In loving memory of Lee Christopher Cooper, born September 1955, died 27th November 2003.
Hey all! First of all, I want to apologise for not updating as soon as I'd intended, but... well, as many of you know by now, my step-dad died last week, so writing has been... hard - he was more of a dad to me than a step-dad, and I miss him horribly. I'm coping okay now though, and intend to continue with this fic. If you wish to offer condolences, please do it by email, rather than during the review, as I'd rather the reviews were used for that purpose.
Other than that, I'm not too bad, so I'm gonna get on with the reviews now! A few of you expressed concern about me using OC's... but to be fair, I did in Forbidden Love too. OC's will never play anything more than a sub-role or a role complimentray to the major characters in my fics. In short, it's still Yami, Bakura, Malik, Set etc that I'll be focussing on. Okies?
To Ame: Well, the waiting's finally over ^_^ And yeah, I totally agree about Set!
To Yami Yami Yugi: Hehe... well, ya can find out now. Sorry for taking so long! -_-'
To 'Bryanna': Glad ya liked it. Enjoy the second course ^_^
To 'Reiya Moon': Hee... 30+ reviews for one chapter? Yeah, I'd say it was pretty successful ^_^ (My target is 5!!!)
To Yuki KIKI: Sorry for taking so long, and sorry for the OC's... but I wanted to get the fans involved, and share people's work. And like I said, the major guys are the important ones!
To 'me': *sigh* Yes, OC's are a bad thing in many cases... so badly overused... but I'm gonna try my hardest not to, okay? Glad you like it anyway! ^_^
To Painful Life: A bloody demise for Set... you and everyone else, I should think! And you'll see pretty soon if Yami cheers up or not!
To Angelic*demon44: *blink* I'm guessing you didn't read Forbidden Love then? Otherwise it would make sense. Heh, it'll become clear as time goes on ^_^
To rebelphoenix: Heh... yeah, okay, maybe I did... but I got the point across, ne? He's depressed. Distraught. Devastated, if you will. Glad you like my layout (my original experiment got criticised harshly in Forbidden Love -_-), hope ya keep reading!
To silver-fox20: Heh... I dunno, I think this fic's got a lot to live up to... I'm gonna try my hardest to make it at least equal FL though!
To Emriko: haha... "When is Set gonna die?" Now that'd be telling... if he is at all! After all, I bet you thought I'd save Yugi, ne?
To Silverlily aka Blood Moon: Fine, you WILL see me write my way out of it! So nyah! And thanks again for the doujin help, by the way!
To 'Yami Neferbre': Here's the continuation, glad you liked and sorry it took so long!
To Misseystar: Heh... emailed you, ne? *prod* review more often, missey! XD
To Chaotic Bystander: I'm glad ya found it too! hehe... more angst for ya this time though!
To Shadowspecter: Hehe... AND NOW I PUT CHAPTER TWO UP! *glomps back* Hope you love this one too!
To ObiWanGirl: 2nd to review... better luck next time ^_^ Glad ya liked it, hope ya do this too!
To Tasan15: One of your faves? *light blush* Thanks! Here's some more for ya!
To 'Anna': I've never actually pronounced it 'Malik' either - remember, the name is japanese, and in japan 'l' makes a sound much nearer 'r'. Thus it is spelt Malik and pronounced Marik. Glad you liked the fic though, and I'm glad you took the time to go read Forbidden Love too! ^_^
To 'Darkwolf193': *sigh* One Last Breath is in the works... Once I've got my head straightened up, I'll be writing like a beast, so you will get an update soon!
To CrazyAboutYugi: Heh... thanks ^_^ Just please give this one a little chance? I'm sure you'll LOVE my little trump card! ^_^
To Sheol: Well, this was ASAP... probs not S enough though, ne? Hehe, enjoy anyhoo!
To Miyako Cairo: Heh, no offence taken. I've never been secretive about bein bi, and yeah, I'm somewhat hikari\uke sometimes... so I ain't surprised that I sounded like a girl! Glad you liked it!
To Ruth: *huggle* Ish okay... it will get better... I give my word ^_^
To '******': Glad you liked Forbidden Love ^_^ It was a bit sad, ne? Here's the update!
To Taddybear: Yeah, it made me cry a little while I was writing it too... and you'd be thinking of Duat there - I did mention it in that chapter!
To Bakura'sLittleDiscipleofEvil: Hehehe... thanks for all that ^_^ I dunno if you'll need the kleenex this time or not... *passes some your way, just in case*
To 'confused child': The first to make you cry? *swells with happiness* Thankyou! I remember the first fic to make me cry... it was absolutely amazing... so thankyou!
To Hijiri Hitokiri Battousai: Heh... I guess I share some of the pain too now, hey? I suppose it gets better though... But yeah, sad and sweet is nice, and I can kind of identify too now. Hey, brothers in yaoi, and brothers in loss! *huggles*
To Shade25: *super-chibi squeal* Eeeeee... thankyou! *squeezes back* here's the update, and sorry for keeping you waiting!
Many thanks to all of you who submitted OC's, we get to meet three in this chapter. Bear in mind this is their introduction, so of course they're gonna have a bigger role than usual. To those of you who suggested I play me as an OC... although I've tailored the charatcer a bit (so that I don't do the all-time corny and put ME in), I decided to do it! See if you can guess who it is!
The song featured in this chapter is 'Spirit (Kokoro)' by Yasunori Mitsuda. It's a beautiful song, and well worth downloading. Now onwards!
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yami looked up from staring at the floor as a hand was placed gently on his shoulder, and gave the owner a wane smile. The boy gave Yami a feeble grin in return, even though his eyes were partially teary, and sat next to him, silently offering Yami his support. Yami gently slipped an arm round the boy, resting his head on his friend's shoulder. He sighed deeply – although he still hurt deeply, it helped to have his few friends round him. When he was alone, everything focussed on Yugi, and he descended into an abyss of self-pity. With his friends around, he could at least keep afloat.
"Thankyou, Lateef," Yami whispered, blinking a tear back from the corner of his eye.
Lateef simply gave a small nod by means of reply. "Any time… you know that."
The boy's name meant gentle, and that suited him perfectly. His soft eyes, which were almost unique in colour, met you almost like a cushion, and Yami had never seen him lose his temper or even raise his voice, not even when guards tried to wrongfully arrest him. In fact, Yami wondered if Lateef could raise his voice – he was so softly-spoken it was almost like he was afraid he'd injure you if he spoke too loudly. Given the boy's past – which he had, briefly, discussed – Yami wasn't surprised. If he hadn't developed that sort of nature, he'd most likely have wound up dead. The only problem being that he was now too submissive for his own safety – many was the time Bakura or Malik had rescued him from the otherwise unresisted clutches of slave traders or would-be attackers. The boy's lithe form, almost feminine in shape, certainly meant many of the more lecherous members of the public lusted after him.
Yami sighed again. "I miss him so much… and, if I'd just stayed there for five more…"
Lateef shushed the Pharaoh into silence. "Look, it really wasn't your fault… You know that. Blaming yourself only makes it harder."
Sniffling, Yami nodded his agreement, clutching tightly onto Lateef's loose garments as he fought the tears back.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Not far across the room, four others stood in quiet discussion, checking across to see if Yami was okay frequently. They were pretty sure that if anyone could comfort him, Lateef was the one. Not that *they* hadn't been speaking to him, of course – he'd simply gone away for a quiet moment, and had started looking lonely again. Bakura, stood behind Malik with his arms snaked round his love's waist, addressed one of the others.
"Adair," he murmured. "Why in Ra's name do you keep grinning like that?" This earned Bakura a slight nudge from an irritated Malik – Bakura followed the sun-God, while Malik favoured Osiris, and they constantly bickered over whose God was the superior. Malik was still yet to find a response to Bakura's defence of "Well *my* God didn't get killed by his son…"
Adair flicked one of the multitude of spikes of near-black hair that covered his forehead out of the way of his eye and grinned cockily. Despite the occasion, everyone was trying to keep upbeat, hoping to lift Yami's mood with them, and no-one managed it better than Adair. "I was just noticing the way Akemi keeps looking over there… seems he's interested in someone, and I bet it isn't the Pharaoh."
Akemi simply folded his arms and snorted at Adair, giving him a non-committal look. He snapped his head back to face Bakura sharply, causing his hair, which was an even lighter blonde than Malik's and went halfway down his back, to flail behind him. Akemi was even quieter than Lateef, though he carried an air of confidence about him that Lateef lacked, and was certainly by no means as gentle. His name meant 'bright and beautiful', and it suited him as well as Lateef's did, with his honeyed-sun eyes, willowy form and almost feline grace. "I'm just concerned," came the brusque defence.
Malik chuckled slightly at this. He'd been having the same thoughts as Adair, though he wasn't sure if it was appropriate to point it out – but then, it was no surprise that Adair had. He certainly had the biggest attitude of the group. He was about to add a choice comment of his own, when he saw Yami and Lateef stand and begin to walk across to them. Together, the six moved off to grab a drink and a seat each, Malik on Bakura's lap as usual.
Once they were all comfortable, Yami sighed loudly. "Gods… I miss him so much…" Yami stared distantly into the bottom of his chalice – doubtless stolen from the pricier end of the market square – as if it might hold some clue as to how to bring Yugi back. He felt tears stinging his eyes once more, and he closed them firmly, not wanting to bring his friends down. "Yugi…" he sighed, a tear dropping and mixing with the wine before him. Whispering, almost silently, Yami addressed the Gods once more, as he had done several times daily since he'd been able to do anything other than cry. "Why… why did you take him? He did no wrong… he was so innocent and pure… he deserved so much more than even I could give him… he…"
Yami felt a shuddery breath run through him, and ceased his murmurings, instead trying to compose himself. Looking up with teary eyes, Yami gazed round at his five friends. "Thankyou, all of you…" he began. "You've all stood by me, through all my hardship… I can never say how much you all mean, nor how grateful I am that you've allowed me to let Yugi's memory live on…" Yami felt his voice begin to choke, and fell silent again.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Eventually, the conversation eased away from the reason they were all gathered there, and managed to drift to lighter matters. At that particular moment, Bakura was joking about Malik's first thievery lesson, much to Malik's annoyance.
"You know how people are when they first get together, especially young boys. All over eachother, where they can help it."
Adair smirked at this. "And you two are any different now how?"
Everyone chuckled, even Yami, and Bakura continued his story with a grin. "Malik just couldn't help himself. I was trying to teach him to pick my pocket. He didn't learn the basics too badly – he could get his hand in without any trouble at all…" Malik grinned wickedly as Bakura carried on. "It was just getting it out that was the problem… it seemed to quite enjoy being there."
Malik twitched suddenly as Bakura prodded him in the side playfully, nearly falling off Bakura's lap. With a small frown, he replied, "Well I don't recall you exactly arguing, mister 'Oh Malik, faster…' In fact, if I recall correctly, your hand missed my pocket entirely…"
Bakura's cheeks tinged pink at this, embarrassed about the anecdote and that his had been thrown back in his face, and Adair laughed loudly. "Aww, the King of Thieves is blushing!"
This only caused Bakura to blush even more deeply, and he jumped to his feet – accidentally throwing Malik to the floor in the process – and pointed a finger at Adair. "You be quiet!" he yelled furiously. "I've heard some bed-time stories about you too!"
Adair smirked and leaned back in his seat. "All true, my friend."
Malik, dusting himself off, stood up. "Even the one about the goat?" he enquired innocently.
Adair's dark blue eyes went wide. "W… who told you that???"
Malik and Bakura both raised an eyebrow simultaneously. "You mean it's true?"
Adair growled and, leaping to his feet, charged at the two thieves, resorting to violence as a last means of defending his name, and before long the three were involved in a large scuffle on the floor.
*~*~*~*~*~*
No-one had noticed, during the commotion, Akemi stand up and head to the window. There he stood, his head tipped slightly to one side aid his hearing. A thoughtful look crossed his face as he squinted into the darkness, wishing that Horkhenti Irti [1] had an eye open tonight. He wasn't certain, but…
"Yami!" he called over the racket, startling both the Pharaoh and Lateef – they really weren't used to hearing Akemi yell. "Make them shut up a moment!"
Yami, picking up one of the feather-stuffed sacks that served as seat padding, duly obliged, beating all three over the head until they remained silent, somewhat dazed. Bakura was the first to recover, and he growled angrily "What in Ra's name do you think you're doing Pharaoh?"
"Osiris's name…" Malik corrected.
Akemi shushed them all again, and listened hard. Soon, the other's ears had adjusted to the soft sound, and one by one they cottoned on to what it was. Bakura stood beside Akemi and squinted down, barely able to make out the shadowy outline of a figure sat two floors below them, directly under the window. Bakura pulled his head back in and turned to the others. "Singing?"
They all nodded, and came closer to the window so they could make out the words.
"I've been watching you a while
Since you walked into my life
Monday morning when first I heard you speak to me.
I was too shy to let you know
Much too scared to let my feelings show
But you shielded me and that was the beginning."
They all blinked softly. The voice was beautiful, crystal-clear and ringing gently through the night, the stillness of the shadows letting the voice radiate peacefully, creating a serene feeling everywhere it reached.
"Now unless we can talk in another way
And though I try, 'I love you' is just so hard to say
If I only could be strong
And say the words I feel…"
"Gods…" Lateef whispered, afraid of breaking the spell. "It's… it's so…"
"Stunning…" Yami finished, looking dazed. He gently took a step forward, his footsteps almost as soft as Bakura's when he was off on a raid. Somehow, the lyrics were telling his story… he'd wanted to tell Yugi, but he hadn't been able to. And every day, he'd wished he had been.
Bakura turned his head and saw Yami take another step. "Pharaoh?"
Yami offered nothing in the way of a response, his face glazed over, and took another step, turning so he was headed toward the stairs.
"My beating heart begins to race
When I turn to see your face
I remember that sweet dream, in which you talked to me.
I wanted just to be with you
So we could make the dream come true
And you smiled at me, and that was the beginning."
Malik's eyes opened wide. "It's those creatures the Greek sailors talk about… the… the Sirens!" Malik ran and grabbed Yami's arm, trying to pull him back, but the Pharaoh simply shrugged him off and continued, his strides suddenly more determined as if whoever or whatever was outside had heard Malik and was insisting Yami hurry. His feet made gentle thuds on the baked-mud stairs as he went down, and Bakura and Malik rushed after him, determined that their friend should not befall any danger.
"Now unless we can talk in another way
And though I try, 'I love you' is just so hard to say
If I only could be strong
And say the words I feel…"
The voice suddenly became more passionate, emotion flowing through it, a deep pain and sadness reverberating off the walls of the stairwell, as if the words meant something to the owner too, and Bakura and Malik saw the Pharaoh's face lift into a happy smile, his eyes lighting up. As the singer continued, Yami picked up his pace, breaking into a run once he reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Tell me what you felt before
Tell me if you love me now
I have so much I long to ask you, but now the chance has gone.
While I picture it each day
In my heart the memory stays
Flowing round, you're always smiling, and I will hold you close."
As the singer's voice tailed off the last note, Yami pulled the rickety wooden door opened and stepped out into the night, ignoring Bakura and Malik's pleas that he wait.
In the shadows, a shape could be seen standing and turning to face the Pharaoh, who stood enraptured as the figure's soft voice addressed him, each syllable caressing him, dripping with love. "I was hoping you would come."
Malik and Bakura skidded to a halt at Yami's side, small clouds of sand spraying from their feet, and gasped as the figure began to move into the gentle aura of light radiating from their door.
"No…" Malik gasped, clutching onto Bakura's arm, his face a shade paler underneath the tan. "It can't be…"
As the figure stepped into full view, it smiled. With a gentle laugh, it replied, "But it is…"
*~*~*~*~*~*
[1] Horkhenti Irti – one of Horus' aspects (originating from Letopolis) meaning 'Horus who rules the two eyes'. The two eyes in question were, of course, the sun and the moon (Horus being, among other things, God of light).
*~*~*~*~*~*
*cackle* I love leaving cliffies... Come on people, hit the review button and tell me you liked it! ^_^ Oh, and all news with regards to the Forbidden Love doujin is positive - it looks like we may well have a project on our hands!
Hey all! First of all, I want to apologise for not updating as soon as I'd intended, but... well, as many of you know by now, my step-dad died last week, so writing has been... hard - he was more of a dad to me than a step-dad, and I miss him horribly. I'm coping okay now though, and intend to continue with this fic. If you wish to offer condolences, please do it by email, rather than during the review, as I'd rather the reviews were used for that purpose.
Other than that, I'm not too bad, so I'm gonna get on with the reviews now! A few of you expressed concern about me using OC's... but to be fair, I did in Forbidden Love too. OC's will never play anything more than a sub-role or a role complimentray to the major characters in my fics. In short, it's still Yami, Bakura, Malik, Set etc that I'll be focussing on. Okies?
To Ame: Well, the waiting's finally over ^_^ And yeah, I totally agree about Set!
To Yami Yami Yugi: Hehe... well, ya can find out now. Sorry for taking so long! -_-'
To 'Bryanna': Glad ya liked it. Enjoy the second course ^_^
To 'Reiya Moon': Hee... 30+ reviews for one chapter? Yeah, I'd say it was pretty successful ^_^ (My target is 5!!!)
To Yuki KIKI: Sorry for taking so long, and sorry for the OC's... but I wanted to get the fans involved, and share people's work. And like I said, the major guys are the important ones!
To 'me': *sigh* Yes, OC's are a bad thing in many cases... so badly overused... but I'm gonna try my hardest not to, okay? Glad you like it anyway! ^_^
To Painful Life: A bloody demise for Set... you and everyone else, I should think! And you'll see pretty soon if Yami cheers up or not!
To Angelic*demon44: *blink* I'm guessing you didn't read Forbidden Love then? Otherwise it would make sense. Heh, it'll become clear as time goes on ^_^
To rebelphoenix: Heh... yeah, okay, maybe I did... but I got the point across, ne? He's depressed. Distraught. Devastated, if you will. Glad you like my layout (my original experiment got criticised harshly in Forbidden Love -_-), hope ya keep reading!
To silver-fox20: Heh... I dunno, I think this fic's got a lot to live up to... I'm gonna try my hardest to make it at least equal FL though!
To Emriko: haha... "When is Set gonna die?" Now that'd be telling... if he is at all! After all, I bet you thought I'd save Yugi, ne?
To Silverlily aka Blood Moon: Fine, you WILL see me write my way out of it! So nyah! And thanks again for the doujin help, by the way!
To 'Yami Neferbre': Here's the continuation, glad you liked and sorry it took so long!
To Misseystar: Heh... emailed you, ne? *prod* review more often, missey! XD
To Chaotic Bystander: I'm glad ya found it too! hehe... more angst for ya this time though!
To Shadowspecter: Hehe... AND NOW I PUT CHAPTER TWO UP! *glomps back* Hope you love this one too!
To ObiWanGirl: 2nd to review... better luck next time ^_^ Glad ya liked it, hope ya do this too!
To Tasan15: One of your faves? *light blush* Thanks! Here's some more for ya!
To 'Anna': I've never actually pronounced it 'Malik' either - remember, the name is japanese, and in japan 'l' makes a sound much nearer 'r'. Thus it is spelt Malik and pronounced Marik. Glad you liked the fic though, and I'm glad you took the time to go read Forbidden Love too! ^_^
To 'Darkwolf193': *sigh* One Last Breath is in the works... Once I've got my head straightened up, I'll be writing like a beast, so you will get an update soon!
To CrazyAboutYugi: Heh... thanks ^_^ Just please give this one a little chance? I'm sure you'll LOVE my little trump card! ^_^
To Sheol: Well, this was ASAP... probs not S enough though, ne? Hehe, enjoy anyhoo!
To Miyako Cairo: Heh, no offence taken. I've never been secretive about bein bi, and yeah, I'm somewhat hikari\uke sometimes... so I ain't surprised that I sounded like a girl! Glad you liked it!
To Ruth: *huggle* Ish okay... it will get better... I give my word ^_^
To '******': Glad you liked Forbidden Love ^_^ It was a bit sad, ne? Here's the update!
To Taddybear: Yeah, it made me cry a little while I was writing it too... and you'd be thinking of Duat there - I did mention it in that chapter!
To Bakura'sLittleDiscipleofEvil: Hehehe... thanks for all that ^_^ I dunno if you'll need the kleenex this time or not... *passes some your way, just in case*
To 'confused child': The first to make you cry? *swells with happiness* Thankyou! I remember the first fic to make me cry... it was absolutely amazing... so thankyou!
To Hijiri Hitokiri Battousai: Heh... I guess I share some of the pain too now, hey? I suppose it gets better though... But yeah, sad and sweet is nice, and I can kind of identify too now. Hey, brothers in yaoi, and brothers in loss! *huggles*
To Shade25: *super-chibi squeal* Eeeeee... thankyou! *squeezes back* here's the update, and sorry for keeping you waiting!
Many thanks to all of you who submitted OC's, we get to meet three in this chapter. Bear in mind this is their introduction, so of course they're gonna have a bigger role than usual. To those of you who suggested I play me as an OC... although I've tailored the charatcer a bit (so that I don't do the all-time corny and put ME in), I decided to do it! See if you can guess who it is!
The song featured in this chapter is 'Spirit (Kokoro)' by Yasunori Mitsuda. It's a beautiful song, and well worth downloading. Now onwards!
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yami looked up from staring at the floor as a hand was placed gently on his shoulder, and gave the owner a wane smile. The boy gave Yami a feeble grin in return, even though his eyes were partially teary, and sat next to him, silently offering Yami his support. Yami gently slipped an arm round the boy, resting his head on his friend's shoulder. He sighed deeply – although he still hurt deeply, it helped to have his few friends round him. When he was alone, everything focussed on Yugi, and he descended into an abyss of self-pity. With his friends around, he could at least keep afloat.
"Thankyou, Lateef," Yami whispered, blinking a tear back from the corner of his eye.
Lateef simply gave a small nod by means of reply. "Any time… you know that."
The boy's name meant gentle, and that suited him perfectly. His soft eyes, which were almost unique in colour, met you almost like a cushion, and Yami had never seen him lose his temper or even raise his voice, not even when guards tried to wrongfully arrest him. In fact, Yami wondered if Lateef could raise his voice – he was so softly-spoken it was almost like he was afraid he'd injure you if he spoke too loudly. Given the boy's past – which he had, briefly, discussed – Yami wasn't surprised. If he hadn't developed that sort of nature, he'd most likely have wound up dead. The only problem being that he was now too submissive for his own safety – many was the time Bakura or Malik had rescued him from the otherwise unresisted clutches of slave traders or would-be attackers. The boy's lithe form, almost feminine in shape, certainly meant many of the more lecherous members of the public lusted after him.
Yami sighed again. "I miss him so much… and, if I'd just stayed there for five more…"
Lateef shushed the Pharaoh into silence. "Look, it really wasn't your fault… You know that. Blaming yourself only makes it harder."
Sniffling, Yami nodded his agreement, clutching tightly onto Lateef's loose garments as he fought the tears back.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Not far across the room, four others stood in quiet discussion, checking across to see if Yami was okay frequently. They were pretty sure that if anyone could comfort him, Lateef was the one. Not that *they* hadn't been speaking to him, of course – he'd simply gone away for a quiet moment, and had started looking lonely again. Bakura, stood behind Malik with his arms snaked round his love's waist, addressed one of the others.
"Adair," he murmured. "Why in Ra's name do you keep grinning like that?" This earned Bakura a slight nudge from an irritated Malik – Bakura followed the sun-God, while Malik favoured Osiris, and they constantly bickered over whose God was the superior. Malik was still yet to find a response to Bakura's defence of "Well *my* God didn't get killed by his son…"
Adair flicked one of the multitude of spikes of near-black hair that covered his forehead out of the way of his eye and grinned cockily. Despite the occasion, everyone was trying to keep upbeat, hoping to lift Yami's mood with them, and no-one managed it better than Adair. "I was just noticing the way Akemi keeps looking over there… seems he's interested in someone, and I bet it isn't the Pharaoh."
Akemi simply folded his arms and snorted at Adair, giving him a non-committal look. He snapped his head back to face Bakura sharply, causing his hair, which was an even lighter blonde than Malik's and went halfway down his back, to flail behind him. Akemi was even quieter than Lateef, though he carried an air of confidence about him that Lateef lacked, and was certainly by no means as gentle. His name meant 'bright and beautiful', and it suited him as well as Lateef's did, with his honeyed-sun eyes, willowy form and almost feline grace. "I'm just concerned," came the brusque defence.
Malik chuckled slightly at this. He'd been having the same thoughts as Adair, though he wasn't sure if it was appropriate to point it out – but then, it was no surprise that Adair had. He certainly had the biggest attitude of the group. He was about to add a choice comment of his own, when he saw Yami and Lateef stand and begin to walk across to them. Together, the six moved off to grab a drink and a seat each, Malik on Bakura's lap as usual.
Once they were all comfortable, Yami sighed loudly. "Gods… I miss him so much…" Yami stared distantly into the bottom of his chalice – doubtless stolen from the pricier end of the market square – as if it might hold some clue as to how to bring Yugi back. He felt tears stinging his eyes once more, and he closed them firmly, not wanting to bring his friends down. "Yugi…" he sighed, a tear dropping and mixing with the wine before him. Whispering, almost silently, Yami addressed the Gods once more, as he had done several times daily since he'd been able to do anything other than cry. "Why… why did you take him? He did no wrong… he was so innocent and pure… he deserved so much more than even I could give him… he…"
Yami felt a shuddery breath run through him, and ceased his murmurings, instead trying to compose himself. Looking up with teary eyes, Yami gazed round at his five friends. "Thankyou, all of you…" he began. "You've all stood by me, through all my hardship… I can never say how much you all mean, nor how grateful I am that you've allowed me to let Yugi's memory live on…" Yami felt his voice begin to choke, and fell silent again.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Eventually, the conversation eased away from the reason they were all gathered there, and managed to drift to lighter matters. At that particular moment, Bakura was joking about Malik's first thievery lesson, much to Malik's annoyance.
"You know how people are when they first get together, especially young boys. All over eachother, where they can help it."
Adair smirked at this. "And you two are any different now how?"
Everyone chuckled, even Yami, and Bakura continued his story with a grin. "Malik just couldn't help himself. I was trying to teach him to pick my pocket. He didn't learn the basics too badly – he could get his hand in without any trouble at all…" Malik grinned wickedly as Bakura carried on. "It was just getting it out that was the problem… it seemed to quite enjoy being there."
Malik twitched suddenly as Bakura prodded him in the side playfully, nearly falling off Bakura's lap. With a small frown, he replied, "Well I don't recall you exactly arguing, mister 'Oh Malik, faster…' In fact, if I recall correctly, your hand missed my pocket entirely…"
Bakura's cheeks tinged pink at this, embarrassed about the anecdote and that his had been thrown back in his face, and Adair laughed loudly. "Aww, the King of Thieves is blushing!"
This only caused Bakura to blush even more deeply, and he jumped to his feet – accidentally throwing Malik to the floor in the process – and pointed a finger at Adair. "You be quiet!" he yelled furiously. "I've heard some bed-time stories about you too!"
Adair smirked and leaned back in his seat. "All true, my friend."
Malik, dusting himself off, stood up. "Even the one about the goat?" he enquired innocently.
Adair's dark blue eyes went wide. "W… who told you that???"
Malik and Bakura both raised an eyebrow simultaneously. "You mean it's true?"
Adair growled and, leaping to his feet, charged at the two thieves, resorting to violence as a last means of defending his name, and before long the three were involved in a large scuffle on the floor.
*~*~*~*~*~*
No-one had noticed, during the commotion, Akemi stand up and head to the window. There he stood, his head tipped slightly to one side aid his hearing. A thoughtful look crossed his face as he squinted into the darkness, wishing that Horkhenti Irti [1] had an eye open tonight. He wasn't certain, but…
"Yami!" he called over the racket, startling both the Pharaoh and Lateef – they really weren't used to hearing Akemi yell. "Make them shut up a moment!"
Yami, picking up one of the feather-stuffed sacks that served as seat padding, duly obliged, beating all three over the head until they remained silent, somewhat dazed. Bakura was the first to recover, and he growled angrily "What in Ra's name do you think you're doing Pharaoh?"
"Osiris's name…" Malik corrected.
Akemi shushed them all again, and listened hard. Soon, the other's ears had adjusted to the soft sound, and one by one they cottoned on to what it was. Bakura stood beside Akemi and squinted down, barely able to make out the shadowy outline of a figure sat two floors below them, directly under the window. Bakura pulled his head back in and turned to the others. "Singing?"
They all nodded, and came closer to the window so they could make out the words.
"I've been watching you a while
Since you walked into my life
Monday morning when first I heard you speak to me.
I was too shy to let you know
Much too scared to let my feelings show
But you shielded me and that was the beginning."
They all blinked softly. The voice was beautiful, crystal-clear and ringing gently through the night, the stillness of the shadows letting the voice radiate peacefully, creating a serene feeling everywhere it reached.
"Now unless we can talk in another way
And though I try, 'I love you' is just so hard to say
If I only could be strong
And say the words I feel…"
"Gods…" Lateef whispered, afraid of breaking the spell. "It's… it's so…"
"Stunning…" Yami finished, looking dazed. He gently took a step forward, his footsteps almost as soft as Bakura's when he was off on a raid. Somehow, the lyrics were telling his story… he'd wanted to tell Yugi, but he hadn't been able to. And every day, he'd wished he had been.
Bakura turned his head and saw Yami take another step. "Pharaoh?"
Yami offered nothing in the way of a response, his face glazed over, and took another step, turning so he was headed toward the stairs.
"My beating heart begins to race
When I turn to see your face
I remember that sweet dream, in which you talked to me.
I wanted just to be with you
So we could make the dream come true
And you smiled at me, and that was the beginning."
Malik's eyes opened wide. "It's those creatures the Greek sailors talk about… the… the Sirens!" Malik ran and grabbed Yami's arm, trying to pull him back, but the Pharaoh simply shrugged him off and continued, his strides suddenly more determined as if whoever or whatever was outside had heard Malik and was insisting Yami hurry. His feet made gentle thuds on the baked-mud stairs as he went down, and Bakura and Malik rushed after him, determined that their friend should not befall any danger.
"Now unless we can talk in another way
And though I try, 'I love you' is just so hard to say
If I only could be strong
And say the words I feel…"
The voice suddenly became more passionate, emotion flowing through it, a deep pain and sadness reverberating off the walls of the stairwell, as if the words meant something to the owner too, and Bakura and Malik saw the Pharaoh's face lift into a happy smile, his eyes lighting up. As the singer continued, Yami picked up his pace, breaking into a run once he reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Tell me what you felt before
Tell me if you love me now
I have so much I long to ask you, but now the chance has gone.
While I picture it each day
In my heart the memory stays
Flowing round, you're always smiling, and I will hold you close."
As the singer's voice tailed off the last note, Yami pulled the rickety wooden door opened and stepped out into the night, ignoring Bakura and Malik's pleas that he wait.
In the shadows, a shape could be seen standing and turning to face the Pharaoh, who stood enraptured as the figure's soft voice addressed him, each syllable caressing him, dripping with love. "I was hoping you would come."
Malik and Bakura skidded to a halt at Yami's side, small clouds of sand spraying from their feet, and gasped as the figure began to move into the gentle aura of light radiating from their door.
"No…" Malik gasped, clutching onto Bakura's arm, his face a shade paler underneath the tan. "It can't be…"
As the figure stepped into full view, it smiled. With a gentle laugh, it replied, "But it is…"
*~*~*~*~*~*
[1] Horkhenti Irti – one of Horus' aspects (originating from Letopolis) meaning 'Horus who rules the two eyes'. The two eyes in question were, of course, the sun and the moon (Horus being, among other things, God of light).
*~*~*~*~*~*
*cackle* I love leaving cliffies... Come on people, hit the review button and tell me you liked it! ^_^ Oh, and all news with regards to the Forbidden Love doujin is positive - it looks like we may well have a project on our hands!
