, I've been falling out of my bed. It was exactly midnight each time, like I said. I'm not known to do that often, so it was sorta bothering me. I felt like I was under some kinda pressure or something..."
Bakura looked shocked. Midnight? That was the time he always woke up from his dreams? But - but -
"I woke up at midnight last night too," Yugi said with a nervous smile, "but that was because I had some pain in my shoulder. It didn't mean anything."
Dajan sighed. "All this because of the Millennium Items... I'll never forget when I found the Key in my uncle's antique desk. He let me have it, and after that, nothing was the same..."
*DAJAN REPLAY MODE*
Dajan looked around the cells. There were many people in them, most of which seemed to only be bodies because Pegasus had trapped their souls. He remembered the soul cards Hikaru had found earlier - an old man in overalls, the two Duel Monster champions, a boy with long black hair, a girl undoubtedly Ro's sister, and Hikaru's brother. This was where most of their bodies were being kept.
At that moment, there was a high shrieking sound and the room filled with an enormous roar. Dajan clutched at his ears until the sound passed. Looking up, he realized that Pegasus's prisoners were waking up out of some trance. Almost in a daze, Mokuba Kaiba ran into his brother's arms, and the others wondered where they were.
After much explaining, Dajan wondered how he was going to free them without the key to the cells. He snapped his fingers. "I've got it! I'll try using the Millennium Key!" With a little hope he pushed the golden key into the lock and turned it. It worked, and the door opened!
The effect of the Millennium Key was very helpful - it could unlock any lock!
*DAJAN REPLAY MODE END*
"That's cool, but I'll never forget what my Millennium Sword was able to do," Takehiko said. "My brother Izumi gave it to me, believe it or not..."
*TAKEHIKO REPLAY MODE*
Hikaru-tachi gasped as they heard a rustling in the bushes. "What's that?" asked Ai, sounding worried.
"I don't know," Hikaru said, stepping backwards.
Out of the bushes came two kids, dark-haired Dajan and fair-haired Takehiko. They looked around. "Hi, guys," Takehiko said.
"It's Midori and Hada!" Tetsuya exclaimed.
"What're you two doing out here?" Ryoku asked.
"Same as you," Dajan said. "We're here for the tournament. Well, Takehiko is,
anyway. I'm just cheer leading."
They all gathered around the fire and talked about the tournament. Takehiko said he had entered it for the prize money so he could pay for his second oldest brother's college tuition.
"That's all?" Tetsuya sniggered. "That's why you duel? Ai duels for her "almost-sister,"
Makimura, and Hikaru duels for her brother, but you duel for money? How lame!"
"Tetsuya, it's important to him, and that makes it a worthy cause," Hikaru jumped in, defending Takehiko. But after that Takehiko wondered if his cause was worthy after all.
Not long after, Takehiko, Ai, and Hikaru came up with ten star chips each, but on the way to the castle they were trapped by four strange minions of Pegasus's led by one "Jyor-lang." Jyor-lang and Yami Hikaru were tied to ropes and were playing a game with the duel monsters cards. Whoever could pick the card with the highest attack power would get to climb toward the top. The first player to reach the top would win. Unfortunately, Jyor-lang didn't follow the rules and tried to pull Hikaru down.
Full of rage, Yami Takehiko took out his Millennium sword, allowing the spirit inside of him to guide it. He slashed at Jyor-lang's rope and saved Hikaru from his wrath.
"Thanks, Takehiko," Hikaru said breathlessly. "But now, how do we get back to the others?"
It was then that Takehiko realized he and Hikaru were trapped on a plot of land over a canyon. Suddenly the eye symbol on the hilt of the Sword began to glow, and a string of light reached out from the cliff and onto the land. Takehiko and Hikaru were able to climb across the canyon.
*TAKEHIKO REPLAY MODE END*
"I was given my Millennium Pendant from Naoko's mother," Hikaru said...
*HIKARU REPLAY MODE*
"You look so much like my Chiaki," Tamayo Takaya sighed in bliss, looking at Hikaru. "She always said, if she had a daughter, she would name her Hikaru. Chiaki was my best friend in high school..."
Tamayo reached behind her and pulled out a small golden box. "Hikaru, your mother wore this on her wedding day. She always meant it for you."
Hikaru opened the box. Inside, on white velvet cushion, was a beautiful golden pendant on a chain. In the center of the pendant was a crystal of rose quartz. Hikaru gasped in delight.
"That's pure gold," Tamayo said. "It's worth a lot of money, but it belongs to you now. It's an heirloom I would never sell."
"My mother wore this?" Hikaru said softly. She smiled up at Tamayo. "Arigatou, Mrs. Takaya. I'll keep it forever."
*HIKARU REPLAY MODE END*
Ai laughed. "You three got your Millennium Items easily enough, but it was strange the way my Mirror came to me..."
*AI REPLAY MODE*
"Ai! Hurry up!" Ai's friend Emi begged. "They'll leave without us!"
Ai adjusted her hat and followed Emi outside to the digging site. "This is going to be a fun field trip," Emi said happily.
"I guess so," Ai replied, feeling that this trip would be anything but fun. "But you never find anything except rocks on these archaeology field trips. We're just kids and can't do anything right." She glared at her digging shovel like it too was sure this trip would be fun.
In the river where her eighth grade Osaka class was digging for "artifacts," Ai spotted something gold glinting between the rocks. Curiously, she bent down and began to dig for it. Finally she felt a smooth handle brush her hand.
"Emi, I think I've found something," she called, waving Emi over. Together they pulled the golden object out of the river. It was a mirror, a golden mirror.
"Shitari!" Emi cried. "I think we've really got something!"
Ai hid the mirror from the man waiting to take all the fossils the class had found. She took it home and stared at it, amazed by its unique appearance. Suddenly the glass began to fog up and her reflection disappeared.
"What da heck?" Ai gasped.
//"What da heck"? What does that mean?// said a voice.
Ai screamed. "Who's there?"
//Your worst nightmare.//
*AI REPLAY MODE END*
"That was the only time I saw my reflection in this Mirror," Ai said. "Usually it shows an approaching enemy or something."
Ryoku looked confused. "But remember when we first met Takehiko and Dajan?" he asked. "They showed up in your mirror, but they weren't enemies."
Yugi made a face. "I think... all Millennium Item holders are natural enemies of each other," he said slowly. "So the Mirror reacted to the Items."
Anzu looked anxious. "But... that doesn't mean we have to be enemies, does it?"
Everyone smiled at each other in a way that clearly meant, no, they don't have to be enemies.
Ro stood up. "Well, I'm a logical guy, and all this talk about magic is making my head spin," he said. "Besides, I've got to get back to work. Come on, Makimura, Ai."
They proceeded to walk out the door. "Thanks for having us, Bakura," Ai said, blushing slightly.
"Yeah, thanks," Makimura added. Ro nodded.
"No problem," Bakura smiled.
Dajan and Takehiko exchanged a glance. "We'd better get going too," Takehiko said.
"It's almost dinner time."
One by one, everyone decide it was time to leave. Not really wanting to be left alone with just his thoughts after that strange visit, Bakura decided to walk home with Yugi.
Outside, the whole group (except Ai, Ro, and Makimura who had had a head start) chatted about other things, like school, classes, and family. Yugi laughed as Naoko told about the trick her little sister Natsuko had played on her older sister, Nobuko. It felt great to be part of an ALMOST normal group.
Anzu looked up at the sky. "It sure is red tonight," she said.
"What's red?" asked Jonouchi.
"The sky!" Anzu exclaimed. "A really bloody red color."
"Don't be so dramatic," Naoko laughed, but she was really feeling nervous...
Something was about to happen.
Naoko shook off the feeling and went back to her story until they at last reached the Tôru girl's dorm.
"Well, bye, everyone," Hikaru said as she and Naoko prepared to go inside.
"Yeah, bye," Takehiko said as the others began to walk away.
Suddenly Yugi gasped. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He looked up, and saw the red clouds swirling in a spiral shape. He gulped.
"What's going on?"
Angel: Omigosh, I think that was the longest chapter I ever wrote! FOURTEEN PAGES! I am now at 32 pages worth of YGO fanfic. It usually takes me longer to write this much! YAY!!! Oh, and before you ask, I DO have a plan for those weird birds in Bakura's dreams. Mwahahaha!!! But it'll be dangerous. I'm having trouble fitting everything that needs to be said into my story. All the more reason to finish book 2's outline. ::Sighs:: I'm making a doujinshi! (fanfic manga.) And it's gonna be on a yugioh shrine soon (hopefully). It's already seven pages long (one front page, one section page, five manga pages). I think it's cool.
Yami: It is NOT cool! I have to let Yami Bakura give me a PIGGY-BACK RIDE!
Kerihk: Well, it wasn't MY idea!
Angel: Shut up, you two. Now, where's Malik?
Malik: ::whistles and tries to be inconspicuous::
Angel: There you are! Are you ready?
Malik: Why can't I do the translations LATER? I don't come in the story till book 2!
Angel (pouting): But I wan't you here NOW!
From the Desk of Malik Ishtar:
Nani - what
chau-chan - an Osaka phrase meaning "no-no"
mata aimashou - see you later
baka - idiot, fool
gomen - sorry
genki - happy
Anaiyu, Oleu, and Niku - I made 'em up!
sennen - millennium
Izumi Shikibu - was a real Japanese poet!
eetou - a word said while thinking
domo arigatou - thanks a lot
-tachi - and company
kochira e douzo - this way, please
tadaima - I'm home, said when entering the house
Yomiyuri Shinbaum - Japanese newspaper
Kaasan - mother
gomen nasai - I'm very sorry
Tousan - father
chotto mattekudasai - please, wait a little
kaya tree - nutmeg tree
nanto - whatever
Ueno Zoo - zoo in Tokyo
shitari - good heavens!
CHARACTER OF THE DAY:
Today's Character of the Day is Hikaru Daichi, age 15. As the spirit inside of Hikaru's Millennium Pendant is the Egyptian princess Kiara, Yami's younger and only full sister, she is nearly the same size as Yugi and looks much like him (even going as far as to wear the same tight black outfit, only feminine-styled!). Hikaru is loving and very naive (you could even go as far as to call her "airheaded") and has an easier time making friends than Yugi. Her parents died when she was a baby and she was sent to an orphanage until she was seven, when Takashi Katsura adopted her because she reminded him of his deceased wife, Hana. Other than a father, Hikaru also acquired an four-year-older, over-protective brother, Keikeru Katsura. At a summer camp for girls when she was eleven years old, Hikaru met Naoko Takaya, who joined her on her adventures in Duelist Kingdom and was more in tune with the magical realm than most normal humans. It was soon discovered that Hikaru's mother, Chiaki, and Naoko's mother, Tamayo, had been best friends in their high school years. When Chiaki had died, Tamayo had offered to adopt Hikaru, but her husband, Yamazaki, was against it because they already had two daughters (Nobuko and Naoko; the third, Natsuko, was born later). When Tamayo met Hikaru, she fell completely in love because Hikaru looked so much like Chiaki. She gave her the Millennium Pendant, which she had been holding on to since Chiaki's funeral. She told Hikaru that Chiaki had worn it at her wedding, and now it was to be passed on to Hikaru. Keikeru recognized the symbol of the Egyptian goddess of love and laughter, Hathor, emblazoned on the back of the Pendant. Keikeru himself had the power to see into the spirit realm, so he knew something was up. Eventually, Pegasus captured Keikeru just as he had done with Yugi's grandfather, forcing Hikaru to go to Duelist Kingdom even though it was against her will. Three of Hikaru's friends, Naoko Takaya, Ryoku Saito, and her best friend Tetsuya Gotoh, joined Hikaru on her journey. They also met up with three other Millennium Item holders, Ai Itsuko, Dajan Hada, and Takehiko Midori. Although Hikaru-tachi missed the final tournaments because they got trapped in an underground cave, they eventually dueled Pegasus anyway and though they didn't defeat him they were able to get Keikeru back, along with Seto Kaiba's young friend Kokoroe Fujishima's little sister, Makimura, whose role had been much like Mokuba Kaiba's.
Hikaru is sometimes a scardy-cat and a cry-baby because her kind heart hates violence ever so much and she hates seeing people shed tears of pain even more. But she can always be counted on to come to the rescue when her friends are in need. She is very gifted in math and phys. ed., and she loves to sing and act. Still, she can't play a note on any instrument and dancing isn't her strong point. Hikaru's spirit, Kiara the princess of Egypt, is a mysterious and complex character who hides her emotions but seems to care deeply for Hikaru and her brother, Yami. The most noticeable thing about Kiara's personality is she appears to have regrets from her past life. Whether or not this is true shall be revealed later in the story.
Next time: Chapter Five, Oikoshi no Kurayami (as told by Kaiba): When Yugi's gang came to me asking for help, their excuse was some of their friends had been captured by Pegasus! At first I thought it was a little fishy, till Misaki jumped in and said otherwise. I decided to loan them a ship to Duelist Kingdom on one condition - I get to go too. I mean, it's not like I wouldn't mind getting to kick Pegasus's sorry butt too! But there is no way Mokuba's coming. No way. No matter how much he begs... or gives puppy-dog eyes... or cries... OKAY, OKAY! He can come. Um, why is it so dark, and why are there two Yugis? Not to mention two Bakuras, too Hikarus, two Misakis... I think we might need double the amount of provisions.