Calmhorizon: I owe apologies to everyone who has taken the time to read and/or review this story. It's been about four months, I think, since I last updated.
Well, now I am paying homage to you, my dear readers. To show how sorry I am, here's three chapters for the price of one.

Mokuba: (Yes, he's still here) But the chapters are free.

Calmhorizon: Shut up.

Disclaimer: I still don't own Yu-gi-oh, which is obvious. Enjoy.

Chapter 7
Guilty as charged

Instantaneous images flashed in rapid succession behind closed lids, deep in lucid sleep.

Always that boy. That same boy. Staring at him. Again. And again. And again. That same boy.

Who didn't have a face.

Crystalline tears rolled down his cheeks as he realised he the boy was.
Ryou.
But he couldn't picture him. Couldn't conceive or impregnate the image anywhere in his mind.

An insatiable desire to become Orpheus overtook him: If he could glance at his Eurydice last time, if he remembered his son's face, then that'd always be enough.
But he wasn't. And he couldn't.

But what if it meant something else? What if he didn't have a face because he didn't need one, because no one ever would look at his face again. Because it was already too late. Because he was-

Ring ring, ring ring. Mr Bakura turned, very slowly, to look at the phone, his face ashen white. He stood up quickly, all sorts of anguishing thoughts running through his mind, and raced to pick up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Moshi moshi Mr Bakura. It's Ryou; he's awake!"
Mr Bakura gasped in delight and astonishment, almost choking in his shock. He didn't speak for several minutes, then just plainly answered "Tell him I'm on the next flight out, that I'll be there soon."

"OK, Mr Bakura I will, see you soon. Sayō."

Mr Bakura set down the receiver. Then started crying. His son was awake! His son was alive!

He was sure at least half of all the people in the airport were staring at him as he raced around, searching for gifts for Ryou. But he didn't care; he was finally going to see his son.
He was so happy he didn't mind that fact that he had to share business class with about a million other people, all tapping away on their laptops and chattering away on their mobiles. He was as happy as Larry. Whoever he was.

Ten hours seemed to last a lifetime as he counted down the hours until he'd see Ryou again. When the plane finally landed at Narita airport in Tokyo he was fit to burst. He grabbed his hand luggage and ran off the plane.
Yuugi was waiting for him in arrivals. "Hi Ryou's dad. Woah, that's a lot of stuff. Come on, let's get going, I'll take you to see Ryou.

They were greeted by the receptionist as they walked through the entrance of the hospital.
"Hi Yuugi, so this must be Ryou's dad, right?"

"Hi Claire, yep, this is Ryou's dad, he's been in England on business and took the first flight out to Tokyo."

"Well, that's commitment for you. Go on up, they're all waiting for you in ICU."

Mr Bakura couldn't help but be shocked at what he saw as he walked into ICU. To him, the whole place reeked of death and was surrounded by a foreboding aura.

"Ryou shouldn't be in a place like this. He should be in a regular ward, not in isolation."

"But people in Intensive Care are very susceptible to infection. The need to get better, not worse."

As they approached Ryou's room they saw that Anzu was waiting outside the door.

"Yuugi, I need to speak to you." She said, whispering to Ryou.

"Oh," said Yuugi cheerfully, "Mr Bakura, why don't you go in and see Ryou?"

"No!" Anzu shouted, taking the two males by surprise. She had to think of something, and quick. "No, you cann't, not just yet because…the nurses…the nurses are just examining him. It's a routine thing when someone regains consciousness…You'll have to wait until they come out. Why don't you get yourself a cup of coffee or something? You must be tired after your long journey. Come on Yuugi!" she said, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him behind her. They sat down on some chairs outside the staff toilets.

"Yuugi, we can't let Ryou's dad go in his room; Ryou's unconscious again. It happened while you were gone, but I couldn't bear to tell you sooner."

"Oh no," exclaimed Yuugi, clasping his hand to his mouth, "we have to tell Mr Bakura."

"No," replied Anzu, urgency resonating in her voice. "he can't know. He thinks Ryou is awake, it'll break his heart. He feels guilty enough as it is, this will just be another stab in the back for him."

"Then we need a plan. What shall we do?" Anzu thought for a moment and then announced her plan.

"I know, I'll go into Ryou's room and 'talk to the nurses'" she said forming quotation marks with her fingers as she said the last bit.

"Yeah, and the nurses say that he can't be disturbed today, and he has to have continuous obs for the next 24 hours. They say you can come back tomorrow."

"Nonsense, I'm his father, I have a right to see my son. Excuse me nurse," he caught the attention of a passing nurse, "I'm Ryou Bakura's father. May I see him?"

"Yes, of course Mr Bakura, that room there."

"Thank you." He placed his hand on the doorknob and opened the door.

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Ryou?" he stared at his son, once again unconscious, laying in the bed, as still as a rock.

"I'm sorry, Mr Bakura." Yuugi said to him quietly from the door, never taking his eyes off Ryou. "We didn't want to tell you. We didn't want you to react badly."

He answered in a voice showing no emotion "I'd like to be alone with my son, please." Never taking his eyes off him.

Even when he was all alone with Ryou he showed nothing. He glanced at his son's body, at the machines beeping, all around the room.

It was then that he broke down.

"I'm sorry Ryou. Gomennasai, gomennasai, gomennasai, gomennasai!" Bent over like a hunchback, he started crying, repeating the same words over and over again. "I'm sorry Ryou, with all my heart, I'm sorry. Maybe, if I'd been here sooner, you would be all right. I'm a horrible father. I've neglected you by not being around. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. A thousand times I'm sorry. Forgive me Ryou, please forgive me." He was crying even harder. "Forgive me."

That was it. He couldn't say another word.
Just cry.

That night, he cried himself to sleep.