Every Right

Marik sat at the edge of the bed waiting for his hikari to open his eyes. a few times during the night, Marik had to provide a trash can in front of his hikari's mouth.  That "vodka" or whatever it was, made Malik sick all night. Marik sniffed the bottle and its bitter scent, finding the smell similari to the sloppy mess in the trash can.  in the room next to him, he heard the music of a cheap porn movie and finally, loud, billowing snoring. Malik slept through it all.

            The yami held his hikari's hand through the tremors and the whimpers. With every minute passing, Marik became more nervous that his hikari would not wake up.  He had to check Malik more than once for a heartbeat.  Marik's Millenium Rod was no where to be seen. After searching the room for half an hour, he found it in a drawer beside Marik's bed.

            It wasn't until dawn that Marik opened his eyes groggily.  Marik turned to his lover, concern plain on his face.

"Tenshi?" Marik pressed his hand to Malik's cheek, rubbing it softly.

Malik rubbed his eyes in shock and looked at Marik. "Yami?"

The spirit pulled his hikari into his arms. "I should have been there for you…Sorry, tenshi."

Malik gasped for breath sobbing quietly into his immortal's chest. "I wondered where you were.and if you were going to come back for me."

"I won't let you go easily, koi. You know that."

Marik pulled down Malik's shirt to reveal a tiny scar…nearly invisible on his collarbone.  "That's my mark on you, hikari. You are mine alone and always shall be. Should anyone touch what is mine, they will hay the highest price imaginable. And we both know what that is, right? Hikari?"

Malik bit his lip and nodded sheepishly.

"Tell me what happened last night. Leave out nothing."

Malik rubbed his head and his eyes trying to remember. "The cops left and Joey's dad hugged me and slipped his tongue into my ear telling me 'Welcome home.'" Marik gave an audible growl.  "He threw me into this room and locked the door. He came back a few hours later with that bottle of vodka and two shot glasses. He said if I was going to be his son, I had to learn to drink like him."

Marik stood up and brushed his hair back. "Why didn't you fight back?"

"I know what Joey went through with his dad. He told me what happened and he told me that when he fought back it made it worse."

"How many shots did you have?"

"All I know is that the bottle was full when he came in. I told him I didn't drink and he grabbed my shoulder forcing me to drink. That stuff tasted awful. I didn't eat all day, so I know it affected me worse."

Marik walked to the door hearing a low voice grumble past the doorway. "I am half a second away from tearing that mortal's insides to shreds. In fact, that sounds like a plan."

 Marik removed the cover for the dagger when Malik pushed the covers off of him.

"Wait, yami! Don't!"

Marik stopped and turned slowly and gently twisted the point of the dagger on his finger. "Why not, tenshi?"

Malik staggered off the bed and walked to his yami. He wrapped his arms around him.

"I'm waiting for a good reason, tenshi."

"Because this is Joey's father…not my own. You don't have any right to destroy him without Joey's permission."

Marik took Malik's chin in his hand. "I have every right to protect you, Malik."

"And I am protecting Joey's feelings."

"He isn't protecting you, Malik. You don't see him here, do you?"

"Marik, please."

Marik's eyes narrowed. "I am protecting you from this creep, tenshi. Can't you get it through your mortal skull that I don't want you to get hurt? This wouldn't be the first time I killed for you."

Malik's lip quivered and he backed away to the bed covering his face. "I never asked you to do what you did. I NEVER gave you permission to kill my father! He may have tattooed my back, carving into me like a piece of meat, but he was still my father and you have no right, ABSOLUTELY NO RIGHT, to do what you did to him!  It's not my place to decide Joey's dad's fate! Joey has to make that choice. But for me…" Malik jumped off the bed clenching his teeth and grinding them harshly and defiantly.  "You never gave me the choice! You made the decision for me! The most important decision a son can make for his father's fate and you and Bakura ruined it for me!  And I hate you for it!" Malik's lip curled into a hateful sneer.

The spirit slowly approached his hikari putting his dagger up to Malik's chin growling and trembling with restrained fury. "Never in the six years that I have known you, have you ever told me that you hate me. Need I remind you, my host, that everything I have done for you, I have done to protect you. Your father hurt you. He caused you pain…pain that I felt, too. You died, Malik. When Aria killed you while under Cinetti's influence, I went to the Underworld for you. I brought you back from the dead. This is the gratitude I receive for saving your skin? Would anyone you know go to Hell for you and back besides me?"

Marik looked his yami in the purple eyes. "You know, yami, my father may have hurt me, but he's not the only one who hurt me."

"I never meant to hurt you, Malik. I never did it intentionally to hurt you."

Malik turned away from his yami. "I wish I could believe that."

"Malik…hikari…I mean it. I never meant to hurt you. I love you." Marik slipped his arms around Malik from behind. "I brought you back to me because I couldn't live without you. Because I love you. I would do anything for you…tenshi."

"Yami…please…"

Marik hugged his hikari who rubbed his nose sniffling. Malik felt the arms around him fade. He turned to find Marik gone, disappeared into his Millenium Item. 

Malik sat on the bed. "I'm sorry, Marik,"  he whimpered into his hands. He had never raised his voice to his yami before. Never had he told his yami that he hated him. Hated…such a strong word. Malik opened the drawer on his side table. He picked up the Millenium Rod and kissed it. "I'm sorry, yami. I didn't mean it."

The door to the bedroom was coming unlocked. Malik quickly put the Rod in the drawer to hide it from his new stepfather.Malik moved against the wall sitting on the bed, his eyes wide and his breathing heavy.

"Did you sleep well, boy?"

Malik gulped soundly. "Y..Yes,s-s-s-sir."

"I'm hungry. Go make me breakfast now."

The man grabbed Malik's shoulder and pulled him out of the room. The father staggered down the steps with further grumbling and murmuring of incoherent words.

The man took the boy to the kitchen and threw him against the refrigerator. "I want…..something…………"

Malik's fist tightened as he shook.  "What…do you want?"

The man kissed Malik on the lips and ran his hands under Malik's shirt pinching one of the boy's nipples. "I want something….with sausages….do you know where I can have…a sausage sandwich, pretty boy?"

Malik whimpered and punched Joey's dad in the ribcage.  The man grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled Marik down to the ground. The man sat on top of him.

"I just have to leave no external marks, boy…but there's nothing to say I can't leave detectable internal marks." 

The man grasped Marik's collar roughly pinning him to the ground when the doorbell rang.  Joey's dad looked up and back down at Malik on the floor.

"Get up off the floor this instant." Malik stood on his shaky legs against the kitchen counter. "Get me my breakfast, boy."

The man opened the door and saw his son with his backpack over his shoulder. His father stared at his son in disbelief. Within a second, Joey's dad pulled him inside and pinned him against the wall.

"Boy, I should beat your ass from here to hell and back! Where the hell have you been for the past year?"

"Why would you care?"

Joey's dad whipped his hands across Joey's face knocking him to the ground.

"You forgot your manners while you were gone, boy.  Do I have to teach you your lessons once more?"

Joey shook his head. "No, sir."

"Why did you come back? I thought you didn't