Mmm… I feel like crap. School is hell, I have so much to do I barely have time to update this chapter. I've been staying up too late this whole week so I'm really tired. This project I got coming up is just too stressful…

Bad news. I won't be updating next week. (GASP) I know, sorry folks but I'm just simply not going to be here. Cause all Friday, Saturday and Sunday guess where I'm going to be? That's right, freaking KATSUKON! I'm so excited! Just got to keep my eyes on that slim glimmer of light on the horizon. My blood relation is even coming home to accompany me. YAY!

This chapter is brought to you by the fact that the media is the essence evil. Simple as that.

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Chyaputa 14: Share the Pain

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/I play Mirror force. It destroys all your monsters in attack position/ Yami no Yugi said, flipping over his face down trap card. Bakura gasped hopelessly.

/Crud/ he muttered disappointedly and removed all his monsters from the field to the graveyard. /I have no choice but to end my turn/ Bakura admitted with a sigh. /Looks like you're going to win this game too./ Yami no Yugi grinned smugly but tried his best not to agree with Bakura.

/Well, not necessarily/ Yami no Yugi advised. /You should trying having more confidence in yourself, maybe that would improve your game./ The sound of crunching underbrush announced Malik and Yugi's arrival into the clearing. They both fell out of the bushes almost at the same and then immediately collapsed on the ground. They were followed closely by Yami no Bakura who, unlike his fellow shoppers was radiating with shadow magic. All three were panting like they had running for a very long time; sweat clung to all of their faces.

"We made it!" Yugi gasped, lying on his back, chest heaving.

"Do you think- we- lost them-?" panted Malik.

/Aibou, you're back/ Yami no Yugi said putting down his duel monster cards and getting up to examine his lighter half's condition. /How was your trip/ he asked as he and Bakura walked over to wheezing teens.

/You guys look awful. What happened/ Bakura questioned Malik curiously.

"Oh I'll tell you what happened!" Yami no Bakura snarled, dark brown eyes livid. "If Malik had done what he was supposed to do and not wasted his energies on buying food and useless jewelry, then maybe his powers wouldn't have shorted out right in front of the cashier!"

"I had control of his mind! He was going to put it in the cash register!" Malik snapped, sitting up, the glowing transparent Bakura at his side backing away nervously. "Besides, what about keeping a low profile! You blew up half the damn street!" he cried angrily. Yami no Bakura scoffed.

"We wouldn't have gotten away if I hadn't stopped those people at the shop from chasing you," Yami no Bakura growled nastily, glaring down at Malik. "Don't you even know the limits of your own power? You reckless bastard."

"Well, thanks to you we have the whole city on red alert looking for us!" Malik spat. Yami Bakura stepped away from the tree, expression threatening and furious.

"Maybe I wouldn't have had to do anything if you had done your job and stuck to the plan!"

"Come on guys, there's need for us to fight. We'll all just tired," Yugi stated calmly, pulling himself off the ground and stepping in between Malik and the dark personality, holding Yami no Bakura away from Malik with his hands and hoping the dark soul wouldn't turn on him as well.

/There's nothing we can do about it now/ the lighter half of Bakura added holding Malik back by his shoulders. /Tomorrow we'll be leaving for Egypt and then we'll never see this town again/ he reminded both of them.

"That depends, does Malik have enough strength to handle buying the tickets tomorrow?" Yami no Bakura growled in a low voice.

"Shut up!" the Egyptian yelled angrily, lurching forward but Bakura still had a good hold of him. Yami no Bakura pushed Yugi away and then turned his back to Malik.

"Maybe we shouldn't all place the certainty of our fates in someone that defective," he spat over his shoulder and walked away from the clearing, leaving a fuming Malik behind. Bakura finally let go of his friend's shoulders with a small sigh of relief.

/So… how was the rest of the trip, aibou/ Yami no Yugi dark side asked, as if there had been no interruption. /Did you get the tickets/ Yugi smiled tiredly.

"Yep, they're holding them for us at the airport, we can pick them up before we get on the plane," Yugi explained, collapsing once again on the ground. "The trip actually went pretty well until the, ah, whole clothing incident." Malik grimaced and turned his head away darkly. Bakura cautiously crawled to Yami no Yugi's other side.

/Um, should we give Malik what we found/ he asked quietly, eyeing Malik apprehensively out of the corner of his eye.

/I don't think now is a very good time/ Yami Yugi whispered back.

"Show me what?" Malik asked, turning around with interest. Yami no Yugi and Bakura winced slightly, obviously not wanting Malik to have heard.

"What'd you find?" Yugi asked looking up as well. Yami no Yugi and Bakura exchanged nervous glances. Malik frowned.

"If you're keeping something from me, I want to know," Malik demanded firmly.

/Guess it's too late now/ Yami no Yugi sighed. He got up and walked over to a small bush and pulled from inside it a newspaper. He stopped, hesitating giving it to the Egyptian. /Malik, you don't have to…/ But Malik snatched the paper out of his hands, cutting off Atemu's protests. Yugi moved in beside him looking at the text over his shoulder.

The title in big letters at the top of the page said: "Destruction of Mental Hospital in Downtown Domino". Under the heading was a large picture of the inside of the building, the hallway where Yami no Malik had caved in the ceiling. Malik grinned.

"About time they showed us some respect," Malik laughed, looking at Yami no Yugi and Bakura, who were watching him carefully from across the clearing. "Why would you hide this from me? I'm not ashamed of what we did. Those bastards deserved-"

/Not that. Look on the other side/ Yami no Yugi instructed, red eyes blank. Bakura turned his head away. Malik stared at them uneasily.

"Come on, why are you guys acting like that?" He turned the page. His violet eyes fell on another picture. The face of his sister, Doctor Ishtar, stared blankly back at him through the photo. A painful felling of apprehension filled Malik's stomach as he forced himself to look down at the text underneath the picture.

…One of three deaths found after the destruction of mental hospital was none other than one of their top physicians, Doctor Ishizu Ishtar. She was found murdered, most likely by a one of her own escaped patients, in an empty psychiatry room. Ishtar-sensei was currently working on a project to cure her brother's hopeless mental disease. Her brother, Malik Ishtar, is one of the three dangerous mental patients still evading police capture…

Deadly silence filled the clearing. All eyes were on Malik, his head still bowed inside the newspaper. No one moved, waiting for the Egyptian's reaction. Malik finally lifted his head from the paper, eyes wide, confusion deeply carved into his face.

"But, this…" Malik choked. He read the passage again, his copper face going almost as pale as Bakura's. "So… she's gone?" he asked dully, the newspaper slipping from his fingers. "She won't… w-won't bother me ever again…? Can't lock me up in a prison anymore? Can you… Ne-san?"

"Malik," Yugi voiced reaching out a hand but Malik slapped it harshly away.

"I'm going for a walk!" he snapped, rising from the ground and stumbling clumsily out of the clearing as fast as he could go. Yugi rose to his feet about to follow.

/Wait Yugi-kun/ Bakura said from the ground getting to his feet as well. /Let me talk to him./ Yugi stared surprisingly at the but Bakura's eyes were firm.

"Bakura-kun?" Yugi started but the white haired soul put up a hand kindly to stop him.

/I know what its like to lose a sibling/ he said and followed Malik's path. Yugi bowed his head sadly. His darker half across the clearing watched at his aibou intensely.

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The sky had turned a dark orange green color when Malik had finally stopped running, the last rays of the days sun turning the clouds different colors. But he didn't notice the sky; his eyes were fixed upon the ground. His vision blurred. Malik shook his head violently, hands clutching his skull so that his fingernails dug painfully into his scalp.

'Why should I cry? She locked me in that prison! She took away my life!' he screamed silently, white teeth clenching painfully. 'She caused me nothing but pain! Why am I crying?' He wanted to scream but his throat was too tight. 'She's out of my life! Shouldn't I be happy?'

/Malik-kun/ a small voice spoke from he beside him. Malik looked up in shock to see the light half of Bakura's glowing ghostly form standing next to him.

"How did you… I d-didn't even hear you," Malik stumbling, dropping his arms forcefully and struggling to hold back his painful tears.

'I will not cry!' he demanded silently. 'Especially not in front of him. Not in front of anyone.' Bakura shrugged.

/Can't really make noise if you don't have a body/ he explained waving a transparent hand through a hanging branch.

"Go away!" Malik ordered. "I don't want to talk about…" his throat clogged up, it burned, everything burned. "Just go away!" he ordered fiercely, turning away.

/I don't want to talk/ Bakura said simply. Malik twisted around angrily, eyes burning with hatred.

"You can't trick me!" he cried taking a step back. "I know what you're doing. You're trying to lure me into a false sense of security, right? So I'll just spill out my guts to you and then I'll feel all better, right?" Malik accused suspiciously. Bakura scratched his head in confusion.

/Um… I hadn't really thought that far actually/ Bakura admitted apologetically. /I've never been very good at talking to people./

"Well, I'm not going to say anything anyway," Malik answered stubbornly sitting down on the ground with his hands crossed over his chest, face screwed up to stop the sobs from escaping from his chest.

/Okay/ Bakura said with a shrug and sat down in the grass next to him, staring up at he sky between the leaves. Silence filled the awkward space between them. Malik glanced over at Bakura and saw the soul wasn't planning on moving any time soon.

"Didn't you hear me? I said I'm not going to talk to you!" Malik snapped harshly.

/Yeah, I heard/ Bakura answered shortly. The evening wind passed through him without even ruffling his long white hair. Malik stared at Bakura, anger heating up in his chest.

"Then why aren't you leaving? Why aren't you saying anything? And why are you ignoring me?" Malik questioned becoming more and more angry by the second. "I told you I wanted to be alone! I'm not going to talk to you!" Bakura nodded as if he heard him but didn't answer. "Then why are you still sitting here?" Malik snarled.

/I'm looking at the sky/ Bakura answered. Malik scoffed.

"Liar! You're waiting for me to break down or something or to admit that I loved my sister even if she locked me in a prison for almost my whole life! People always try to talk to me when I don't want them to! I hate you! I hate everyone!" he screamed fists beating into the earth as if he were a little kid throwing a tantrum. "Ne-san always tried talking to me and I never listened, I never talked back! I never forgave her. She did everything she could to keep me in that god-forsaken hospital, to imprison me there! She always said we could go back to Egypt once I was well again but after the first three years I knew it was never going to happen! I thought I was going to die in that fucking hospital!" he screamed, eyes closed tight, hands pulling hands of grass from the ground and making little piles of it on either side of his legs.

"But she never gave up!" he cried incredulously. "She tried to help me get well again and she always tried to talk to me but I hated her. I really, really hated her! For everything she did. I hated her for trying to talk to me, for trying to help me and for…" his voice could go no further. Bile and tears were building up in his throat; he opened his mouth to speak but found no more sound left in his voice. He gasped for air, trying to get oxygen down his clogged throat. He gasped again and his face fell into his hands, tears flowing freely down his face.

Bakura sat silently beside him, still staring at the rapidly dimming sky, brown eyes deep and thoughtful.

/I have dreams at night/ he said suddenly, voice soft. Malik looked up from his hands, tears still streaming down his copper face. /Of the night my sister and mother were killed/ he admitted awkwardly. /I'll always remember her that night, my sister./ His eyes dropped to the trees ahead of him as if he were expecting to see her emerge from the forest at any moment. /But… I can't remember any other day. Not her birthdays or afternoons we spent together. I know they happened I just can't remember them…/ Bakura's knees folded in close to his chest, his arms wrapping around them as if he were suddenly cold. Another long period of silence followed. The sky went dark as sun disappeared from sight; the soft glow of Bakura's body was the only source of light.

Then, much to Bakura's surprise, Malik threw his arms around Bakura's thin ghostly shoulders. His face dug into Ryou's semi-transparent neck. The white haired soul sat there, quite stunned.

'Never expected this to happen,' he thought awkwardly. He could feel Malik's body shaking with the force of his sobs as the Egyptian cried his heart out. Bakura's eyes softened and he dropped his head on top of Malik's platinum blond hair comfortingly.

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Barely ten feet away, Yami no Malik's pale dead eyes watched from the shadows as the pair on the forest floor wrapped their arms around each other in some kind of desperate comfort. He growled in disgust as Bakura Ryou dropped his head upon Malik's.

Hatred flared in Yami no Malik's twisted dark face, directed right at Bakura's white haired head.

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/So what did you buy anyway/ Yami no Yugi asked peering curiously into the bag of clothes Yugi had bought that day.

"Oh, just some jeans and shirts. We really didn't have a lot of time to chose," Yugi explained, rummaging through their supply of food. Yami no Yugi pulled out a plain white T-shirt shirt from the bag.

/Aren't you tired of white/ he asked glaring at the shirt critically.

"Oh, guess I wasn't thinking," Yugi apologized looking down at his white hospital jump suit he was still wearing. His dark side pulled out the different pairs of pants and then his eyes widened.

/What's this/ he asked holding up the black leather shirt, eyes widening with interest. Yugi dropped whatever food he had been holding, face turning rapidly pale.

"Ah, Malik bought it for me," he explained hurriedly trying to grab the shirt away from his dark side's hands but Yami no Yugi pulled it out of his reach.

/Leather/ he asked inquiring, red eyes dancing with amusement.

"Yeah, I told Malik it would be too hot- I mean, too warm in Egypt but he really wanted me to buy it," Yugi said reaching for the shirt again.

Yami no Yugi grinned mischievously. /Sure he did/ he muttered sarcastically. Yugi frowned, face turning from pale to pink.

"Mou hitori no boku!" Yugi cried in frustration. "This isn't funny!"

/I think its amusing/ Yami no Yugi teasing, rising the shirt high above Yugi's head. Yugi jumped up to snatch it but his dark side pulled it away just in time.

"Fine! Keep it! I don't want it," Yugi snapped turning his back from him. Yami no Yugi bent his head, slightly hurt by the tone in Yugi's voice. An arm slipped over Yugi's shoulder, landing the black shirt in his hands.

/Sorry/ Yami Yugi muttered. Yugi turned around to face him, smile back on his face.

"Its okay, I'm not really mad at you," Yugi reassured, putting the shirt back into his clothes bag.

/So… are you going to wear it/ Yami no Yugi asked pryingly.

"Why?" Yugi questioned, fixing his darker side with a suspicious stare.

/I was just wondering/ Yami no Yugi answered, casually turning his gaze away.

"Well, I wasn't planning on it," Yugi answered honestly. "It's not my style and it's too uncomfortable." Yami no Yugi frowned disappointingly and looked through the bag again.

/And these/ he asked holding up the silver chains Malik had also bought him.

"Malik," Yugi answered shortly. "Don't look at me like that! I really didn't buy them!"

/Sure you didn't/ Yami Yugi muttered, still grinning. /Why don't you wear them? They'll make you look cool./

"There… not my style," Yugi protested weakly. Yami no Yugi looked disappointed.

/There's nothing wrong with wanting to look cool/ his dark side reminded him.

"If you like them so much, then you wear them," Yugi retorted. Yami no Yugi sulked.

/Aibou, I don't have a body/ he reminded his light side pitifully. /How am I going to where them/

"Oh, sorry," Yugi admitted, taken aback and suddenly feeling guilty that he had brought that fact up. "Fine, I'll wear the necklace, but only because you can't." Yami Yugi grinned triumphantly.

/And the shirt/ he asked hopefully.

"I told you no! I'm not wearing the shirt!" Yugi said firmly.

/How about the matching bracelets/ the dark side asked holding up the two smaller sliver chains.

Yugi groaned. "Fine, I'll wear them, but only for you." His darker side grinned and slipped the bracelets over his aibou's hands and then clasped them both over his wrists. "There. Happy now?" Yugi asked.

/Yes/ Yami no Yugi answered, still holding onto Yugi's hands. He ran his ghostly thumbs over Yugi's smooth palms, eyes narrowing softly. Yugi looked up into his face.

"What's wrong?" Yugi asked curiously. His darker side shook his head, throwing off some bad thought.

/Nothing./

Yugi frowned. "You're lying," he accused. "There's something on your mind that you're not telling me." Yami no Yugi stared at his aibou in surprise. Yugi grinned. "You forget, I can tell when you're lying."

/Sorry, aibou/ his dark side apologized. He still hadn't let go of Yugi's hands. /Guess I can't hide anything from you/ he said cheerfully before his eyes darkened again, a serious look still trapped within them. /Aibou, I don't like this trip. There's something about it… it just doesn't feel right./ Yugi pulled his hands from his darkness' grip.

"I know how you feel, but," he paused. "I want to believe in Bakura-kun. I want to believe I can seal you back into my body." Yami no Yugi's eyes narrowed at the mention of Bakura.

/You're the only soul in your host's body now. If you left, you'd never have to deal with an annoying light half any longer… Someone as intelligent as yourself wouldn't stay without good reason, not unless there's something you can still get out of it./

/But how can we believe what he says/ Yami no Yugi questioned seriously. /We're going halfway around the world simply based on his word. I mean, why Egypt/

"Why not?" Yugi asked simply, innocent purple eyes content. "Grandpa always said there was something magical about Egypt when he was visited there." Yami no Yugi frowned.

/I don't think that's exactly what he meant, aibou/ the dark personality corrected.

Yugi shrugged. "Then I guess we'll find out when we get there."

/Unless… Bakura has some other reason for going to Egypt…/ Yami no Yugi suggested. Yugi's brow wrinkled in confusion but he seemed unfazed by the idea.

"You know, for some reason, I don't think there is. Even though Bakura acts really mean and cold, I genuinely think he wants to go there to help his lighter half. After all Bakura-kun's just like us in some ways," Yugi added with a warm smile. "This is going to be a hard journey for all of us, mou hitori no boku. If we can't trust each other how do we expect to get through this?" Yami no Yugi frowned and then turned his eyes to the forest, searching their depths as far of the darkness would permit him.

/I hope you're right, aibou/ Yami no Yugi muttered distrustfully.

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(sob) I LOVE MALIK!

You guys like that little RyouXMalik hinting I snuck in? That was for my blood relation, she loves that pairing. Mwahahaha. Don't worry, Malik just needed a sympathetic shoulder to cry on.

That ending scene with Yugi, Yami and the clothing was another tribute to the wonderousness of the manga and what the evil dubbed people cut out, along with that brief instance with Yami no Bakura and that stake two chapters ago. Mwahahaha. I feel empowered.

Next chapter, basically they get to Egypt. What was that? Evil curses? Under ground cities? Who the hell is that guy?

Remember, there will be no update next week, sorry wonderous readers all.

Although… if I get enough reviews I might change my mind… hm….

REVIEW!