Chapter 5- V: Venture
Repmet- Woot! Long chapter! Thanks for all the reviews, I'm sorry about my spelling and I'm not trying to make a joke out of being blind, if I was the joke would be on me, I'm slowly going blind myself. LoL
Fluff- We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh
Repmet- All flames well be used to light candles in memoir of all the US soldiers who died in Iraq. God bless them all, they're braver then the rest.
Fluff- A brief explanation of the title, Venture means risk, and-
Repmet- We're taking a risk writing this.
Fluff-Um, no, it's not a violent chapter or anything. But as I was saying, letting new people into your life is a risk, especially for Bakura and Ryou.
Repmet- painting the bathroom is also a risk, because what if you don't like the color?
Fluff- -__-
/text/= Hikairi-Yami //text// = Yami - hikairi Ishtar= Yami-Malik Malik = Malik "..."= Speech '...'= Thoughts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"You'll like Beth, she's really great!" Ryou said, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Every now and then he saw the faint spark of some one's magical core. It was strange, to see the dark red spark of Bakura floating in the darkness next to him, then every now and then catch a glimpse of a different colored spark. It reminded him of an eye test, 'raise you're hand when you see the dot!' He grinned broadly, holding on to his father's hand like a little child was embracing yes, but reassuring. Bakura's magic spark flickered. Ryou slipped his hand out of his father's grasp and turned a sightless face towards Bakura. "What's wrong?" He asked.
Bakura looked down at him, magic flame in full again and smiled. "Nothing Hikkira." He said. Ryou shrugged it off as he heard the defining sounds of the air plane landing. The people around the chatted excitedly with their neighbors, waiting for their friends and loved one's to arrive.
"I have to go get the baggage, why don't you boys wait for Beth and meet me in the lobby, okay?" Charles said, smiling at his two 'sons'.
"Sure dad." Ryou said, still jittery with excitement. "See you- ermm, meet you there." He said, laughing.
Charles sighed, still wary of Ryou's blind jokes. "Alright." HE ruffled Ryou's now trimmed hair and walked into the lobby and the papules of the air plane stopped.
"Ryou give me your hand." Bakura ordered as people started to move around.
"Bakura!" Ryou hissed.
"Do you want to get lost?" Bakura hissed back.
Ryou sighed. "Once and you'll never let it die?" He asked, glaring best he could.
"That's right, now give me your hand!" Bakura ordered again.
Ryou sighed exasperatedly and slipped his hand into Bakura's. "This is so not cool." He said, flinching slightly at Bakura's cold hand.
"Do I sound like I care?" Bakura asked. "Ryou, as soon as you get used to moving around on your own I'll stop worrying, but until then.......you'll hold my hand!"
Ryou gave a grumpy grunt. "What ever" He said.
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*! Beth's POV
I walked off the plane, my duffel in my hand and looked around for Ryou. I'd meet his a few times, when we'd both been on dig with our father's. He was nice enough, always seemed somewhat nervous, like a puppy kicked too many times. I looked around for someone with white hair and not sixty, it wouldn't be to hard. Though I wasn't one to talk, with my dark blond braided pigtails tipped bright red and two strips falling in front of my eyes. I spotted a flash of white, and grinned, walking faster. "Ryou!" I yelled, waving. He waved back. A couple moved so I could see him completely and stopped in the middle of my stride. I blinked. Two Ryou's? One with his face covered with bandages, slightly smaller than the other and holding hands?
"Beth!" The short Ryou said, waving again and pulling away from the other. "Hey!" He ran up to me, almost hitting people.
I winced and meet him half way with a hug. "It's been to long!" I said laughing. "But uh, dude, what happened to your eyes?" I held him at arms length.
Oh, he blushed slightly. "Fell down the stair and hit my head, snapped a nerve in my head and was blinded." He laughed nervously. "This Yami Bakura. My brother, I don't think you two have ever meet." He pulled me over to the other boy.
"Hello Yami!" I said brightly.
"I go by Bakura." Bakura said, looking me over with a stony glare and speaking in a flat monotone.
"Hello Bakura!" I said in the same tone I had used before, smiling brightly and ignoring his glare. What was up with people? So many glares now days? Was being hyper illegal? God I hope not. "I'm Beth." I stuck out my hand, in my American/ Californian way. He looked at me like I was crazy. I laughed. "I keep forgetting I'm in Japan! I started to ask the stewardess for something to drink and then realized I was speaking English." I laughed again, trying to win I smile from Bakura, then placed my hands at my sides and bowed, Bakura bowed back, barely inclining his neck.
Ryou laughed a little, at least, even though Bakura just kept glaring. "So where's your dad?" I asked.
"Getting your bags for you, come on, he said we'd meet him in the lobby." Ryou said, starting off towards the lobby.
Bakura reached out and snatched his hand hissing. "Ryou, be careful!" Ryou rolled his eyes. I couldn't really blame Bakura for holding Ryou's hand, though I knew Ryou was humiliated. I mean, he was blind now, right?
I followed them to the lobby, I could see Charles Bakura loading my bags into his van outside, and started to point him out to Ryou. I caught myself before I'd said any thing and instead turned to Bakura. "I see him outside." I said with a smile. Bakura nodded and led Ryou towards the exit door. We found ourselves outside, standing beside the van. I was greeted with a warm hug. "Beth, oh may, how much you've grown1 Its good to have you stay with us! I only wish it could be on less, unsettling circumstances."
I winced. I was wondering when my father would come up. I didn't like thinking about him, I would not believe he was dead. He could not be dead! I forced the tears threatening to come from my eyes back and put on a smile.
"So do I Bakura-sama." I sighed.
"Well now, dear, I hope you feel welcome with us." Charles laughed, shutting the back door and opening the passenger door for me. "I'm afraid the last few months have been rather hectic, it'll take us some getting used to ever thing." He smiled and opened the side door so the Bakura and Ryou could climb in."
He shut the doors and got into the drivers seat, starting up the car. "Thank you for taking me, I don't know where else I would have gone." I said sadly as we pulled into traffic.
"Of course Beth-chan, we love having you stay with us!" Mr. Bakura laughed.
"Oh, I haven't lived with you yet!" I grinned. "You might change your mind."
"Nonsense." Charles laughed. I smiled. "I'm afraid that I'll have to leave on a dig tomorrow though. I'm dreadfully sorry children, but it's very important. I really do hate leaving so soon after you get here, Beth, but I've been away a long time already and need to get back."
I saw Ryou give a little shutter of fear and scrunch up in a tight possession, inching a little away from Bakura.
Bakura sighed and put his arm on Ryou's back, whispering something in his ear. Ryou looked up at Bakura in surprise then smiled, leaning against the older boy.
I shook my head, having no idea about what had just gone on, instead I turned to Charles. "It's fine, I think we'll all manage fine."
Charles smiled down at me. "Oh I hope so." He said laughing a little. We took the rest of the car ride in silence, I was a little nervous around Charles, I hadn't really talked to him much. When we got to the house I was pleasantly superised that it was a neat little town house, a little gloomy, but rather nice. Charles led me up to where my room would be, at the end of the hall and side good night. I thanked him again and lay down on the tan and blue sheets of the bed, cursing Jet lag as I drifted into sleep.
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
3ed person POV
It was around 9:00am, Bakura and Ryou where already up and about. Charles had left to catch an early plain at 7:00, preferring not to wake Beth. Ryou sat at the kitchen table, patiently chatting away to Bakura, who was changing the few bandages left on his face. Bakura smiled slightly and laughed as Ryou related school from two days ago.
"I swear, it's like all the girls suddenly notice me! It's great, though I think Yugi's nervous around all of them." Ryou laughed "Bakura, when well I get the bandages off my eyes?" Ryou asked suddenly.
Bakura frowned. "The doctor said that your eyes should adjust to the change in about two weeks, till then I'm suppose to slowly take the bandages off, layer by layer."
"Oh." Ryou said sighing. "Bakura, you remember what we talked about a few days ago? About the sparks?" Ryou asked.
"Mmm." Bakura said, brushing away Ryou's hair so he could tie the bandage.
"What do you think it is?"
Bakura paused. "I think-I think that you can see people's magic, the goodness in their heart."
"Some time's your spark disappears." Ryou whispered.
Bakura raised his eyebrows. "It dose?"
"When you're angry at me." Ryou nodded.
"Oh, I-I don't know Ryou." Bakura said, shifting back on his heels.
"Bakura, I need to know." Ryou whispered.
"I don't know the answers Ryou, when you where blinded, something strange happened, this new power of yours is starring. You did make those flowers grow, you did make the water flood. I don't know how, and I don't know why. I wish I could tell you."
Ryou paused, and turned his head to Bakura concentrating hard. "Yours is red, like a real flame. It beats, like a heart, ever time it beats it sends sparks out that show you're whole body, like the blood flowing in you're veins. Other things have flames too, like trees or stuff. Some times, they disappeared and won't come back, sometimes I can hold them in my mind and change them. Does that help?" Ryou asked.
"Hmm." Bakura answered. He stood up and walked over to the sink, washing his hands off. "I'm going to get some food from the gorchie store, I'll be back soon. Be careful and don't hurt yourself." Bakura
"Don't worry!" Ryou said, rolling his eyes.
"But I do." Bakura growled. Bakura gave Ryou a quick hug before walking outside and starting up the car.
Ryou sighed; he waited in the kitchen, bored. It wasn't long after Bakura left that Ryou heard a scream from up stairs and felt his way along to find what had happened.
"Beth?" He yelled, when he'd reached the landing. "What's wrong Beth?"
"The Bathroom! It's hideous!" Beth yelled back, clutching her heart and handing out of the bathroom door with wide eyes. "God help us all!"
```````````````````````````````````````Three hours later````````````````````````````````
"What the hell is going on!" Bakura yelled when he had opened the door.
"Errm, hi Bakura." Ryou muttered.
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL DOING IN MY HOUSE! RYOU ANSWERS! NOW!"
"Umm, we're pa-pa-painting the ba-bathroom?" Ryou stuttered.
"Bakura, watch you're temper when you speak to Ryou." Yami warned.
Bakura's upper lip twitched. //Sorry Abio..//
/Umm, it-it's okay Yami/
"Every one out of my house NOW!" Bakura growled.
"Bakura, we just started, come on man, paint with us, it's fun. And dude, that bathroom really, really, really needs some new paint! It looks like someone was thrown into the walls in some places! Ryou and I couldn't paint the whole thing by ourselves so he invited his friends over. This bathroom is HUGE" Beth said, pushing a paintbrush into Bakura's hand.
Ryou felt the color drain from his face but quickly lied. "It was like this when we moved it, Dad never got around to fixing it."
"Well, Ishtar and I got most of the cracks caulked, some of the dry wall is pealing in the other part of the bathroom though." Beth shrugged.
"ISHTAR IS HERE?" Bakura yelled.
"Temper, temper!" Beth laughed. "Yeah, he's finishing with the base coat in the other room, he and his brother Malik."
"Ryou, get toes two OUT of here!" Bakura said through gritted teeth.
"Bakura! Have a heart; can't you three learn to get along? Seriously!" Tea said, shaking her head agitatedly.
Bakura seemed to be shaking with anger. "I can't believe this! I'm gone one moment and there's an infestation. Ryou I cold KILL you." He walked toward Ryou, who gulped, backing away slightly.
/Yami!/
//What?//
/You're-you're scaring me./
Bakura stopped, he looked down at the paintbrush in his hand, ha had been clenching it like it was a grenade. //Sorry.//
/Please...............stop/
Bakura sighed and looked at Beth. "Where do you want me to paint?" He asked giving everyone, but Beth, a shock.
"Pick a wall, pick a color!" She shrugged. "It doesn't matter really. Ryou's doing tan and blue, Tea is erm-pink," She shuttered and motioned to the tiny wall she had given Tea. "Yami and Yugi and purple, Malik and Istar are painting a big wall gold. Joey and Honda are using green and orange on their walls. I'm painting this one red." She motioned to the wall she had started with a bright red.
"Give me blue." Bakura growled, then looked at Ryou. "How are you doing this Abiou?"
Ryou shrugged. "Simply paint the wall, I got a rather big one so I wouldn't mess up. Beth said she'd go back over when I was done." His face and hair were splattered with dark blue paint.
"I hope you can get that out of you're hair." Bakura said raising his eyebrows.
"Umm I think it comes out." Ryou muttered, feeling his hair.
Soon Yugi was reaching up into his three-foot spikes and checking the amount of paint. "Errr, Yami, do I have?"
"No Yugi." Yami said with a sigh.
"Here Bakura, I'll help you get started." Beth said, leading Bakura to the other part of the bathroom where Malik, Istar, Joey and Honda where painting. Istar snapped around when Bakura came it.
"Well, this is new, Yami-Bakura painting?" He snorted.
"I wouldn't be flapping the huge mouth of yours." Bakura growled. "In less you want to find yourself planed face first in the wall."
"How about we tell everyone about how the cracks got in these walls in the first place?" Ishtar asked, raising his eyes brows.
Bakura lowered his head, admitting defeat.
"Yami....." Malik whispered to Ishtar. "Wouldn't, would you?"
Ishtar snorted. "Of course I would stupid, what more fun than getting the Tomb Robber in trouble and out of my hair for good?"
"Yami!"
"What!"
"Just paint." Malik sighed.
Ishtar rolled his eyes and dipped his paintbrush in the yellowy gold paint. "Um, I think I'm missing something." Beth said awkwardly.
"It's nothing. Bakura and Ishtar never get along, it's a long, sad, story." Malik sad grinning at Beth.
"You guys seem to have a lot of long stories." Beth said shaking her head.
"Mostly it's just the same, really long story." Honda shrugged. "We'll tell you it some time."
"I'm not sure weather or not I want to hear it." Beth said, looking from the boys. "Right, Bakura, TRY not to murder Ishtar, Ishtar DON'T murder Bakura." She turned on her heal and walked into the other part of the bathroom to finish her wall.
"I like her." Malik said smiling and pulling his brush down the wall.
"You would." Ishtar muttered under his breath. "What did she mean 'Bakura TRY not to murder Ishtar'?"
"I MEANT THAT YOU WERE LESS IMPORTANT THAN BAKA-URA-CHAN!" Beth yelled from the other room.
"I feel the love." Ishtar muttered.
"Well, there's like two of you, and you're almost the same, so ya know." Beth said, sticking her head in the bathroom and then going back to paining.
"Your hikira has no taste." Bakura said opening the paint can with his fingers and grunting.
"She's not that bad looking." Joey said, tuning around and flicking paint onto Honda.
"Shut up mutt, no one asked you." Ishtar growled.
"You want to start something Ishtar?" Joey snarled.
"Yami!" Malik hissed. "Don't you dare."
Ishtar clenched his fists, knuckles white. He turned back to the wall.
"Why did you all come over?" Bakura asked, starting to paint his wall.
"Ryou invited us, Beth told you." Honda said shrugging and re-loading his paintbrush.
"HE WHAT? I'll have to talk to the son of a bi-" Bakura started.
"Even think about hurting him, and Yami won't be the only one you'll have to deal with." Joey growled.
For the second time that morning Bakura's lower lip twitched. "Mutt." He warned. "Just because I swore I'd never hurt Ryou again, doesn't mean I can't hurt you."
"Yeah, well you *are* becoming more of a man, picking fights with people who *can* defend themselves now?" Joey said, meeting Bakura's eyes.
Bakura closed his eye as if to calm himself down then brought his knee up and caught Joey in the stomach.
Joey was stunned for a second, then fell to the ground on his butt, gasping for air.
"He warned you." Honda said, not bothering to pick up his temperamental friend.
"Shut up." Joey cursed vividly. Ishtar scowled and clamped a hand over Malik's ears.
"Paaaalease!" Malik said when Joey had stop cursing and Ishtar had remove his hands. "I've heard worse from you."
"Yeah, and you'll only hear that stuff from me." Ishtar growled.
"Okay!" Said Tea a plastered grin on her face as she walked into the bathroom, clapping her hands. "Let's try not to kill each other. Joey, get up. Bakura, Yami told me to tell you that he's not in the mood form dealing with you. Ishtar you just smeared paint all over Malik's head. Honda, shut up."
Joey snorted, using the wall behind his to help himself up, and leaving a green hand print in the paint. He turned around and a storm of profanities exploded his mouth again.
Ishtar, once again, clapped hands over Malik's ears, glaring at Joey. "Joey, please!" Tea said glaring. "Leave it in the streets."
"Sorry." Joey said looking at the handprint.
"It looks good, very artistic! I belive you might be the next Pasco, hope you don't mind if I pain over it." Beth laughed, leaning against the frame of the door. "Err, Malik, you have paint in your hair!"
"No??" Malik said sarcastically raising his eyebrows.
"Come here stupid." Beth laughed. Malik walked over readily. Beth reached up and pulled a glob of hardened paint from his hair. Malik gave a yelp. "Ouch!"
"Sorry, it was really stuck in there." Beth grimaced, handing Malik the wad of paint and hair. Ishtar snickered.
There was a scream from the other room and every one turned to see Yami cringing and Yugi standing over his with a wet paint brush in his hands. Yugi had a look of triumph on his face as he painted up the side of Yami's head.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO ABIOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Yami wailed.
Ryou had a fit of giggles and fell against the wall.
"It's NOT funny!" Yami cried, three of his spikes painted a bright pink color.
"Ryou, I need a re-load!" Yugi said quickly.
Ryou passed him a paintbrush, dipped in tan paint. "Watch out Yami!" He giggled.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!! Not TAN! Anything but tan!" Yami screamed, sarcastically.
"What's wrong with tan?" Ryou asked defensively.
"Nothing Ryou of course." Yami said quickly then went back to cowering in fear as Yugi painting the rest of his hair with the tan, then yellow, then green.
"I'm melting! I'm melting! What have you done to me Abiou! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh" Yami began to shrink to the floor, writhing.
"Ding dong the witch is gone, the wicked witch is gone!" Yugi and Ryou sang, dancing around holding hands like little children.
"Ryou!" Bakura snapped, Ryou emetatly dropped Yugi's hands and lowered his eyed.
"Sorry Bakura." He muttered, picking at a piece of dried paint in his hair.
"Grow up." Bakura hissed.
"Bakura, we weren't doing any thing wrong, we were just having fun." Yugi said, sticking out his tong at Bakura.
Yami leaned against the wall, standing up. "Let them have their fun Bakura. No one's hurt, but for my hair." He patted one of his spikes, leaving a handprint in the paint. And forcing a fake tear to stream down his cheek.
"I think we're done." Beth laughed, shaking her head at Yami's now rainbow hair. "Any way, if we use any more pain it'll never dry."
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
Repmet- That was a long chapter!
Fluff- wow.
Yami- My HAIR
Repmet- I thought you all could use a comity break!
Fluff- How'd you like Beth? I like her, I think she's cool!
Repmet- Woot! Long chapter! Thanks for all the reviews, I'm sorry about my spelling and I'm not trying to make a joke out of being blind, if I was the joke would be on me, I'm slowly going blind myself. LoL
Fluff- We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh
Repmet- All flames well be used to light candles in memoir of all the US soldiers who died in Iraq. God bless them all, they're braver then the rest.
Fluff- A brief explanation of the title, Venture means risk, and-
Repmet- We're taking a risk writing this.
Fluff-Um, no, it's not a violent chapter or anything. But as I was saying, letting new people into your life is a risk, especially for Bakura and Ryou.
Repmet- painting the bathroom is also a risk, because what if you don't like the color?
Fluff- -__-
/text/= Hikairi-Yami //text// = Yami - hikairi Ishtar= Yami-Malik Malik = Malik "..."= Speech '...'= Thoughts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"You'll like Beth, she's really great!" Ryou said, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Every now and then he saw the faint spark of some one's magical core. It was strange, to see the dark red spark of Bakura floating in the darkness next to him, then every now and then catch a glimpse of a different colored spark. It reminded him of an eye test, 'raise you're hand when you see the dot!' He grinned broadly, holding on to his father's hand like a little child was embracing yes, but reassuring. Bakura's magic spark flickered. Ryou slipped his hand out of his father's grasp and turned a sightless face towards Bakura. "What's wrong?" He asked.
Bakura looked down at him, magic flame in full again and smiled. "Nothing Hikkira." He said. Ryou shrugged it off as he heard the defining sounds of the air plane landing. The people around the chatted excitedly with their neighbors, waiting for their friends and loved one's to arrive.
"I have to go get the baggage, why don't you boys wait for Beth and meet me in the lobby, okay?" Charles said, smiling at his two 'sons'.
"Sure dad." Ryou said, still jittery with excitement. "See you- ermm, meet you there." He said, laughing.
Charles sighed, still wary of Ryou's blind jokes. "Alright." HE ruffled Ryou's now trimmed hair and walked into the lobby and the papules of the air plane stopped.
"Ryou give me your hand." Bakura ordered as people started to move around.
"Bakura!" Ryou hissed.
"Do you want to get lost?" Bakura hissed back.
Ryou sighed. "Once and you'll never let it die?" He asked, glaring best he could.
"That's right, now give me your hand!" Bakura ordered again.
Ryou sighed exasperatedly and slipped his hand into Bakura's. "This is so not cool." He said, flinching slightly at Bakura's cold hand.
"Do I sound like I care?" Bakura asked. "Ryou, as soon as you get used to moving around on your own I'll stop worrying, but until then.......you'll hold my hand!"
Ryou gave a grumpy grunt. "What ever" He said.
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*! Beth's POV
I walked off the plane, my duffel in my hand and looked around for Ryou. I'd meet his a few times, when we'd both been on dig with our father's. He was nice enough, always seemed somewhat nervous, like a puppy kicked too many times. I looked around for someone with white hair and not sixty, it wouldn't be to hard. Though I wasn't one to talk, with my dark blond braided pigtails tipped bright red and two strips falling in front of my eyes. I spotted a flash of white, and grinned, walking faster. "Ryou!" I yelled, waving. He waved back. A couple moved so I could see him completely and stopped in the middle of my stride. I blinked. Two Ryou's? One with his face covered with bandages, slightly smaller than the other and holding hands?
"Beth!" The short Ryou said, waving again and pulling away from the other. "Hey!" He ran up to me, almost hitting people.
I winced and meet him half way with a hug. "It's been to long!" I said laughing. "But uh, dude, what happened to your eyes?" I held him at arms length.
Oh, he blushed slightly. "Fell down the stair and hit my head, snapped a nerve in my head and was blinded." He laughed nervously. "This Yami Bakura. My brother, I don't think you two have ever meet." He pulled me over to the other boy.
"Hello Yami!" I said brightly.
"I go by Bakura." Bakura said, looking me over with a stony glare and speaking in a flat monotone.
"Hello Bakura!" I said in the same tone I had used before, smiling brightly and ignoring his glare. What was up with people? So many glares now days? Was being hyper illegal? God I hope not. "I'm Beth." I stuck out my hand, in my American/ Californian way. He looked at me like I was crazy. I laughed. "I keep forgetting I'm in Japan! I started to ask the stewardess for something to drink and then realized I was speaking English." I laughed again, trying to win I smile from Bakura, then placed my hands at my sides and bowed, Bakura bowed back, barely inclining his neck.
Ryou laughed a little, at least, even though Bakura just kept glaring. "So where's your dad?" I asked.
"Getting your bags for you, come on, he said we'd meet him in the lobby." Ryou said, starting off towards the lobby.
Bakura reached out and snatched his hand hissing. "Ryou, be careful!" Ryou rolled his eyes. I couldn't really blame Bakura for holding Ryou's hand, though I knew Ryou was humiliated. I mean, he was blind now, right?
I followed them to the lobby, I could see Charles Bakura loading my bags into his van outside, and started to point him out to Ryou. I caught myself before I'd said any thing and instead turned to Bakura. "I see him outside." I said with a smile. Bakura nodded and led Ryou towards the exit door. We found ourselves outside, standing beside the van. I was greeted with a warm hug. "Beth, oh may, how much you've grown1 Its good to have you stay with us! I only wish it could be on less, unsettling circumstances."
I winced. I was wondering when my father would come up. I didn't like thinking about him, I would not believe he was dead. He could not be dead! I forced the tears threatening to come from my eyes back and put on a smile.
"So do I Bakura-sama." I sighed.
"Well now, dear, I hope you feel welcome with us." Charles laughed, shutting the back door and opening the passenger door for me. "I'm afraid the last few months have been rather hectic, it'll take us some getting used to ever thing." He smiled and opened the side door so the Bakura and Ryou could climb in."
He shut the doors and got into the drivers seat, starting up the car. "Thank you for taking me, I don't know where else I would have gone." I said sadly as we pulled into traffic.
"Of course Beth-chan, we love having you stay with us!" Mr. Bakura laughed.
"Oh, I haven't lived with you yet!" I grinned. "You might change your mind."
"Nonsense." Charles laughed. I smiled. "I'm afraid that I'll have to leave on a dig tomorrow though. I'm dreadfully sorry children, but it's very important. I really do hate leaving so soon after you get here, Beth, but I've been away a long time already and need to get back."
I saw Ryou give a little shutter of fear and scrunch up in a tight possession, inching a little away from Bakura.
Bakura sighed and put his arm on Ryou's back, whispering something in his ear. Ryou looked up at Bakura in surprise then smiled, leaning against the older boy.
I shook my head, having no idea about what had just gone on, instead I turned to Charles. "It's fine, I think we'll all manage fine."
Charles smiled down at me. "Oh I hope so." He said laughing a little. We took the rest of the car ride in silence, I was a little nervous around Charles, I hadn't really talked to him much. When we got to the house I was pleasantly superised that it was a neat little town house, a little gloomy, but rather nice. Charles led me up to where my room would be, at the end of the hall and side good night. I thanked him again and lay down on the tan and blue sheets of the bed, cursing Jet lag as I drifted into sleep.
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3ed person POV
It was around 9:00am, Bakura and Ryou where already up and about. Charles had left to catch an early plain at 7:00, preferring not to wake Beth. Ryou sat at the kitchen table, patiently chatting away to Bakura, who was changing the few bandages left on his face. Bakura smiled slightly and laughed as Ryou related school from two days ago.
"I swear, it's like all the girls suddenly notice me! It's great, though I think Yugi's nervous around all of them." Ryou laughed "Bakura, when well I get the bandages off my eyes?" Ryou asked suddenly.
Bakura frowned. "The doctor said that your eyes should adjust to the change in about two weeks, till then I'm suppose to slowly take the bandages off, layer by layer."
"Oh." Ryou said sighing. "Bakura, you remember what we talked about a few days ago? About the sparks?" Ryou asked.
"Mmm." Bakura said, brushing away Ryou's hair so he could tie the bandage.
"What do you think it is?"
Bakura paused. "I think-I think that you can see people's magic, the goodness in their heart."
"Some time's your spark disappears." Ryou whispered.
Bakura raised his eyebrows. "It dose?"
"When you're angry at me." Ryou nodded.
"Oh, I-I don't know Ryou." Bakura said, shifting back on his heels.
"Bakura, I need to know." Ryou whispered.
"I don't know the answers Ryou, when you where blinded, something strange happened, this new power of yours is starring. You did make those flowers grow, you did make the water flood. I don't know how, and I don't know why. I wish I could tell you."
Ryou paused, and turned his head to Bakura concentrating hard. "Yours is red, like a real flame. It beats, like a heart, ever time it beats it sends sparks out that show you're whole body, like the blood flowing in you're veins. Other things have flames too, like trees or stuff. Some times, they disappeared and won't come back, sometimes I can hold them in my mind and change them. Does that help?" Ryou asked.
"Hmm." Bakura answered. He stood up and walked over to the sink, washing his hands off. "I'm going to get some food from the gorchie store, I'll be back soon. Be careful and don't hurt yourself." Bakura
"Don't worry!" Ryou said, rolling his eyes.
"But I do." Bakura growled. Bakura gave Ryou a quick hug before walking outside and starting up the car.
Ryou sighed; he waited in the kitchen, bored. It wasn't long after Bakura left that Ryou heard a scream from up stairs and felt his way along to find what had happened.
"Beth?" He yelled, when he'd reached the landing. "What's wrong Beth?"
"The Bathroom! It's hideous!" Beth yelled back, clutching her heart and handing out of the bathroom door with wide eyes. "God help us all!"
```````````````````````````````````````Three hours later````````````````````````````````
"What the hell is going on!" Bakura yelled when he had opened the door.
"Errm, hi Bakura." Ryou muttered.
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL DOING IN MY HOUSE! RYOU ANSWERS! NOW!"
"Umm, we're pa-pa-painting the ba-bathroom?" Ryou stuttered.
"Bakura, watch you're temper when you speak to Ryou." Yami warned.
Bakura's upper lip twitched. //Sorry Abio..//
/Umm, it-it's okay Yami/
"Every one out of my house NOW!" Bakura growled.
"Bakura, we just started, come on man, paint with us, it's fun. And dude, that bathroom really, really, really needs some new paint! It looks like someone was thrown into the walls in some places! Ryou and I couldn't paint the whole thing by ourselves so he invited his friends over. This bathroom is HUGE" Beth said, pushing a paintbrush into Bakura's hand.
Ryou felt the color drain from his face but quickly lied. "It was like this when we moved it, Dad never got around to fixing it."
"Well, Ishtar and I got most of the cracks caulked, some of the dry wall is pealing in the other part of the bathroom though." Beth shrugged.
"ISHTAR IS HERE?" Bakura yelled.
"Temper, temper!" Beth laughed. "Yeah, he's finishing with the base coat in the other room, he and his brother Malik."
"Ryou, get toes two OUT of here!" Bakura said through gritted teeth.
"Bakura! Have a heart; can't you three learn to get along? Seriously!" Tea said, shaking her head agitatedly.
Bakura seemed to be shaking with anger. "I can't believe this! I'm gone one moment and there's an infestation. Ryou I cold KILL you." He walked toward Ryou, who gulped, backing away slightly.
/Yami!/
//What?//
/You're-you're scaring me./
Bakura stopped, he looked down at the paintbrush in his hand, ha had been clenching it like it was a grenade. //Sorry.//
/Please...............stop/
Bakura sighed and looked at Beth. "Where do you want me to paint?" He asked giving everyone, but Beth, a shock.
"Pick a wall, pick a color!" She shrugged. "It doesn't matter really. Ryou's doing tan and blue, Tea is erm-pink," She shuttered and motioned to the tiny wall she had given Tea. "Yami and Yugi and purple, Malik and Istar are painting a big wall gold. Joey and Honda are using green and orange on their walls. I'm painting this one red." She motioned to the wall she had started with a bright red.
"Give me blue." Bakura growled, then looked at Ryou. "How are you doing this Abiou?"
Ryou shrugged. "Simply paint the wall, I got a rather big one so I wouldn't mess up. Beth said she'd go back over when I was done." His face and hair were splattered with dark blue paint.
"I hope you can get that out of you're hair." Bakura said raising his eyebrows.
"Umm I think it comes out." Ryou muttered, feeling his hair.
Soon Yugi was reaching up into his three-foot spikes and checking the amount of paint. "Errr, Yami, do I have?"
"No Yugi." Yami said with a sigh.
"Here Bakura, I'll help you get started." Beth said, leading Bakura to the other part of the bathroom where Malik, Istar, Joey and Honda where painting. Istar snapped around when Bakura came it.
"Well, this is new, Yami-Bakura painting?" He snorted.
"I wouldn't be flapping the huge mouth of yours." Bakura growled. "In less you want to find yourself planed face first in the wall."
"How about we tell everyone about how the cracks got in these walls in the first place?" Ishtar asked, raising his eyes brows.
Bakura lowered his head, admitting defeat.
"Yami....." Malik whispered to Ishtar. "Wouldn't, would you?"
Ishtar snorted. "Of course I would stupid, what more fun than getting the Tomb Robber in trouble and out of my hair for good?"
"Yami!"
"What!"
"Just paint." Malik sighed.
Ishtar rolled his eyes and dipped his paintbrush in the yellowy gold paint. "Um, I think I'm missing something." Beth said awkwardly.
"It's nothing. Bakura and Ishtar never get along, it's a long, sad, story." Malik sad grinning at Beth.
"You guys seem to have a lot of long stories." Beth said shaking her head.
"Mostly it's just the same, really long story." Honda shrugged. "We'll tell you it some time."
"I'm not sure weather or not I want to hear it." Beth said, looking from the boys. "Right, Bakura, TRY not to murder Ishtar, Ishtar DON'T murder Bakura." She turned on her heal and walked into the other part of the bathroom to finish her wall.
"I like her." Malik said smiling and pulling his brush down the wall.
"You would." Ishtar muttered under his breath. "What did she mean 'Bakura TRY not to murder Ishtar'?"
"I MEANT THAT YOU WERE LESS IMPORTANT THAN BAKA-URA-CHAN!" Beth yelled from the other room.
"I feel the love." Ishtar muttered.
"Well, there's like two of you, and you're almost the same, so ya know." Beth said, sticking her head in the bathroom and then going back to paining.
"Your hikira has no taste." Bakura said opening the paint can with his fingers and grunting.
"She's not that bad looking." Joey said, tuning around and flicking paint onto Honda.
"Shut up mutt, no one asked you." Ishtar growled.
"You want to start something Ishtar?" Joey snarled.
"Yami!" Malik hissed. "Don't you dare."
Ishtar clenched his fists, knuckles white. He turned back to the wall.
"Why did you all come over?" Bakura asked, starting to paint his wall.
"Ryou invited us, Beth told you." Honda said shrugging and re-loading his paintbrush.
"HE WHAT? I'll have to talk to the son of a bi-" Bakura started.
"Even think about hurting him, and Yami won't be the only one you'll have to deal with." Joey growled.
For the second time that morning Bakura's lower lip twitched. "Mutt." He warned. "Just because I swore I'd never hurt Ryou again, doesn't mean I can't hurt you."
"Yeah, well you *are* becoming more of a man, picking fights with people who *can* defend themselves now?" Joey said, meeting Bakura's eyes.
Bakura closed his eye as if to calm himself down then brought his knee up and caught Joey in the stomach.
Joey was stunned for a second, then fell to the ground on his butt, gasping for air.
"He warned you." Honda said, not bothering to pick up his temperamental friend.
"Shut up." Joey cursed vividly. Ishtar scowled and clamped a hand over Malik's ears.
"Paaaalease!" Malik said when Joey had stop cursing and Ishtar had remove his hands. "I've heard worse from you."
"Yeah, and you'll only hear that stuff from me." Ishtar growled.
"Okay!" Said Tea a plastered grin on her face as she walked into the bathroom, clapping her hands. "Let's try not to kill each other. Joey, get up. Bakura, Yami told me to tell you that he's not in the mood form dealing with you. Ishtar you just smeared paint all over Malik's head. Honda, shut up."
Joey snorted, using the wall behind his to help himself up, and leaving a green hand print in the paint. He turned around and a storm of profanities exploded his mouth again.
Ishtar, once again, clapped hands over Malik's ears, glaring at Joey. "Joey, please!" Tea said glaring. "Leave it in the streets."
"Sorry." Joey said looking at the handprint.
"It looks good, very artistic! I belive you might be the next Pasco, hope you don't mind if I pain over it." Beth laughed, leaning against the frame of the door. "Err, Malik, you have paint in your hair!"
"No??" Malik said sarcastically raising his eyebrows.
"Come here stupid." Beth laughed. Malik walked over readily. Beth reached up and pulled a glob of hardened paint from his hair. Malik gave a yelp. "Ouch!"
"Sorry, it was really stuck in there." Beth grimaced, handing Malik the wad of paint and hair. Ishtar snickered.
There was a scream from the other room and every one turned to see Yami cringing and Yugi standing over his with a wet paint brush in his hands. Yugi had a look of triumph on his face as he painted up the side of Yami's head.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO ABIOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Yami wailed.
Ryou had a fit of giggles and fell against the wall.
"It's NOT funny!" Yami cried, three of his spikes painted a bright pink color.
"Ryou, I need a re-load!" Yugi said quickly.
Ryou passed him a paintbrush, dipped in tan paint. "Watch out Yami!" He giggled.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!! Not TAN! Anything but tan!" Yami screamed, sarcastically.
"What's wrong with tan?" Ryou asked defensively.
"Nothing Ryou of course." Yami said quickly then went back to cowering in fear as Yugi painting the rest of his hair with the tan, then yellow, then green.
"I'm melting! I'm melting! What have you done to me Abiou! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh" Yami began to shrink to the floor, writhing.
"Ding dong the witch is gone, the wicked witch is gone!" Yugi and Ryou sang, dancing around holding hands like little children.
"Ryou!" Bakura snapped, Ryou emetatly dropped Yugi's hands and lowered his eyed.
"Sorry Bakura." He muttered, picking at a piece of dried paint in his hair.
"Grow up." Bakura hissed.
"Bakura, we weren't doing any thing wrong, we were just having fun." Yugi said, sticking out his tong at Bakura.
Yami leaned against the wall, standing up. "Let them have their fun Bakura. No one's hurt, but for my hair." He patted one of his spikes, leaving a handprint in the paint. And forcing a fake tear to stream down his cheek.
"I think we're done." Beth laughed, shaking her head at Yami's now rainbow hair. "Any way, if we use any more pain it'll never dry."
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
Repmet- That was a long chapter!
Fluff- wow.
Yami- My HAIR
Repmet- I thought you all could use a comity break!
Fluff- How'd you like Beth? I like her, I think she's cool!