SS-Hi everyone! OMG, I wish I could have gotten this out sooner! I wrote the first few paragraphs immediately after submitting chapter 6 but then I was bombarded with school work, projects and -___-;; I'm so sorry everyone!
Tym-You better start before they leave…those of you who are still here anyway…
SS-Yes'um! And the thank you's are at the bottom so don't forget about those! There are some really, really nice people here!
Tym-DISCLAIMER: She nor me own YGO…hehe…that first part rhymed. ^^.
SS- _;;
Last Time
~Ok, I remember this time. Bakura started his new (No killing) plan. However, Ryou is still a little hesitant about the way it all ends – with Bakura leaving. He really wants him to stay? Let's see what happens!
~*~*~*~*~
Sent to Save Me
Chapter 7
Bakura stood there another minute, just gazing out the window before he snapped out of it and returned to the ring. He sat on his bed; thoughts racing through his mind a mile a minute. 'What is he trying to say?' Finding that that wasn't a good position he lied down and sighed into his pillow. 'Why is he so hard to understand? It's like a maze…one that I can't get out of…' He sat up, throwing the pillow across the room. 'And if I keep thinking about him how am I supposed to finish my plan?!' Again he fell onto his bed, absolutely frustrated.
'I could asked Yami…I'll bet he's experienced this excruciatingly nagging feeling before. But I said that I wouldn't need his help.' Bakura sat up, running a hand through his thick hair. 'Then again, if I don't, then I can't continue.' He weighed the options in his mind, trying to decide if his pride or his plan was more important. 'Well that's a stupid question.' Sighing he got up and left the ring, returning at once to Ryou's side. Making sure he was ok, and that his door was firmly locked, he disappeared again, this time ending up in Yugi's living room. It was fairly quiet except for the ticking of the wall clock. Before he could take a step towards Yugi's room, Kelina appeared in front of him.
"Hello there, sugar. It's a little late for visits, don't you think it?" He snorted.
"What are you doing here?"
"I see you've forgotten that I am also little Yugi's guardian angel…"
"More like devil…"
"Hush your mouth! Now answer me before I throw you out, what are you doing here?" Bakura crossed his arms.
"I…need to speak with Yami." As Kelina brought her hand up to her mouth to quiet the laughter, Bakura covered his ears, her annoying laugh getting to him.
"You need to speak with Yam? You're joking right? I thought you were too full of yourself to care what he thinks." The white-haired angel rubbed his temple.
"Well I'm not ok? Now are you going to let me speak with him or do I need to force you out of my way?" Kelina shook her head.
"Sorry sugar, but I can't let you pass."
"Oh come on, Yugi's asleep! The only thing Yami has to protect him from is a cold draft from the window! Now let me speak to him."
"No can do hun, you'll just have to solve your problem on your own."
"Hmph…" He walked towards the staircase. "Like I'm going to let you stop me." She tilted her head and looked at her nails, confident about his nearby failure.
"I wouldn't do that sugar…"
"Please, the day I listen to you is the day you drop that fake accent-ah!" The moment he tried to go past her he hit a strong force field, sending him backwards into the couch. "D-Damn it…" She brushed her nail and then tucked her hair behind her ear.
"I told you so…and my accent isn't fake." Kelina walked over to him. "I'm one-hundred percent Southern, uh…give or take a percent. Now, like I said, you aren't going to get to him. And I wouldn't try phasing into his room or the puzzle either." She jumped onto the armrest, making herself comfortable. "If you do, you'll just end up on your rear again." Bakura growled and got up.
"How did you do that? You don't have the power…" She waved her finger at him.
"Apparently I do now, so you'll do best to listen to me when I say, you aren't talking to Yami." She pretended to yawn. "Well, I've had enough of you for one night," Kelina hopped off her seat and brushed her clothes off briefly. Then she strolled over to the stairs, bypassing the force field with ease. "You better get back to your charge anyway. You're being horribly irresponsible. Good night hun!" She vanished, leaving a very frustrated angel behind.
'That wretch…' Storming off he cursed under his breath. 'I never liked her anyway…' Before he left, he glanced up. 'It's worth a shot…' Closing his eyes he tried to phase into the little boy's room, only to be met by the field again. He landed promptly on his behind and groaned. 'Damn…'
'Poor Bakura…' He got up with a sigh, hearing that irritating laughter ring through his head.
'I'll get you for this Yami…I don't know how, but I know that you're behind this. I know I said that I wouldn't need you help, but really…I can't even talk to you? Fine. I don't need your help or your two cent advice; I'll do this on my own.' With another huff, he vanished. Kelina smiled from her spot on the stairs as he watched the older boy leave. She blinked and a small walkie-talkie came to her hand.
"Harlon, he's coming your way." A bit of static traveled through before his response came.
"Ok. I'm ready. I'll rally with you at the park in fifteen minutes."
"All right, take your time."
"Over and out." She shook her head.
"You don't have to be so technical sugar." His reply came sarcastically.
"You don't have to sugar me, sugar…" He added the last part with quickly, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Unfortunately for her, the line went dead before she could rant.
~*~
Harlon laughed as he pocketed his COM link. He glanced out the window, checking for any signs of Bakura's return. "Mine as well get ready…he might phase in. Running a hand through his soft, chestnut hair, he sighed and snapped his fingers, transforming himself to a fairly large white wolf. For effect he made sure his eyes were of a silverish yellow color to match that of the Silver Fang card. Before hand Harlon had brought out Ryou's deck and placed that card on top. He hadn't discussed this part of the plan with Kelina; he just added it in to give Bakura a little more to worry about.
'Maybe if assumes that the Duel Monsters are some how related to all this he'll keep an eye on Ryou a little more.' He trotted over to Ryou's bedside. 'Either that or he'll try to kill me again. Oh well…I'll be long gone by then.' Shaking his head slightly and scratching behind his ear he gave a long yawn.
'How long does it take to get back here? Don't tell me he's flying…' Getting rather tired, Harlon laid his head and front paws on Ryou's bed, intent on getting a little rest until the angel returned. 'Some guardian…what will he do if Ryou really gets attacked at night? Even Yami wasn't this careless.' Feeling an odd wave pass through him, Harlon looked over to the window and smirked – it was Bakura.
"Get the hell away from him!" He summoned a ball of energy and shot it at him. Jumping away with ease, Harlon landed on top of Ryou's bed and snarled menacingly. He summoned another orb and threatened to launch it. "I warn you demon, I will not miss this time."
'Are you that dense Bakura?' The angel-turned-wolf backed up, bringing out his claws and punctured them into the sheets close to the Ryou's body. The guardian narrowed his eyes.
"Damn it…" Harlon stayed there, growling at him in victory. He knew what the wave was that he felt earlier. Bakura had silenced the room, making sure that Ryou wouldn't hear anything. However, could he feel his weight on the bed?
'What will you do now? How will you protect your charge?' He questioned silently.
'How did that demon get in here? They don't normally come up to the surface for no reason. Ah…it looks familiar though. Have I faced this one before? Is that why it has come to Ryou? In any case, I can't attack, the wolf will just move and my strike will hit Ryou. Or will it?' A malicious grin replaced his angry expression. 'Maybe I can fool it.' He brought both of his hands behind him, making another energy ball in one, and a fake one in the other.
"All right demon…I don't know why you've chosen to attack me or my charge…" He brought out the hand with the fake orb. "All I know is that you won't make it out alive." Harlon didn't move.
'Sounds threatening, but can you carry out your threat without hurting your charge?'
"Coming here was your first mistake!" He threw the sphere directly at Harlon's forehead, and as he predicted, the wolf jumped to the side. "And moving away was your last!" As quickly as he could, Bakura threw out the real one in his left hand, smashing into the wolf's stomach with full force.
'Oh damn!' He cried out and vanished, as did the wave of silence blanketing the room.
"Hmph…return to hell where you belong." Scanning the room to make sure nothing else was there Bakura went to Ryou's side, making sure none of the claws had injured him. 'Good, you're safe. But what exactly are you safe from? Demons don't usually vanish in sparkles of light. The ones I've encountered typically burst into flame. Then I'd have to clean up the mess. But if it wasn't a demon…then what was it?'
On the dresser beside the bed, a bit of white caught his eye. Turning to see what it was his eyes widened slightly…it was Ryou's deck. More importantly, the card face up on top of it was the Silver Fang. Bakura picked up the card and eyed it carefully. 'No wonder it looked familiar. How did it come alive though?' Grabbing the rest of the cards he skimmed through them; the next five or so were magic or trap cards…but the first monster card after those was the Koumori Dragon.
'Don't tell me now I have to worry about Duel Monsters attacking Ryou. Argh…what the hell is going on?!' He slammed the deck back on the dresser, sat on the side of the boy's bed and sighed. 'This is going to make things a lot more difficult. If I have to worry about monsters appearing, then I can't leave him in his room anymore when I carry out my plan. And since Kelina put up that barrier I can't asked Yami to watch him.' Bakura ran a hand through his hair and cursed. "Damn it. Yami's assignment wasn't this hard."
He regretted saying that so loud. About a second later, Ryou began to stir, eventually turning to face the wall. The angel mentally kicked himself and jumped off the bed. 'Don't wake up…don't wake up…' The boy turned again, this time facing Bakura. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open, a look of slight confusion crossed his sleepy features.
"…Bakura?" He kept his composure and tried to get him back to sleep.
"Go back to sleep Ryou. It's still pretty late." His charge acted like he didn't hear him and sat up, looking over his room as if he was searching for something.
"Did something happen just now Bakura?" The older boy shook his head and pushed him back down onto the bed.
"You're just imagining things Ryou. Go back to sleep." Seeing that nothing was wrong, he nodded and grabbed his blankets…and then a frown replaced his smile. "What?" The younger boy ran his hand over the covers, stopping when he felt a few holes scattered over it.
"Wh-What happened to my blanket?" Ryou glanced up at him. "I thought you said nothing happened." Bakura quickly waved away his suspicion, saying the first thing that came to mind.
"Those were there for a while. Must have been from the ring's sharp points." Ryou tilted his head.
"But it never tore my shirt…"
"I'll fix it in the morning, just go back to sleep." Ryou wanted to question him, seeing as Bakura was really on edge he suspected something wasn't right. However, he was grateful for the care and simply let go of the subject.
"Well…ok…" Ryou yawned and closed his eyes as he sunk back into the safety of his covers, slowly drifting back into his slumber. When he was sure the boy was sleeping, Bakura walked over to the window and locked it.
'I will figure this out. Nothing…not even a Duel Monster will stop me.' Glancing at his charge again, Bakura disappeared into the ring, intent on getting a little rest himself before tackling the next day's obstacles.
~*~ Meanwhile…
'Ow, ow, ow…man that energy ball really hurt!' Harlon was nursing his wound as he waited for Kelina to show up. He was sitting in one of the chain swings, letting it sway back and forth. "Heh, who knew angels even could get injured?" A light breeze was the only indication that his partner had arrived…that and her distinct voice.
"You actually got hit Harlon?" He turned his head a bit, acknowledging her presence. "How did you get hurt? You weren't supposed to talk to him you know." She stated as she crossed her arms.
"I know, but after the way he acted I figured I should mix things up a bit." She eyed him suspiciously.
"And just what do you mean by that, sugar? What did you do?" He grinned innocently.
"I disguised myself as a Duel Monster and pretended to be attacking Ryou." Her eyes widened considerably, but that wasn't the end of his little surprise tale. "And then Bakura came in and 'destroyed' me, but I placed a whole bunch of traps and magic effects on his deck that'll activate on a daily basis. That way Bakura can't just abandon him the entire day like he did before." When he finished telling her his brilliant plan he grabbed the metal links holding the swing and pushed off the ground. "Isn't that smart?"
"…"
"Uh, Kelina?" A blinding light met his eyes, some force hit his already injured side, and the next thing he knew, Harlon was lying ten feet from the swing set. He groaned and rolled over before sitting up. "Man…what was that for?"
*SLAP* "KELINA, WOULD YOU STOP THAT?!" She pulled her hand back for another assault, fire burning furiously in her normally playful eyes.
"What in the name of the stars were you thinking, you idiot!?" He rubbed his reddening cheek as he faced her with his puppy dog eyes.
"Wha? What did I do wrong?" Covering her eyes with her hand, the female angel paced around him.
"I can't believe you actually did that! Do you have any idea how this is going to affect our mission?! Do you even have an inkling of what THEY are gonna say when they see what you've done?! Honestly, I can't believe you really…uh!" Harlon scratched his head; he was clueless to say the least.
"Look, I didn't hurt Ryou, I just put Bakura on guard."
"That wasn't the plan, hun! We aren't callin' the shots here, they are!" She stopped walking and took a deep breath, calming herself. "Ok, maybe this isn't as bad as it looks." Kelina stared at him. "Please tell me there's a way to reverse the charm you put on his deck." Blinking, he backed away and smiled nervously. "Harlon!" He shot up and hid behind the slide.
"I thought it was a good idea, honest! But don't worry, they only activate daily," She closed the gap between them, an energy ball forming in her hand. "Uh…one around ten, the next at three o'clock and the last around eleven." He continued to back up, which ultimately resulted in a circle. "If it's a magic or trap card, the normal effect will occur, but if it's a monster…well…it will attack Ryou…" She raised the ball and prepared to throw it at his head. "WAIT! See…see when a card activates, Bakura will sense it and will come before any damage is done! And that…that'll give them time to fix his recording thingy and they can release his mother from-" He was cut off when he accidentally banged his head against the top of the stairs that led to the slide. "O-Ow…"
"Hm, serves you right." She crushed the energy ball and went over to him. "To think you would actually do something that stupid without consulting me first. I'm insulted, sugar." She picked him up by his collar and flew up. "You had better hope they agree with your plan hun, otherwise it'll be clipped wings for you."
~*~*~
Bright rays of sunlight furtively slipped into Ryou's bedroom window, cascading over his desk and bedspread. Considering the unusual night he had, one would expect him to have the pleasure of sleeping in for a little while longer; however, fate had other plans for him.
"Nn…" Light jumped from his covers and washed across his eyes, effectively causing him to stir. Pulling the sheets over his face, Ryou desperately tried to escape the blinding beams. He mumbled into his soft covers: "Go away…please go away…" And then, they did. It wasn't pitch black, but the intruding rays were gone for the most part. "Eh?" Suddenly, the covers were lifted from his body, exposing him to the cold.
"If you wanted the light to go away you could have closed the curtains before hand." Blinking, Ryou tilted his head up and met Bakura's slightly amused chocolate-colored eyes. He sat up and stretched, a small smile appearing on his lips.
"But then I would have to get up, and the whole reason I hid was because I was still…still tired." He yawned and stretched, waking up the rest of his body as his angel looked out into the hall through the crack in his door. He gazed at him, what was the older boy doing? With another yawn, he voiced his concern. "Why did you wake me up so early, 'Kura?" (1) The guardian was shaken from his current job and quickly snapped his head over to Ryou. His eyes were narrowed, not out of anger, but out of curiosity and shock.
"W-What did you call me?" Ryou straightened up and rubbed his eyes.
"…Bakura." Giving him a slight nod, he closed the door and walked over to the ring, which was resting on the wooden dresser. "Why do you ask?" The older boy was about to answer, but closed his mouth and gave another response.
"No reason." His mind told him otherwise. 'He just woke up, he mumbled his words and only half my name came out; it's that simple.' He picked up the round object and tossed it to Ryou, who caught it with ease, careful to avoid the sharp points hanging from it. "I fixed your blanket, and you shouldn't worry about your shirts."
"Uh, right. Thank you."
"Un." His gaze shifted to the boy's deck. "If you aren't going to use that then you should put it away." Ryou looked over to his deck.
"Well, I was going to draw some of the pictures since I have to stay in here…"
"Fine." His reply had been quick and sharp. "Just make sure you put all the monster cards on the bottom when you're through. And lock it away afterwards." If his tone hadn't been so terse, Ryou would have asked why. But he kept the question to himself, answering with a tiny nod. 'Oh great…' Bakura strode over to him and held the ring with his hand. "It's very important Ryou." The younger boy timidly gazed up at him, a light blush coming to his cheeks when he felt his guardian's hand graze his. "You've trusted me this far, just do as I say a little longer all right?" Ryou's soft brown eyes moved from Bakura's eyes to his hand and then relaxed.
"Ok." Not more than a second after his response, the angel disappeared into the ring, leaving Ryou on his own.
~*~
/Yugi! Yugi, wake up!/ The little charge merely turned over in his bed, clutching the blankets to his chest for extra warmth. /Yugi wake up! I need your help!/
"Uhn…Y-Yami?"
/Yes, Yugi wake up!/ Taking a deep breath and sighing, the boy opened his eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the light. /Finally, I thought you'd never get up./ Shivering slightly, Yugi turned around, expecting to see his angel waiting for him. However, all he saw was his nightstand and the rest of the furniture in his cozy room.
"Yami?"
/Yes?/ He sat up and scanned the room, scratching his head in confusion. Usually when Yami woke him, he'd be sitting in the chair by his desk tapping his foot.
"Why aren't you out here?" He heard a sigh and saw a light glow come from his puzzle that sat on his nightstand.
/That's why I wanted you to wake up. Put on the puzzle./ Without hesitation he did as his guardian asked and slipped the object around his neck.
"Ok, now what?" There was a pause, and then a sound echoed in his head. If Yugi had to guess, he's say it was an Egyptian curse. He was beginning to worry. "Yami, what are you doing?" A sigh came.
/…I thought that putting on the puzzle would help, but it isn't helping./
"It isn't helping what?"
/I tried to get out to wake you as usual, but when I prepared to phase out…something stopped me./ Yugi's violet eyes widened.
"What?"
/Yugi, I'm trapped. Something is keeping me from leaving the puzzle./
~*~ Neh…I better keep going…
"I don't believe this…I mean…I didn't even know something like this could happen!"
/You think I knew about it? If I did I wouldn't have gone into the puzzle last night./ It had been a few minutes since Yami had told Yugi he was trapped and the boy was still deeply concerned. Not only was his guardian confined to the object, but it seems he couldn't contact Kelina or Harlon. Yugi's parents were still sleeping so he couldn't ask them, though, that would be a dead end. The only one he could ask was his grandfather, but he went to visit his brother who lived in another town.
"There's got to be someone else we could call." He said as he continued to walk around the room.
/Like who?/ Sighing, the boy slumped onto his bed, which hadn't been made yet.
"So, you think we could ask Bakura?"
/…/ Yugi turned his head to the puzzle that rested on his pillow.
"Yami?"
/He's busy with his own assignment; we shouldn't bother him./ He crawled over to the fluffy cushion and propped himself up on his elbows.
"But then that leaves us with…no one."
/We'll figure something out Yugi; don't worry. It'll just take some time. Besides, it's not like you have much to do today anyway./ Some of the light faded from his charge's amethyst eyes as he nodded.
"Ok I guess so."
~*~
It's been a few hours since Bakura had left the ring and began setting up the next part of his plan. He left Ryou to his own devices, trusting that the boy could keep himself busy and quiet without having to put a sleeping spell on him like last time.
"I have to start the next part now. So I want you to stay absolutely silent until I come back."
"I know Bakura, I kind of figured out how this all works."
"Then I'll leave. Keep yourself occupied, and don't forget to put away your deck."
True to his word, Ryou hadn't made so much as a peep since he left. He was at his desk, glancing from his sketchpad to the Duel Monster card in front of him. It was the Lady of Faith. He knew that he had promised, but what was the harm in keeping his deck out a bit longer? His headphones were on again, blocking out noise so that he wouldn't be distracted.
"…And that was 'Calling All Angels' by Train. Speaking of Train, stay tuned to find out how to win tickets to their next concert coming up on the 29th, brought to you by Star 101.3. It's ten o'clock and…"
Ryou looked up from his sketchpad and pushed the button on his CD player, changing the station so that he wouldn't have to hear the commercials.
He then put his pencil down and slipped the Lady of Faith back into his deck. Shuffling through the cards, he decided to do a different one. He tilted his head as he came across the Headless Knight card. Nodding, Ryou took that one out and set it down on his desk. It would be a change of pace seeing as the monster was basically a suit of armor.
Picking up his pencil, he sharpened it quickly and began to outline the top of the armor. "Hm?" He blinked…did the card just glow? "I must be seeing things." He told himself. The boy gently rubbed his eyes and glanced out the window. "It was probably the sun or something…" He was proven wrong when the card brightened again, this time to the point that he had to cover his eyes. "What…what's going on?!" There was an explosion of radiance that caused Ryou to fall from his chair, his sketchpad and pencil flying over to the door.
When he opened his eyes again, he was met with…his reflection. "Eh?" It took a moment for him to realize that he was staring at metal, a metal leg. Taking a breath, he looked up and saw that a knight stood before him…a headless knight. "Oh my god…" Though it had no head, Ryou knew it was angry. The monster raised its large blade and readied for an attack. He shrunk away.
'Move! Move damnit!' His mind told him to run, but his body wouldn't listen, the only part of him that did respond was his mouth. "B-Bakura…" It was barely a whisper, muffled mainly by his fear. "Bakura…" The monster took one step closer, about three feet from the paralyzed boy. His sword was raised, the sunlight reflecting off its glistening surface. Ryou closed his eyes, lowering his head in defeat. "Kura…help me…"
~*~*~*~*~
(1) Overused…but isn't it a cute name?! ^^
SS-I'm afraid that's it…not only a cliff, but also WAY shorter than it should be! *grumbles* But I'm doing my best. *sigh* I shouldn't do more than one story at a time.
Tym-But one's in YGO and one's in BB.
SS-It's just too much. Well, it wouldn't be if I didn't have school, but…oh don't worry, I'm going to keep this one AND my BB one going. Updates will be slow, but that's the way it'll be for a while. Many sorries!
I truly appreciate the reviews you all leave me and the patience you have for me…thanks everyone! Your encouragement is what keeps me thinking and writing.
*Mina-chan AMD: Guess this is your long-awaited wish granted. Again, so many sorries for the delay. The…really big delay ^^;;
*FireFriendship: Don't worry; everything's fine on my end of the computer, if you exclude school and junk. You and the other super nice reviewers wouldn't have to wait so long if it wasn't for the work.
*Maedhros: Yeah, I usually find Ryou helping Bakura out so I switched their roles. Hm…the wing span of an angel? I have…absolutely no clue, but I'd guess it differs with each angel. Uh, that's all I can figure.
*I also like to thank all those anonymous reviews/reviewers. I don't know if they were from one person or a lot of people, but they definitely made me feel better. I'm very grateful. See you later to those who are still following this extremely slow story and bye to those who have already left.
Tym-Neh…and please review! She should be on her way with the next chapter ultra quickly! Ashes!