KlebKat: XP

Shardy: Kleb?

Kat: She wasn't sure how she wanted to end this chapter.

KlebKat: I don't like this chapter at all...do you think my writing sucks on this one?

Erin: Oh well. Enjoy!

Kleb and company do not own anything but their little ol' minds...and a home made plushy or two. So, no sue for you.

--

Duelist of the Roses ACT IX

The warm body pulsed under him, and he knew that she was finished. "Ishizu..." He released, his finish to the final hours of the night.

"Ah...I knew we shouldn't have done that, It's dawn already."

"But I shall not be going with them, love."

Her eyes widened, "You're not?"

"No," he replied, "I have business else where this morning and I'm afraid that I can't take you."

"Oh, whatever shall I do?"

Some guy in purple had shook her violently, making sure she stood before he moved on to the next person. Who the hell's in my room? Kassie thought sleepily, and ran her fingers into the corners of her tiered eyes. I thought I made it clear that I'm not like Shard and can get up with a light poke. Kassie forgot her place for the moment, and allowed her hands to intertwine with each other and her arms to stretched over her head. She still wore her school uniform, now crumpled with wrinkles.

Now, more awake, Kassie began to remember bits and pieces of what had happened. Oh, god! That was real? She looked to the guy wearing purple, noticing how he smiled down at Shardai, who, of course, was sleeping every-which-a-way.

Touch her and I will yell henti, she swore in her mind, but the man simply knelt and shook the Dragon Lady just as harshly, then moved to Kat five minutes later when Shardai wouldn't budge.

Kat sat up, neglecting that she wore nothing but her short boy shorts and her white under school shirt. "You're a very pretty thing," the man spoke, noticing Kat's state of dress all too well.

Kat looked up, her own green eyes flickering with anger, "Who are you?"

The man smiled, going back to Shardai, "My name is Marik, I am Bakura's elder brother."

"Bakura has a brother?" Kassie tilted her head, "He didn't mention you."

Marik shook Shardai, "Why should he?"

Kassie looked away, lowering her voice considerably, acting as if she had done something incredibly wrong, "You're right."

He looked up at her, not understanding, "Right about what?"

Kassie's face pinkened, Damn it, I've made an ass out of myself again!

"What's going on in here? Where are the girls? Are they up yet?" a pissed voice shouted and then Bakura walked into the tent.

"They are awake save this one," Marik stood, nodding to Shardai's sleeping form.

"Well then, wake her."

"I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?"

"I've been trying for the past fifteen minutes. It's like calling to a stone hoping that it's going to answer you."

Despite her embarrassment, Kassie joined Kat in a light giggle. "What's so funny?" Bakura demanded.

"The analogy you used for Shardy," Kat replied, "That was great; fits her to a tee."

Just then, Shardai turned over and glomped Marik's left leg, hugging it tightly to herself. "Mmmm, Seto."

Marik shook his leg, trying to free himself, "This one's gone mad!"

It took three buckets of cold water to awake Shardai, and now she was sitting on Kassie's bed, sneezing and crying about being all wet. Shardai's pink jacket and collar bow now hung on a chair outside and Kat's jacket on her shoulders.

"Cheese?" Kassie asked, trying to make Shardai feel better by sitting beside her and patting her on the back. Shardai pouted, sniffled a few times, and popped a piece of cheese into her mouth. "Even we tried to get you up, Shard. After what happened last night, I figured that when Bakura grabbed the bucket, it couldn't be for a good thing."

As if summoned by Kassie's words, Bakura and Marik came into the tent, each caring one side of a rather large trunk. Kat spoke as the boys sat the trunk down with a loud thud, "What's that for?"

"You three," Bakura answered.

"sniffsniff Us?" Shardai asked.

"You can't possibly travel wet," Marik chimed, "so we brought you some clothes."

Shardai dashed to the trunk and fell to her knees, chirping happily like a bird, "Oh goody, what do we get to wear?" Shardai popped open the trunk, reaching in and grabbing two handfuls of fabric. Kat kneeled down beside Shardai, picking up a blueish gray dress. "I guess this will work, how many dresses are in there?"

Shardai took the clothes out and laid them across Kat's bed, "Three...no, wait, this one's got a hole in it."

Kassie bent over, looking into the box, the loose hair from her braid spilling over her shoulders. "There's stuff in here other than dresses." Kassie picked up a white shirt and brown pants. "It'd be better if we wore pants, cause I bet we'll ride horses and I gather side saddle hurts like hell."

Snickers caused Kassie to look up at her current hosts. "What's so funny?"

Marik doubled over and Bakura joined in, both laughing away, "A woman wearing trousers? HA HA!"

"What's wrong with me wearing pants?" Kassie tilted her head sideways, the answer coming to her, "Oh, that's right, women didn't wear pants in this day and age."

"You mean women dress like men in the future?" Marik asked.

"No, of course not, women wear girl clothes and men wear men clothes." Kassie grabbed another pair of pants, putting all three onto her bed. "See, these are our school uniforms, the boys wear pants and we girls wear skirts." Kassie shrugged off her jacket and tossed it onto the bed, then she untied the collar bow. "I liked dresses when I was little but I don't now."

Bakura stepped closer to her, arms length away. "You will wear a dress, it's not an option."

Kassie's eyes narrowed slightly, "But I don't want to wear a dress and the third dress has a hole in it anyway."

The older man closed the space between them like lighting and grasped her jaw tightly with one hand, almost close enough to kiss. "You will wear a dress like I tell you because your current style makes you nothing more than a common whore!" he whispered huskily. He could feel her breath on his lips and began to counter her forth coming statement when--SLAP!

"YOU ASSHOLE! HOW DARE YOU CALL ME THAT?" Bakura's ears rang and his face stung from her slap, but other than a turn of his head, he didn't move.

"Kassie," one of the girls said, but it dribbled off into nothing. Bakura turned his dark chocolate eyes down to the form of the girl before him. She had turned her head to the side and downward, worry, confusion, sadness and desperation written all over her face. She wants to say she's sorry, but now she's too stubborn.

"What if we do this; I'll patch the dress, but since it's a rather large hole to begin with, why not let Kassie wear what she wants?"

Kassie finally looked back into Bakura's dark eyes. She looks like she's about to cry. The Demon Rabbit snarled and his nose wrinkled in distaste. Finally, Bakura stepped away and marched out of the tent fallowed by Marik. "Fine, do whatever the hell you want!"

Shardai was next to Kassie now, patting her on the back, "What a jerk. He has control issues."

"Anyway," Kat said, "lets get changed and then well finish breakfast."

Kassie dived outside, chirping loudly as if nothing was wrong, "Tell me when you're done!"

Kat pulled her back in, "Na-uhn, hon. I know how shy you are, so you first, we'll wait outside.

"Ok, but no peeking!"