There's an excerpt in here towards the beginning that's slightly graphic in description. Nothing too bad; just thought I'd warn you.

The Bridge Meeting, Part 2

Angels and demons.

They are never aloud to see one another, and for very important reasons. A demon is sad when they see what they could've had- freedom, purity- and so it made perfect sense, once upon a time, that if a demon misbehaved, they could be placed in Heaven as punishment, so that they might see the future they could've had, but were now forbidden.

But where are the lines to cross when one is a demon? How can a demon that is placed in Hell be able to do wrong when the very reason that he was placed there was because they wronged in the first place? It'd seem preposterous to some that this could even be... A demon that committed an act so horrible that he would have to be penalized? Why, some would laugh at the mere thought of it.

And yet... it had happened before... One year ago...

The demon stood, face cold as ice, as another demon fell. Blood was everywhere... everywhere he turned. His own skin was spotted with it here and there, and his once beautiful white wings, envied by many, were now soaked in the stark, crimson color.

He had had to do it though; no one understood. No one understood the pain he was feeling inside. Like so many other times, he was left to wallow in his own soreness alone. He had ignored all of the other times he had been wronged before, but not this time, and not ever again.

It was too much.

Bringing one of his hands up to look at it, he nearly felt like laughing; a dark, demonic, and almost demented laugh. His hand was covered with blood, no, both hands were. Kneeling down, he tried to wash his them clean... but they wouldn't. Only more blood remained. It was only then that he noticed that he hadn't tried to wash his hands off in water at all, but only more blood.

Turning, he pressed his finger to his red wing and ran it down, but no longer was it white. No, underneath, it was now black.

"My, my," he whispered eerily, looking around at the massacre he himself had created. "My dear, look what you made me do..."

"There he is!" a voice yelled in the distance.

"Stop right now!" another said to him. "You're surrounded, Kaiba!"

"Kaiba! Step away from the cliff!"

The demon took a step back, the pure black of the pit below now dangerously close.

"Don't do it Kaiba!"

"Kaiba!"

"Kaiba..."

Kaiba opened his eyes to face Yami's scarlet ones. "Yes?" he said flatly.

"Are you okay?" Yami inquired, still keeping his distance.

"I'm fine. I'm just... worn out."

"If you can't do the prophecy, that's fine. Just tell me, okay?"

"No," Kaiba shook his head. "I can."

"If you're sure, then okay. It'll be in a little bit."

"All right."

When Yami left, Kaiba closed his eyes again, images once again flashing before them.

"Stay here now," a voice spat at him.

"Yeah," said another, "This is what you get for the bloodshed you caused of your own kind, demon."

White bars were closed all around him, and even though there was light, it was almost as if it were still darkness. Kaiba had lived in the dark and he had grown used to it, he'd settled with the fact that he'd never see radiance again. But now...

Now it was all around him, everywhere he turned. Every breath he breathed was of purity... and ironically, it hurt. Demons are made of obscurity and they weren't created to be able to withstand such power... without drastic consequences.

But surely not all of Kaiba was dark... Looking at his hands, he was relieved to see the blood was gone, and none tainted his skin anymore. He was fine; a part of him was still good. As long as he had that ounce of proof that illustrated he still contained some decency, he would be all right.

He had been granted white wings as a result of his sacrifice for a noble cause. Of course, now he wished he had never made that horrible contract The wings were probably the one thing that kept him sane after all of his years of unworthy imprisonment in the dark abyss of Hell. Many had coveted them and Kaiba took pride in them.

Stretching his wing so he could see it, he ran a finger over its smooth surface.

"No..." he whispered hoarsely. "No, no, no..."

The beautiful pearly surface was gone, replaced by a deep black, darker than any shadow he had seen. Kaiba covered his face, his breathing rapidly increasing, and when he pulled them back... they were red.

"No... The blood... The blood is still here..."

All of a sudden, the blood was everywhere again- his hands, his skin, his beautiful white wings, and he was tortured by the ghosts that tormented him long after no blood really remained. Everywhere he looked, crimson rivers that flowed endlessly replaced that beautiful light that assured him he was in a good place, and bodies were strewn everywhere. Kaiba suddenly knew... that this was where he was going to lose his sanity.

Or at least what remained of it.

"Listen," Marik said, eyes narrowed. "You are Bakura, one of the biggest idiots I know, and also one of the few demons I respect."

"You're just saying that," Bakura brooded.

"Well, I thought it would work. It's probably just a phase. You don't really believe in love, do you?"

Bakura stood, arms crossed, thinking about the question a moment. "Well, not really... I mean, there's a slight possibility..."

"Oh my god," Marik rubbed his temple. "You do. Come on, Bakura. Let's be serious here." A skeptical expression replaced his calm one. "Is it really love? Or is it lust?"

"Hell if I know, Marik. You're not really helping the situation much."

"Great, now you're back to stupid-ass mode. I can't really stand you when you're like this."

"That's funny," Bakura arched a fine brow, "Because you're like this all of the time, and I deal with you. You can't tell me that not even you believe it exists somewhere...?"

"My dear," Marik folded his hands together. "I hate everything in this world, the next, and all that lies in between. I'm evil, if you haven't noticed, and evil beings don't believe in love. I once thought you were an evil being... but it seems your vacation on Earth has turned you into nothing but a softie."

"Hey," Bakura defended, "I am no softie. You forget it was I who am second in the running for most souls pulled to Hell..."

"Worthless excuses," Marik waved it off.

"I am just as evil as you, thank you very much."

"Bakura, no offense, but if you were as evil as I am... I don't think we'd get along."

Bakura wasn't too sure if there was some kind of melancholy tone in his voice when he said that.

"I'm doomed forever," the blonde sighed.

"What about that angel? The one who caught your eye? Is there a possibility that that is love?"

"Not in the least," he shook his head. "That kid is cute, but a major dupe. There's only lust involved there."

"I'm sure..."

"Maybe not even that. Poor angel," he smirked evilly, "it'll break his heart when I tell him I'm leaving him for my work."

"Marik... I'm sure he'll be quite relieved."

"What? You don't think he likes me?"

"I think he'd like to get away from you. You even scare the demons you court in Hell. I'd hate to think of the angel's reaction when he finds out you just want to screw him."

"Wouldn't it be funny though?"

"Oh quite," he leered, "But also quite impossible."

"Are you telling me that I wouldn't be able to court this kid? Bakura, I could have this angel eating out of the palm of my hand in one month- no, one week, and I'd be willing to bet that he'd be in my bed in one day. I've done more stubborn demons before in less than one hour."

"Yes, but that was against their will." Bakura tapped his chin. "You have aroused my curiosity. Do you think you could get this "dupe" to fall in love with you in one week?"

"That would be cake," Marik answered uncaringly.

"And you'd coerce him to sleep with you?"

"Simple."

"Ah, but would you really be willing to bet on it?"

"In a heartbeat," he grinned sideways, baring a sharp tooth. "Why, are you still doubtful?"

Bakura almost wanted to laugh. "Marik, your methods of acquiring lovers always involve pain and refutation."

"So?"

"-For the other person. I don't think you could do it without violence. Do you actually think you could lure someone to your bed if you weren't as scary or mean as you are?"

"If you're talking about charm, then I'm a master at it."

"Are you kidding me? You still think you could do it?"

Marik cracked his knuckles. "I feel a challenge coming on."

"Indeed. Here's the deal: If you can successfully get this angel to fall in love with and sleep with you within one week's time, without the use of violence, pain, bondage, or any of the above... then-"

"-You'll come back to Hell, no questions asked," Marik finished, a steely gaze directed at the other demon.

Bakura's brow furrowed at the request. "Come back?"

"Surely you weren't planning on staying forever? You belong in Hell, Bakura. Don't let this human cloud your judgment."

"You're right," he sighed. "Talking with you has somewhat reassured me. It can't be love."

"Exactly," Marik said confidently. "Now hopefully the Bakura I know will come "down to earth", so to say, and get his head out of the clouds. If you like the human, don't worry about how he feels. You're a demon. Demons don't ask." A sadistic grin played over his lips. "Demons just do."

"But if you don't hold up your end of the bargain, you have to swear to drop the relationship right then and there. We wouldn't want this to cause any controversy later on. Deal?" He held out his hand.

Marik took his hand and gave it a firm grasp and shake. "…Deal."

-

"Malik, it'll all be okay. You'll see," Ryou assured him.

"I don't know, Ryou. I really think Bakura cares a lot about me. Maybe I shouldn't go back. I don't want to hurt him..."

"Well you have to at least say goodbye. Otherwise, you might hurt him more."

"True..." he agreed. "So how have things been here without me?"

"Lonely," Ryou said sorrowfully, "But lately my hands have been kept full."

"Really? By what?"

Ryou looked at his friend with slight hesitancy, pondering whether or not he should even tell him. "Well, there's... this demon..."

Malik gave him an odd look. "A demon?"

"Yes. He's very... persistent, and very relentless."

"Did he hurt you?"

"Not yet. In all honesty, I can't stand him. He's so full of himself and is nothing but ostentatious. I think he actually thinks that I like him!"

"Whoa, calm down, Ryou," Malik held his hands up. "Where would you have met another demon?"

"On earth, when I was looking for you."

Wait. Maybe he shouldn't have said that.

"On earth?" Malik repeated. "Why would a demon have been on earth? They haven't been seen for centuries. I thought that they'd grown tired of that chore."

"He's not exactly like other demons," he mumbled.

"What?"

"Well, he was just there to... steal souls... He was going against the gradient and wanted to be rebellious, er, something. Either way, he was utterly idiotic. Just thinking about him upsets me, Malik, and I don't like it. It takes a lot for me to dislike someone- even you know that- but he just kept pressing my buttons."

The more Ryou stood there and thought about it, the more infuriated he became.

"If you'd so prefer, I'll make you a hamster ball so you can run off your stress?"

He had been so confident, and so brash. Ryou had met a few demons in his "lifetime" in Heaven but never had he met one like Marik.

Marik actually had the audacity to kiss him! Ryou had actually been saving that kiss and that- that no good demon had stolen it! Then, when confronted with the issue, he had said that he was "simply collecting his reward"?

"That is serious," Malik said, slightly surprised. "I know that it takes a lot to offend you. Don't worry though; I'm sure that after the Bridge Meeting, he'll leave you alone. I'm certain he's smart enough to not go against the Laws, aren't you?"

"What?" Ryou looked up at his friend. "Oh, I'm sorry," he said truthfully. "I wasn't listening just now."

"He's caught your attention that much?"

"Of course not," Ryou defended. "Don't get the wrong idea..."

"Why would I get the wrong idea?" Malik asked blankly. "You've only been daydreaming about him since you started talking to me."

"I have not," Ryou said helplessly. And then asked, "Why, does it show?"

"Not really," Malik grinned. "Tell me, is he here?" He shielded his eyes and looked around with a playful smirk.

"Malik, please don't," Ryou begged.

"Let's see, could it be Kaiba? No, too indifferent. Mikhail, perhaps? No, he's too unsophisticated. And I know it couldn't be Otogi, or Hakkai, or Ryuujitsu. Oh, and there's Marik. That's would just be plain scary. And... and..." he paused there, deliberating something. "And it could be Marik, I suppose. He's evil, yes, and very scary, and persistent and relentless, full of himself and quite ostentatious." He faced Ryou's with a tentative glance. "It's him..."

Ryou broke down. "Malik, please understand. It's very one-sided. Marik's a demon anyways; I can handle him."

"Ryou... this is Marik we're talking about. The demon that's pulled more souls to Hell than any other. The demon that as a human made a deal with the devil. The demon who's heart is supposedly black as night."

"Actually, that last part is a lie, but he told me not to tell anyone. He said it sounded devious or something," he sighed tiredly.

Malik was shocked. "You've actually had conversation with him?"

"It was very short. Malik, trust me. I'm one of the most virtuous angels in Heaven. I'll get him to back off. Besides, I would never let him do anything."

"Marik doesn't pay attention to what people would and wouldn't let him do. He's a demon. He doesn't ask. He just does."

Ryou smiled reassuringly. "Well, he won't do anything to me. That much I can guarantee."

"Maybe I should stay," Malik said doubtfully.

"No," Ryou said, "You're happy with Bakura... At least stay long enough to say goodbye, and come back when you're ready. But just remember that you do have to come back."

"Of course," Malik smiled.

"Oh look," Ryou pointed. "Kaiba's giving the Prophecy now..."

And so he was. Demons and angels alike had turned their heads toward the taciturn Teller in hopes that he might give them good news. Rarely was bad news told, but it did have this odd habit of springing up now and then...

Kaiba stood silently on the crystal bridge, handing gripping painfully tight onto the glasslike railing. He needed concentration, he needed quiet, and these things were hard to acquire ever since his mind had begun to... wander.

But finally, his mind was cleared, and he saw a glimpse of what was to come, and so told it to those around him.

"Day and night, night and day,
Reasons keep them separate this way.
The shining sun, the glistening moon,
Together shall they be, and soon.
A line is crossed, a law is broken,
All will happen as it is spoken.
Each will have a verdict to choose,
Day or night, win or lose."

... That was it. Kaiba saw no more. Opening his eyes, his fingertips faintly touched his forehead. The prophecy, though it never stated directly or sounded ominous, still emitted some sort of foreboding.

Everyone else felt it too. The prophecy may have spouted about the night and day, but it was about something else entirely. Sometimes prophecies were straightforward, and other times, like now, they were strictly metaphorical. These ones were the hardest to deal with and decipher, and they often left everyone thinking it was about them...

Except, of course, the ones that it was actually about.

-TBC-

Kaiba's past is very complicated and it will come out in time. He did go through this small period of lunacy but that's for another time. Bakura seems way too nice to me lately but next chapter we'll see him revert back to how he was in Ch.1. The deal he made with Marik honestly just sprung from nowhere. I like it though.

Welcome, Sami Ryou's Hikari Marik is really coming back to YGO! Does anyone else know this? Awesome! That made my day. Thank you and everyone else who reads and reviews too. Me love you long time.

AmethystRoze