And I am shocked at myself. I actually have an update exactly one week after my last one. O.o It must be a full moon or something. There's no way I'm usually like this.
::taps pencil on chin:: There's really not much I can say about this chapter. Mild fluffiness, not all characters showing up, pretty random. The chapter came from a thought that I wanted it to have a "morning after" feel. And what brings out thoughts of worst-kind- or-morning after? Hangovers! Not much advancement in the plot department, which is mildly annoying. Hopefully no one accusing me of "bashing Duke." I'm messing with him, not bashing. I don't bash. It's beneath the dignity of any self-respecting fic-writer. And if you can't poke fun at something/one you like, you need to lighten up a bit I'm afraid.
One thing that bugged me about this chapter, and the last one: I can't write Yugi. If I try, I think of him as younger than he is. I CAN'T HELP IT!!! And I was worried about whether Duke was amazingly OOC. If he is, I apologise. I haven't seen the episode's where he featured a lot, so I hereby apologise if I get it completely wrong. And yes, I know he and Tristan aren't friends in the series. This is why it's classed as an AU.
Little random musing for today is when I'm bringing my Serenity part in, and a few other little random bits. I really don't know how long this is going to be, and I'm hoping it doesn't run to much over 20. I have a feeling people would kill me if I dragged it on that long. And contrary to all opinions, I value my life.
::thinks:: So why the hell did I start writing fanfiction...?
Another random musing is when my reviewers are going to get my plot (such as it is) and tell me exactly what's going to happen. I have faith in my reviewers. They will guess what'll happen before I've even written it, and THEN where will I be?
IT'S MY BIRTHDAY NEXT SATURDAY!!!!! SATURDAY THE NINTH OF OCTOBER!!! ::Calms down:: Prize for the one who guesses how old I am. Maybe. But I'm happy about it. Hence though, there might not be an update on that day. Little advance warning so no one claims "They thought this was dead." ::coughcoughmarukencough::
::reads back:: Jesus Christ that's a long ramble. Apologies. Let's just move right onto the story shall we...
Head.
Buried under a pillow and lathered in drool.
Check.
Body.
Twisted into positions never intended for a human body, and falling off a couch.
Check.
Arms: two.
See above.
Legs: two.
OUCH!
Tristan jerked upright with a gasp of pain, fell off the sofa, clamped his hands around his aching calves and somehow managed to get the drool off his face.
What a way to wake up...
"Try standing on them."
If Tristan hadn't been in agony, he would have commented on such obvious stupidity. As it was, he grunted and continued to knead the muscles.
There was a sigh and footsteps, then surprisingly strong hands grabbed his leg and forced him to plant his foot firmly on the floor.
The brunette yelped, but the pain went soon after. He didn't wait to be man- handled some more but repeated the action himself with his other foot.
Duke grinned, managing both tired and smug in the same expression. "Morning," he greeted, leaning an elbow on Tristan's knee. "You okay?"
Tristan growled and shoved the black haired boy away. "I'd be better if you weren't leaning on me!" he snarled.
"Well excuse me!" Duke snapped back as he sat up. "What the hell is your problem?"
"I woke up with cramp in both legs! What do you think!?!"
To his surprise, instead of yelling, Duke grinned at him again. "Whatever," he said, obviously trying to mimic Tristan's casual way of saying it and failing miserably. "Your breakfast's over there."
The pointy-haired one gave him a suspicious glare, but scooped up the plate and wolfed down the cold... food.
Duke had made it. He didn't want to know what of.
"Thanks," he said finally. Duke just waved a hand dismissively and rose.
"For the cramp thing as well," Tristan persisted. "How'd you figure that out?"
Duke leaned against the wall - Tristan never understood why people did that. What was wrong with the chairs? - and spread his hands. "I worked in all sorts of places before I met you." When he saw Tristan still looking blank, the man shrugged. "You pick these things up." His grin turned sardonic. "I've been around..."
"There are about seventy girls who could've told me that," Tristan grumbled, and his friend snickered.
Now that Tristan could finally focus on something other than embarrassment, "OW" and "Foooood..." he noticed something.
Duke - who rarely moved with anything less than the grace of a professional dancer, even when wasted - was stumbling a little, as though he wasn't one hundred percent sure the floor was there. He hadn't bothered putting up his hair, and today it fell around his face in thin rat's tails. His usual confidence was still in place (apparently), but it seemed to be wobbling, trembling as much as the guy was.
Tristan could sum it up in one sentence:
"Who are you and what've you done with Duke?"
Duke gave him the dead-eye, accentuated by the purple bags under his sleep-filled eyes.
"Don't give me that look." Tristan snapped, before starting to tick off on his fingers. "You're up before mid-afternoon, you're acting concerned, you're actually being quiet for once in your life, you look like sh - oops, lady present - "
Duke was forcibly jerked out of the semi-trance he'd fallen under, whirling around to scowl at Tristan.
"That joke is dead and rotting!! What in hell resurrected it?" Duke looked on the verge of throwing a hissy fit, and his hands were balling into fists.
So for the first two months of their flat-share (not to mention everytime he got mad) Tristan accused him of being a woman! It wasn't his fault Duke looked girly and got PMT!
"I wasn't talking about you! I just assumed it was a woman who chewed you up and spat you out!"
Duke carried on glaring for a moment, but he couldn't hold it. It trembled, wobbled, and finally he gave up and chuckled.
"You'd better be careful Tristan," he warned. "That sounded like something I'd say."
His face must have been a picture of horror, because Duke got mock-insulted. But Tristan wasn't going to be distracted again.
"Are you gonna stop messing about and just fill me in? Or do I have to beat it out of you?"
Duke grizzled. "I didn't sleep last night moron. Isn't it obvious?"
"You don't sleep anyway. So go on, spill."
Duke scowled at him, but was apparently thinking about it. He knew Tristan wasn't joking about hitting, he was more than capable - and if he was in the right mood, willing - to thump Duke for being aggravating. The man rubbed his neck while he thought, and as his hand moved away, Tristan gasped.
"What now?" Duke demanded, exasperated. Tristan didn't answer immediately, but his eyes were focused on his throat. Duke started to look a little unnerved. "What?"
Tristan stood up, went over to Duke and tugged his chin to one side, ignoring the squeaky yelp from his (soon-to-be-ex) friend, and the fists that hammered against his chest. Yep, it wasn't just a trick of the light, it was real. A broad, purple bruise, spreading over Duke's neck, rather like...
"This looks like someone grabbed you," Tristan muttered, not releasing Duke's chin, even though his friend had ceased his struggles. It wasn't the usual purply- black of a normal bruise, it was more red-purple, as though it had hurt.
Duke jerked himself free from the slowly slackening grasp, moving away and folding his arms across his chest. "So?"
"SO?" Tristan exploded. "Someone comes and grabs you and you act like it's no big deal!?! I wanna know what happened!"
Duke looked at him out of the corner of his eyes. "Don't you have to go to work?"
"Don't start. I can wait."
Duke sighed. "It's nothing to do with you. It was just a mistake I made okay? I made a deal with someone. He came by last night to remind me of it."
Tristan narrowed his eyes. It sounded like the truth, and he his instincts were telling him that Duke wasn't lying (for what was possibly the first time ever), but those same instincts were screaming loud and clear that Duke wasn't telling the whole story.
"And..."
"What do you mean 'And'? That's it."
"Something else must have happened." Tristan said, his eyes never leaving that half-turned back. "I know you, remember? If that was true, it would've been one of the first things you mentioned this morning!"
Duke turned, his face grim and his lips a thin line. He glared at Tristan for a long moment, then his face softened slightly. "Just... be careful, kay? Keep an eye out."
Tristan blinked. There was something nagging at him, telling him that he'd just missed the most important part of the whole conversation, the whole reason Duke was being more evasive than usual.
"Don't you have to go to work?" the black haired boy snapped, dragging him away from his thoughts.
"Oh cra - " Tristan tore around the room, scrambling into boots and clean clothes at near-light speeds. Before he'd realised it, he was clattering down the stairs and yelling a vague goodbye to Duke, and sprinting to the castle.
Hopefully, Pegasus would have assigned someone else to the foreigners today...
Duke sighed and slumped against the wall, running a hand through his hair. He pulled a face at the feel of it, and mentally resolved to take a shower before work. Almost automatically, his fingers slipped from his hair to the bruise.
He hadn't lied when he'd told Tristan it had been a warning. He may have inflicted it on himself, when he'd been curled up on his bed, squeezing at arms, shoulders and throat out of sheer panic, but the demon had removed some of its magic from him, that was why he'd bruised. He remembered it well, from when it had first started. Easy bruising... coughing up blood... Either the demon was distracted, or he was telling Duke to get his act together.
The man stretched and headed grimly for the bathroom. Maybe he'd think of something he could do to get out of this mess, without getting himself or Tristan killed. Maybe, if he was lucky, he'd drown in the bath. He probably would, trying to avoid being hit by that flying pig.
Téa had been up half the night after they'd got rid of the visitors, just helping Yugi pack. Afterwards, he'd gone to say goodbye to his grandfather - how the boys got in and out of the palace Téa didn't know, and didn't want to know. All she knew about the palace was that Yami had some unspecified job there, and Mister Motou worked in the basement - it seemed weird to call them a basement, as though the stone monstrosity was just another house - with a friend of his, Hawky or something.
Yugi had come back somewhere around midnight, sneaking around the place because he thought she was asleep. She had been curled up on the sofa, waiting for them to come home. The short boy, in the midst of his sneaking, had come up to her and just lightly kissed her forehead. It was one of those little, innocent things that brought you out in a blush even to remember them.
Yami had come home around three, in a considerably better mood than the one he'd left in.
("Has he gone?"
"Not yet. He doesn't leave till morning."
"Téa, it IS morning.")
He'd seemed anxious, as though he really thought that Yugi would go without saying goodbye to his big brother.
("Speaking of that..."
"Don't start Téa."
"I wasn't going to start. I was just going to ask if you were okay. You're not usually this late.")
He wouldn't, Yugi wasn't like that. No matter what mood he was in, he wouldn't dream of not saying goodbye to everyone. And not saying it to Yami was like the sun not rising: Not likely in this lifetime.
("If you're going to see Yugi off later, don't you think you should get some rest?"
"Are you trying to change the sub-"
"Goodnight Téa.")
Yugi came down the stairs, looking very much subdued. His eyes were dry, but there was an air of hurt radiating around him. "Yami's gone," he said tonelessly. "I would've thought he'd at least have waited for me..."
Téa frowned at this, before hugging her little friend. He stiffened almost imperceptibly, then returned it. One of her hands rose without her realising and gently stroked his spiky three-coloured hair. Yami was in so much trouble if she saw him later...
"And what's this?" a smooth voice teased from the doorway. "I turn my back for five seconds, and I find you two in a clinch on my return!"
The two looked up, startled, and saw the man in question stood in the doorway, hands on his hips and a mock-shocked-scowl on his face. He held the expression for a second or two longer, then dropped it in favour of a grin and holding out his arms to his little brother.
At least, that's who she assumed they were for. Who she hoped they were for was a very different thing, and it was all she could do to stop her flinging herself at him, much as Yugi was doing.
Yugi and Yami stood in the doorway, hugging tightly. Yami wasn't as affectionate as his little brother, so it was a rare moment when you saw a scene like that. It was kinda cute.
Téa's smile drooped slightly, as her thoughts drifted in a direction she didn't like.
'This is the last time we'll be like this for a while... The three of us being happy... If Yami's right about the dangers of the road Yugi's taking, then maybe we won't be like this ever again...'
Pure fear spasmed through her, and she stepped forwards to lock her arms around the brothers. The two looked slightly surprised, then accepted her into the embrace.
"Be careful," she pleaded with Yugi. "Come back soon."
Yugi grinned up at her. "I always am," he said cheerfully, his earlier despondency gone completely. "And I don't think I can trust you two alone without me,"
Téa squawked and smacked him lightly. "Who've you been talking to!?!" she demanded. "What've they done to my little innocent Yugi?"
Yugi blinked his wide violet eyes at her. "Wha - I just meant that you and Yami would be moping around all the time." His expression was sweetly bemused. "What did you think I meant?"
Téa flushed a brilliant shade of red, and her mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried to think of an explanation.
Yami was staring at her she noticed. Staring at her with violet eyes that sparkled with mirth and an expression that suggested that he was biting his lips to stop himself laughing. Unfortunately, compressing the explosion only made it greater, and when it was finally unleashed it was completely different to his usual snicker. He ended up leaning against the wall for support as he stared at the look on her face, his face a little flushed - not even pink if you compared it to hers - and one arm draped around Yugi's shoulders.
He tried to say something, but the look on her face set him off again until Yugi was the only thing supporting him. But there had been something about that last peal of laughter, something she didn't like.
"Yami?" Yugi asked. "Yami?"
"Yes?"
"What's wrong? And don't say it was the look of Téa's face, because I don't think that's it. Something's wrong." Yugi stared up at Yami with his innocent purple eyes, silently appealing and scowling.
Yami opened his mouth, obviously considering denying it, but Téa knew he wouldn't go through with it. One look into Yugi's trusting gaze could make even the most hardened criminal crack.
"You really want to know?" he asked, raising an eyebrow sceptically. "Because I can guarantee that it's one thing you will wish I hadn't told you."
Yugi just looked even more determined.
"This morning I went to see grandpa. I wanted to read the latest reports from that area." He leaned down so he could look directly into his brother's eyes. "They were dated last year. We sent three messengers down that way this year, and we always ask for reports when they come back." He paused just long enough for this to sink in, before he added softly: "No one who went down to that area came back. NONE of them."
Yugi blinked, and Téa squeaked in fear. Yami continued. "Three of my best messengers. The only thing we know for certain is that the last one found the remains of the other two dumped in the river." He spread his hands, sighing. "I don't know whay happened, but I don't want it to happen to you." Before anyone else could comment, he tugged the shorter boy into a tight embrace, burying his face in his brother's hair. "Just... be careful, okay? Come back soon."
Yugi looked up at his brother and squeezed his hand. "I am and I will," he repeated, much as he had to Téa. The only difference was that his tone was much more serious now, and his violet eyes. "I wouldn't leave you like that."
"I know that," Yami snapped roughly, quickly swiping at his cheek as though dashing away a few tears. "I'd kill you if you did. I would bring you back just so I could kill you again."
Yugi hugged his brother tightly once more, then did the same to Téa. She was feeling a little fuzzy now, what with all the hugs. Fuzzy in the happy "I'm-gonna-float- to-the-ceiling" way.
"Are you both coming to see me off?" he asked, knowing the answer already. Of course they were. They always did.
They both nodded, draping their arms around his shoulders. Or, that would have been the plan, but Yugi took it into his head to do something different. He caught Téa's arm and tugged her down to his level so he could give her a quick kiss.
She may have been fuzzy from all the hugs, but she positively melted at the kiss. It took the bemused brother's five minutes to revive her from her happy little puddle on the floor.
Mai was not a morning person. She detested them with a passion once she realised they existed. But today, necessity made her get up.
The blonde watched the figures clutching the curtain rail and smiled slightly. They weren't family in the purest sense of the word, nor were they friends. They were shadows, guardians, bonded to her family by blood. (So maybe Tristan had given her the right word...) Hence the fact that they were staying in her room as opposed to going to separate ones.
Her grin turned indulgent as she reclined on the silk sheets. They'd forced her to take the bed - not that she'd needed much forcing. Their bodies were not designed for lying down, hence the dangling from the curtain rails. Mai's human body, once she'd negotiated the wings, was perfect for it, and the silk felt wonderful.
This morning, she'd have to do something. Talk to Kaiba. Figure out what he was like. The smile was now malicious - she might even get the opportunity to use her amazing harpy wiles on him while she was at it.
Not that she minded of course.
But surely that could wait a few more minutes? A few more minutes of curling up on this deliciously comfortable bed...
A few minutes later, there was no question of going to see Kaiba: she was fast asleep.
In another bedroom - considerably smaller and plainer than Mai's - Mokuba woke up slowly, mind still in that dozy-and-fluffy-and-fuzzy state where nothing seemed real.
Well, one thing did: the long arm wrapped securely around his waist, the warm body he was tucked against, and the slow, even whistling of breath above his head.
Mokuba had fallen asleep in his brother's bed once again, and Seto hadn't had the heart to move him.
The boy smiled and snuggled back into his brother's chest. He opened his cloudy- sky eyes and let them rove over the room while his mind woke up.
People had been surprised when Seto refused to have one of the huge bedrooms. He preferred practicality over appearances he told them (or claimed he told them; Mokuba had a feeling that he'd been a little less polite than that), and wasn't going to be sleeping in a room where he had to walk a mile to get to anything.
And, he'd added with a bland look, anyone coming to assassinate him wouldn't expect him to be in one of the smaller servants rooms, would they?
Mokuba had the room next to his, and it reassured him to know that his brother was close enough to hear him when he called. Mokuba had checked this a few times, accidentally, rousing his brother with terrified screams.
But Seto hadn't been mad. And he still let Mokuba curl up in his bed when he was scared.
Mokuba's wandering eyes came to rest on the chair by Seto's desk. While his memory wasn't as perfect as Seto's, he was sure that coat hadn't been there when he'd gone to sleep. He was certain.
Mokuba frowned at this. There was an obvious reason as to why the coat was the there, but it wasn't possible. He repeated this to himself, burying his head in the pillow in an effort to block out the treacherous thoughts.
He'd proved it once already. It was one of those things that came back to you once you were a little more awake.
("I came back,")
Seto wouldn't leave him alone. Seto wouldn't go without telling him.
Mokuba nodded, and drifted back to a light doze. Seto would stay with his brother no matter what.
The dream he had about his brother getting up in the middle of the night must have been just that...
Ishizu smiled dreamily, comfortably dozy. She was curled up, feeling warm and safe - something she wasn't used to in this cold palace where she was expected to stay on her toes at all times.
The blanket over her felt a little rougher than usual, a little more worn. But it was keeping her warm, and had a familiar scent that her tired mind couldn't be bothered to work out.
The pillow though, that was different. It too was a little rougher, with that same familiar scent. And it was warm as well, something that would have surprised her had she been more awake. In her condition, it merely registered and was dismissed. It also seemed to be.. moving. Up and down, regularly. And her pillow didn't usually have something inside it that made it thump like that. A low, steady thud beneath her ear, that flickered as she twitched, and then started again, twice as fast as it had been going.
She realised, the thought rising through the fog slowly, that to work this one out she was going to have to wake up.
So she did so, to the best of her ability, eyes fluttering open, and then blinking at her "pillow".
It was a sort of tan-beige, covering something that looked suspiciously like a male chest. Ishizu woke up fully at that thought, and dreading - knowing - what she would see, refused to look up.
Her blanket was a long white cloak that had been spread over her. As for what she was leaning on...? She seemed to be sat in someone's lap, and strong arms were wrapped loosely around her. Eyes wide with apprehension, she looked up, following the tan-beige until it broke into a tanned neck, and then following the tan skin al the way up.
Shadi's blue-grey eyes met hers.
Ishizu took the situation very well. She let out a startled squawk and fled the room.
If he'd felt bad yesterday, he felt infinitely worse today. Infinitely as in "unwilling to do more than lie on the bed and mentally damn the world to hell and back."
And for someone who rarely had a bad word to say about anyone, that was quite a down turn.
Bakura kept his eyes closed, trying to force his brain to ignore the ache from his body and focus on reminding him of what he was going to do today. It wasn't being spectacularly helpful.
Or it wasn't until a loud, bubbly voice yelled his name.
Bakura sat up, forgetting his aches, and loosed a spectacular curse he'd learnt from Tristan. He must have said it very loudly as well, because there were startled gasps and scoldings from the speakers.
Yugi was going today! How could he have forgotten?
Bakura dragged himself upright, swaying dangerously and listing like a drunk, but he still managed to stumble from his bedroom ('How did I - never mind. Headache.') to his workroom, and scoop up the green staff that was there. He stood still for a seconds, just leaning his forehead against the cool crystal, letting it wrap it's magic around him. He didn't like doing that - he couldn't work the staff properly, and had yet to figure out how to recharge the power in the gemstones. And if he couldn't recharge it, he was going to be stuck if he ever did need it - it would be like wasting water by dribbling it on a wall and then discovering there was a drought. Not Clever.
Crystals held energy though. And he had a lot of his own crystals down stairs that he'd meant to use. Why hadn't...
"Bakura?" Footsteps clattered up his stairs, and the white haired boy smiled to himself, before running his hands up the staff. He might not know how to work it, but he had discovered - quite by accident - how to make it look a little more ordinary than it usually did. A bright green staff with a gemstone on the top was more likely to attract attention than a plain one.
"I'm in here," he called, ending in a yawn that seemed to be trying to split his head in half horizontally, while his headache was determined to do it vertically.
Yugi poked his head through the door, and gave him a cheerful grin.
"Good morning Bakura!"
Bakura gave him a baleful glare. He felt about fifty years old. "Now I know why Yami always threatens to punch me when I say that," he muttered sourly. "There is nothing good about today."
The shorter boy came in, looking sympathetic. "Are you still feeling sore from yesterday?" he asked. "You told Yami you were drained."
"And so I am," he sighed. "I'm afraid I won't be able to give you anything to protect you this time." Bakura - on Yami's request - had started finding obscure spells that he made to keep Yugi safe while he was on the road. Most of them worked, according to his friend.
He watched Yugi carefully, saw the way his eyes widened in fear for a moment, before settling back to their usual four-inch width.
'What's wrong with me?' Bakura wondered. 'Why have I suddenly become so cynical - ' There was a simple answer to that, and he shoved it away in terror.
"It's okay," Yugi was assuring him. "I'll just have to be more careful this time."
Bakura shook his head. "I may not have something specially for you," he told him, trying not to sway. "But I have this - " Here, he indicated the staff. " - and it always kept me safe." His grin turned mischievous. "If nothing else, you can hit someone with it..."
Yugi blinked at him suspiciously. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"No. I plan on giving this to you and going back to bed." He lightly tapped Yugi's head with the staff, and tried to look stern. "Trust the healer who spent three years walking around with this thing. It works." The man yawned again, and swayed a little. "Just take it and go. You'll probably need support with that ankle anyway."
There was a short discussion - Yugi insisting that his ankle was fine, Bakura informing him that he really could care less. The end result was Yami sticking his head around the door and informing his brother that he was to take whatever the healer offered, because Bakura was ill and Yugi himself would be late starting out.
Bakura could have hugged the man then.
Yugi sighed, then accepted the staff and left, waving goodbye. Yami stood in the doorway momentarily, just looking at him. There was nothing in that even gaze but a sort of muted curiosity. Bakura frowned, puzzled, trying to figure out what was prompting such intense scrutiny.
"There's something wrong with this picture," Yami murmured, as though he'd heard Bakura's thought. "Apart from the fact that you're barely able to stand on your own two feet." His eyes drifted around, as though the difference would suddenly jump out and hit him. Bakura knew what was wrong with the picture, had caused it. "What is it?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Bakura lied crabbily. "But would it be all right with you if I went back to bed? You're blocking the doorway."
Yami glared at him for a moment longer, then wordlessly stepped aside.
Bakura nearly fell twice on the way to his bedroom, but Yami didn't move. He could feel that impersonal gaze engraved on his back, trying to puzzle him out, even after he'd shut the door and heard the three of them leave.
Solomon hadn't gone to wave off his grandson. Both children - he still thought of them like that, despite the fact that Yami must have been at least twenty - had come to see him yesterday, and Yami again this morning. Any necessary goodbyes had been then, and Yugi had given him an affectionate hug, promising to see if Mako had anything decent in return for the things he was taking.
The oldest Motou didn't like the youngest leaving any more than the middle one did. But he'd learnt from his experience with his son - you can't force someone to stay, and the harder you tried the more likely they were to leave.
He was disturbed from his musings by the patter of footsteps, and a blonde head - on a level with his own, and therefore very low down - was poked through the doorway.
"Morning Mister Motou!" Rebecca Hawkins chirped. "Have you seen Yami? I thought I saw him a few minutes ago, but now I can't find him!"
"I'm sorry Rebecca, but he hasn't been to see me yet. When he does, I'll tell him you're looking for him." Solomon had to smother a grin. Yugi had made the mistake of talking to her and being nice, and now she doted on the brothers. She would follow them like a puppy if she could.
The freckled girl pouted. "You always say that, but I can never find him. Isn't that right Teddy?" Here she addressed the ragged brown bear she was cradling. "Mister Motou always says that he'll tell Yami and Yugi to come and find me but they never do."
"They are very busy Rebecca," Solomon said gently. "They might not have time to come and play with you."
Rebecca sighed, running her fingers over Teddy's worn stomach. "I know..." she mumbled. "But I just get lonely, and no one talks to me."
The old man had a theory on why that was - involving Rebecca's rather large mouth, her insistence on bringing her toy into every conversation, and the fact that it was usually nearly impossible to get a word in edgeways with her - but chose to keep it to himself.
"Well," he said. "I did see someone your age running around upstairs... Why don't you go find them and see if they'll talk to you?"
Rebecca gave him a suspicious look. "You did?"
Solomon nodded and placed a hand over his heart. "Your grandfather was with me at the time. You can ask him if you don't believe me!"
The suspicious look vanished, replaced by a huge smile, and Rebecca threw her arms around him in a cheerful hug before fleeing the room.
As soon as she'd left, Yami melted out of the shadows behind a bookcase, sighing with relief. "I thought she would never leave," he muttered. "Good morning grandfather."
"Good morning Yami." Solomon replied. "Now, why don't you tell me what happened this morning..."
Shadi was holding a blush back by sheer strength of will. He had been since yesterday afternoon when they'd fallen through the portal together and landed in Ishizu's bedroom.
He still hadn't decided how he was going to explain that.
But now he was leaning against Ishizu's bedroom door, reciting exactly what happened yesterday since she visited the fire knight. He'd already gone past the part where he'd denied his jealousy, and they'd walked back to her rooms via the kitchen where Ishizu acquired some supper and a bottle of wine for them.
"We ate the food, and you drank most of the wine. I only had a glassful, and you drank at least half a bottle. We talked about varying things - while you were still sober, we talked about your brothers, and what I'd told you that afternoon. After you'd drank more we talked about... about..." Shadi's will failed him and the blush claimed his face fully, as his mind replayed that part in malicious detail. Ishizu's delicately flushed face and her sparkling blue eyes and her normally precise and cool voice sounding tipsy and bubbling with warmth. The way she'd settled on his lap and nestled against his chest, telling him how glad she was that he'd come to visit her, and how lonely she'd been, and how she wished he wouldn't leave again... He shut off the memories at that point, before his blush got uncontrollable and it got to the point where he didn't think he would be able to look Ishizu in the face again.
Coughing quietly to clear his throat, he continued. "We... we talked. And then you dozed off. I didn't want you to get cold so I covered you. and that is all. I swear on any gods you would like me to."
Ishizu was silent for a long moment, then said "If you are lying to me I shall see to it that Marik hears about this. Then we shall see how well you have taught him, and whether his control is as good as you say. Or I shall. I doubt that Marik will leave much of you to witness it."
'I did not lie. I just did not tell the whole story. Namely to prevent such an incident occurring.'
"It is the truth."
Before he realised what was happening, there was a sharp click, and the door he was leaning on started to open under his weight. Ishizu's magic evidently warned her - a trifle belatedly - of what would happen, for he heard her darting back, and Shadi considered himself extremely fortunate that he would not have a third thing to wipe from his mind, before the carpeted floor did it for him.
Thanks to all who reviewed! ::huggles reviewers:: ::huggles readers who didn't review::
Koriaena: Sorry. I didn't do it on purpose, but I'll try and sort it out later. The Kaiba and Yami connection will be explained soon, and as for Yami-Kura... well, if I told you that it would spoil the story, wouldn't it?
Tekli: Trust me, you did review them, and as will little sister will confirm, you are reffered to as the uber-reviewer in these
parts because you do nice long reviews that make sense. I'm glad you like it! As for the Joey/Mai, well, that's the pairing that I nearly
always write in somewhere. If it's going to be a long one, or a one-shot, there'll be Joey/Mai in there somewhere. Just so you know.
Yugi/Téa is a little harder for me to write, because it usually turns fluffy and fluff makes me sneeze. I'm glad you found the latin
interesting. Unfortunately, I started my GCSE's this year and dropped latin. So, latin knowledge is not going to be increasing anytime
soon.
And that thing is my bio is TRUE!! Thanks for the latin version.
Maruken: ¬¬ It didn't take me THAT long to update. And I'm trying to get Yami Kura to make the good points, because I doubt the others are sane enough to notice them.
Kekewey: The words "oops", "damn" and "busted" spring to mind. ;;; Yes, I based it off Angel Corrupted. I agree: it's a good story. Liona is amazing isn't she? O.o And as far as I know, you were the only one to notice. The other's are being remarkably quiet on that subject.
So basically, I'm doing okay? Most people seem to agree that harpies and Yami Kura are best. O.o I'm glad people agree with my choice of favourite character.
Constructive Criticism/mindless enthusiasm/comments warmly accepted!