Innocence?
Mystical Knight Dragon: Yes! We're back to the main plot! Whoo-hoo! But, then again, we don't get to watch Yugi die anymore...
Marikay: Yeah we do...
Mystical Knight Dragon: Shh! ...Anyways, lots of thanks to the reviewers: Bakuras-Hell (Wow... That makes me feel REALLY special... *sniffle* Thank- you!!!), Fuzzle-sama (*sits on ground and bows* Ha! I have defeated gravity! ...*huggles R.O.M.* ^__^), and Carmen5 (I'm sorry...but I don't think I'll be able to bring Yugi back. I could try... Whoa... PLOT IDEA!!!!!!)!!!!!!!!!!! You guys are awesome! ^__^
Disclaimer: See chapter two. It's got it in lots of different languages... Oh! But I do own the OC (Original Character) that I put into this chapter! I don't know how long he'll stay, so either get used to him or don't - your choice.
Chapter 11 (Haha... That's the name of a book store...): Adrenaline and Fear
~*~Ryou's POV~*~
I don't know how long I stood there before Bakura's torturer noticed me. Although it seemed like hours, it was probably only a minute or so.
"May I help you?" he asked, bringing the whip down one more time as if this was a perfectly normal, every day thing. Bakura let out a wracking sob, and I felt a tear begin to work its way down my cheek. He shouldn't be enduring that pain: I should.
//Ryou!// my yami shouted through the link, the sound of crying echoing throughout my mind. //Where are you?//
"I'm right here," I whispered, struggling to keep my own tears in my eyes instead of on the floor, where most of them had already ended up anyway. "I'm right here, Bakura. And...I...I'm sorry." I turned around so that no one could see me crying, even though it didn't really matter.
"Kid," the torturer asked me again, and I cringed as I heard the whip slash down again. "What do you want?"
I turned around again. "I want Bakura to go free," I whispered, not being able to talk any louder if I tried.
The torturer was caught completely off guard. "I must have heard you wrong," he said, finally letting that horrid whip fall limply at his side. "I thought you told me that you wanted him to go free." He did some big gesture towards the huddled, crying form of Bakura to get his point across...I think...
"You---you heard me right," I stuttered, trying to make my voice a little louder, but accomplished little. Ra, this is all my fault, and I'll kill everyone in sight to get him out of this hell hole!
A picture of Yugi's blank, staring eyes flashed across my mind, and the thought of killing *more* people was quickly driven from my mind.
//Ryou?//
/I'm right here, yami./
//I'm sorry.//
The apology took me completely by surprise. /For what?/ I asked, knowing that *I* was the one who should be apologizing! Then again, sorry will never be enough for the exchange of what I did...
//I'm sorry I made you go near that dumpster. I shouldn't have been so selfish. I knew you didn't like it. I'm sorry.//
/Bakura! It's not your fault! You didn't know! I---/
//He's laughing at you.//
/I---What?/
//He's laughing at you. I'd beat him up, but I don't know if I can stand.//
At that moment, I felt myself jerk back to reality only to see Bakura's torturer laughing hysterically.
"You...you expe...expect *me* to f...free him?!" he asked between fits of laughter. "Y...You have *got* t...to be jo...joking!"
"I'm serious," I stated, louder than before, after he had finally stopped laughing. "I'll trade my life for his."
"What is he?" the torturer asked, starting to get angry. "Your boyfriend or something?"
Now it was my turn to get angry. "No!" I yelled. "He's my ya---brother!" Glad I stopped myself there. If I had said "yami" then I'd be here all day explaining all kinds of stuff about the Pharaoh, reincarnations, Millennium items, and god cards. That could take all day! By then, I would have missed my bus, Yami would have found out that I---holy shit! My bus!
I looked at my watch. For some reason, I still had fifty minutes left... Then I looked at the second hand. It wasn't moving. "Shit!" I yelled and ran from the room.
//RYOU!!!!!//
'Oh shit! Bakura!' I was already at the front desk reading the clock, though. I had ten minutes to somehow save Bakura and get down to the bus station, which was an average fifteen-minute walk away.
"How much is it for me to bail someone out of here?" I wheezed to the man who still had his feet up on the desk. Even though I had only run a short distance, my adrenaline rush was ebbing away rather quickly, making me realize how quick I had run in here.
"Who are you thinking of bailing out?" the officer asked, taking his feet off the desk and turning around to pull a piece of paper out of the filing cabinet.
"Bakura," I said impatiently. I didn't have much time left, and the seconds seemed to be ticking by a little too quickly.
"I'm afraid I can't do that," the officer said, turning back around from the filing cabinet in his swivel chair. He had a stack of papers in his hand, but he didn't seem about to start filling them out.
"And why not?" I huffed. I probably sounded a bit whiny, too, but I was beyond caring about anything except for fixing up the shit I've put everyone through.
"He's on death row. We've decided not to kill him quick and painless, though, so we're going to torture him to death."
I was getting frustrated. "Listen!" I yelled, my voice echoing throughout the room, and slammed my fist down onto his desk, scattering papers all over the place. "There's been some mistake! There's no time to explain! I need to get to the bus station in---" I looked at the clock. "---six minutes! I'm going to get him out of here no matter how much money it takes!" I grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and wrote down my bank account number and which bank I used. I opened up my wallet and slammed my card down onto the desk. "There's not much money in my account, but I'm sure it will do. When you've got the money, you are to give my card back to Bakura, and he will change my account number for me." I then ran out of the jail and found myself out in open air again.
I took a deep breath of this wonderful Tokyo air and began running as fast as I could towards the bus station, my adrenaline kicking in again.
I somehow made it to the bus station with one minute and forty-two seconds left. I suppose the clock at the police station was fast because there is no way that I made it in less than five minutes. That's when I realized that the bus wouldn't be picking me up here: it would be picking me up right outside the coffee shop that I had bought my ticket from.
"Fuck!" I yelled and turned around, running faster than I ever had in my life, and earning glares from almost every person around me.
The wind was suddenly blowing very hard when I got to the café, and the sky began turning black. I looked up and watched the clouds begin to swirl (A/N: Not all tornado-ish, though!) as the first drops of rain began to fall. Rain was falling right into my eyes, but I couldn't care less. I just kept his eyes open and let them fall, trying hard not to blink.
Five seconds later, a big white bus coated with advertisements (Chocolate Yum-Yums - They're delicious!; Marshmallow Puffities - The NEW cereal!; and Narland's Shampoo - New Peach Smell! were just a few of the ads) pulled right up next to me. I didn't think it would show up that fast, but I sighed and climbed the steps onto the bus anyway.
"Ticket," the conductor asked holding out his hand, "or money?" He pointed to a large metal bucket with a metal lid that had a slit in it.
I reached down into his pocket and pulled out my slightly squashed ticket. The conductor looked down at it and seemed puzzled for a moment, then regained his composure and told me that I could take a seat anywhere that I liked. "You get off in eight stops," he told me, holding up his hands and putting up eight fingers. I noticed that he was missing a pinkie. I nodded my head to show I understood, suddenly losing my voice. "Don't miss it," he continued on, turning around to close the door manually, "or else."
I had a strange temptation to ask "Or else what?" but I didn't. I walked to the back of the bus to find a seat. After a few feet, I turned and just sat without looking around me very much. The seat was rather hard and lumpy; it had been baked by the sun throughout the whole day and was also very hot. I looked around the bus from my seat and only counted six other people, all of whom were up towards the front. Rain dripped through the window two seats in front of me and kept splashing me in my face. I couldn't close it or move until the bus stopped again, and who knew how long that would be.
The first two stops just let people off. At the third stop, the bus stopped, and the driver said he was going to go into a doughnut and coffee shop to get a cup of coffee and use the restroom. He told me and the only other passenger left not to get off and not to let anyone on.
After he left, I stood up and went to close the window only to find someone sleeping in that seat. I leaned over him, trying to get at the window when it hit me: I knew that person!
Panic took over me as the sleeping body rolled over in the seat. I looked up to the front of the bus only to realize that I knew the person up there, too! The chances of meeting two people - who were quite wealthy - that you actually knew on a trashy bus - no one used the company any more ever since one of the busses had flipped over, killing all the passengers and the driver - but here were two people that Ryou knew quite well (or at least as well as they would let him get to know him): the Kaiba brothers.
The figure on the seat stirred, and sapphire eyes opened and met my own chocolate ones. I squeaked out of fear and stumbled back, landing in the seat across from Kaiba. Mokuba looked back behind him, wondering what the noises were.
"Ryou?" he asked, very surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I could be asking you the same question," I said in an almost Bakura-ish way.
Kaiba yawned and sat up in his seat, stretching. "We're going to a huge convention somewhere in Hiroshima, although this bus insists on dropping us off at Fukuoka." He yawned again and tried to smooth his hair down. "So then we have to take a fucking cab - sorry Mokuba - to the shore, get in a boat, have it haul us all the way around to the other side of the island, and then we have to get *another* cab to take us to Hiroshima! Honestly, I think it would be so much easier if this guy just dropped us off where we wanted to go in the first place, but he insists on driving us to Fukuoka. Sure glad *I* don't have to pay for this."
I remained silent. Finally I said, "Could you close your window? The rain is blowing on to my seat."
Kaiba looked at me curiously as if he couldn't believe I'd say something that rude. "Geez, Bakura," he joked. "What crawled up your ass and died?"
I put on a fake smile. "Sorry," I lied, "I just get carsick on busses, and it makes me a bit cranky."
"A bit?" Mokuba grinned at me, showing me that his comment was just a joke, but it didn't ebb the pain it caused. I felt horrible - even more horrible than before - after he said that. I went back to my seat, sat down, and closed my eyes, sighing for what felt the fifty thousandth time that day.
Kaiba yawned again and moved to close the window the rest of the way. "Who's that that's standing out in the rain?" he asked, his hands on the buttons that you push to close the window. I looked out the window and saw someone standing outside the café in a brown, buttoned-up trench coat. That's it. He was just standing there looking down at the pavement. At least, I think he was. He had on a large cowboy hat that covered up most of his face, and also collected a lot of water.
I shrugged. "Must be an American from Nevada or Texas or something," I said, trying to sound as if it wasn't a big deal.
Kaiba closed the window the rest of the way (finally) and sat back down. "I guess you're right," he said before he took out his laptop and began typing.
The sound was just about to drive me insane when the thud of footsteps caught my attention. I jerked my head up, just then realizing that I had been staring at the floor, and stared at who had just climbed on the bus. I immediately recognized him as the man who was standing outside the café a few seconds ago, only he didn't have his hat on. Black hair with golden streaks was plastered to his head from the rain, making him look a bit eerie. His skin, which was a deathly white, didn't help to his appearance either. He seemed so thin that I bet if he took off his shirt, you could count each individual rib with no trouble at all.
The man pulled a gun out of one of his pockets and pointed it at Mokuba. "I'm taking over this bus. Nobody move or the kid gets it. That means you, too, kid."
I looked at Kaiba with just my eyes to see him having an internal struggle with himself. It seemed as if he wanted to jump up and save his brother, except for the fact that Mokuba would die if he did that. Tears welled up in my eyes. 'That should be *me* in Mokuba's place - not someone that innocent! I deserve to get shot. To die.'
//Ryou?!// Damn it. Why did Bakura have to bother me *now* of all times?! //To save you from yourself. Now, Ryou: Where the hell are you?!?!//
/I'm safe,/ I assured him. /No harm can come to me right now. Don't worry about me. Just get my bank card from the cops and change my account number whenever you get out of jail./
//That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wanted to thank you for getting me out of that hell hole without even knowing why I was there.// He gave me a curious look through the link. //Or did you know why I was there?//
/Marik told me,/ I lied.
//Yeah... I guess that son of a bitch would know that.//
/Is my bank account safe?/ I decided to ignore Bakura's comment for now...
//Yeah. The cop gave me your bank card just as he stepped in to the room. Told me I was free. But let's not talk about that now. All I want to know is where you are.//
/I'm on a bus./
//What the hell is a bus?!//
I was just about to answer him with some long and detailed description when I felt cold steel press into the back of my head. I jerked back to the present only to find that we were moving with the "Trench Coat Guy" driving. Sweat dripped from my forehead and into my eyes, but I didn't dare blink; the fear of being killed without seeing the attacker on a nearly empty bus was greater than my own personal needs at the moment.
"Make one move," growled a voice in my ear, "and your dead. And don't even *think* about trying to pretend about being passed out again!"
So that's what he thought I was doing. Well, that doesn't explain much. How the hell did he get behind me?! Then I remembered about not seeing how Kaiba was asleep on his seat. Had this guy been crouched down behind me this whole time? Or had he gotten on while I was talking to Bakura?
The sound of Seto Kaiba's voice shook me from my thinking process: "Listen, I *really* need to get to Hiroshima. I'm going to be late for a convention that could very well get my new---"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP BEFORE I BLAST YOUR FUCKING HEAD IN!" the man behind me shouted, practically knocking my eardrum out and making it make that annoying ringing sound.
I slowly moved my head up (realizing, for the second time that day, that I had been looking down at the ground) so that I could see Kaiba. The man behind me didn't seem to mind that much, but pressed the gun a little harder to my head as if to remind me that he was still there. Mokuba was sitting next to Kaiba and looked like he was crying. The elder brother was holding onto him and looking like he was thinking of something comforting he could say to Mokuba - or trying to find a way out of this mess. Hopefully the latter.
//Ryou?//
/Bakura. Can't talk now. Long story. Tell it later./
"I said don't!" the man behind me yelled, pressing the gun even harder into my skull.
"Don't what?" I asked as innocently as possible.
I felt the cold of a steel blade press into the flesh of my neck and a wet drop of blood drip slowly towards my collarbone. "Don't ask questions you already know the answer to."
I swallowed a small wad of saliva that had been building up in my mouth and felt the knife follow my Adam's apple as it moved. I didn't say anything else. Too bad Bakura isn't here. He'd know what to do...
//Ryou! What the fuck is happening?!//
I didn't answer. I just shut off the link. I needed to put my full concentration into thinking of a plan.
Then, the bus stopped.
"Welcome to Hell," the man in the trench coat said, standing up and turning around to face us. The ugliest sneer I had ever seen was plastered to his face, showing off all of his unearthly-white teeth. He cocked his gun and pointed it right at Mokuba. "One wrong move, and I swear I'll blast him."
I felt the knife release my neck from its hold, but the gun remained firmly in place.
"Everybody off the bus," continued the man up front. He looked Mokuba directly in the eyes. "You think you're scared now, kid, just wait until you meet the others."
Mystical Knight Dragon: Sorry for the cliffy, but I wanted to get this out. Please review and tell me how I did. Constructive criticism is always welcomed, but flames are always frowned upon.
Marikay: She has so many ideas for this story, but now school's started up again, and updates might slow down. She's typing as fast as she can, though, and is even thinking about writing it *before* she types. Oh the horror.
Mystical Knight Dragon: *glare at Marikay* And I'm *still* working on my pictures for this story. The moment I'm done, I'll let you guys know.
Mystical Knight Dragon: Yes! We're back to the main plot! Whoo-hoo! But, then again, we don't get to watch Yugi die anymore...
Marikay: Yeah we do...
Mystical Knight Dragon: Shh! ...Anyways, lots of thanks to the reviewers: Bakuras-Hell (Wow... That makes me feel REALLY special... *sniffle* Thank- you!!!), Fuzzle-sama (*sits on ground and bows* Ha! I have defeated gravity! ...*huggles R.O.M.* ^__^), and Carmen5 (I'm sorry...but I don't think I'll be able to bring Yugi back. I could try... Whoa... PLOT IDEA!!!!!!)!!!!!!!!!!! You guys are awesome! ^__^
Disclaimer: See chapter two. It's got it in lots of different languages... Oh! But I do own the OC (Original Character) that I put into this chapter! I don't know how long he'll stay, so either get used to him or don't - your choice.
Chapter 11 (Haha... That's the name of a book store...): Adrenaline and Fear
~*~Ryou's POV~*~
I don't know how long I stood there before Bakura's torturer noticed me. Although it seemed like hours, it was probably only a minute or so.
"May I help you?" he asked, bringing the whip down one more time as if this was a perfectly normal, every day thing. Bakura let out a wracking sob, and I felt a tear begin to work its way down my cheek. He shouldn't be enduring that pain: I should.
//Ryou!// my yami shouted through the link, the sound of crying echoing throughout my mind. //Where are you?//
"I'm right here," I whispered, struggling to keep my own tears in my eyes instead of on the floor, where most of them had already ended up anyway. "I'm right here, Bakura. And...I...I'm sorry." I turned around so that no one could see me crying, even though it didn't really matter.
"Kid," the torturer asked me again, and I cringed as I heard the whip slash down again. "What do you want?"
I turned around again. "I want Bakura to go free," I whispered, not being able to talk any louder if I tried.
The torturer was caught completely off guard. "I must have heard you wrong," he said, finally letting that horrid whip fall limply at his side. "I thought you told me that you wanted him to go free." He did some big gesture towards the huddled, crying form of Bakura to get his point across...I think...
"You---you heard me right," I stuttered, trying to make my voice a little louder, but accomplished little. Ra, this is all my fault, and I'll kill everyone in sight to get him out of this hell hole!
A picture of Yugi's blank, staring eyes flashed across my mind, and the thought of killing *more* people was quickly driven from my mind.
//Ryou?//
/I'm right here, yami./
//I'm sorry.//
The apology took me completely by surprise. /For what?/ I asked, knowing that *I* was the one who should be apologizing! Then again, sorry will never be enough for the exchange of what I did...
//I'm sorry I made you go near that dumpster. I shouldn't have been so selfish. I knew you didn't like it. I'm sorry.//
/Bakura! It's not your fault! You didn't know! I---/
//He's laughing at you.//
/I---What?/
//He's laughing at you. I'd beat him up, but I don't know if I can stand.//
At that moment, I felt myself jerk back to reality only to see Bakura's torturer laughing hysterically.
"You...you expe...expect *me* to f...free him?!" he asked between fits of laughter. "Y...You have *got* t...to be jo...joking!"
"I'm serious," I stated, louder than before, after he had finally stopped laughing. "I'll trade my life for his."
"What is he?" the torturer asked, starting to get angry. "Your boyfriend or something?"
Now it was my turn to get angry. "No!" I yelled. "He's my ya---brother!" Glad I stopped myself there. If I had said "yami" then I'd be here all day explaining all kinds of stuff about the Pharaoh, reincarnations, Millennium items, and god cards. That could take all day! By then, I would have missed my bus, Yami would have found out that I---holy shit! My bus!
I looked at my watch. For some reason, I still had fifty minutes left... Then I looked at the second hand. It wasn't moving. "Shit!" I yelled and ran from the room.
//RYOU!!!!!//
'Oh shit! Bakura!' I was already at the front desk reading the clock, though. I had ten minutes to somehow save Bakura and get down to the bus station, which was an average fifteen-minute walk away.
"How much is it for me to bail someone out of here?" I wheezed to the man who still had his feet up on the desk. Even though I had only run a short distance, my adrenaline rush was ebbing away rather quickly, making me realize how quick I had run in here.
"Who are you thinking of bailing out?" the officer asked, taking his feet off the desk and turning around to pull a piece of paper out of the filing cabinet.
"Bakura," I said impatiently. I didn't have much time left, and the seconds seemed to be ticking by a little too quickly.
"I'm afraid I can't do that," the officer said, turning back around from the filing cabinet in his swivel chair. He had a stack of papers in his hand, but he didn't seem about to start filling them out.
"And why not?" I huffed. I probably sounded a bit whiny, too, but I was beyond caring about anything except for fixing up the shit I've put everyone through.
"He's on death row. We've decided not to kill him quick and painless, though, so we're going to torture him to death."
I was getting frustrated. "Listen!" I yelled, my voice echoing throughout the room, and slammed my fist down onto his desk, scattering papers all over the place. "There's been some mistake! There's no time to explain! I need to get to the bus station in---" I looked at the clock. "---six minutes! I'm going to get him out of here no matter how much money it takes!" I grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and wrote down my bank account number and which bank I used. I opened up my wallet and slammed my card down onto the desk. "There's not much money in my account, but I'm sure it will do. When you've got the money, you are to give my card back to Bakura, and he will change my account number for me." I then ran out of the jail and found myself out in open air again.
I took a deep breath of this wonderful Tokyo air and began running as fast as I could towards the bus station, my adrenaline kicking in again.
I somehow made it to the bus station with one minute and forty-two seconds left. I suppose the clock at the police station was fast because there is no way that I made it in less than five minutes. That's when I realized that the bus wouldn't be picking me up here: it would be picking me up right outside the coffee shop that I had bought my ticket from.
"Fuck!" I yelled and turned around, running faster than I ever had in my life, and earning glares from almost every person around me.
The wind was suddenly blowing very hard when I got to the café, and the sky began turning black. I looked up and watched the clouds begin to swirl (A/N: Not all tornado-ish, though!) as the first drops of rain began to fall. Rain was falling right into my eyes, but I couldn't care less. I just kept his eyes open and let them fall, trying hard not to blink.
Five seconds later, a big white bus coated with advertisements (Chocolate Yum-Yums - They're delicious!; Marshmallow Puffities - The NEW cereal!; and Narland's Shampoo - New Peach Smell! were just a few of the ads) pulled right up next to me. I didn't think it would show up that fast, but I sighed and climbed the steps onto the bus anyway.
"Ticket," the conductor asked holding out his hand, "or money?" He pointed to a large metal bucket with a metal lid that had a slit in it.
I reached down into his pocket and pulled out my slightly squashed ticket. The conductor looked down at it and seemed puzzled for a moment, then regained his composure and told me that I could take a seat anywhere that I liked. "You get off in eight stops," he told me, holding up his hands and putting up eight fingers. I noticed that he was missing a pinkie. I nodded my head to show I understood, suddenly losing my voice. "Don't miss it," he continued on, turning around to close the door manually, "or else."
I had a strange temptation to ask "Or else what?" but I didn't. I walked to the back of the bus to find a seat. After a few feet, I turned and just sat without looking around me very much. The seat was rather hard and lumpy; it had been baked by the sun throughout the whole day and was also very hot. I looked around the bus from my seat and only counted six other people, all of whom were up towards the front. Rain dripped through the window two seats in front of me and kept splashing me in my face. I couldn't close it or move until the bus stopped again, and who knew how long that would be.
The first two stops just let people off. At the third stop, the bus stopped, and the driver said he was going to go into a doughnut and coffee shop to get a cup of coffee and use the restroom. He told me and the only other passenger left not to get off and not to let anyone on.
After he left, I stood up and went to close the window only to find someone sleeping in that seat. I leaned over him, trying to get at the window when it hit me: I knew that person!
Panic took over me as the sleeping body rolled over in the seat. I looked up to the front of the bus only to realize that I knew the person up there, too! The chances of meeting two people - who were quite wealthy - that you actually knew on a trashy bus - no one used the company any more ever since one of the busses had flipped over, killing all the passengers and the driver - but here were two people that Ryou knew quite well (or at least as well as they would let him get to know him): the Kaiba brothers.
The figure on the seat stirred, and sapphire eyes opened and met my own chocolate ones. I squeaked out of fear and stumbled back, landing in the seat across from Kaiba. Mokuba looked back behind him, wondering what the noises were.
"Ryou?" he asked, very surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I could be asking you the same question," I said in an almost Bakura-ish way.
Kaiba yawned and sat up in his seat, stretching. "We're going to a huge convention somewhere in Hiroshima, although this bus insists on dropping us off at Fukuoka." He yawned again and tried to smooth his hair down. "So then we have to take a fucking cab - sorry Mokuba - to the shore, get in a boat, have it haul us all the way around to the other side of the island, and then we have to get *another* cab to take us to Hiroshima! Honestly, I think it would be so much easier if this guy just dropped us off where we wanted to go in the first place, but he insists on driving us to Fukuoka. Sure glad *I* don't have to pay for this."
I remained silent. Finally I said, "Could you close your window? The rain is blowing on to my seat."
Kaiba looked at me curiously as if he couldn't believe I'd say something that rude. "Geez, Bakura," he joked. "What crawled up your ass and died?"
I put on a fake smile. "Sorry," I lied, "I just get carsick on busses, and it makes me a bit cranky."
"A bit?" Mokuba grinned at me, showing me that his comment was just a joke, but it didn't ebb the pain it caused. I felt horrible - even more horrible than before - after he said that. I went back to my seat, sat down, and closed my eyes, sighing for what felt the fifty thousandth time that day.
Kaiba yawned again and moved to close the window the rest of the way. "Who's that that's standing out in the rain?" he asked, his hands on the buttons that you push to close the window. I looked out the window and saw someone standing outside the café in a brown, buttoned-up trench coat. That's it. He was just standing there looking down at the pavement. At least, I think he was. He had on a large cowboy hat that covered up most of his face, and also collected a lot of water.
I shrugged. "Must be an American from Nevada or Texas or something," I said, trying to sound as if it wasn't a big deal.
Kaiba closed the window the rest of the way (finally) and sat back down. "I guess you're right," he said before he took out his laptop and began typing.
The sound was just about to drive me insane when the thud of footsteps caught my attention. I jerked my head up, just then realizing that I had been staring at the floor, and stared at who had just climbed on the bus. I immediately recognized him as the man who was standing outside the café a few seconds ago, only he didn't have his hat on. Black hair with golden streaks was plastered to his head from the rain, making him look a bit eerie. His skin, which was a deathly white, didn't help to his appearance either. He seemed so thin that I bet if he took off his shirt, you could count each individual rib with no trouble at all.
The man pulled a gun out of one of his pockets and pointed it at Mokuba. "I'm taking over this bus. Nobody move or the kid gets it. That means you, too, kid."
I looked at Kaiba with just my eyes to see him having an internal struggle with himself. It seemed as if he wanted to jump up and save his brother, except for the fact that Mokuba would die if he did that. Tears welled up in my eyes. 'That should be *me* in Mokuba's place - not someone that innocent! I deserve to get shot. To die.'
//Ryou?!// Damn it. Why did Bakura have to bother me *now* of all times?! //To save you from yourself. Now, Ryou: Where the hell are you?!?!//
/I'm safe,/ I assured him. /No harm can come to me right now. Don't worry about me. Just get my bank card from the cops and change my account number whenever you get out of jail./
//That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wanted to thank you for getting me out of that hell hole without even knowing why I was there.// He gave me a curious look through the link. //Or did you know why I was there?//
/Marik told me,/ I lied.
//Yeah... I guess that son of a bitch would know that.//
/Is my bank account safe?/ I decided to ignore Bakura's comment for now...
//Yeah. The cop gave me your bank card just as he stepped in to the room. Told me I was free. But let's not talk about that now. All I want to know is where you are.//
/I'm on a bus./
//What the hell is a bus?!//
I was just about to answer him with some long and detailed description when I felt cold steel press into the back of my head. I jerked back to the present only to find that we were moving with the "Trench Coat Guy" driving. Sweat dripped from my forehead and into my eyes, but I didn't dare blink; the fear of being killed without seeing the attacker on a nearly empty bus was greater than my own personal needs at the moment.
"Make one move," growled a voice in my ear, "and your dead. And don't even *think* about trying to pretend about being passed out again!"
So that's what he thought I was doing. Well, that doesn't explain much. How the hell did he get behind me?! Then I remembered about not seeing how Kaiba was asleep on his seat. Had this guy been crouched down behind me this whole time? Or had he gotten on while I was talking to Bakura?
The sound of Seto Kaiba's voice shook me from my thinking process: "Listen, I *really* need to get to Hiroshima. I'm going to be late for a convention that could very well get my new---"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP BEFORE I BLAST YOUR FUCKING HEAD IN!" the man behind me shouted, practically knocking my eardrum out and making it make that annoying ringing sound.
I slowly moved my head up (realizing, for the second time that day, that I had been looking down at the ground) so that I could see Kaiba. The man behind me didn't seem to mind that much, but pressed the gun a little harder to my head as if to remind me that he was still there. Mokuba was sitting next to Kaiba and looked like he was crying. The elder brother was holding onto him and looking like he was thinking of something comforting he could say to Mokuba - or trying to find a way out of this mess. Hopefully the latter.
//Ryou?//
/Bakura. Can't talk now. Long story. Tell it later./
"I said don't!" the man behind me yelled, pressing the gun even harder into my skull.
"Don't what?" I asked as innocently as possible.
I felt the cold of a steel blade press into the flesh of my neck and a wet drop of blood drip slowly towards my collarbone. "Don't ask questions you already know the answer to."
I swallowed a small wad of saliva that had been building up in my mouth and felt the knife follow my Adam's apple as it moved. I didn't say anything else. Too bad Bakura isn't here. He'd know what to do...
//Ryou! What the fuck is happening?!//
I didn't answer. I just shut off the link. I needed to put my full concentration into thinking of a plan.
Then, the bus stopped.
"Welcome to Hell," the man in the trench coat said, standing up and turning around to face us. The ugliest sneer I had ever seen was plastered to his face, showing off all of his unearthly-white teeth. He cocked his gun and pointed it right at Mokuba. "One wrong move, and I swear I'll blast him."
I felt the knife release my neck from its hold, but the gun remained firmly in place.
"Everybody off the bus," continued the man up front. He looked Mokuba directly in the eyes. "You think you're scared now, kid, just wait until you meet the others."
Mystical Knight Dragon: Sorry for the cliffy, but I wanted to get this out. Please review and tell me how I did. Constructive criticism is always welcomed, but flames are always frowned upon.
Marikay: She has so many ideas for this story, but now school's started up again, and updates might slow down. She's typing as fast as she can, though, and is even thinking about writing it *before* she types. Oh the horror.
Mystical Knight Dragon: *glare at Marikay* And I'm *still* working on my pictures for this story. The moment I'm done, I'll let you guys know.
