~ Secrets Revealed ~
Finally, an exhausted hand reached up to the ledge of the wall. Tired arms struggled to pull up the weight of the small boy. At last, Ryou had reached the top of the wall. Many times he had almost fallen, and, many times he had almost been spotted by one of Malik's guards. But the gods seemed to be watching out for him this night, because thankfully he managed to escape death, and the risk of being caught.
He slowly pulled himself over the ledge of the wall. It was wide enough for him to sit on. However, he was shocked when he saw what was on the other side. It was a beautiful garden. In it was every plant he had ever seen, and then some. He noticed a lake and a waterfall, and to his great relief, the wall didn't go down as far on this side as it did on the other. But before he even attempted to go down it, he needed to rest a little. His small chest was heaving up and down fervently, and he could hear himself breathing loudly. He tried to be quieter about it because he was so loud that he feared someone would hear him.
Glancing around the garden again, he noticed a shadow creeping along the wall.
'Oh shit!' He quickly threw himself down on his stomach and remained as silent as possible, which was hard because he still hadn't had adequate time to catch his breath. Malik's guards were everywhere.
Ryou watched as the shadow roamed closer to where he was. Evidently whoever it was had already heard him. 'Dammit.'
The weather was cold, but he felt himself start to sweat slightly, there was no way out of this. He closed his eyes for a moment, took in a deep breath, and slowly opened them. What was below him was not what he had expected. He felt his mouth run as dry as the Sahara, as he looked down at an angry looking Pharaoh.
"Ryou!" Malik yelled from below. "What the hell are you doing here?!" Malik couldn't believe this. Ryou had seen his private garden. Now what was he going to do? 'This can't be happening.' He cried mentally.
Ryou had trouble speaking as he glanced down at the Pharaoh. Malik looked angry, and Ryou didn't blame him. What he did to Malik earlier that day was horribly wrong, and he wouldn't be surprised if Malik hated him for the rest of his life. But that thought only made Ryou feel worse.
A sudden wind caught Ryou off guard and made him lose his balance. He screamed slightly as he struggled to keep from falling off the edge.
Malik looked up at him from where he stood; he almost jumped when he saw Ryou about to fall. Having Ryou fall off was the last thing he wanted.
"Ryou! Get down here now!" He yelled to his slave. Even though he had let Ryou go, and Ryou had come back on his own will, Ryou still belonged to him.
Ryou glanced down nervously as he gripped the wall with all of his might. Now he was scared...too scared to move.
"No..." He said quietly.
"What?" Malik asked, sounding slightly shocked that Ryou would disobey him. That had never happened before. "I said get down here...now!"
"I...c-can't." Ryou gulped, closing his eyes and gripping the wall even tighter.
Malik noticed this, and that made him think back to when he changed into Bakura...he should have remembered that Ryou was afraid of heights. But then...how...and why the hell did he climb up the other side?
"Ok...hold on."
Ryou looked down just in time to see the Pharaoh climbing up the wall to him.
Once Malik had reached the top, he hoisted himself over the ledge and knelt next to Ryou. All he could do was simply stare at him, until he noticed that the small boy was shaking.
'Gods, why is he still scared of me?' He whined mentally. He had done everything in his power to try and earn Ryou's trust, and nothing seemed to work.
But, when he heard Ryou's teeth chattering he couldn't help but smile slightly. The boy was just cold.
"Are you cold?" He asked, with a note of compassion in his voice.
Ryou looked up at him; he gazed into those gorgeous purple eyes that no longer showed any signs of evilness, and nodded slightly.
Not really thinking, Malik moved closer to Ryou and wrapped his strong arms around the boy protectively. He didn't know what made him do it, but somehow, it just felt natural. He moved his hands slowly up and down Ryou's slender arms, trying to warm him.
Ryou didn't retract at the other's touch this time. Instead he welcomed it, embracing it as a mother would her child. Malik's body next to his gave him a feeling that he never thought he would have sitting next to this Pharaoh. He moved in closer, resting his head on Malik's chest basking in his warmth.
Malik's eyes widened slightly. He was surprised that, instead of moving away from him, Ryou came in closer. He felt the boy rest his head on his bare chest. Malik was cold when he first stepped out into the chilly night, but now, the discomfort seemed to have fled from him. He could feel Ryou's delicate heart beating against his chest. He loved that feeling.
"Why didn't you put on a cloak or something?" Malik asked as he pulled Ryou away from himself.
"I-" He started. But he didn't want to go into details about how hard it was for him to get here. And he most certainly didn't want to bring up his encounter with a sacred one. Malik would probably think he had gone insane. Nobody believed in them anymore. So he simply brushed by it. "I didn't think it would be this cold out."
"Are you warmer now?" Malik asked, smiling lightly at him.
Ryou nodded as he smiled in response, he was so wrapped up in just being next to Malik, that he had almost forgotten why he had come in the first place.
"P-pharaoh..." He started.
"Malik." He corrected.
"Malik...I need to tell you something."
"Wait until we get down from here." Malik said, starting to descend the wall. "I go first that way..." He paused as he remembered. He was saying the same exact thing to Ryou that he had said earlier.
"Incase I fall." Ryou finished his sentence with a soft tone as he too, started to climb down. Suddenly, he found that his fear of heights was gone.
It took almost no time at all before the two were inside the protection of the walls. The howling wind and bitter cold was gone. To Ryou, it actually felt quite pleasant.
Glancing around, Ryou was amazed at the beauty of the garden. Was this Malik's? He wondered. How could someone thought to be so heartless and cruel ever enjoy something as wonderful as this?
Malik noticed Ryou's sudden enthrallment, and he felt slightly embarrassed. Ryou wasn't supposed to know about this garden. No one was. And every other person who found out met with an untimely end...even his own brother. But he couldn't bring himself to even think about hurting Ryou anymore. To hell with it.
"You like?" He asked, coming up behind the platinum haired boy as he ignored the urge to yell at Ryou for being in here.
"It's wonderful." Ryou stated, still taking in the sights. The moonlight gave everything an eerie tone, but it was still beautiful none the less.
Malik watched the boy as Ryou gazed around the garden.
"Would you like to take a look around?" Malik asked amusedly, noting Ryou's fascination with something he had always taken for granted.
Ryou nodded fervently as he beamed back at him. He walked off to explore the garden and all of its many plants.
Malik just sat down on the grass by the pond as his eyes followed Ryou. The boy was absolutely cute. He was too happy to have Ryou back to even be mad that he had found out about the garden. That didn't matter anymore. Ryou seemed to think that it was a good thing, well, he seemed to be enjoying it thoroughly anyway.
While Ryou was exploring the garden, he couldn't help but glance over at Malik every so often, remembering back to that morning when Malik had fed him breakfast. Malik had been so warm and kind; Ryou swore that Malik had to have been two different people. But, oh how he missed that kiss. It was unlike any kiss that Bakura had ever given him. Then quickly he turned his attention to a nearby plant and tried to get himself to stop thinking about Malik that way. That wasn't why he had come back. He didn't come back to be with Malik, he came back to warn him, that was all. So that's just what he was going to do. Tell Malik what he had come to tell him, and then hightail it out of there before anyone found out that he was missing.
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Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews. Seriously, I don't know where I'd be without you guys! My self confidence is like, low (especially when it comes to writing) and you all help me keep going!! Arigato. And I promise...the lemon is coming!! I'm working on it as we speak!! This is a kind of progressive thing (incase you couldn't tell already) and I'm giving you a little bit at a time, until WHAM! It hits you like a ton of bricks.
Malik: Ok...the sound effects are totally unnecessary...
Ok grumpy...geesh...sorry for making it dramatic
Malik: No no...See, there's a point where you cross the line from dramatic to just plane dumb...and you defiantly went all over hell's half acre to make sure you did that...
*Wide eyed* Ra, who died and made you Pharaoh?!?
Malik: Um lemme see...no one's dead *mutters* yet *louder* and who made me Pharaoh? Um...how bout...oh I dunno...you? *sniggers* It's called the evil one...*mutters again* dumb ass...
