Crystal: Hey there, all. Sorry for not posting sooner. School just started again and I was sick over Christmas break.
Kris: My poor aibou caught the flu. Thankfully yamis can't get sick ^_^
Crystal: So anyways, back to the fic. This chapter is set several months after the last one. Neko-chan still has the occasional vision, but she's alone or it happens when she's asleep. She doesn't tell anyone about them either.
Kris: Two major things, Crystal is trying to follow the Battle City Tournament, but she will be changing some of the dialogue so it works for the fic. The other is Bakura (grrr) is a bit OOC, but it'll make more sense as the story progresses.
Crystal: I only own my OCs. Yu-Gi-Oh belong someone who isn't me.
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"Blah" = speaking
[Blah] = thoughts
//Blah// = yami to hikari
/Blah/ = hikari to yami
+Blah+ = Ancient Egyptian
Chapter Eight: What's Going on Here?
It was finally the last day of school and there was no one happier than Crystal Hikari. She would finally be free of the stares, sneers, snickers, and rumors that she received for living at Kaiba Manor. Crystal also couldn't wait for the new tournament that Seto was sponsoring to begin. She, Yugi, and Jono were going right after school to register for Battle City. When Crystal saw Yugi hurrying toward her, she felt a sensation of relief pass through her. Ever since the warehouse incident, she felt like someone was watching her and the others. However if Yugi was nearby, Crystal felt safer.
"Ready to go register, Crystal?" Yugi asked, his magenta eyes flashing brightly with excitement.
"I sure am." Crystal replied, "Where's Jono?"
"He went to find Anzu and Honda." Yugi said, "Oh, here they come."
"Come on, Jono." Crystal called, "We don't want them to run out of Duel Disks before we get there."
"I'm comin'; I'm comin'." Jono called, "Don't get so wound up."
"I'm going to start running now." Yugi squeaked, knowing exactly what was going to happen next.
"If you don't hurry up, I'll say it." Crystal threatened, her sapphire eyes glinting.
"Fine, I'm hurryin'." Jono cried out, dragging Honda and Anzu behind him as he darted past Crystal.
"Works every time." Crystal snickered with a Kaiba-like smirk.
As Crystal hurried after her friends, she didn't notice the pair of violet eyes watching her from a distance. A man cloaked in black was acting as eyes for his master, Malik. The servant had been tracking the girl clad in the boy's uniform for the past two weeks. Ever since his master noticed the girl with the Puzzle's bearer, Malik had become interested in her. The only thing that Malik was more interested in than the girl was of course the Pharaoh's Power.
{{Have you found anything else of interest about her?}}
[No, Master Malik. Nothing more than what we know, but she is heading for your servant who is working within Kaiba's Battle City tournament.]
{{Perfect.}}
At the Registration Center...
"Hello, we're here to register for Battle City." Yugi said as the five of them entered the room.
"I'm afraid I only have three Duel Disks left." The guy behind the counter said almost apologetically, eyeing the group.
"That's perfect cause only three of us plan to register." Jono smiled.
"Okay, can I have your names then?" The guy asked, "I need to make sure you qualify for the tournament."
"Mutou Yugi."
"You have five stars, that's the highest ranking, and the Dark Magician is your rarest card played. Here's your Duel Disk and good luck."
"Jonouchi Katsuya."
"I'm sorry, but you only have one star. That's not enough to qualify."
"What?!" Jono exclaimed, "It's fixed I tell you. Kaiba's just scared of me."
"Jono, calm down." Crystal said, "I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Jonouchi-san. It seems that you have four stars, enough to qualify." The man said in embarrassment, "There was a glitch with my monitor."
"Yahoo!" Jono cheered, grabbing the Duel Disk from the clerk, "Come to Jono."
"Now who?" The clerk asked, glancing at the Honda, Anzu, and Crystal.
"Hikari Crystal." Crystal said stepping up to the counter.
"Let's see: five stars and Wingweaver is your rarest card played. What's this?" The man said, scratching his head.
"What's wrong?" Crystal asked anxiously.
"You're not allowed to participate in Battle City. I'm sorry, but it has Kaiba's official electronic seal." The clerk replied.
"I'm banned from the tournament?" Crystal asked, "Does it give a reason?"
"No, I suggest you discuss this with Kaiba-san." He replied.
"Why didn't he tell me?" Crystal asked, tears forming at the corners of her eyes.
"Are you sure that it's not a mistake?" Yugi asked.
"I'm positive." The clerk frowned, "I'm sorry."
Crystal nodded and slowly walked out of the store, needing to be alone for a moment. Yugi and the others frowned and went out to comfort Crystal. Unfortunately, she had already started running for the park. Anzu started to go after Crystal, but Yugi placed a hand on Anzu's shoulder and shook his head. The four teens stood, watching their friend run in the direction of the park.
Meanwhile, in the store the clerk was reading over the information on Crystal. Actually, Malik was reading everything that the database had on Crystal. Her deck was a Light-themed deck, and a powerful one at that. She had made quite a name for herself in Tokyo by claiming three championship titles. Then his eyes widened in shock when he learned that now she was staying with Seto Kaiba.
{{She looks familiar to me. Keep an eye on her, and find out why Kaiba banned her from Battle City. He must have a good reason.}}
[Of course, Master Malik.]
Malik released his hold over his servant, and then went to speak to another one. Lucky for him, Crystal had just run past the Rare Hunter he had just made a mental connection with. Malik ordered the Rare Hunter to follow Crystal as she ran through the park. When Crystal finally stopped running, she found herself standing in the middle of the park, under a sakura tree. Crystal slid down to the ground, as diamond-like tears rolled down her cheeks. Malik was just about to order his servant to move in closer to the girl, but a boy with long white hair had already walked up to her.
"Crystal, why are you crying?" Ryou asked, holding out a handkerchief.
"I can't believe he didn't tell me." Crystal choked out, before drying her eyes with the handkerchief.
"What's the matter?" Ryou asked, sitting beside Crystal.
"I'm banned from Battle City, and Seto didn't even tell me." Crystal replied tearfully.
"He must have a good reason for not letting you participate." Ryou said, placing an arm over Crystal's shoulders, "Instead of being here, I think you should be talking to Kaiba about this."
"I suppose so, but how do I tell him without blowing up in his face." Crystal sighed, "I don't want to hurt him, like he's hurt me."
"Just keep that in mind." Ryou said, giving Crystal a gentle hug with the arm over her shoulders, "Come on. Let's find a phone so that you can call Kaiba and let him know you're with me, and not alone somewhere."
"Thank you, Ryou." Crystal said, before snuggling closer to him, "You're always there for me."
Both Ryou and Crystal had slight blushes on their faces as the rose and walked out of the park. Malik was disgusted by what he had just seen; it was so sweet that it was sickening, but then again, he would have loved to be in the boy's place. Then Malik noticed something strange about the girl; there was something very familiar about her movement. She was walking the same way his sister always did, in a gait that only Egyptian women tended to walk, flowing like the Nile. He broke off the connection with his servant, after ordering him to resume what he had been doing.
Back to Ryou and Crystal...
"So, you're with that quiet, white-haired boy?" Seto's voice said over the phone.
"Yes Seto, and I'll be home by eight at the latest." Crystal replied, "If not I'll call you, and make sure you know when I'll be back."
"Don't worry about eight, and just be home before nine. There's something I need to tell both you and Mokuba." Seto replied, "It's about Battle City."
"Okay, I'll see you when I get home then, Seto-kun." Crystal said.
"Just remember before nine, Crystal." Seto said, causing Crystal to roll her eyes, "And don't roll your eyes at me over the phone."
"I hate it when you do that." Crystal said in annoyance.
"Sorry, but you do it all the time." Seto chuckled, "Bye, Neko-chan."
"Good-bye, Seto-kun." Crystal said a bit coolly.
"What do you hate that he does?" Ryou asked after Crystal hung up the phone.
"Seto knows when I roll my eyes at him over the phone and tells me to stop." Crystal said, "It drives me up the wall when he does it, and Seto knows it."
"Well, what do you want to do, considering we have almost four hours?" Ryou asked, leaning against the payphone.
"I know; let's go get some ice cream to celebrate the last day of school." Crystal said, her sapphire eyes sparkling happily.
"I know a nice place down the road." Ryou offered, "I get something from there every now and then."
Crystal nodded and walked with Ryou down the street to the ice cream parlor. While Crystal went to order their ice cream, Ryou felt numbness spread around him as Bakura took over. As usual when taking over with Crystal around, Bakura allowed Ryou to see and hear. Bakura smirked when Crystal came back over and set down both bowls of ice cream. Crystal gave him a meek look, before starting to eat her ice cream. Bakura's smirk grew, before he started to eat his own ice cream.
After they finished eating, Bakura and Crystal left the parlor, and Bakura decided that they should head over to Ryou's house. Crystal walked beside Bakura just as she had with Ryou, but she was more cautious with her movements and avoided looking at him in the eyes. Once they arrived at Ryou's house, Bakura made himself comfortable on the couch. Crystal, on the other hand, sat in a lounge chair just to the right of the couch. Bakura smirked at Crystal broadly, before breaking the thick silence within the room.
"I don't bite, you know." Bakura said in a smooth, dangerous voice, "Why don't you sit down on the couch?"
Crystal looked up and saw the dangerous glint in Bakura's eyes. Knowing that he might become violent, Crystal moved from the lounge chair to the couch. Crystal gripped her hands nervously in her lap, waiting for what was going to happen next. Sensing and relishing her nervousness and fear, Bakura shifted and moved closer to Crystal. Then he did something that shocked both Crystal and Ryou, placed an arm around her shoulders in a gentle manner.
//Hikari, I'm cutting you off for a few minutes. There's something I need to do.//
/Bakura-san, please don't hurt her. Kaiba will never forgive me if something happens to her./
//I promise that I won't harm her, hikari.//
"You remind me of the only one I ever cared about." Bakura said softly, "Remember what you said about my eyes?"
"I saw rage, hate, darkness." Crystal answered, "And a deeper pain than my own."
"She was the cause of that pain." Bakura explained, "Well her death was. It was my fault she died, and I could never forgive myself."
"What happened to her?" Crystal asked before she could stop herself.
"You're very brave in asking that." Bakura said with a half-hearted glare, "However the tale needs to be told, but not now. You are in enough distress over what happened earlier."
"You know, I could have told Yugi and the others about you long ago." Crystal said, "I wonder if there is a subconscious reason why I haven't told them."
"I've never harmed you, and you know that you have no reason to tell them until I do hurt you." Bakura smirked, "You and Ryou are very much alike in that aspect."
"I guess so." Crystal sighed softly, bowing her head.
"I know so. That is one reason I've never hit you." Bakura said, lifting Crystal's chin, "The other is that you look so much like her. I swear sometimes that you are her, but your skin is too light."
"I have to go." Crystal murmured, "Please, Bakura-san."
"It's only six." Bakura chuckled, "We still have about three hours."
"But something's wrong." Crystal murmured, "Don't you any feeling of dread in the pit of your stomach."
"You're just over-reacting." Bakura said in a firm voice, "You feel uneasy because I am being civil with you."
Suddenly, Bakura felt Crystal's body seize up beside him. When he looked into her eyes, they were clouded and out of focus. She had fallen into a trance, for the first time in his presence since the Ancient Egypt project near the beginning of the school year. Bakura remained still as he felt the presence of ancient magic weave around both the girl and himself. Then Crystal started mumbling softly in Ancient Egyptian, growing louder until Bakura finally was able to hear her words.
+Once an enemy, now a friend, trapped in an alley's black dead end. The treasure stolen, the owner beaten.+ Crystal chanted rapidly, +The Ruby-Eyed Beast cries for its master. The thieves were fast, now Light must be faster.+
"Jono, something's wrong with Jono." Crystal gasped, coming out of the trance, "I have to find him."
"Ryou will go with you." Bakura said firmly, before giving control back to his hikari.
//Go with her and find her friend.//
/Hai, Bakura-san./
//I will be watching so that I can take over if anything happens.//
/Of course, Bakura-san./
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Kris: Uh-oh, Jono's in trouble and Neko-chan knows it.
Crystal: Well, I guess those trances are showing her more than the past now, eh?
Kris: Yeah they sure are. I hope they find Jono or the guys that attacked him.
Crystal: You'll have to wait until I post to find out, just like everyone else Kris.
Kris: No I don't. ^_^ I'll raid your laptop later.
Crystal: *to Kris* You're impossible. *to Readers* Well plz read and review. I'll post the next chapter as soon as I can.