I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
by Rhapsody Moonschild and Tat Claire Kokoro
|~*Rhapsody: I was on a roll when I wrote this. ^^
Tat: But look where it leads… to something unpostable.
Rhapsody: **shrugs** Hey, you wrote that part… we'll give a link to the slight lemon in our profile.
Tat: All ya gotta do is click our name up top, and then copy-paste the link into your address thing.
Rhapsody: And I'll see if I can post a tuned-down version, ne?
Tat: Neways… YGO isn't our property… Now go read the fic!*~|
CHAPTER TWELVE (by Rhapsody)
Yami's POV
I lean in and kiss him, happy to feel him respond. It is ten times better of course now that he is awake.
When we stop to breathe, he awkwardly takes my hand and starts to talk.
He talks about Bakura and the abuse, and how he lets it happen because he feels Bakura needs it. I get a sense that he loves Bakura deeply, in a strange, almost-brotherly way. I am connected to Yugi in the same way.
And when he is done, he is shaking a little, and crying, and I pull him onto my lap, and gently I rock him like a little child, his head tucked under my chin. I breathe deeply of his smell and wonder why life worked out this way—why was Yugi my hikari and not he?
Don't get me wrong. I love Yugi and he's nice to talk to. But Ryou and I have a different kind of relationship. It's not long that I've looked at him this way, but I can feel it. It's something powerful and deep.
But then again, if Yugi had gotten Bakura for a yami, he would have gone crazy or perhaps even died. So I guess Ra did what He could to make things right.
When Ryou stops shaking and his breaths are more even, I gently place him beside me on the bed and this time I talk.
I talk about the burden of being a pharaoh that stays with me still, even after all these millennia. I talk about ruling a country at fifteen (that's his age now). I talk about the stress of fighting every duel for a powerful purpose, about my loneliness now that the tournaments are over and I'm not needed for anything anymore. Even after I got my own body* things did not change; I had hoped for a while that perhaps Yugi and I—but he found another.
((*For a possible way Yami got his own body, see Rhapsody's other fic "Opposites Attract" (but only if Yami/Yugi minor pairing is okay with you).))
I talk about it all with him there beside me on that bed, his chocolate eyes wide and attentive. He listens to every word, I can tell, his fingers rubbing against mine in sympathy.
When I finally stop, my throat tight and feeling my age—all those long long years with desert sand blowing over the Puzzle, he kisses me sweetly and my sadness flows away. His lips against mine dull the pain.
We talk about our opposites (Yugi and Bakura) and we talk about our daily lives. Ryou mentions the romance novels he reads to fill the void, I mention the long nights staring dully into the bathroom mirror wanting something I can't name. Anything and everything is open for discussion—we laugh about the 'good ole days' and talk about Duel Monsters tactics. Everything. And when there's silence we fill the quiet with another kiss. He learns quickly…
"Yami?" says another voice and there is a knock at my door; Yugi peeks his head into the room. He yawns and I notice he's wearing pajamas.
"I'm going to bed, Yami," he says.
"What time is it?" I ask. It doesn't seem that late…
"It's ten o'clock. You guys missed dinner, but I didn't want to interrupt…"
His grin suggests things I didn't know he knew about.
"Well, good night, Yugi," I say and Ryou agrees. My light shuts the door and presumably heads to his room. Ryou and I share a long glance. Finally he yawns.
"I'll sleep on the floor if you want the bed," I say awkwardly. I'm not sure how much he wants to commit to me—better to be careful.
"No, that's okay," he says quietly, face flushing. He squeezes my hand. "We can sleep in the same bed… Eventually."
Eventually what? After a moment I get it. We will go to sleep… eventually… but in the mean time…
He leans up and kisses me again, and this time his tongue presses against my lips. I respond willingly. He fumbles at my shirt, and I help him with his.
Then we climb under the covers to sleep—when we're done exploring each other.