Jeez… *looks at last time I updated* Sorry about taking so long! I didn't really know what to do with this chapter. I wanted to have some sort of conflict, but not one where they were almost found out, like the previous chapters. I haven't even decided if I like this chapter myself yet. Also, I thought that the end of this got a bit too fluffy. I was really debating changing the entire thing, but I decided against it, telling myself I needed to update. Well, whatever, I guess I'll find out if you all like it or not. Thank you everyone for your input after the last chapter. I even got a couple ideas that I hadn't considered yet. Anyways, sorry for the wait and please review!
Chapter 15
Merry Christmas
I don't understand this whole Christmas thing.
I mean, it seems to me that it is all just some huge materialistic, money-driven, pointless holiday, but for some reason, people think that Christmas is all magical and sparkly and shit like that. I've even been told that miracles are supposed to happen on Christmas Eve. It just doesn't make sense.
So, I shake my head as watch Ryou get ready for this damn Christmas party I am being forced to go to tonight. I swear he has been brushing his hair for the last half hour or so. It took him forever to decide on what he was going to wear, as well. Not that I mind, because I really don't want to be early to this thing, but he usually doesn't take this long.
"Gods, Ryou! Why are you taking so long? Do you not want to go or something?" I finally ask, getting frustrated by all this waiting around.
"No, it's not that. I just want to look nice. It is Christmas, so it's special." Sighing audibly, I go back into my room and examine my own appearance in the mirror. Maybe I should wear something other than my usual attire. It wouldn't hurt to dress differently for once. Sorting through the few clothes in my closet, I pull out a pair of black pants as well as a black, form-fitting shirt. Now that I have had time to regain most of my muscle tone, I can show off a bit. I put on a couple bracelets, a silver necklace, and a dark gray jacket, brushing through my hair a bit afterwards.
Making sure I have everything, I go back out to find Ryou and when I do, the first thing he does is start to laugh at me.
"What?!?" I inquire harshly, not understanding his apparent amusement.
"I'm sorry. It's just that it looks like you've picked up a bit of Yami's fashion sense." I freeze in embarrassment as I realize that he is right.
"I'm going to go change."
"No, don't! I wasn't making fun of you. I just thought it was cute. You actually look quite nice!" He adds quickly, trying to make up for laughing at me.
"What did I tell you about using that word 'cute' to describe anything about me?!?" He tries to hold back another laugh, but fails miserably.
"Sorry. We should really be going though."
We head over to Yugi's house where, of course, the party is being held. My only reason for going to this damn thing is because Yami will be there and he insisted that I come. It's been almost a month and our relationship has become rather strong, much to my surprise, though we have been taking it slow. I find it odd having an official boyfriend of sorts, even if only two other people know about it. It was difficult to adjust to being so intimately close to someone like this for the first couple of weeks, but now, I can't imagine not sharing every aspect of my life with Yami.
We've even managed to keep it a secret this entire time, which is a miracle in itself. There have been many close calls, much like the ones on that first day, but luckily none of the others have found out. Most of the time though, me and Yami just spend time alone, usually at my house. Yugi's little friends are just lucky that they haven't pissed me off lately, although there is a high possibility of that happening at this party.
Finally arriving at Yugi's house, Ryou knocks on the door and Yugi promptly answers.
"Ryou! I'm so glad you finally made it!" Yugi takes him by the hand and drags him inside, apparently not even noticing my presence. Or he just doesn't care. Letting myself in and closing the door behind me, I observe the various events of the party, scanning the faces to find my Yami.
The house is thoroughly covered in Christmas décor. There is music playing almost too loudly and there are people everywhere. I had no idea Yugi knew this many people. Everyone is talking, dancing, and of course, the scene wouldn't be complete without a Duel Monsters match taking place. Otogi and Jounouchi, surrounded by a small crowd of spectators, are in what appears to be a heated duel, but it seems that Otogi is about to win. I walk away from the main groups in search of the coat closet. Finally finding where it is, I move to open the door when I hear someone walk up next to me.
"Bakura, you finally came!" I stop in horror as I recognize the voice, slowly turning my head to meet the 'let's be friends' gaze of Anzu. As hard as she tries to be nice to everyone, the beams of love and happiness she radiates have the absolute opposite effect on people like me. She should just give up already.
"You look really nice tonight. You should go out and find someone to dance with. I'm sure there are lots of girls who would want to, especially with you looking like that tonight. Come on!" She extends her hand, presumably expecting me to take it. She must be joking. Really, what is she thinking, has she forgotten who I am? I can't stand this anymore.
I quickly grab Anzu's outstretched hand, pulling her towards me while opening the closet door with my other hand. I fling her into the closet, without even a sound from her, probably because she was too surprised by my actions. I slam the door and collect magic in the hand that's still on the doorknob, to melt the lock. I hear her cries for help through the door as she pounds on it from the other side, but I doubt that the other's will hear her over the loud music. Smiling to myself, hoping that that will keep her out of my way for a while, I resume my search for Yami. I can wear my jacket for now.
My luck for avoiding people lasts about five minutes and then I unfortunately run into Shizuka, Mai, and a couple others I don't recognize. "Hey Bakura, there's some people you should meet." Mai tells me. Why can't these people just leave me alone?!? It's not like I'm here to see them anyway. Must get rid of them immediately.
"I don't think you have time for that at the moment. It seems that Anzu has managed to get herself locked in the back closet somehow. You should go help her." Shizuka and Mai take one look at each other and run off towards the closet, while I move on, hoping to get as far away from them before they find out that I was the one who shoved Anzu in there, although there's not much they can do to me besides piss me off.
Dammit, where the hell is Yami?!? My capacity to tolerate this sort of event has just about reached its maximum and whoever gets in my way next is utterly doomed. Okay, I'm going to find Yami the more accurate way. Holding up my Ring, I focus on the objective at hand- finding the Millennium Puzzle, while trying to avoid the Millennium Rod. The side point rises up, indicating the direction of the Puzzle. I follow the path it specifies, keeping my eyes focused on the changing points. I turn a couple corners, finally feeling the energy of the Puzzle in within close proximity.
I glance up from my Ring to see Yami several feet ahead of me in the kitchen doorway, but I quickly notice something extremely, severely wrong with the current picture. In a split second, all my rage and fury manifests itself as a huge blue aura around my entire body, all directed towards Kaiba who has Yami trapped against the side of the doorway, locked in a kiss.
For a fleeting moment, many possibilities flicker through my mind and I consider turning around and leaving, running away from this horrid scene. What if this is what Yami really wants? What if he has given up on me and is happier with Kaiba? And besides, if I do something about it, everyone will figure out our secret. Though there aren't any other people in this room to see what is happening, Kaiba would definitely realize what has been going on.
But who gives a shit about that? I deserve an explanation and what's more, I need a way to release all this pent up anger. It's not good to keep it bottled up, right?
Seeing Yami struggle slightly against Kaiba, I decide that he is hopefully not a willing participant in this, relieving some of my concerns. After standing for only about three seconds, in a burst of speed, I run towards them, landing a forceful punch straight into the side of Kaiba's face, throwing him to the floor in the adjacent hall. Without a second thought, I gather Shadow Magic in both my hands, pouring all of my anger into one focused burst of power. He has a chance to shakily return to his feet, hand held to his face, and he looks up with the slightest hint of fear in his eyes.
"You have made the mistake of making me seriously angry. Now die!" I growl, intending them to be the last words he will ever hear. I release all of my gathered wrath, directed to where Kaiba is half-standing. Much to my disappointment, he narrowly manages to roll to the side, ducking under the blast of energy, which consequently hit the back entrance to the house, reducing the door to smoldering ashes. The cold winter air floods onto the floor, creating a contrasting atmosphere to my fiery rage.
This time, Kaiba stands up tall to face me, not backing down at all. "What the hell is your problem?" He growls.
"The fact that you are still alive!" I snarl back in retaliation. I begin to prepare another attack, one that will hopefully be too big for him to dodge, but I start to feel dizzy, most likely because I have not used my powers to such an extent in a long time. That and the fact that I am still in recovery mode, somewhat. The hallway swirls for a moment and there is a subsequent lapse in my concentration and suddenly I am tackled from the side.
"Shit Bakura! Don't kill him!" Yami yells at me, after I hit the wall and we land together in a heap on the floor.
"And why the hell not? Did you want him doing that to you?" Yami quickly stands up, to let me get up, without answering my questions. He opens his mouth to say something, but about a dozen people come running around the corner, Yugi, Ryou, and Jounouchi right in the front, faces full of worry. I'm surprised they heard anything over that stupid music.
"What is going on here?" Jounouchi looks from me to Yami and then to Kaiba. "Christ, what happened to the door?" Jounouchi asks. I look at the door, somewhat proud of my handiwork, though this is Yami's house.
"It's alright Jounouchi-kun, there was just a… misunderstanding." Yami diplomatically answers. Yami turns back to face me, eyes motioning towards the now gone door.
"Did you do that to the door, Bakura?" Honda has the nerve to assume. But I guess it is a fair assumption after all, given the other possibilities.
"I don't have to explain myself to you insects." I turn, not too rapidly though, wanting to maintain my hold over the dizziness, and walk out the doorway. I hope Yami knows what he's going to say them and to me. He obviously didn't want me there and I was not inclined to object. But maybe he didn't want me there so he could make up with Kaiba… either way, I'd better get an explanation. After turning a corner, I slow down a bit, making it easier for Yami to catch up. I want him to come, I'm not going to run away from this, from all that I have had with Yami. Right now, I'm too angry to care about the possibility of being rejected.
It's been a good thirty minutes since I left the house… Yami must be having trouble settling things with all the other guests. I hope that's it. I let the slightest twinge of doubt filter into my thoughts, mixing with all the anger and frustration. I don't even know where I've wondered to, Yami's probably just having a hard time finding me… that's it.
Just as I am about to turn to head back, I hear footsteps crunching in the snow and feel Yami's nearing presence. Yami approaches me, his form illuminated by the light of his Puzzle, with apprehension and worry radiating from his expression. Maybe he is afraid of my reaction.
"You could have come to a place with lights." Yami says, slightly annoyed.
"I am more comfortable in the darkness." I tell him plainly, only stating a fact. I am not going to be the one to drag all of the explanations out of him. If he wants to tell me, he will, and then I will know where our relationship stands.
He examines me closely, trying to figure out my current emotions. The soft glow emitted from the Puzzle surrounds his entire body, as if creating a beacon in the darkness. I can't help but return his intense gaze, while trying to appear as unaffected and emotionless as possible, unlike my outburst earlier. This will not be solved by more yelling and accusations or violence.
Falling deeper into the depths of Yami's eyes, I notice my anger slipping away. I hate how he has that effect on me. Ryou is the only other who has been able to affect my emotions to such an extent. For some reason, I can't be mad at him.
After what seems like an eternity, Yami closes the couple of feet between us, wrapping his arms around my waist and placing his forehead to my chest. "I'm so sorry." He whispers.
"For what? The fact that you let Kaiba kiss you or that you were caught when you didn't want to be?" I calmly reply as he moves so he can look at my face.
"You're much too fragile when it comes to relationships. Is that really what you think, that I was having some sort of affair with Kaiba? Baka." He reaches up at lightly swats the back of my head.
"Well, how was I supposed to know? It's not like Kaiba is more powerful than you. If you had really wanted to, you could have used your powers to not let that happen in the first place." I argue back, still not satisfied with the answer he gave me.
He sighs loudly. "I'll explain that part later." His hand moves to the side of my face, resting it there ever so gently. "Haven't you come to fully trust me yet? Don't you understand? Understand that… that I love you." He admits softly and sincerely, eyes never leaving mine for a second. I am completely taken aback by his statement, considering he has never expressed such emotions before. Yami is never like this; he must really want to hold our relationship together. Damn… now I feel guilty for making him worry so much.
I can't think of anything to do but enclose my arms tightly around him, drawing him as close to me as possible. "There's just one other thing we need to take care of." Yami informs me… oh right, Kaiba.
"I left him back a bit, but I haven't told him anything. I figured we might as well do so together."
"Fine, but you know, we wouldn't have to be doing this had you let me destroy him." I say with a hint of sarcasm. Now that I look back on it, I think I would have felt the smallest, tiniest, tiniest, most miniscule bit of remorse if I had actually killed Kaiba. But that's only because it would have upset Yami.
Yami lets a small smile grace his face, much to my relief. I let Yami lead me to where Kaiba is standing under a lamplight. Just before we reach Kaiba, I see Yami shiver. He must be cold, presumably because he is only wearing a skimpy little dark blue tank top that doesn't look to be made of very thick material. I slip off my jacket and rest it on Yami's shoulders, as we walk into the light from the street lamp. He pulls it closer around himself, without looking at me. I think he is trying to concentrate on figuring out what to say to Kaiba.
Kaiba, of course, noticed my little display of affection and it looking at us rather puzzled. But I don't care, I don't give a damn what he thinks about me. Though, I find this situation fairly amusing. This is one of the few times I've seen Kaiba so confused, although he is trying desperately to hide it. That and the fact that there is a nice bruise beginning to form on the side of his face. As we come to a stop in front of him, I smirk in superiority. Despite the fun it would be, I think that I should refrain from saying anything to make the situation worse. I'm actually trying hard not to laugh at the moment. Yami is going to have to take care of all this.
Kaiba tilts his head down in suspicion. "What is going on here? And why the hell did you punch me?" Heh, I figured he would have been more concerned about my attempt to incinerate him.
"I thought that you would have figured that out by now." Yami replies in a cool tone, while wearing his usual stern expression.
"Well, I had my suspicions, but I just didn't think it was very like you Yami, to go for someone like him." 'Someone like him?!?' Ra, he is asking for it. I swear, if he could be any more arrogant… No, he is just trying to provoke me. I will not let him get the best of me like that, so I grit my teeth and let Yami take care of it.
"At least Bakura is better than someone like you, who would force himself on others." Yami retorts, trying not to lose his control either. It doesn't look like Kaiba is going to press the issue any further, luckily.
"Whatever, then why did you drag me out here anyway?" Kaiba says in a very annoyed manner.
"To ask you to keep our secret. The only other people who know are our hikaris. We would rather not let the rest of our friends know about us at this time."
Kaiba pauses for few seconds. "Fine, it's not my place to tell others and I don't really care about your friends anyway. I'm going to go back to pick up Mokuba."
He begins to walk off, back towards Yami's house. "As much as I may disapprove of this, you are still my greatest rival Yami, nothing will ever change that." He says, not turning around.
Yami remains silent and walks over to my side, intertwining his fingers with my own. I'm surprised Kaiba took that so well, although he is not the type to let much of his emotions show through. Most likely, he is quietly brooding about it right now. It provides some small satisfaction, knowing that I have something he can't have.
We give Kaiba about a five minute head start and then head back ourselves. Though I am still curious about what precisely happened between Yami and Kaiba.
"Do you still want to know?" Yami inquires, as if knowing my exact thoughts.
"I was just wondering."
"It's all your fault you know." He says, in one of his more serious tones.
"Excuse me?" Surprised, I look over him and he mischievously grins back, letting me know he is being sarcastic. I'm never going to be able to entirely figure out his sarcasm.
"I was standing in the doorway, annoyed because you hadn't arrived yet, with all my thoughts focused on what I was going to do to you once I finally had you to myself again. Out of nowhere, Kaiba appeared in front of me and said that I was standing under mistletoe. I told him that I didn't care because I didn't understand what the point of it was. Then he said that he would teach me and that's when he pinned me to the wall and kissed me. I was so furious that I became paralyzed for a moment and that's when you must have walked in, because the next thing I knew, Kaiba had been punched in the face. Which leads me back to my original statement. If you hadn't been so late, it never would have happened." He explains, ending with a smile.
"You can thank Ryou for that. He was the one wanting to look 'special' for some reason."
"Not for some reason, for someone I bet."
"Are you trying to make me angry?"
"It was just a thought. I'm sure you know your own hikari better than I do." He responds in a smug, yet sarcastic tone, laughing a bit as well. Great, now I'm going to have to wonder about that.
I decide to let that subject go for now. "I'm just surprised that Kaiba was interested in you like that." I remark.
"Somehow, it didn't surprise me. I mean, if you really think about it, you have many aspects in common with Kaiba. I guess I just attract a certain type of people."
"Now you've made me angry."
"Don't worry. I didn't say that you were alike in all respects. You're different in the ones that matter. The ones that I love you for." That's the second time tonight. He is definitely acting strangely; he must have had too much eggnog. I tighten my grip on Yami's hand.
We finally reach the front door to Yami's house, but we stop. I don't think that it would be wise to enter together anyways. "I left after settling everyone back down and telling Ryou and Yugi what had happened. They should all be back to having a fun party. Everyone assumed it was just one of our normal fights and that Kaiba had the misfortune of getting involved as well."
"What about the door?"
"I just put a barrier around it until we can fix it tomorrow. And you will be helping by the way."
"Great…"
"You should wait out here for a couple of minutes. Oh, here's your jacket. Thanks by the way. I never got to tell you how damn sexy you looked either."
"I got bored while waiting for Ryou."
"You should dress differently more often."
"I'll think about it."
Yami reaches up and gives me a soft kiss before entering the house. I wait about two minutes before going back inside myself. Everything has pretty much returned to normal, with the exception of Kaiba's absence. He must have taken Mokuba and left after he got back. Doesn't surprise me though.
I quickly find Ryou, unfortunately along with Yugi. We move out of earshot of the other guests. "We heard what happened." Ryou informs me.
"Yeah, you should learn to control your temper more." Yugi chimes in. Why do people think that it is fun to provoke me?
"Anyway, so I take it Kaiba knows now." Ryou interrupts before Yugi has a chance to add on to his comment.
"Yeah, but he seemed to take it well. And he's not going to tell anyone."
"That's good."
"So when's going to be next time you screw up so that everyone finds out?" Yugi adds.
"Okay, that's it!" Yugi tries to run from me, but I snatch him by the back of his shirt, dragging him out the front door, all while he cries for help to Ryou.
"Bakura, just don't hurt him!"
"Oh, I won't."
I throw Yugi into the nearest snow bank, giving him a thorough whitewash, covering him from head to toe in snow. When I am satisfied, I let him stand up. He looks pitifully at me with those huge eyes of his.
"That's not going to work today. You deserved that." I turn around and go back inside, grinning evilly. That's makes three of my enemies I've taught a lesson to, tonight. I'm on a roll.
I rejoin Ryou at his side as Yugi runs up the stairs, most likely to his room to change. "That was mean." Ryou says, as he smiles.
"Of course it was."
"Well-"
"Bakura! How could you do that to me?!?" Anzu storms up to me and Ryou, startling both of us. I never get a break, do I?
"It wasn't really that hard to do."
"That's not what I meant. That was such a horrible thing to do to one of your friends!" Scratch my previous count. I guess it was only two. She'll never learn.
"Mai and Shizuka had to remove the doorknob to get me out."
"That makes two doors you've ruined tonight." Ryou comments softly to me.
"That door isn't ruined. It was only the doorknob."
"Guess you're right."
"Are you paying attention to me?" Anzu interrupts.
"No." I think that she is actually getting mad at me… about time.
Before she has a chance to say anything else, I brush past her, not wanting to hear more of her speeches. As I walk away from her, Yami comes up to me, forcefully stopping me in my tracks in front of many of the guests. He looks incredibly pissed off, but from the small little glint in his eyes, I can tell that he is faking it.
"My aibou told me what you did to him. You will pay." He's trying so hard to be serious, but with that last sentence a smirk tugged at the corner of mouth. He can't say that without thinking dirty thoughts, how cute. He must want an excuse to leave as well. I can see where he is going with this though and I will be happy to play my part, if it works that is.
"So the poor little small fry can't stick up for himself? The big, bad Pharaoh has to defend his pint-sized hikari?" I bite my lip trying not to laugh as I shove Yami's shoulder.
"Don't ever insult my aibou like that!" Yami yells while shoving me back harder. At this point, most of the guests are intently watching our little argument.
"But it's so easy! I just can't help myself." Yami decides to up the stakes and his Puzzle begins to glow with power. I do the same and everyone around us takes a step back.
Just when we can't go any further without getting serious, Ryou walks in between us, grabbing both our wrists and yanking us towards the door.
"Take it outside! The house has been wrecked enough tonight." Ah, Ryou has played his part superbly. He pushes us outside and looks back to make sure no one is behind him. "You can thank me later." He whispers with a smile. "Just remember to come back to fix the house."
I smile gratefully to my hikari and then to Yami, as we head off to my house. "I didn't know what we were going to do if Ryou hadn't done something." Yami says.
"We could have destroyed the entire house and everyone with it. I would've liked to after as much as I had to suffer at that party."
"I had to suffer more than you. You were the one who was almost two hours late."
"You never said that everyone had to come right when it started. It's called being fashionably late."
"Yes, but everyone else showed up at that time."
"Fine, fine. You win."
"I always win."
"I'll change that eventually."
"Doubtful."
"Bet you can't beat me back to the house." I take off in a fast sprint. The house isn't much farther.
"Hey!" Yami yells after starting to chase after me. There is no way he can catch up, even if we had started at the same time. I reach my porch, waiting for Yami to join me.
"That wasn't fair." Yami gasps while trying to catch his breath.
"I still won."
"I can still beat you at a game of Duel Monsters any day."
"We'll see about that." I say playfully, letting us both inside.
I throw my coat to the floor as I grab a big blanket to wrap around the both of us, while we sit down on the couch. We both slip off our shoes and Yami curls up next to me. "You know, you still have to pay for what you did to my aibou." I look into his face, slightly puzzled. I can't figure out if he's being sarcastic or not.
"He deserved it." I say, brushing his comment off without letting it provoke me.
"I see. My little Bakura-chan doesn't think that I am serious."
"Don't call me that."
"Then what should I call you? My dear 'Kura, the beautiful white-haired angel, who brings peace and lo-"
"No!" I cut him off sharply before he can continue, pinning him down on the couch. "Ra, anything but that."
"Then what?" He pouts innocently at me for a moment, then his expression changes to something quite the opposite. "Koibito?"
"Technically you can't call me that one."
"We can certainly change that, now can't we." He says in a rather soft, inviting tone.
"We certainly can." I say before leaning down to kiss him. He enjoys manipulating me way too much.
To be continued-
Well, I'll leave the rest of that to all of your imaginations and I'm quite sure you all have rather vivid ones. I'm not about to attempt writing a lemon. I'll leave finding out who Ryou is paired with until the chapter after next most likely. I'm still open to suggestions on that topic. Oh and don't worry Kaiba fans, I won't leave him out just because he was told off. I have some future ideas involving him. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, despite the fact that it was over eight pages long. Please review!