Chapter 10
"Unwelcome Return"
"Joey-nii! Pway with me!" Shadow insisted, tugging on the blonde's pants.
"Sure kiddo. What'cha want to play?" Joey asked, picking the boy up.
Shadow giggled. "Otou-sama's pwaying hwide-'n-go-seek with me! Help me fwind 'im, ok?"
"Ok…where is he hiding, do you think?"
"Somewhere in t' house?" Shadow blinked up at him.
Joey raised an eyebrow. "Well, probably, but it's a big house…"
Just then, Seto's voice reached their ears. "Bakura, what the heck are you doing in the closet?"
"Fowund 'im!" Shadow giggled, and started to squirm. Joey obediently set him down, and the boy bounded off towards Seto's voice.
Joey chuckled, and followed, thinking ok, who gave him sugar this morning?
"Otou-sama!" Shadow pounced on the teen who was just getting out of his hiding place. Bakura was knocked to the floor with an "oof!"
"Goodness, Shadow-chan, what'd you have for breakfast?" Seto asked, picking the laughing boy up.
"Ice-cweam!" Shadow beamed.
Marik, who had walked into sight just in time to hear this, decided to quickly turn around and head the other way.
"Who gave it to you?" Seto asked. "Ice-cream for breakfast?"
"Mawik-kun gave me!" the boy said, bouncing up and down.
"How much, exactly?" Bakura asked, picking himself off the floor.
"Four bwig bowls!"
"And you ate it all?" Bakura exclaimed in disbelief.
"Yup!" Shadow looked pleased with himself. "C'mon, wets go pway some more!"
"Where is that Marik!" Bakura growled.
Just then, Tristan walked over. "Marik wants to say, and I quote, 'please don't kill me!'"
Joey sweatdropped.
"Shadow-chan, go watch some TV. There's bound to be some cartoons." Seto set the boy on the floor.
"But Ojichannnnnn, me wants ta pway…" Shadow looked up with an adorable pout on his face.
Seto grimaced. He had yet to be able to say 'no' when the boy did that.
"Oh, Shadow-chan, c'mon. Let's go to the park, ok? You can run around there," Bakura said, beckoning to the child. "Let's go get your jacket."
"OK!" Shadow agreed, bounding to catch up with the spirit.
"I'll go too!" Joey decided. "You coming, Seto?"
The CEO shrugged. "Might as well."
In the end, or course, the whole gang ended up tagging along.
Shadow hung on to Bakura's hand tightly as they walked the couple blocks to the park. He had calmed down when they went outside, as he always did.
"Otou-sama, wet's go take a walk," Shadow suggested upon seeing all the other children on the play structure.
"You sure?" Bakura asked. "You can go play with the other kids."
Shadow shook his head.
"How about we go take a walk into the forest? There's a trail." Yugi pointed to a dense forest that bordered the playground. "I've been there before. It's nice."
"Well, it's ok with me. C'mon, kiddo, race you there." Bakura grinned, letting go of Shadow's hand, and took off. The boy laughed, nervousness forgotten, and ran after him.
"Bet I'm faster than you, pup," Marik teased, racing off. Joey let out a growl and sprang off after him.
Ryou sighed. "It is just me, or do they never seem to grow up?"
"It ain't just you." Yugi rolled his eyes, but a smile appeared on his lips. "Let's go, before they get lost."
Five minutes later, they were starting down the manmade trail.
"Look, Shadow-chan, see the bird?" Yugi asked, pointing.
"Pwetty," the boy whispered, seeing the little creature. It was a beautiful little thing, soft blue with a patch of white on its chest.
Ryou smiled at the look of wonder upon the child's face.
"Oh look at this!" Téa sighed, pointing at a butterfly perched on top of a flower. It was exquisite; its golden wings reflected the sun rays that stuck it through the leaves above.
Bakura's hand shot out, and the next moment, the butterfly with cupped inside his fist.
"Bakura!" Téa gasped. "Release it!"
"Relax; I'm not doing it any harm. Look, Shadow-chan," he lowered his fist in front of the boy's face, and cracked it open just enough for the boy to peek inside.
"Wow," Shadow breathed. "Can I towch it?"
"Sure," Bakura smiled encouragingly.
Shadow poked a finger inside and gently touched one of the butterfly's wings. He laughed, feeling the wings beat.
Ryou opened his mind link with his yami./It's all so new to him/
/Yeah./Bakura's eyes softened./Kinda reminds me of you/
Ryou blushed.
"I'm letting it go, ok?" Bakura opened his hands. The butterfly instantly fluttered off.
Shadow watch it until it was out of sight.
"Shadow-chan, look," Ryou said a few minutes later, stopping. "It's a squirrel!"
Malik snatched it.
"Oh, you guys, stop scaring the poor animals!" Ryou said exasperatedly.
"Oh, Ryou, come on. This way, Shadow-chan will get a close-up look!" He shifted his hands to get a better grip on the little rodent. The squirrel wasn't too happy about getting captured. "OW! Stupid thing bit me!"
"Serves you right," Ryou muttered.
"I heard that!" Malik scowled. He looked at the creature in his hands. "How about a game of Stomp the Rodent Flat?"
"Malik!" Yugi glared.
"All right, sorry!" the yami rolled his eyes. "Here kid, take a look. But don't let him bite you."
Shadow smiled. "It's cute."
"Just like you!" Bakura said absentmindedly.
"Aww…" Seto smirked.
He ducked Bakura's fist.
A few minutes later, they stopped again. "Wok! Otou-sama! 's a…a…a rac…a rac…"
"It's a raccoon, Shadow-chan," Seto supplied with a smile.
"Yeah! That!" Shadow peered curiously at the animal, which was preoccupied to the extent that it didn't notice a large group of humans staring at it.
"Don't any of you try to catch this one," Yugi growled.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Malik looked at him innocently.
The raccoon looked up, freaked, and ran away.
"Bye-bye," Shadow said, waving.
"It's peaceful here," Ryou commented as they started off again.
"It is," Yugi agreed. "It's beautiful."
They came upon a small clearing, surrounded by trees. A small stream ran through it, its water was clear and clean.
"Let's take a break," Bakura said, sitting on a conveniently place log, letting Shadow climbed onto his lap. Ryou sat next to him. Joey found a rock by the stream and chucked it at Marik. It glanced off his shoulder. The bleach-blonde boy scowled, grabbed a rock of his own, and retaliated. The next moment, war broke out. Tristan and Malik decided to join in.
Seto rolled his eyes, and sat on Bakura's other side, while Yugi and Téa settled on the grass, well away from the rock fight.
"One of you is going to lose an eye," Yugi called.
"One of you is going to get killed!" Ryou added helpfully.
"So what are you trying to do? Stop them?" Bakura asked, amused. "Let them keep it up, is what I say."
"OWW!" Joey howled, clutching an eye. "Dammit, which one of you hit me!"
"Told you," Yugi muttered.
"Sorry, pup. You ok?" Marik asked, a hint if worry in his voice. "I didn't think I threw that hard."
"AM I OK! You took out my eyeball!" Joey screamed.
"Oh, c'mon, stop kidding around!" Marik scowled.
"I'm NOT!"
"Yes you are! Let me see." Marik came forward to stand in front of the taller blonde.
"Are you ok, Joey-kun?" Yugi asked worriedly.
"He's fine! I didn't throw hard at all!" Marik insisted.
"Let's test this eye of mine, then," Joey snapped, and swung a fist. It hit Malik square in the stomach.
"OWWWWWWW! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!"
"Hey, whaddaya know. I can still see!" Joey smirked.
"YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE!" Marik roared.
"ME! Nooooo, I would never…"
And they proceeded to argue, using more fists than words.
"Otou-sama?"
Bakura looked down at the quiet voice he had grown to know – and love. "Yes, kiddo? Something wrong?" Shadow looked worried.
"Something feels bad," Shadow answered, shifting uneasily. "I don't feel good."
"Are you sick?" Bakura asked, placing a hand on the child's forehead.
"No, it's somethin' else…I'm scawed, Otou-sama…"
"Don't be," Bakura patted the boy's back. "Nothing's going to happen."
Which, of course, could only mean that something bad was to happen shortly. It was just one of the more twisted rules in this warped universe.
"Welllll, are you children having fun?"
Everybody froze.
It can't be! A voice in Bakura's mind screamed. It can't! Impossible!
And yet…
Bakura looked up slowly, afraid of what he might see.
There he was. There was no mistaking who stood at the opposite ending of the clearing, staring at them with an arrogant smirk.
Bakura would never forget that figure. He could remember every detail. From the length of the death-black cape to the gleam of the pupiless black eyes. He could probably tell you how many links were in the chain the held the cape together.
"It's you…" Joey gasped hoarsely.
"It's me." He smirked, his expression was one a manic might have held. "Did you miss me?"
Shadow whimpered. He pressed close to Bakura, hoping for a comforting hand to reassure him that everything would be okay.
It didn't come.
"Aww, is Shadow-chan scared?" wispy shadows started to encircle the figure's frame. "Poor little guy. Imagine. A former Pharaoh of Egypt, now reduced to this-" the smirk widened, "- a child, huddled on another's lap, begging for comfort. Pathetic, isn't it?"
"Don't listen to him, Shadow-chan," Bakura hissed angrily.
"You can't shield him from the truth forever, Tomb Robber," the figure snarled. "It's going to break free. It isn't something you can contain, fool."
"Don't listen to him, kiddo."
"'Don't listen to him, kiddo'" the shadow-surrounded figure mocked. "How long do you think you can keep up the lies, Tomb Robber?"
"I have NEVER lied to him!" Bakura roared, standing up and placing Shadow behind himself.
"You've never told him the whole truth," was the icy reply.
Bakura let out a snarl that had sent many people scurrying away with fear. His opponent, however, wasn't fazed.
"Yugi," the white-haired yami hissed. "Look after Shadow. Do not, and I repeat, DO NOT let him get hurt!"
"Y-yes, Bakura," the hikari stuttered. He picked Shadow up, and started to retreated to a safer place, among the trees.
"Yugi! Wait!" Ryou said, grabbing his friend's shirt. "Look!" He pointed.
From within the trees emerged a whole army of Shadow Monsters. Their giant wings were unfurled, and shadows were dripping from their bodies like rain.
With a jolt, Bakura realized they were surrounded.
"Why don't you just give up?" the Leader of the Shadow Army asked in a cool voice. "You've already all but lost. Tell you what; I'll kill you first, so you don't have to witness your precious child getting beheaded."
"I will never surrender to you!" Bakura screamed.
"Yeah!" Marik yelled. "I can take you and your entire stupid army!"
"Oh? Do remember that last time, you had a full grown, experienced Pharaoh on your side, and still you were almost all killed. Just how do you expect to win this time around?"
"Are you dissing us!" Malik growled.
"Yes," there was a chuckle. "What are you going to do about it?"
/Hikari./Bakura opened his mind-link/Take care of your friends. And Shadow-chan. Don't let him get hurt/
/Of course, 'Kura-kun. Please, be careful/ Ryou sounded very worried.
"Ok, you. We'll finish it here, today, once and for all. This is revenge." Bakura took a step forward. "So prepare yourself, because you're going down."
"Oh, no, my friend. It is you who should be prepared…after all; it is your last day alive."
"We'll see," Malik snapped, as he and his hikari came to stand by Bakura.
"We will indeed. Now, enough talk. Let's begin."
A blood red eye appeared on the lithe figure's forehead. It was a mutilated version of the Eye of Horus, and it flickered and danced like a flame. The shadows around him flared to life and grew, snaking to surround the clearing, linking the Leader with his followers.
Then it came, the command the Shadow Army had been eagerly awaiting. "Attack, my pets, and spare no one."
At those words, all hell broke loose.
The Lead Beast sprang with a roar that shook the trees to their roots. It aimed straight for Yugi, who still had Shadow in his arms.
The Millennium Puzzle came to life with a brilliant flash. A shield sprang into existence, succeeding in throwing the beast backwards and away from its targets.
Fortunately, when the separation of the yamis and hikaris had taken place, a duplicate of each Millennium Item had also been created. The two of the same Item were equal in strength. The Puzzle's duplicate had vanished when Yami had died.
With his Ring, Ryou shielded Joey from getting gutted by a Monster that had taken aim at him.
"Group together!" Yugi shouted. "Ryou and I can save energy that way!"
Obeying, his friends made their way towards him. They ended up in a group, flanked by Yugi and Ryou. Seto took charge of Shadow. They had discovered last time around that he was able to use magic when things got really desperate.
Most of the Monsters had charged straight at Bakura, Marik, or Malik. The three formed a circle, keeping their backs towards each other. It was a hard-learned lesson.
"How long d'you think they can keep this up?" Joey whispered.
"We're doomed," Tristan murmured. "Doomed, do you hear? We're all going to die!"
"Shut up!" Seto hissed.
"Seto-ojichan, is that true?" Shadow asked in a tiny voice, eyes wide with fear, begging Seto to reassure him. He was trembling.
"Listen to me, Shadow-chan," Seto said firmly. "Stay calm. Everything will be ok. Just keep on believing that."
"Are you telling him to listen to lies? You know that's not true, Kaiba!" Tristan shrilled. "We're dead!"
"Shut up!" Ryou spun around, angry. "Keep your mouth shut, dammit!"
"Ryou, behind you!" Téa cried.
"RUN!" Joey roared.
A Monster, taking advantage of Ryou's momentary distraction, had attacked. The group scattered, scrambling to get out of the way.
The monster landed where Seto had been standing only a second before, and turned around, frustrated.
Then its blood red eyes settled on a small form huddled at the base of a tree.
"Shadow-chan!" Yugi cried desperately. He was too far away. A quick look told him that Ryou was too.
Seto turned around and cursed, seeing that he would never reach the child in time. His arm was bleeding madly, cut by the Monster's claws. He himself had been thrown more than fifty yards away.
Bakura turned around at Yugi's shout. His heart froze when he saw Shadow, alone and unprotected, cowering in front of a Monster's piercing gaze.
The beast leaped, teeth bared, claws extended.
Shadow threw up his arms instinctively to protect himself.
There was a blinding flash of light.
"SHADOW-CHAN!"