~*A.N: Correction, I have two chapters two go instead of one. I was planning to combine the battle with this chapter but I just realized the chapter was so frickin long. Oh well, plus I like to leave people in cliffhangers so…yeah…::laughs::*~
~*Black Redemption*~
Nine months later…one day before Miyako's birthday.
Yami and Tea drove around Ginza at the late of night. They have been driving for hours, doing a bit of window-shopping here and there. An uncomfortable silence filled the air.
Yami pulled over to the sidewalk. His hands rested on the steering wheel, looking out the window. His gaze turned towards Tea, noticing her eyes gazing towards the floor. "What is it?"
"Miyako's birthday…" said Tea.
Yami nodded, placing his hand on her shoulder. "Yes, I'm aware that her birthday is tomorrow."
"A sweet sixteen," she whispered. "How are we to tell her that her parents are back from the dead?"
"I have a feeling she might catch on. After all, Bakura was the one who sealed her memories of us."
"Bakura…" Tea repeated his name.
Yami released his hand on her shoulder, unsure of what to say at that point. He then folded his hands in his lap quietly asking. "Do you still love Bakura?"
Tea was silent for a long time before finally answering. "I'm not so certain on what my true feelings are for him."
"Something's going on between you and Marik isn't there?"
"What?" Tea finally looked up at Yami. "You mean that pervert? There's no way I would get involved with him."
"I worry about you sometimes." Yami took out the keys of the ignition. "You were never the same ever since we took that visit to the apartment. You still had not told me what happened that day you drove off on me. I'm beginning to wonder if you had something to do with what happened to Joey."
"How dare you!" Tea glared at him. "How dare you believe that I would kill my best friend?!?"
"Tea I overheard what Marik said. You had something to do with Joey's shooting.. Unless if you could give a good story of what happened."
"Why don't you believe me?" Tea's voice shook. "Why would I want to kill Joey? You know me Yami…God, why do you think of this shit?"
Yami spoke quietly. "What's happened to you Tea?"
Tea suddenly became livid. "Me?!? What's happening to me? What's happening to you?"
"What's wrong with you? You never used to act this way. In fact, I have never seen you like this before."
Tea took in a deep breath. She then opened the door, slipping out of the car. "Look, I need some time alone. Maybe I'll stop by a boutique shop and get Miyako something for tomorrow." She closed the door, leaving the car.
Yami didn't stop her, his eyes watching Tea disappearing within the crowds that packed the sidewalks. His eyes turned to the rearview mirror seeing Bakura's reflection smirking right back at him. Turning around to see if Bakura was there, he was surprised to see that he was not there. Curiosity creased his features before he faced back to the front, tilting his chair back.
Tea had found a perfect dress for her own daughter. She held up a yellow sundress by the hanger, admiring the article of clothing. Taking out her wallet, she pulled out a $50 bill making her way towards the cashier. She expected herself to be happy and excited for her daughter's upcoming birthday but instead she felt nothing. A bit of sadness overcame her for her own daughter, thanks to Bakura, still lived under the false illusion that her parents are dead.
What is up with Bakura? Tea consoled to herself in her mind. First he plays a second father to Miyako and now he turns to a man of incest. Something caught her eye far from its corner. She saw Miyako walking hand in hand with her "boyfriend" Ryou.
"Hey Miya-chan," Ryou reached on top of the rack, pulling down a sunflower dress. "What do you think of this dress?"
"It's lovely." Miyako exclaimed. "I love it."
"It brings out your eyes and blonde hair."
Tea adjusted her sunglasses, turning towards where the two are, watching the scene unfold. Her features creased as she watched Ryou pick out the same exact dress that Tea picked out for her own daughter.
"Ma'am," the cashier called out. "Ma'am, are you going to pay for that dress?"
Tea looked up at the cashier, then down at the dress. Sighing, she handed the dress to the cashier. "No, I…I just want to return it. Just tried it and doesn't fit."
"No problem." The cashier took the dress eagerly. Tea took a last glance at Ryou before leaving the shop. Things were not going so well for her. Yami started to suspect her as a murderer. Miyako still can't remember her own parents. It's as if she was alone. Slowly, she brushed past the crowds, taking a glance back at Yami's car, which seemed to be out of sight. Her eyes gazed to the ground as she walked. She kept walking and walking and when she finally looked up, she realized she had walked out of Ginza. The streets were dark and only a few streetlights sparkled the sidewalks. She made a turn towards an alley and into the darkness.
Meanwhile, Yami decided to take a drive out of Ginza assuming that tea would take a long time to fulfill her shopping needs. He smiled at that thought. Tea was a big shopper and a big spender though she was careful about her money. He drove down the dark streets before finally pulling over next to the bridge. From his rearview mirror, he saw Marik across the street. Raising an eyebrow, he could only wonder what he was up to.
Tea knelt on the ground, leaning and facing the wall. A strange sadness had overcome her. The past few months have meant nothing to her. Time did not matter to the dead. It could continue to pass on by and nothing would change for her or her daughter or Yami, or even Marik and Bakura.
"How could Yami believe I have shot my own friend?" Tea cried to herself, pounding her fist on the wall. "I could never kill Joey! I could never do that!"
While Tea continued to loathe in her sympathy, there stood Marik who gazed down at her, his millennium rod in his hand. Silently, he knelt behind her, pulling Tea close to him. He was lucky that the night was dark enough to conceal his face.
"Yami?" Tea whispered, thinking the one that held her was her true love.
The silent figure did not answer as his arms wrapped around her body. Marik sat on the ground, pulling Tea onto his lap.
"Yami," Tea rested her head on Marik's chest. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I remember what happened the night we visited Bakura's apartment," she felt his hand stroking her cheek, gently pressing her head towards his chest. Few tears streaked down her face as fingers reached up to brush it away. "I was in the car when Marik suddenly appeared in the backseat. I tried to get out of the car but somehow, with his stupid millennium rod he locked all the doors. Soon, he controlled my mind and all I can remember is that he forced me to drive to Joey's house."
She felt lips brushing against her earlobe. "And is that when he forced you to pull the trigger on Joey?"
"Yeah. Hey wait a minute, how do you know all this?"
Soft dark laughter escaped his lips as Marik took out his millennium rod, pointing it towards Tea, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. "Because I know my dear."
"Marik you son of a…" Tea raged. Before her words could go any further, Marik's millennium rod glowed. Tea's voice fell silent, her eyes becoming lifeless.
"My dear," Marik whispered in Tea's ear. 'You have to control yourself or you'll start going crazy. Taking her hand, he helped he up, interlocking fingers with hers. "I'm sure you will be of good use when I deal with your daughter."
"I'm telling you Yami, it was Tea who was there but it was definitely not her who shot me."
Joey and Yami were sitting in the car eating Chinese take out.
"You still speak in riddles Joey." Yami finished off his noodles. "Tea was there, she pulled the trigger on you…"
"It's Tea's body but when I looked into her eyes, I knew it was truly not her."
"I suspect that Bakura or Marik have something to do with what's going on." Yami snapped his chopsticks in half. "Bastard, even if Bakura is Miyako's second father, he's making his status sick."
"It seems that Bakura has a twisted fetish for incest." Joey then saw something in the rearview mirror. "Uh-oh."
"What is it?" Yami looked up at Joey.
"Uh…Yami…" Joey did not take his eyes off of the rearview mirror. "You might want to take a look at your rearview mirror."
"Why should I do that?" Yami looked into the rearview mirror seeing Marik walking hand in hand with Tea. He could only see their backside but he instantly recognized the two. Marik climbed onto Joey's motorcycle and Tea climbed in after, wrapping her arms around him. "Son of a bitch!"
"What the?" Joey's eyes widened. "That bastard is jacking my ride." He then turned towards Yami. "Step on it Yami!"
Yami jammed his key into the ignition starting up the car, twisting it. "Better make your seatbelt tight."
"Why do you say that?" Joey looked at him strangely.
Yami didn't answer as he stepped on the gas, going after Marik who was not far from them. They rode down the empty streets, which quickly turned, into a dangerous car chase.
"Jeez Yami," Joey was fumbling with his seatbelt. "How fast are you planning to go?" he watched in amazement as the speedometer started doing over 100.
Marik made a sharp turn to the right. Yami turned the steering wheel tightly, sending Joey crashing into him. "Yami take it easy!" Joey glared at Yami. "You trying to get us killed?"
"Correction," Yami kept his eyes on the motorcycle. "I'm already dead. So is Tea, Bakura and Marik."
"What about Miyako?" Joey held onto the armrests. "If she knows the dark arts, could she be like you guys."
"Not like me and Tea." Yami continued speeding up. "You know she has inherited traits from Bakura."
"Is she going to side with Bakura?" Joey watched Marik right in front of them.
"I'm not so sure. She is being pulled in between two worlds."
Joey continued watching the motorcycle noticing Tea pulling out a gun and aiming for Joey. "Oh shit Tea's got a gun!"
Tea gazed down at the two before pulling the trigger.
"Joey duck!" Yami pulled back the shift stick. Immediately, Joey ducked as the bullet pierced through the glass, though not shattering it. Sitting up, Joey sat up.
"What the hell has gotten into her now?" Joey watched Tea's gaze down at him. "Has she gone insane?"
"You were right Joey," Yami's gaze settled on the motorcycle, speeding up. "Tea is possessed thanks to Marik. What I don't understand is why he wants to deal with her."
"You know why? He's working for Bakura, that's what!" Joey had to duck again as Tea shot out another bullet, this time the bullet shattered Joey's side of the window. "Oh crap!"
"Joey, look in my glove compartment." Yami didn't keep his eyes off the motorbike.
"What for?" Joey asked but opened the glove compartment anyway, stunned to see a gun laying inside. "You actually…"
"Just do as I say and listen carefully." Yami's foot stepped on the gas. "You wonder why there are no police cars chasing after us or Marik?"
"Yeah, that is strange." Joey looked behind him. "It's as if we're the only two cars here."
"We're on the path of the dead Joey. I cannot explain this all too well but it is something Marik created."
"For what?" Joey rolled down his window, sticking himself out, pointing his gun, trying to aim for Marik.
"He's trying to lead us somewhere," he then made a sharp left turn.
'Hey, what are you doing?" Joey noticed that they were no longer following Marik and Tea.
"Shortcut." Yami replied as he worked on the stick shift. He sped down the road and soon, he slammed on the brakes as they reached the intersection, seeing Marik. Quickly, Marik turned around and sped the other way.
"Great,' Joey muttered as Yami went after them, his foot on the acceleration. "Here we go again."
"I'm concerned about you Joey." Yami tried to control his steering wheel. "Mainly because you're an easy target. You are the only one who's actually alive. One false shot and you'll be dead. You cheated death once and I doubt he would resurrect you."
"Yeah?" Joey pulled the trigger, trying to shoot the wheel. "Might as well make the most of it."
"Don't do something foolish Joey!" Yami's voice was harsh. "You know Marik's wrath as well as I do and it's nothing but deadly."
"So if I can't shoot Tea and I can't kill Marik by a shot to anywhere on his body, where do I shoot that would make Marik snap out of it?"
"All I can think of is that damn millennium rod. It's his main source of power after all."
"You're kidding. That's going to be hard to find seeing that Marik keeps it in his robe nearly 24/7."
"If we play our cards right, you'll be able to shoot it."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa Yami. I doubt a gun would destroy something as powerful as that."
Soon, the two were heading for a narrow bridge. Tea continued to gaze on at Joey. As soon as Joey's top half of his body was in view, Tea pulled the trigger once again, this time piercing Joey right in the shoulder.
Joey screamed in pain, holding his shoulder.
"Joey, are you all right?" Yami took a glance up at Joey.
"I'll be fine." Joey replied, feeling blood soaking through his jacket. With the hand that held the gun, he pulled the trigger unsure of where he actually aimed. He could no longer take the pain on his shoulder as he dropped the gun.
"Way to go Joey," Yami said sarcastically. "You just blew out their back tire." Joey looked up seeing the motorcycle spinning out of control. He then turned towards Joey. "Get out now!"
"What? Why?"
"There is something that I will do that could kill the both of us. Just do it! Get out!"
Joey opened the door, jumping out of the car, his body rolled a few feet away. Seeing the motorcycle crashed into the bridge, he noticed Marik and Tea crumpled on the ground. Marik slowly stood up, seeing Yami speeding towards him.
"Attempting to run me over huh Yami?" Marik smirked. "You might want to go for a nice refreshing swim." He then dove to the side. Yami steered the steering wheel tightly, missing Marik and crashed through the bridge, sailing into the air and into the water.
"Yami-kun!" Joey raced towards the bridge, watching the car sink into the deep water. "Yami!" Joey held his shoulder.
"I can assure you Joey," Marik slowly approached him. "Yami is not in the water or in the car."
"How would you know?" Joey glared at Marik.
'Let's just say your niece will see her parents very soon." A soft laugh escaped Marik's lips.
"What have you done to Yami, Marik?" Joey raised his fist at him.
Marik laughed. "Nothing special. Just the same fate as Tea." He took Tea by the hand, the two walking down the sidewalk. "Take a right on Fifth Avenue. You will get back to Ginza that way." Slowly, the two vanished within the darkness.
Meanwhile, Ryou and Miyako parked in the parking garage. It had been a long night out at Ginza and it was already 10:45.
"I can't believe it," Ryou smiled, resting his head on hers. "Tomorrow is already your sweet sixteen." He kissed her softly on her hair.
"I really love the dress you bought for me." Miyako smiled, kissing him back on the forehead.
Ryou turned around pulling Miyako close to him. "I sense something bothering you."
Miyako rested her head on Ryou's shoulder. "It's strange Ryou. Am I going crazy?"
Ryou's fingers ruffled through Miyako's hair. 'I don't think you're crazy. What's on your mind?"
"I think my parents have come back from the dead."
"Is that so?" Ryou's gaze fixed onto her. "What makes you so sure?"
"It's ever since the day Michirei was killed. The detective and that substitute teacher. You remember Anzu-sensei? I keep having this feeling that I have known them for so long."
"If you thought they look familiar, wouldn't you have recognized them that instant?"
"I don't know. My mind…it's as if it has been partially erased of my family."
"That's bizarre. How could some of your memory be erased?"
"I don't know."
Ryou lifted Miyako's face, looking down into her eyes. "Don't worry, I don't think you're crazy." Slowly, he leaned forward towards her, his hand stroking her face gently. Closing his eyes, he brushed his lips against Miyako's before pressing it to hers. With his free hand, he interlocked hi fingers with hers as the two shared a passionate kiss.
After what seemed like hours, Ryou gently broke the kiss, gazing down at her. "Have I told you I loved you?"
"Don't be silly, of course you did." Miyako giggled.
Ryou placed Miyako on his back, giving her a piggyback ride. "I can promise you that your 16th birthday will be very special and sweet."
"What's the surprise?" Miyako wrapped her arms and legs around Ryou, taking in his cologne scent.
Ryou laughed softly, heading towards his mailbox, taking out a key and jamming it inside they keyhole, turning it. "If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise no would it?" he took out his mail, looking it over. 'Bills…bills…hey…" Ryou took out a white envelope. "This one's addressed to you Miyako."
"Really?" Miyako slipped off his back, taking the white envelope with her name on top. There was no return address or a stamp, as if somebody slipped the envelope inside.
Opening the envelope, it was nothing more than a folded piece of paper. Unfolding it, she read it and her eyes widened with shock. Crumpling the note and tossing it to the ground, she ran towards her motorcycle starting it up.
"Miya-chan," Ryou ran after her. "Where are you going?"
Miyako didn't answer as she rode down the pavement and out of the parking lot. Ryou stood there for a few moments before making his way towards the spot where Miyako dropped the note. He reached down, unfolding and reading the note.
I await you at the subway station my dear…was all it said. Smirking, Ryou changed himself back to Bakura.
"Well, well Marik. Attempting to kill my daughter so soon? I see you have both of her parents under your possession. An excellent move indeed seeing that you intend to break her spirit. Don't forget, a bit of my soul remains in her mind." He then made his way down the exit of the parking lot.
Miyako zoomed down the streets in the late night. Seeing the subway, she knew it was the right place. Feeling daring, she rode her motorcycle down the stairs and into the waiting area where people usually waited for the subway. The station was nearly shrouded in darkness except for a few lights that hung up on the walls. Getting off her motorcycle, she stood there for a few moments, looking around.
"Come on out Marik," she took out her staff. "I know you're in there waiting!"
Dark laughter emerged as a tall cloaked figure stepped out from the shadows. "I see you have come and brought along the rod of Anubis. How nice."
"We might as well get this over with." Miyako glared at Marik.
"True, yes," Marik took out his millennium rod. "But first, I would like to introduce you to my puppets, my mannequins." And at that instant, two people slowly emerged.
Miyako squinted her eyes, trying to distinguish the two. Her eyes widened as she realized who Marik's new puppets were. "Mom…? Dad…?"
~*To Be Continued*~