Author's Notes
Judi: Hey, everyone! Sorry 'bout the wait.
Peacenikky: Driver's Ed has been eating up all of my free time lately. But I'm finally done with it! Yay!
Leanna: Anyway, we've finally managed to get the next chapter out.
Rebecca: We're also going to answer your questions about the fic.
Peacenikky: And don't worry, Rebecca will NOT fall in love with Ryou!
Judi: Yeah, we're anti-Mary Sue, so let us know if you think anything suspicious is coming up, and we'll give Beck a once-over to make sure.
Leanna: Okay, here are the shoutouts!
YamiBakuraChan- We're working on it!
Europa- Oh, so that's it... Yup, Mirai Trunks is here for revenge against someone...
Silver Angel- You'll see soon enough, don't worry!
Orenji-Chan- I just couldn't resist putting that one in there!
Scythe- Not to worry! There's no way I'm going to make a Rebecca/anyone pairing! I've been toying with the idea of yami/hikari pairings for a while now... Okay, what do the rest of you guys think? I've got some ideas for how it'll work; just let me know if I should go through with this. However, there will be ABSOLUTELY NO LEMONS!!! I'm way too naïve to write one, and I don't like the idea of getting kicked off ff.net too much. Anyway, Yami went back into the Puzzle shortly after everyone picked up their CD's. Sorry about the confusion! And they'll learn about Bakura very shortly, don't worry!
FireEye- I see. But, as I said, she's not getting paired up with anyone, at the very least. I'd rather not go into a debate on who's stronger, though. Let's just let everyone keep their own opinion about it. See above on where Yami went.
Meku- I'll try my best to update ASAP!
Peacenikky: Well, let's start the show!
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Dragonball Z. All I own are Rebecca and Cye.
Legend: /hikari to yami/
//yami to hikari//
"spoken"
'thoughts'
*** scene change
CHAPTER TWO
"Okay, I give up. We can stop here. But I'm warning you, it's a real battlefield, so I'm not responsible if anyone trips and breaks an ankle or something." Rebecca said cautiously as she turned the key to the apartment door and opened it a little. "Uncle Cye? I brought some friends over. Hope that's okay!" There was no response. "Uncle Cye? Hello?" Rebecca opened the door the rest of the way, exposing the mess within. Various cleaning paraphernalia was scattered around the floor, a couple of pillows were strewn about, and one of the doors leading off the entryway hall was sealed off with police line tape. Rebecca looked at it with a critical eye. "Jeez, my room's not THAT bad..."
"Trust me, it is." Gohan said to Yugi and the others before nearly tripping over a throw pillow.
"Wow, I feel so loved. Come on in." The others stepped inside, cautiously walking over the obstacles on the floor.
"Hey, don't worry 'bout the mess, Beck. My room's way worse than this." Joey said as he dodged a handheld vacuum cleaner.
"I can vouch for that." Tristan added.
"Thanks, I guess." Rebecca said with a smile. "Uncle Cye, where the heck are you?"
Tea, putting her years of ballet classes to use, pirouetted over to the kitchen, where she picked up a piece of paper. "Hey, look over here." Rebecca navigated her way through the mess and took the paper.
"Rebecca, I've gone to get some groceries. Don't have any friends over; the apartment's messy enough already. I'll be back by 5:30. Love, Cye." Rebecca said, reading aloud from the note.
"Oops, too late..." Gohan said with a small grin. "Okay, we won't trash the place. We won't even stay long. Cye won't have a clue we were here!"
"No problem, it's not like I've never broken one of his rules before." Rebecca said, crumpling up the note and tossing it into a wastebasket. The others settled into seats on the sofa and chairs around the living room/kitchen area.
"So, what next?" Yugi asked. Videl grinned a little before pulling out her CD.
"I say we listen to our songs again! We could use a few laughs right about now!" Ryou blushed.
"Let's not, and say we did!"
"Let's do, and really be able to say we did, instead!" Videl countered. Joey shrugged.
"I'm game."
"Same here." Tea added. The others soon agreed.
"Sorry, bud. Seven against one." Tristan said as he reached over and popped his CD into the small stereo set up on the floor. Just before the brunette managed to press 'play,' the doorbell rang.
"Great, Cye must have forgotten his keys or something... Time to make up an excuse." Rebecca muttered as she got up and opened the door. "Hey Uncle Cye! Back so... soon..." Rebecca trailed off and turned pink. A boy in his teens with lavender hair and ice blue eyes stood at the door. "Oh, sorry! I was expecting someone else! Can I help you?"
"Yeah, I'm looking for someone named Ryou Bakura. Is he somewhere nearby?"
Ryou stood up. "That's me. Who are you?" Gohan sucked in his breath.
'That voice... and that energy signature! Can it really be...' The boy's countenance immediately turned from pleasant to cold and determined.
"My name is of no importance right now. All that matters is that I'm here to destroy you for what you did to my mother!" he said, drawing a sword from a case on his back and pointing it straight at Ryou.
"What!?" Gohan jumped up to get a better look and gasped.
"No way... Trunks, is that you?"
"Hold up!" Joey said, getting up as well. "You're telling me this guy's that little pipsqueak we met back at the conference center!? That's impossible!"
"My gosh... He looks just like the little-kid Trunks, all grown up!" Yugi said. The boy nodded.
"Yes, I'm the future form of the boy you know as Trunks. It's great to see you again, Gohan, but right now, I've got something to take care of." Ryou took a step back.
"Okay, this is getting a little too creepy..." he said nervously. Tea got up and stepped in front of him.
"Listen, there's no way we're going to let you hurt our friend, okay? So take your little vendetta and go home!" she said angrily. Trunks didn't seem to notice as he shoved Rebecca out of the way, ran inside, and promptly tripped over the hand held vacuum. Ignoring the snickers coming from Joey, he got up, nimbly sidestepped Tea, and ended up directly in front of Ryou.
"Good night." he said as he struck Ryou in the head with the broad side of his sword. Ryou uttered a small cry of pain before falling to the floor, unconscious.
"Oh my lord..." Videl whispered. Trunks raised the sword and prepared to deal the fatal blow when Gohan's fighting instincts kicked in. He raced forward and quickly tackled Trunks to the ground. The sword clattered as it fell inches from Ryou's face.
"Trunks, what has gotten into you?"
"Gohan, let me go right now!" Trunks yelled as he wrestled to get out the other half-saiyan's grip. (AN: ACK! Not like that! Get your minds out of the gutter!)
"Not until you explain what the heck you're doing here, and why you want to kill Ryou!"
"You wouldn't understand!"
"Oh, yeah? Try me!" The two continued to fight, not noticing the others were watching with mild horror, until Yugi gasped.
"What the!?" Ryou's face was contorted in pain, with tears beginning to spill onto his cheeks. He cried out as his body jerked as if it were being struck several times. Bruises and cuts soon began to appear on his face and arms.
"All right, what did you do to him?" Joey asked as he rolled up his sleeve. Gohan got up, keeping his hand around Trunks' wrist to keep him from trying to finish his attempt at murder.
"I didn't do THIS! I certainly wasn't planning on getting my revenge this way, either!" Trunks said, defending himself.
/Yami, what's happening here?/ Yugi asked his darker half.
//I was afraid of this... There's only one explanation. Bakura's returned from the Shadow Realm!//
/No! We've got to do something!/
//As long as this is kept in Ryou's Soul Room, there's nothing we can do...// Yugi blinked, trying to keep from crying.
Rebecca rubbed the Guardian Angel insignia on her ring as she realized what was going on. 'I never would have guessed... When I get my hands on that rotten excuse for a spirit, I'm going to crush him!'
"Ryou, snap out of it! Come on, wake up! You're scaring us!" Yugi said as he gently shook the taller boy's shoulder. Videl pulled him back and shook her head. Within a few more minutes, Ryou's body relaxed somewhat. He gasped for breath as the others tried to figure out what brought that on.
"It looks like it's over for now. I'm going to get the first-aid kit." Rebecca said as she made her way back into the kitchen. She returned a few moments later with a white box. Tea opened it, pulled out some bandages and antiseptic, and began to treat Ryou's wounds. Tristan turned to face Trunks.
"Okay, I think you're way past due for an explanation, buster. Who are you, and what do you want?" No one seemed to notice the two adult men standing in the doorway, or when one of them raised his hand and whispered a few words. It was less difficult to notice Yugi's eyes widen, then fall shut as he collapsed and hit the floor. Rebecca looked up and opened her mouth to say something to one of the men when she fell and vanished.
"What the heck just happened here?" Joey asked as he checked his best friend for a pulse. Gohan felt his center of gravity shift and stumbled as Trunks fell limp as well.
"I can explain that." A voice said as the two men stepped into the apartment. Tea gasped.
"And just who in the world are you?"
***
Ryou sat on the bed in his Soul Room, wincing with each small movement. Bakura had really seen red when he found out his hikari had been attacked and knocked out so easily, and used the chance to 'teach him a lesson.' He could vaguely sense the concern the others had for him outside, but there was nothing he could do at the moment to assuage their fears.
Out of nowhere, two small, bright flashes of light appeared, along with two voices screaming. Ryou looked up in mild alarm as the owners of the voices appeared and were dumped on the floor of the room. Yugi groggily got up, rubbing his head.
"Ow... Where am I?" he muttered as his eyes focused. He bit his lower lip as he saw Ryou. "Oh my gosh! Ryou, are you okay?" Ryou looked down, humiliated.
"Well, I could be better..." he said quietly. Yugi walked over and gently placed an arm around his shoulder.
"Don't worry. It's going to be all right." He said with a small, worried smile.
"Ugh, stop the ride, I wanna get off..." the second voice said weakly as its owner stood up. Rebecca blinked a few times, not fully noticing the stunned looks on the two boy's faces. That quickly changed, however, when she saw the armor she was wearing. "Oh, great..." The angel looked up. "I don't suppose you'd think this was all... just a... dream..." She trailed off when she saw the state Ryou was in. "Oh my..."
"Please, I'd rather not talk about it." Ryou said. "But would you care to explain the wings on your back?"
Rebecca blushed and snapped her fingers, whispering the word "Mnemosyne." The two hikaris blinked a few times as Rebecca took off her helmet. "Okay, that should restore your full memories of that incident at the ski lodge." She said, running a hand through her bangs. "Now would you please explain how Bakura managed to get back from the Shadow Realm?"
"What? How did you-?" Ryou began.
"Yami and I could sense his presence, Ryou." Yugi said quietly. "How long has this been going on?" Ryou bit his lower lip and mumbled something.
"What?"
"I said, Bakura's been back for about a month now..." Ryou lowered his head. Yugi's eyes welled up with tears as he gently hugged his friend.
"Oh Ryou... Why didn't you say something? We didn't know..."
"I didn't want anyone else to get hurt... I thought I could take it on my own..." Rebecca's eyes hardened.
"That does it. He's going down..." she said under her breath as she put her helmet back on and strode over to the door. She grabbed the handle and tugged on it hard, but it didn't budge. "Hey!"
"The door's locked. He didn't want me to get out... Bakura'll be back soon. You guys had better get out of here." Ryou said.
"We don't even know how we got here in the first place." Yugi said. "Besides, we can't leave you here alone! We've got to stop him somehow!"
Rebecca leaned against the door and clucked her tongue. "Ryou, you said Bakura'd be returning here soon, right? Well, he probably never expected a ticked off angel waiting for him. I'll just sit tight and wait for him to show up, then BAM!" She ran her fist into her open hand. "He'll never know what hit him." She smirked as she walked back toward the other two and crossed her arms, waiting.
"Wait a second... Do you hear that?" Yugi asked, tilting his head.
"It sounds like there's a fight nearby... I think it's been going on for a while." Ryou said. Soon after he said that, there was silence, which was soon replaced by approaching footsteps. Rebecca stepped into a fighting stance as the door handle turned.
"YAHHH! Take that!" she shouted as the door opened, a small fireball appearing in her hand. She didn't make it five steps when a blast of violet energy hit her and sent her crashing into the wall. "Ow..."
"Um, Rebecca? Wrong yami." Ryou said as she shakily got up. Yami stood in the doorway, a little surprised.
"Yugi? What in the Underworld are you doing here?" the spirit asked as he entered the room.
"I could ask you the same thing." The pure-hearted duelist replied.
"Ahem." Trunks stepped in, holding up Bakura's unconscious form. "Where do you want this?" he asked as he looked around the room. "And what are you?" he asked, pointing to Rebecca. She rolled her eyes as she fully stood up.
"I'm a guardian angel. I'm not going to go into details at the moment, so don't ask any questions."
"What makes you think I was going to ask any?
"Anyway, Ryou, it would appear I had mistaken you for this guy. I apologize for my actions. I take it he's the one who did that to you?" Trunks asked. Ryou nodded. "I see. Then I have twice the reason to destroy him."
"Wait!" Ryou cried, causing everyone to focus his or her attention on the white-haired boy. "You can't just do that to him!"
"No offense Ryou, but did Bakura hit you in the head one too many times or something?" Rebecca asked, confused.
"Well, it's kinda hard to explain, but..."
"I think it's time for everyone to return the realm of the living now." A voice with an Egyptian accent said. Everyone looked around.
"Shaddi?" Yugi whispered. The next moment, there was a brilliant flash of light.
***
Soon after that, Ryou's eyes fluttered open. He rubbed the side of his head gingerly as he slowly got up.
"Hey, the turban dude was right! You're waking up!" Tristan exclaimed. Yugi and Trunks also woke up and got to their feet. Rebecca materialized shortly after, along with Yami and the unconscious Bakura.
"Was knocking him out really necessary?" the voice from before asked. "And I don't appreciate the term 'turban dude' very much." The voice's owner, Shaddi, picked up Bakura's body with relative ease and glared at Tristan.
"Yeesh. Sorry." The brunette muttered.
"I believe you have some explaining to do, Missy." the second voice said. Rebecca gulped and looked up.
"Cye, relax, okay? I didn't see your note until after the guys came over!" The others sweatdropped.
"I'm referring to the little incident with Trunks that happened here not fifteen minutes ago! Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in?" This voice's owner was a trim man in his mid-thirties and of average height. He, like Rebecca, was dressed in a robe and armor, and had a pair of longer wings coming from his back. He held his helmet under one arm as he brushed a clump of his dark green hair out of his lighter green eyes.
"Oh yeah, like I could do anything without blowing my secret!"
"The bylaws of the Order of Guardian Angels clearly state that--"
"Ugh! Bylaws this, codes that! When will you learn to go with the flow?"
"I will not tolerate that disrespectful tone of voice, young lady! It took a lot of energy restoring the memories of your friends when I showed up, and I am not in the mood for this!"
"Excuse me, but will you two please tone it down? We're trying to deal with the fact that there are two angels, the guardian of the Millennium Items, an unconscious jerk, a beaten up friend, and some kid from the future in here, and we don't need an argument from the both of you to make things worse!" Yami stated, trying not to lose his temper.
"Ryou, how long has it been since Bakura last returned to you?" Shaddi asked, changing the course of the conversation.
"Well, I'd say about a month now."
"I see. I thought I sensed a disturbance in the Shadow Realm around that time."
"Hold on, let me get this straight." Videl said. "That lunatic who sent us to that Shadow Realm place back at the ski lodge is back, and he's been beating up Ryou?"
"Well um, that's about right." Ryou said.
"Okay, you'd better wake him up, 'cause I'm gonna take him out!" she said, clenching her fist.
"That may not be the best idea, Miss." Shaddi said calmly.
"And why not?"
"Because I know this is going to sound bizarre, but I don't want you to hurt Bakura." Ryou said. Joey walked over and placed a hand on Ryou's forehead.
"Hmm... You ain't running a fever..." There was a knock at the door. Cye walked over, checked the peephole, then opened the door.
"Dude, are you nuts? What are you-oh jeez, what now?" Joey muttered as he saw the two at the door. A tiny, wrinkled old woman in witch's robes sitting on a floating crystal ball and a tall man with lavender skin and long white hair were waiting in the doorway.
"Surprise!" The old woman said as she floated inside. Rebecca stepped back nervously.
"Cye, don't tell me you filed a report about this!" she muttered under her breath.
"Baba, Supreme Kai, what are you guys doing here?" Gohan asked.
"Well, let's see, considering that there's been an attack and a lot of strange energy coming from Rebecca's residence, I had a feeling I'd better step in." Supreme Kai said. Rebecca groaned and slapped her forehead.
"Why doesn't anyone trust me?"
"Okay, who are THESE two?" Tea asked, exasperated.
"Well, this is Baba, the fortuneteller," Gohan began, indicating the old woman, "and this is Shin, also known as the Supreme Kai." he finished, pointing to the man.
"I remember Mother mentioning something about a crabby old psychic, but I don't recall anything about a man named Shin..." Trunks said to himself. Baba turned red and quickly floated over to him.
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING CRABBY?" she screamed, causing the half-saiyan to step back in alarm.
"Supreme Kai's also the head of the Order of Guardian Angels." Cye put in. The taller man blushed a little.
"Well actually, it was Kibito's job, but when he and I fused, I took on the task."
"Fused?" Yami asked, fingering his deck.
"It's a long story." Gohan said.
"Wait a second. Why are the four of you here in the first place? I still don't understand." Yugi said.
"I'll try to explain. I sensed Bakura returning from the Shadow Realm about one month ago. Earlier today, I also sensed his spirit full of malice. When I realized it was coming from here, I thought he might cause mayhem in the city." Shaddi said, shifting the unconscious yami a little.
"That's when he ran into me when I was on my way back from the supermarket and asked for my help." Cye added.
"Okay, and what about those two?" Ryou asked.
"Well, I'm a fortuneteller and a psychic. I usually know when things are about to happen," Baba began. "However, the arrival of Trunks was completely unforeseen. There doesn't seem to be a reason for him being here."
"I consider avenging the crime against my mother a good reason." Trunks retorted. Baba ignored him.
"So naturally, I decided to come and see what the fuss was all about."
"And I like to keep an eye on the deployed angels, especially the ones who tend to get into trouble..." Shin said with a pointed look at Rebecca.
"I still think some of those rules are ridiculous." She said.
"Watch it." Cye said warningly.
"Anyway, when things started to get out of control, I figured it'd be a good time to step in."
"But we're getting off the subject." Shaddi said.
"Question. We've tried to get rid of Bakura practically a hundred times, and the guy still keeps coming back from the Shadow Realm! What's up with that?" Joey asked.
"Simple. Ryou and Bakura are bound as hikari and yami. They are destined to be together, and you can't fight that kind of destiny."
"What!? You mean Ryou's stuck with him forever!? That's just not fair!" Tea said, outraged.
"That's the way it is...
"Anyway, there's one last reason we were assembled here. Everyone, what is your opinion on Bakura?" Shaddi asked.
"Duh. He's an abusive, homicidal creep who needs to be taken out." Rebecca said with a glare.
"I have to agree. He's bad news." Videl said.
"He's a fiend who needs to be taught a lesson." Yami said.
"He needs to be destroyed." Trunks said.
"Does everyone else agree?" Shaddi asked. All the other teens in the room nodded except for Ryou. "You seem to think differently. What do you think?" Ryou looked down at the ground for a moment before speaking.
"Well, I know this sounds insane, but somehow, I can't shake the feeling that deep down, there's some good inside of Bakura."
"You're joking!" Trunks said. Shaddi smiled a little.
"I see. Well everyone, there's something you need to know. Before you pass judgment on Bakura, you must first learn why he is the way he is." The Egyptian lowered Bakura to the ground before pulling something out of his robe pocket. Trunk's eyes widened.
"It can't be..." he whispered.
"Yes, it is. I have borrowed the Millennium Necklace in order to send you back to the past. That is, if I can receive some help..." The other adults smiled knowingly and offered a small ball of energy each, which disappeared into the Necklace.
"This is getting way too weird..." Gohan said as the artifact began to glow. A portal opened up behind the group.
"What's that?" Videl asked.
"That happens to be your method of transportation. Fasten your seatbelts, it's gonna be a bumpy ride..." Baba said with a grin. Within moments, the portal opened wider and began to suck the teens in.
"This is not goo-yiiikes!" Joey said before getting pulled in. The others followed suit. After Tristan was sucked in and the room was empty save for the adults and Bakura, the portal vanished.
"Thank you all for helping me." Shaddi said as he slipped the Millennium Item back into his pocket and picked up Bakura.
"I feel kind of bad, though. You think we should have given them a little more warning?" Shin asked, concerned.
"Nah, they're young. They'll live." Baba said.
"Let's go. They'll be waiting for us shortly." Shaddi said. Baba nodded and chanted a spell as the five vanished from the room.
Author's Notes
Peacenikky: Whew! I'm so sorry about the wait!
Judi: Yahoo! It's Spring Break! Party!
Peacenikky: Great... Total chaos...
Rebecca: Yeah! (blows a party horn)
Leanna: Well, once again, let us know if we should put any yami/hikari pairings in here.
Peacenikky: But NO LEMONS!
Judi: Peace, love, and marshmallow bunnies, y'all! Bye for now!
Judi: Hey, everyone! Sorry 'bout the wait.
Peacenikky: Driver's Ed has been eating up all of my free time lately. But I'm finally done with it! Yay!
Leanna: Anyway, we've finally managed to get the next chapter out.
Rebecca: We're also going to answer your questions about the fic.
Peacenikky: And don't worry, Rebecca will NOT fall in love with Ryou!
Judi: Yeah, we're anti-Mary Sue, so let us know if you think anything suspicious is coming up, and we'll give Beck a once-over to make sure.
Leanna: Okay, here are the shoutouts!
YamiBakuraChan- We're working on it!
Europa- Oh, so that's it... Yup, Mirai Trunks is here for revenge against someone...
Silver Angel- You'll see soon enough, don't worry!
Orenji-Chan- I just couldn't resist putting that one in there!
Scythe- Not to worry! There's no way I'm going to make a Rebecca/anyone pairing! I've been toying with the idea of yami/hikari pairings for a while now... Okay, what do the rest of you guys think? I've got some ideas for how it'll work; just let me know if I should go through with this. However, there will be ABSOLUTELY NO LEMONS!!! I'm way too naïve to write one, and I don't like the idea of getting kicked off ff.net too much. Anyway, Yami went back into the Puzzle shortly after everyone picked up their CD's. Sorry about the confusion! And they'll learn about Bakura very shortly, don't worry!
FireEye- I see. But, as I said, she's not getting paired up with anyone, at the very least. I'd rather not go into a debate on who's stronger, though. Let's just let everyone keep their own opinion about it. See above on where Yami went.
Meku- I'll try my best to update ASAP!
Peacenikky: Well, let's start the show!
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Dragonball Z. All I own are Rebecca and Cye.
Legend: /hikari to yami/
//yami to hikari//
"spoken"
'thoughts'
*** scene change
CHAPTER TWO
"Okay, I give up. We can stop here. But I'm warning you, it's a real battlefield, so I'm not responsible if anyone trips and breaks an ankle or something." Rebecca said cautiously as she turned the key to the apartment door and opened it a little. "Uncle Cye? I brought some friends over. Hope that's okay!" There was no response. "Uncle Cye? Hello?" Rebecca opened the door the rest of the way, exposing the mess within. Various cleaning paraphernalia was scattered around the floor, a couple of pillows were strewn about, and one of the doors leading off the entryway hall was sealed off with police line tape. Rebecca looked at it with a critical eye. "Jeez, my room's not THAT bad..."
"Trust me, it is." Gohan said to Yugi and the others before nearly tripping over a throw pillow.
"Wow, I feel so loved. Come on in." The others stepped inside, cautiously walking over the obstacles on the floor.
"Hey, don't worry 'bout the mess, Beck. My room's way worse than this." Joey said as he dodged a handheld vacuum cleaner.
"I can vouch for that." Tristan added.
"Thanks, I guess." Rebecca said with a smile. "Uncle Cye, where the heck are you?"
Tea, putting her years of ballet classes to use, pirouetted over to the kitchen, where she picked up a piece of paper. "Hey, look over here." Rebecca navigated her way through the mess and took the paper.
"Rebecca, I've gone to get some groceries. Don't have any friends over; the apartment's messy enough already. I'll be back by 5:30. Love, Cye." Rebecca said, reading aloud from the note.
"Oops, too late..." Gohan said with a small grin. "Okay, we won't trash the place. We won't even stay long. Cye won't have a clue we were here!"
"No problem, it's not like I've never broken one of his rules before." Rebecca said, crumpling up the note and tossing it into a wastebasket. The others settled into seats on the sofa and chairs around the living room/kitchen area.
"So, what next?" Yugi asked. Videl grinned a little before pulling out her CD.
"I say we listen to our songs again! We could use a few laughs right about now!" Ryou blushed.
"Let's not, and say we did!"
"Let's do, and really be able to say we did, instead!" Videl countered. Joey shrugged.
"I'm game."
"Same here." Tea added. The others soon agreed.
"Sorry, bud. Seven against one." Tristan said as he reached over and popped his CD into the small stereo set up on the floor. Just before the brunette managed to press 'play,' the doorbell rang.
"Great, Cye must have forgotten his keys or something... Time to make up an excuse." Rebecca muttered as she got up and opened the door. "Hey Uncle Cye! Back so... soon..." Rebecca trailed off and turned pink. A boy in his teens with lavender hair and ice blue eyes stood at the door. "Oh, sorry! I was expecting someone else! Can I help you?"
"Yeah, I'm looking for someone named Ryou Bakura. Is he somewhere nearby?"
Ryou stood up. "That's me. Who are you?" Gohan sucked in his breath.
'That voice... and that energy signature! Can it really be...' The boy's countenance immediately turned from pleasant to cold and determined.
"My name is of no importance right now. All that matters is that I'm here to destroy you for what you did to my mother!" he said, drawing a sword from a case on his back and pointing it straight at Ryou.
"What!?" Gohan jumped up to get a better look and gasped.
"No way... Trunks, is that you?"
"Hold up!" Joey said, getting up as well. "You're telling me this guy's that little pipsqueak we met back at the conference center!? That's impossible!"
"My gosh... He looks just like the little-kid Trunks, all grown up!" Yugi said. The boy nodded.
"Yes, I'm the future form of the boy you know as Trunks. It's great to see you again, Gohan, but right now, I've got something to take care of." Ryou took a step back.
"Okay, this is getting a little too creepy..." he said nervously. Tea got up and stepped in front of him.
"Listen, there's no way we're going to let you hurt our friend, okay? So take your little vendetta and go home!" she said angrily. Trunks didn't seem to notice as he shoved Rebecca out of the way, ran inside, and promptly tripped over the hand held vacuum. Ignoring the snickers coming from Joey, he got up, nimbly sidestepped Tea, and ended up directly in front of Ryou.
"Good night." he said as he struck Ryou in the head with the broad side of his sword. Ryou uttered a small cry of pain before falling to the floor, unconscious.
"Oh my lord..." Videl whispered. Trunks raised the sword and prepared to deal the fatal blow when Gohan's fighting instincts kicked in. He raced forward and quickly tackled Trunks to the ground. The sword clattered as it fell inches from Ryou's face.
"Trunks, what has gotten into you?"
"Gohan, let me go right now!" Trunks yelled as he wrestled to get out the other half-saiyan's grip. (AN: ACK! Not like that! Get your minds out of the gutter!)
"Not until you explain what the heck you're doing here, and why you want to kill Ryou!"
"You wouldn't understand!"
"Oh, yeah? Try me!" The two continued to fight, not noticing the others were watching with mild horror, until Yugi gasped.
"What the!?" Ryou's face was contorted in pain, with tears beginning to spill onto his cheeks. He cried out as his body jerked as if it were being struck several times. Bruises and cuts soon began to appear on his face and arms.
"All right, what did you do to him?" Joey asked as he rolled up his sleeve. Gohan got up, keeping his hand around Trunks' wrist to keep him from trying to finish his attempt at murder.
"I didn't do THIS! I certainly wasn't planning on getting my revenge this way, either!" Trunks said, defending himself.
/Yami, what's happening here?/ Yugi asked his darker half.
//I was afraid of this... There's only one explanation. Bakura's returned from the Shadow Realm!//
/No! We've got to do something!/
//As long as this is kept in Ryou's Soul Room, there's nothing we can do...// Yugi blinked, trying to keep from crying.
Rebecca rubbed the Guardian Angel insignia on her ring as she realized what was going on. 'I never would have guessed... When I get my hands on that rotten excuse for a spirit, I'm going to crush him!'
"Ryou, snap out of it! Come on, wake up! You're scaring us!" Yugi said as he gently shook the taller boy's shoulder. Videl pulled him back and shook her head. Within a few more minutes, Ryou's body relaxed somewhat. He gasped for breath as the others tried to figure out what brought that on.
"It looks like it's over for now. I'm going to get the first-aid kit." Rebecca said as she made her way back into the kitchen. She returned a few moments later with a white box. Tea opened it, pulled out some bandages and antiseptic, and began to treat Ryou's wounds. Tristan turned to face Trunks.
"Okay, I think you're way past due for an explanation, buster. Who are you, and what do you want?" No one seemed to notice the two adult men standing in the doorway, or when one of them raised his hand and whispered a few words. It was less difficult to notice Yugi's eyes widen, then fall shut as he collapsed and hit the floor. Rebecca looked up and opened her mouth to say something to one of the men when she fell and vanished.
"What the heck just happened here?" Joey asked as he checked his best friend for a pulse. Gohan felt his center of gravity shift and stumbled as Trunks fell limp as well.
"I can explain that." A voice said as the two men stepped into the apartment. Tea gasped.
"And just who in the world are you?"
***
Ryou sat on the bed in his Soul Room, wincing with each small movement. Bakura had really seen red when he found out his hikari had been attacked and knocked out so easily, and used the chance to 'teach him a lesson.' He could vaguely sense the concern the others had for him outside, but there was nothing he could do at the moment to assuage their fears.
Out of nowhere, two small, bright flashes of light appeared, along with two voices screaming. Ryou looked up in mild alarm as the owners of the voices appeared and were dumped on the floor of the room. Yugi groggily got up, rubbing his head.
"Ow... Where am I?" he muttered as his eyes focused. He bit his lower lip as he saw Ryou. "Oh my gosh! Ryou, are you okay?" Ryou looked down, humiliated.
"Well, I could be better..." he said quietly. Yugi walked over and gently placed an arm around his shoulder.
"Don't worry. It's going to be all right." He said with a small, worried smile.
"Ugh, stop the ride, I wanna get off..." the second voice said weakly as its owner stood up. Rebecca blinked a few times, not fully noticing the stunned looks on the two boy's faces. That quickly changed, however, when she saw the armor she was wearing. "Oh, great..." The angel looked up. "I don't suppose you'd think this was all... just a... dream..." She trailed off when she saw the state Ryou was in. "Oh my..."
"Please, I'd rather not talk about it." Ryou said. "But would you care to explain the wings on your back?"
Rebecca blushed and snapped her fingers, whispering the word "Mnemosyne." The two hikaris blinked a few times as Rebecca took off her helmet. "Okay, that should restore your full memories of that incident at the ski lodge." She said, running a hand through her bangs. "Now would you please explain how Bakura managed to get back from the Shadow Realm?"
"What? How did you-?" Ryou began.
"Yami and I could sense his presence, Ryou." Yugi said quietly. "How long has this been going on?" Ryou bit his lower lip and mumbled something.
"What?"
"I said, Bakura's been back for about a month now..." Ryou lowered his head. Yugi's eyes welled up with tears as he gently hugged his friend.
"Oh Ryou... Why didn't you say something? We didn't know..."
"I didn't want anyone else to get hurt... I thought I could take it on my own..." Rebecca's eyes hardened.
"That does it. He's going down..." she said under her breath as she put her helmet back on and strode over to the door. She grabbed the handle and tugged on it hard, but it didn't budge. "Hey!"
"The door's locked. He didn't want me to get out... Bakura'll be back soon. You guys had better get out of here." Ryou said.
"We don't even know how we got here in the first place." Yugi said. "Besides, we can't leave you here alone! We've got to stop him somehow!"
Rebecca leaned against the door and clucked her tongue. "Ryou, you said Bakura'd be returning here soon, right? Well, he probably never expected a ticked off angel waiting for him. I'll just sit tight and wait for him to show up, then BAM!" She ran her fist into her open hand. "He'll never know what hit him." She smirked as she walked back toward the other two and crossed her arms, waiting.
"Wait a second... Do you hear that?" Yugi asked, tilting his head.
"It sounds like there's a fight nearby... I think it's been going on for a while." Ryou said. Soon after he said that, there was silence, which was soon replaced by approaching footsteps. Rebecca stepped into a fighting stance as the door handle turned.
"YAHHH! Take that!" she shouted as the door opened, a small fireball appearing in her hand. She didn't make it five steps when a blast of violet energy hit her and sent her crashing into the wall. "Ow..."
"Um, Rebecca? Wrong yami." Ryou said as she shakily got up. Yami stood in the doorway, a little surprised.
"Yugi? What in the Underworld are you doing here?" the spirit asked as he entered the room.
"I could ask you the same thing." The pure-hearted duelist replied.
"Ahem." Trunks stepped in, holding up Bakura's unconscious form. "Where do you want this?" he asked as he looked around the room. "And what are you?" he asked, pointing to Rebecca. She rolled her eyes as she fully stood up.
"I'm a guardian angel. I'm not going to go into details at the moment, so don't ask any questions."
"What makes you think I was going to ask any?
"Anyway, Ryou, it would appear I had mistaken you for this guy. I apologize for my actions. I take it he's the one who did that to you?" Trunks asked. Ryou nodded. "I see. Then I have twice the reason to destroy him."
"Wait!" Ryou cried, causing everyone to focus his or her attention on the white-haired boy. "You can't just do that to him!"
"No offense Ryou, but did Bakura hit you in the head one too many times or something?" Rebecca asked, confused.
"Well, it's kinda hard to explain, but..."
"I think it's time for everyone to return the realm of the living now." A voice with an Egyptian accent said. Everyone looked around.
"Shaddi?" Yugi whispered. The next moment, there was a brilliant flash of light.
***
Soon after that, Ryou's eyes fluttered open. He rubbed the side of his head gingerly as he slowly got up.
"Hey, the turban dude was right! You're waking up!" Tristan exclaimed. Yugi and Trunks also woke up and got to their feet. Rebecca materialized shortly after, along with Yami and the unconscious Bakura.
"Was knocking him out really necessary?" the voice from before asked. "And I don't appreciate the term 'turban dude' very much." The voice's owner, Shaddi, picked up Bakura's body with relative ease and glared at Tristan.
"Yeesh. Sorry." The brunette muttered.
"I believe you have some explaining to do, Missy." the second voice said. Rebecca gulped and looked up.
"Cye, relax, okay? I didn't see your note until after the guys came over!" The others sweatdropped.
"I'm referring to the little incident with Trunks that happened here not fifteen minutes ago! Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in?" This voice's owner was a trim man in his mid-thirties and of average height. He, like Rebecca, was dressed in a robe and armor, and had a pair of longer wings coming from his back. He held his helmet under one arm as he brushed a clump of his dark green hair out of his lighter green eyes.
"Oh yeah, like I could do anything without blowing my secret!"
"The bylaws of the Order of Guardian Angels clearly state that--"
"Ugh! Bylaws this, codes that! When will you learn to go with the flow?"
"I will not tolerate that disrespectful tone of voice, young lady! It took a lot of energy restoring the memories of your friends when I showed up, and I am not in the mood for this!"
"Excuse me, but will you two please tone it down? We're trying to deal with the fact that there are two angels, the guardian of the Millennium Items, an unconscious jerk, a beaten up friend, and some kid from the future in here, and we don't need an argument from the both of you to make things worse!" Yami stated, trying not to lose his temper.
"Ryou, how long has it been since Bakura last returned to you?" Shaddi asked, changing the course of the conversation.
"Well, I'd say about a month now."
"I see. I thought I sensed a disturbance in the Shadow Realm around that time."
"Hold on, let me get this straight." Videl said. "That lunatic who sent us to that Shadow Realm place back at the ski lodge is back, and he's been beating up Ryou?"
"Well um, that's about right." Ryou said.
"Okay, you'd better wake him up, 'cause I'm gonna take him out!" she said, clenching her fist.
"That may not be the best idea, Miss." Shaddi said calmly.
"And why not?"
"Because I know this is going to sound bizarre, but I don't want you to hurt Bakura." Ryou said. Joey walked over and placed a hand on Ryou's forehead.
"Hmm... You ain't running a fever..." There was a knock at the door. Cye walked over, checked the peephole, then opened the door.
"Dude, are you nuts? What are you-oh jeez, what now?" Joey muttered as he saw the two at the door. A tiny, wrinkled old woman in witch's robes sitting on a floating crystal ball and a tall man with lavender skin and long white hair were waiting in the doorway.
"Surprise!" The old woman said as she floated inside. Rebecca stepped back nervously.
"Cye, don't tell me you filed a report about this!" she muttered under her breath.
"Baba, Supreme Kai, what are you guys doing here?" Gohan asked.
"Well, let's see, considering that there's been an attack and a lot of strange energy coming from Rebecca's residence, I had a feeling I'd better step in." Supreme Kai said. Rebecca groaned and slapped her forehead.
"Why doesn't anyone trust me?"
"Okay, who are THESE two?" Tea asked, exasperated.
"Well, this is Baba, the fortuneteller," Gohan began, indicating the old woman, "and this is Shin, also known as the Supreme Kai." he finished, pointing to the man.
"I remember Mother mentioning something about a crabby old psychic, but I don't recall anything about a man named Shin..." Trunks said to himself. Baba turned red and quickly floated over to him.
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING CRABBY?" she screamed, causing the half-saiyan to step back in alarm.
"Supreme Kai's also the head of the Order of Guardian Angels." Cye put in. The taller man blushed a little.
"Well actually, it was Kibito's job, but when he and I fused, I took on the task."
"Fused?" Yami asked, fingering his deck.
"It's a long story." Gohan said.
"Wait a second. Why are the four of you here in the first place? I still don't understand." Yugi said.
"I'll try to explain. I sensed Bakura returning from the Shadow Realm about one month ago. Earlier today, I also sensed his spirit full of malice. When I realized it was coming from here, I thought he might cause mayhem in the city." Shaddi said, shifting the unconscious yami a little.
"That's when he ran into me when I was on my way back from the supermarket and asked for my help." Cye added.
"Okay, and what about those two?" Ryou asked.
"Well, I'm a fortuneteller and a psychic. I usually know when things are about to happen," Baba began. "However, the arrival of Trunks was completely unforeseen. There doesn't seem to be a reason for him being here."
"I consider avenging the crime against my mother a good reason." Trunks retorted. Baba ignored him.
"So naturally, I decided to come and see what the fuss was all about."
"And I like to keep an eye on the deployed angels, especially the ones who tend to get into trouble..." Shin said with a pointed look at Rebecca.
"I still think some of those rules are ridiculous." She said.
"Watch it." Cye said warningly.
"Anyway, when things started to get out of control, I figured it'd be a good time to step in."
"But we're getting off the subject." Shaddi said.
"Question. We've tried to get rid of Bakura practically a hundred times, and the guy still keeps coming back from the Shadow Realm! What's up with that?" Joey asked.
"Simple. Ryou and Bakura are bound as hikari and yami. They are destined to be together, and you can't fight that kind of destiny."
"What!? You mean Ryou's stuck with him forever!? That's just not fair!" Tea said, outraged.
"That's the way it is...
"Anyway, there's one last reason we were assembled here. Everyone, what is your opinion on Bakura?" Shaddi asked.
"Duh. He's an abusive, homicidal creep who needs to be taken out." Rebecca said with a glare.
"I have to agree. He's bad news." Videl said.
"He's a fiend who needs to be taught a lesson." Yami said.
"He needs to be destroyed." Trunks said.
"Does everyone else agree?" Shaddi asked. All the other teens in the room nodded except for Ryou. "You seem to think differently. What do you think?" Ryou looked down at the ground for a moment before speaking.
"Well, I know this sounds insane, but somehow, I can't shake the feeling that deep down, there's some good inside of Bakura."
"You're joking!" Trunks said. Shaddi smiled a little.
"I see. Well everyone, there's something you need to know. Before you pass judgment on Bakura, you must first learn why he is the way he is." The Egyptian lowered Bakura to the ground before pulling something out of his robe pocket. Trunk's eyes widened.
"It can't be..." he whispered.
"Yes, it is. I have borrowed the Millennium Necklace in order to send you back to the past. That is, if I can receive some help..." The other adults smiled knowingly and offered a small ball of energy each, which disappeared into the Necklace.
"This is getting way too weird..." Gohan said as the artifact began to glow. A portal opened up behind the group.
"What's that?" Videl asked.
"That happens to be your method of transportation. Fasten your seatbelts, it's gonna be a bumpy ride..." Baba said with a grin. Within moments, the portal opened wider and began to suck the teens in.
"This is not goo-yiiikes!" Joey said before getting pulled in. The others followed suit. After Tristan was sucked in and the room was empty save for the adults and Bakura, the portal vanished.
"Thank you all for helping me." Shaddi said as he slipped the Millennium Item back into his pocket and picked up Bakura.
"I feel kind of bad, though. You think we should have given them a little more warning?" Shin asked, concerned.
"Nah, they're young. They'll live." Baba said.
"Let's go. They'll be waiting for us shortly." Shaddi said. Baba nodded and chanted a spell as the five vanished from the room.
Author's Notes
Peacenikky: Whew! I'm so sorry about the wait!
Judi: Yahoo! It's Spring Break! Party!
Peacenikky: Great... Total chaos...
Rebecca: Yeah! (blows a party horn)
Leanna: Well, once again, let us know if we should put any yami/hikari pairings in here.
Peacenikky: But NO LEMONS!
Judi: Peace, love, and marshmallow bunnies, y'all! Bye for now!