Sakakku
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Notes: To answer some commonly-asked questions:
Téa doesn't have access to any cards, so she wouldn't have a chance to learn to Summon.
No OC romances in this story. Mostly because I'd feel weird writing a romance between one of my friends and Seto in this fic. ::glances at Mamono:: Hmm, so what do you think about all this winking being shot at you two? ()
Yes, I'm leading up to a dramatic clash that starts… here, I guess, and will last about ten chapters or so.
Yes, Seto's- now Ezra's- Luster Dragon is the 6-star Monster. You can tell by the description.
Now, onto the fic!
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Chapter 20
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Joey entered Akuma by night.
It was worse than he remembered it. There was a feeling in the air that he equated to wading through Jello- cold, slippery, and hard to breathe in. He rubbed his hands together vigorously, and clutched his pack closer. "Not fun, huh, Bob?" he whispered. Though the lizard probably couldn't hear him, much know he was being spoken to, it made Joey feel less alone. Silly, perhaps, but then again no one was around to make fun of him.
Akuma was not a nice place. Whether you were a prisoner, escapee, or passer-by, it was grey and dismal. Prosperous, since Marik and Bakura centered their wealth in Akuma, but unpleasant. People who lived in Akuma were hated throughout the world. They had sold out their friends and neighbors, gone straight over to Marik and Bakura, and were rewarded for their greed.
Joey edged into the shadows and pulled off his hood. Nikkō had stitched it quickly for him. Though the fabric was nice, and the gesture was great, he hated it. He hated the closed-in feeling it gave him. He'd be safe in this dark alley for the night. In the morning, he could start talking to the villagers, once again under the safety of the hood.
He let out a yawn and curled up in the most out-of-the-way corner he could find. He wanted to use the pack as a pillow, but Bob was still in there. He settled for propping his head up on his arms, the hood folded up and acting as a meager cushion.
He fell asleep but was woken a short time later. He didn't know how long he'd slept- not long enough, the back of his mind said ruefully, but he had other things on his mind. Someone was coming.
The footsteps were close to his head, and he scrambled back swiftly, on all fours. When he was about fifty feet away, he realized in dismay that he'd left his pack behind. His hood too, he realized; it must have fallen off his arm.
He hid behind a stacked pile of empty wooden crates, peering out from between the slits. The clouds shifted overhead, and moonlight spilled into the alley. A huge form loomed out of the shadows; Joey stifled a scream. He was almost relieved to recognize it as a Rare Hunter; in the dark, the thing had looked like everyone's worst nightmare manifested.
The man seemed to be limping; at the very least he was favoring one leg. His hood was pushed back. Joey noted the lined face; a closer examination revealed that it was tattooed all over. Strong black hair was pulled back into a ponytail though the man was mostly bald. He was tall and broad-shouldered. Overall, Joey thought, gulping, not a man to be trifled with. He clenched his fists.
The man's foot hit something soft. "What's this?" he asked aloud, in a voice gentler than Joey would have guessed but deep enough to fit the frame. He stooped down and scooped up Joey's pack; he either missed the hood or it was farther away. "Who's there?" This time his voice was sharper.
Wait a second. Joey knew this man! Not from his stay in the dungeons, though he didn't doubt that the man had been in the palace at the time. From- from-
From a year ago, when he'd been under the mind-control of Marik. His throat closed up. This Rare Hunter had been present a year ago, when all this had started- was probably responsible for this whole mess- might even had seen Joey while he was brainwashed, maybe helped-
A feral snarl, and Joey leaped out from behind the crates. His eyes flashed, and he dimly registered the Rare Hunter spinning to face him in alarm. Then Ax Warrior jumped forward, seemingly coming from midair, and launched itself at the Hunter. Joey wasn't far behind his Monster, either. He attacked the Hunter from the right, pounding and snatching with his fists.
"Wait!"
Joey didn't listen, blinded by rage. What, did the Hunter think he was stupid?
A fist from Ax Warrior sent the man flying. As the Monster hurried forward, Joey noticed that the Hunter wasn't reaching for his own deck. In fact, he wasn't trying to defend himself at all.
"Hold on a second!"
At his command, Ax Warrior stopped in midstep. Joey took a quick look at the man. He was sitting on the ground, hands up over his head.
"Who are you?" Joey demanded.
"I am Odion," the man said calmly. "I recognize you, Mister Wheeler. Please, hold off your Monster while I explain."
So. The man knew him too. Joey had heard Odion's name, usually uttered with respect from the guards in the dungeons. This alone was cause to distrust the man.
"He won't attack yet, but one funny move-" Joey threatened. Odion simply nodded.
"I understand your caution."
Joey hesitated to sit, but the man made no motion to rise. He simply arranged himself in a cross-legged position. Finally, Joey plopped down, a fair distance from the Hunter. Ax Warrior took up a defensive position behind his master.
"I am Odion," the man restated. "I was a Rare Hunter employed by Marik and Bakura, until recently."
"Recently?" Joey demanded, taking in the man's cloak. "How recently?"
"Tonight," Odion said simply, his dark eyes glittering.
"Why?" he asked suspiciously. "What happened?"
"I betrayed my masters," Odion stated, voice low and sad. Joey snorted at the tone, but was slightly impressed.
"Yeah? How? What'd you do?"
"I assisted in the attempted escape of one of the prisoners," Odion said. "A young lady named Miss Téa Gardner. I believe you knew her in the past."
Joey scrambled to his knees. "You helped Téa?"
"I failed."
"But-" Joey stopped. His eyes fell. "What happened? Please, tell me everything."
The moon had nearly disappeared behind the tops of the low buildings by the time they were finished talking. Joey had reclaimed his pack; he'd decided to let Bob wander around and was moodily following the lizard with his eyes. Odion had sunk further and further into a state of depression as his tale continued and his utter failure became apparent to him.
"Now what?" Joey asked, dragging his finger through the dirt.
"Here."
Joey glanced up to see Odion taking off the Rare Hunter cloak; he wore rough pants and a simple shirt underneath. "Take this," Odion said, handing him the cloak. "It might prove useful to you and I have no further need for it."
Joey studied the cloak a minute, his eyes glazing over. It had just become apparent to him what he needed to do.
"All right," he said, voice full of determination. In the growing light, he searched around for the hood, and pulled it back on. "Where are you going?"
Odion shrugged tiredly. "I'll have to leave the village. I don't know."
"I wish I could help," Joey said, hesitating. But he didn't think there was anything he could do; apparently, neither did Odion. He simply shook his head.
"Best of luck, Mister Wheeler."
"Hey, thanks," Joey said, sticking out his hand. After a brief pause, Odion shook it. "Good luck to you too."
Odion nodded, gave a final look to the first rays of sun, and ducked down the alley and out of sight. Joey, folding up the cloak and carrying it under his arm, headed straight for the palace. His jaw was set. He knew what was coming.
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"Hello."
Ryou, hunched over the book, froze. Slowly, he lifted his head to make eye contact with Kaya. She was waiting not-so-patiently, her eyes narrow and annoyed. "H-hello?" he tried to sputter out.
"Listen," she said, crossing the room to the door. The one that led to Malik's room. Then she proceeded to stick her hands on it, into the shadows, and ignore him.
Ryou tried to listen, but he didn't hear anything. He was afraid to talk, so he just watched her.
After about five minutes, she spun to face him. "Listen," she said again. "If you hit the door once, a mirror will open up and you'll be able to see into Malik's room. If you hit it again, it'll become a window, and you two can talk to each other. Hit it a third time, and it'll go away. Just keep doing that. See?"
Ryou was staring at her, open-mouthed. She gave him an impatient look. "Get it? It's not that hard, really."
"Why?"
Kaya flinched and turned away. "I dreamed about my mother last night," she said distantly. She didn't seem to be responding to his question at first, but Ryou listened closely. "I miss her. I wonder what she would do if she were here."
She stayed that way, head cocked to the side. Ryou ventured to put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off, slightly irritated.
"Thanks," he said softly. This didn't seem to placate her any. He wondered with a sigh what she wanted. Probably to be left alone. Probably for her mother to be alive again.
"Well, thanks," he started to say again, but she gave a heavy and exasperated sigh.
"Get over it, Ryou," she said, walking over to the wall and putting her hand on the shadows. Probably reinforcing the spell that had been there, Ryou realized, to cover her tracks. Oh, well, it wasn't like he could escape anyway.
Much as he wanted to talk to Malik, he restrained himself, waiting until she had left the room. She probably would just get annoyed if he tried to use her window now. But when she exited a few seconds later, refusing to look over at him, he rushed over to the door.
He tentatively balled his hand up into a fist and smacked it, the way he had seen her do when she magicked it the first time.
The blackness around the door suddenly cleared. It shifted away, revealing a small window about as high as Ryou's head and twice as long. He peered through, seeing Malik. The blonde was sitting on the floor, leaning against the desk; it didn't look like a very comfortable position but Malik didn't seem to notice. He was methodically picking at loose threads around his shirtsleeve, pulling them off, and dispersing them around the carpet.
Ryou hit the window again. Nothing seemed to change. He tried to put his head through- nothing happened; it was an invisible barrier. He put his mouth as close as he could and whispered, "Malik!"
Malik glanced up sharply. His intense eyes scanned the room once, before settling on Ryou. In a flash, he was up, pressed against the door. "Ryou?"
"Malik!" Ryou said, breaking out into a smile. "I'm so glad to see you!"
"I- I'm glad to see you, Ryou, but how? What's going on?"
Ryou pulled back slightly so Malik could see more of his face. "Kaya- this magician- Geoff's sister!-" When he hit on this right description, Malik nodded, and he went on, "she put it in for me. It's a secret. But we can talk now! Finally!"
"Kaya put it in?" Malik asked thoughtfully, his eyes shining. "Geoff is on my side- he's trying to help me too. He's great. Hey- what happened to your walls?"
Ryou glanced over his shoulder at the shifting shadows. "Kaya did that too."
"How does that help you?" Malik asked doubtfully.
"It's not supposed to. When her old locks broke, Kaya got mad and put these up. It's definitely going to stop me from escaping, like she's supposed to be doing." Ryou laughed ruefully, but Malik drew back.
"Maybe she's not like Geoff after all," he mused lightly. "What's she like, Ryou? Tell me. We can stay up all night talking if we have to."
Ryou nodded agreeably. Maybe, somehow, comparing notes would help- not that there was really that much to tell.
xXx
Joey stopped just outside the furthest perimeter of Rare Hunter patrols. Hands trembling ever-so-slightly, he unfolded the Rare Hunter cloak. He quickly stripped off his outermost garments, and tugged the cloak on over his rough shirt and shorts.
He pulled out the last of his bread and shoved it in his mouth. He started to cram his old clothes into the pack, but stopped.
"Great," he grumbled, reaching in and lifting out Bob. "I didn't think of you when I started planning."
Bob didn't react. Joey chewed nervously on his lip a moment, eyeing the intimidating wall surrounding Marik and Bakura's palace. It was pure white and fairly tall- tall enough, he added mentally. When he escaped the first time, he'd left through the main gate. The only gate. There had been a single guard, and he was dozing. Joey crept right by. He was willing to bet security wasn't that relaxed anymore, though.
"Okay," he finally decided, turning up the front of his shirt. He twisted it, creating a small pouch, and slipped Bob inside. After lightly bouncing a little, to make sure the pouch would hold, he continued shoving the clothes into the pack. He looked around; hid it under a scraggly bush, the first place he found, and straightened up. Clenching his teeth and trusting to fate, he walked briskly up to the front gate, nodded at the three guards, and headed directly into the palace.