Summary: Tragedy strikes. Joey Wheeler is gone forever. Or is he? Joey POV. Post Duelist Kingdom AU. Will eventually be Seto/Joey shounen-ai.
Author's Notes: Well, I thought I'd try writing a YuGiOh fic. And it's still going. And whoa, still going. But it'll be over soon!
600 re... views... *gurgles* *passes out at keyboard*
Kimmie: Thanks for the salts. I needed that ^_^
LukeSkywalker'sLady: I think Kaiba's too bashed up to be shocked anymore, poor guy...
Sheron: Glad you enjoyed it ^_^ As for writing more YGO, well, I need to get hit by inspiration first!
star fire: I didn't know that. I'm just making it all up ^_^;;
Warnings: Character death (sort of), language, angst, eventual Seto/Joey.
Disclaimers: I don't own YuGiOh or any other brand names you might come across. No vampires were harmed in the making of this fic.
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Being Dead Ain't Easy
Chapter Twenty-Six: Power Outage
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This is not good. This is so not good. Is he dead? Say he's not dead! I mean, he's Kaiba, he can't be dead. He took on a crazy bomber shooter guy with nothing but a briefcase and won! With my help, yeah, but still! No way can he be...
He groans. He's still alive. Yami Yuugi tries to give him a hand up but Kaiba smacks it away. After a sec, he drags himself back up with some help from the wall.
I try to get closer to see how he is, but WHAM I lose it again.
I hear Kaiba cry out and his body hits the floor.
When I know where I am again, the first thing I see is Yami looking down at me, all worried. "Don't try to move or talk, Joey."
Wasn't planning to. I feel bad.
Yami Bakura decides to say something. "As much as I hate to agree with the Pharaoh, he's right. Another twitch from you and you may very well kill the Priest before the ritual even begins."
Huh? What? I'm killing him?
"What do you mean by that?" demands Yami.
"Your memory is atrocious," sneers Yami Bakura. "The bond between the two is even stronger than I suspected. As the dog weakens, he draws greater and greater amounts of energy from our comatose Priest. Because of his current, rather poor, physical condition, Seto Kaiba is no longer able to resist." He frowns. "Rather unfortunate. He won't be able to fulfill his end of our agreement if he dies."
Tristan's standing there, looking kinda shocky. "I... I swear I didn't hit him that hard. I thought he'd... block, or dodge, or... something." He looks down at his bloody hands and then around the room, trying to see me. "I wouldn't kill the bastard if we needed him to save you, Joey. I wouldn't do that to you, I swear!"
I know, Tristan, I know. I open my mouth...
Yami Bakura catches me at it. "Be silent, you stupid boy! Do you want to kill the Priest along with yourself!?"
No. No, I don't. So no talking. But if I don't say anything, then Bakura's in charge! Kaiba's the only other guy who sorta knows what's going on, but he's not gonna be sayin' anything.
Tea rushes over to help Kaiba while everybody else is trying to help me. I slowly turn my head so I can watch. I do it real slow so I don't get dizzy or suck any more juice outta Kaiba. Tea's messing with his clothes. She gasps at the blood. "What happened!? Tristan didn't do this!"
She lifts his shirt up.
No wonder he didn't block or dodge or anything. Kaiba should be in the hospital, the stupid prick! It's easy to forget how hurt he is, but I shoulda known! I was there, for cryin' out loud, but he acts like there's nothing wrong with him! Okay, the big ugly spot's probably where Tristan socked him a buncha times, but the rest...
Morrison got too damn close, and, from the looks of it, Kaiba sucks at first aid. I'm surprised he's still breathing. Some bandages stuck on here and there, and a dark shirt so nobody can see what he didn't bother to clean up. Tea looks like she's gonna be sick.
Yami Yuugi stares at Kaiba, then turns back to me. "What happened to him, Joey?"
Right, nobody knows what happened at Kaiba Corp. Was that today? I know it was, but it sure doesn't feel like it.
"We don't have time for this, Pharaoh!" Yami Bakura breaks in. "We must begin the ritual. Come!" He walks outta the room.
Yami glares at him, but picks me up. Tries to pick me up. It's not working. He's not Kaiba, and Kaiba's not pickin' anyone up anytime soon.
This is just about the worst time for something like this to happen. I can't move, and I'm not even gonna try to move. I might kill Kaiba by accident, and if I'm gonna do that, I want it to be on purpose.
He growls, thinks up a plan. "Tristan, pick up Kaiba and follow Bakura."
Tristan stares at Kaiba and gets a weird look on his face. "But..."
"You beat him up, so you carry him! Unless you want Tea to lift someone heavier than she is? Or do you think I should do it? Perhaps I can carry Joey in one arm and Kaiba in the other."
Tea gets up and puts her hands on her hips. "Well? I will if you won't," she says. She looks down at Kaiba. Swallows. "He... won't be getting up by himself."
He scowls but does it. None too gently, either. Ouch.
Tea watches them go. "Yami, what should I...?"
Yami's still thinking. "Make sure Bakura doesn't kill them while Tristan's hands are full." He looks at her. "Be careful."
She bites her lip. "What about... Joey?"
"I'll take care of him."
After Tea's gone, Yami splits into two. It's... weird.
The solid Yuugi blinks. "Yami, what are you doing?"
"I can carry Joey while I am in spirit form." Oh, I get it. Yami Bakura could hit me and stuff when he was in spirit form, so I guess Yami Yuugi can carry me when he is, too.
Yuugi's eyes go wide. "I... I can't see him anymore! Where's Joey!?"
"Don't worry, he's still here!" Yami says quickly. "You can't see him now because I am not deliberately using my power to help you see. With Kaiba in that condition, I think I need to save as much of mine as possible for this ritual of Bakura's."
He thinks, nods. "Alright, I understand." Yuugi looks where I'm supposed to be. "Everything will be okay, Joey. Don't worry!"
Kinda hard not to, what with me sorta dying and Kaiba really dying, but I'll give it a shot.
Yami scoops me up in his arms and carries me out with Yuugi following. Everybody's waiting by the front door.
I hear someone run down the stairs. "When did all you guys get here?" It's Mokuba. "What's hap – OH MY GOD! BIG BROTHER!" He rushes over to Kaiba and shakes him. "Big brother! Seto! SETO!" Kaiba just lies there in Tristan's arms, like he's sleeping.
Yami Bakura scoops up the candles and stuff and heads for the front door, but Mokuba blocks him. "What did you do to him, you creep!?"
Yuugi tries to explain. "Mokuba, your brother-"
"He did it to himself," interrupts Yami Bakura. "Now get out of my way. I have a ritual to perform." He starts to elbow the kid outta his way, but changes his mind. "Actually, perhaps you should come along. You wish to take care of your elder brother, do you not?"
"Yeah, and you guys aren't going anywhere until somebody tells me what's going on!"
He smirks. "How loyal. As for what's going on, I need to perform a ritual that may possibly save the dog's soul and your brother's life. Make yourself useful and provide us with some transportation."
Mokuba does a Kaiba glare. "Why?"
"Because we will need to return to the place where Joey Wheeler died."
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