Alley Cat: (squeals) I LOVE Lord Kratos in his Cruxis outfit!!
Seto: ...Who's "Lord Kratos"?
Alley Cat: (cackles) You called him "Lord"!
Dark Conscience: (cracks up)
Seto: What?!
Alley Cat: (continues to swoon over Lord Kratos's picture)
Dark Conscience: You know, you have an audience...
Alley Cat: (ignores her and swoons over picture)
Seto: ...You suck!
Alley Cat: (in a state of ecstasy) I know...
Seto: ...Something is seriously wrong with her today...
Dark Conscience: Something is ALWAYS wrong with her...
Alley Cat: (done swooning over Lord Kratos's picture) Well, anyway, I KNOW Seto is too nice in my fic and I KNOW that my story is really cheesy and I KNOW that my pacing is terrible and I KNOW my story is absolutely horrible! Okay? I KNOW!!!! I'm a terrible writer...especially at action... And, apparently, this is pretty much an action fic... It wasn't initially, but it seems like it now... And...I'm sorry!
Dark Conscience: (talking to Seto because Alley Cat won't listen) Is she...FLAMING HERSELF?!?!
Seto: Damn... I'm out of a job...
Alley Cat: I think my first chapter was pretty good though...but after that, I just got so stressed with school and stuff that my ideas were becoming less and less linked and stuff and I'm really sorry!! (sighs) I can't believe Dark Conscience has more readers than I do...
Dark Conscience: That's not my fault...
Alley Cat: ...I blame Seto!
Seto: What?!
Alley Cat: It's all your fault!
Dark Conscience: (sighs) Hopeless, as usual...
Alley Cat: ...I can't believe nobody has caught any of the flaws that I have in each chapter...
Dark Conscience: What do you mean?
Alley Cat: Well... In each chapter, I usually have at least one flaw. Sometimes I tell everyone about them at the end of my chapters...and sometimes I don't... I wonder if any of my readers can find them...
Dark Conscience: ...So you're asking them to flame you?
Seto: (whining) That officially puts me out a job! Damn you, Alley Cat!
Alley Cat: Not exactly flaming...just something interesting... Well whatever... And now, to thank my reviewers...
Black-Lightniing - (gasps) You don't like Yami?! ...You suck! Well, thanks for reviewing so often! I really appreciate it...
Kaiba's Slave - Thank you so much for reviewing so often! I barely have any readers but I'm glad at least someone's reading it! Especially a good writer like you! (Yes, I rushed it, especially at the end because I went brain-dead, and I was really stupid...)
Lady Moofin - You don't like Yami either?! You. Are. Not. Nice! n.n Oh well! More for me! (glomps Yami) Hee, hee. Yes, I'm trying to fix the "slapdash issue"... I'm bad at pacing so bare with me... I'm also doing different ways to...transition... For this chapter, I have only double-spaced when it transitions to a new scene... Tell me if it's better...
Oswarier - Evil... Who told you to read my fic?!?! Oh the humility! I mean, to have someone I actually know reading my fic!! (Remember: This fic is mine! All mine! Not Dark Cosncience's!) Well, thanks for the review... And Black-Lightniing's is probably better than mine... Oh! And by the way, I INVENTED fluff...Of course it'd be fluffy...
Dark Conscience: Technically, our history teacher did...
Alley Cat: I don't care... Well anyway, I hope you all enjoy!
"Damn you Pharaoh," Marik murmured as he walked toward his chambers. "Just had to punish them yourself, didn't you?" he mocked. Marik growled. The Pharaoh and High Priest decided to punish them, to keep Marik from harming them. They claimed it was just because Layla and Anippe were their slaves. "Yeah right," Marik snarled. He returned to his chambers to curse at the Pharaoh and High Priest.
Layla and Anippe sat on the hard ground, with stocks on their hands. The Pharaoh and High Priest dragged two chairs over and sat in them.
The Pharaoh smiled. "Anippe..." he said ominously. "What did you do?"
"I...helped," she replied vaguely.
Yami stared at her.
"I really did! ...Kind of... Not really... No, I didn't...but I tried!"
Yami continued to stare at her with a questioning look in his eyes.
Anippe gave a nervous laugh. "Saw past that too, did you?"
Yami now had a satisfied look in his eyes and nodded his head a little.
Layla started whining. "What am I doing here? I didn't even do anything wrong!"
Seto stared at her. "Didn't do anything wrong, did you?"
"Well, I...But..."
"You were in contact with the 'prey' and got in the way of Marik's pursuit," Seto pointed out. "That's enough to give Marik a reason to torture you for the rest of your life..."
Layla whimpered and looked down toward the ground.
Seto sighed. "At least this isn't as bad as Marik's torture. Just look at it that way."
"Why are you even punishing us anyway?" Layla asked furiously. "I mean, you know we didn't do anything wro—bad!"
Seto smiled. "You were about to say wrong, weren't you?"
Layla blushed. "No. You haven't answered my question yet!"
Yami sighed. "Because, if we didn't punish you, then Marik would make sure he did."
Anippe shivered at the thought of Marik's torture. "Thank you for getting me out of that mess."
Yami smiled. "No problem. Plus, it was pretty entertaining..."
Anippe smiled. "Yeah. It was fun!"
Yami gave her a serious look. "Anippe. I don't want you doing dangerous stuff like that ever again. You were lucky that we were there. Next time, you might not be so lucky."
Anippe nodded. "I understand."
Yami looked relieved.
"Same goes with you, Layla," Seto said coldly. "I don't want you in this kind of trouble again. I'm the High Priest. I have a reputation to uphold."
"But—I—But—"
Seto gave her a threatening look.
Layla sighed. "Understood," she murmured.
"Good."
Seto and Yami looked at each other. "Well, we better get going," Yami said. "We'll come release you two in a few hours." They left.
Anippe sighed and looked at Layla. "Sorry I got you in this mess."
Layla smiled. "Hey, you got my revenge. It was the least I could do!"
Anippe smiled back. "You know, I just met you. I hardly even know you...and yet it feels like we've been together since we were young... Like we're sisters of something!"
Layla nodded. "I know what you mean... The feeling's strange, is it not?"
"Yeah. But, you know, it's a good thing, right?"
Layla nodded again. "You bet! I'm so happy I finally have a friend here." She paused and closed her eyes. "It's been...so long since I left my family...my friends..." She sighed. "I miss them..."
Anippe looked at her with worried eyes. "I understand."
Layla shook her head. "No. No, you don't. You don't know what it's like to be separated from your family and friends for so long. ...Sometimes for so long, you hardly even remember what they're like." Layla felt tears well up.
"I understand. I really do. ...And I'm sorry. I really am! But—"
Layla, once again, shook her head. "You still don't understand. Every day, every hour, every minute, every second I worry about them. I want to go tell someone to take care of them for me. I want to have someone I can go to; so I can know what my friends and family are up to, how they're doing. But I can't. So I leave all these feelings, all these worries trapped up inside of me. And sometimes, I just want to scream out, release all my worries. More than once, I have tried to forget about my worries. But, to forget about my worries, I must also forget about my family and friends...my past. But it's just about impossible to do that, so I stay here, suffering. There is no way you can understand. You're so carefree, unnerved. It seems like nothing ever burdens you." The tears were uncontrollable now. Layla let the tears flow down her face. For some reason, it felt much better than holding them back.
Anippe shook her head. "That's where you're wrong. You're not the only one who suffers. The world doesn't revolve around you. There are other people suffering as well. During at least one point of everyone's lives, they have suffered. ...And usually they suffer greatly. I understand everything. Your pain...your worry...your anger. I understand all of it. The fact that your family and friends are in one place, and you're in another. They seem so distant...that it's like your in different worlds, different realms." Anippe closed her eyes as she felt tears brimming as well. "And, every day, you hope...that you will be able to see them again." Anippe's tears were now beyond control. She let them flow down her face. "False hope," she said emotionlessly. "It's just a fantasy, and that's all it will ever be."
Layla was taken aback by this comment. "No. You're wrong! It can't be. They will come for us one day, you'll see."
Anippe could see how much Layla believed in her family returning. She didn't want to crush her hopes, her dreams. Even though they weren't true, she didn't want to hurt Layla. Anippe smiled. "You're right. Sorry. I just kind of lost myself for a moment." She nodded her head. "They'll come back. Definitely."
Layla relaxed a little. "Sorry I shouted at you. I get carried away sometimes..."
Anippe smiled. "No. I'm the one who got carried away..."
Anippe and Layla were still talking when the High Priest and Pharaoh came to release them. In fact, they were laughing. Seto sighed. "I don't think this is a punishment anymore..."
Yami smiled. "I guess we'll have to find different ways of disciplining them..."
They released Anippe and Layla from the stocks. They stood up and stretched their muscles for a while and then ran off.
Yami looked at Seto, befuddled. "I don't think they got punished at all."
"By the way I look at it, they were rewarded," Seto replied coldly.
"I think we're going to get some trouble with Marik from this..."
Seto sighed uneasily. "We're not going to get much trouble...but they are." He motioned toward the way Layla and Anippe ran off.
Yami nodded. "Yeah. I'm worried about them, too."
"So what are we going to do?"
Yami thought for a second. "All we can do, I guess."
Seto shot Yami a questioning look. "And that is?"
Yami sighed anxiously. "To wait."
Seto nodded. "I guess that's all we can do."
They parted ways.
Marik was still in his room. Never had anyone made a fool of him. Never. Especially not a worthless slave. He growled. She'd pay for this. They'd all pay for this. Yes, he thought possessively. They will...soon. He cackled deliriously. And it starts with those two slaves...
Seto: O.o You wrote this because...
Alley Cat: Mainly for...uh, stalling! I'm...having writer's block and the fact that I'm brain-dead doesn't help much either...
Dark Conscience: ...Whatever...
Alley Cat: And you peoples don't have to R&R either because it's probably going to be all flames anyway. In fact, I don't even think you had to read this chapter at all...
Seto: So you just made them to put them through the agony?
Alley Cat: Precisely.
Seto: ...I like the way you think...
Alley Cat: n.n Thank you! (And I know it's short, but it's a useless chapter anyway...)