Youth of the Nation

By: Neko-chan



A/N: Ahhhh...ne, chapter ten! (Gomen nasai for taking so long to update! I've been having play rehearsals for "Hamlet" for the past three months and they basically last until eleven at night. BUT!!! It's done now and I'm free to write! I'm also REALLY sorry that the last chapter was so short! I wanted to update SOMETHING, even if it ended up being short. But, hopefully, it was worth it. *blink blink* It was, wasn't it??) LOL! Aaaaanyway, if you recall, in the last chapter, Bakura got chocolate pudding in his hair, too. And so part of this chapter is inspired by something NC said in her review. *cracks up* Yes, dark food is REALLY hard to get out of white things...as you'll see in this chapter. LOL LOL LOL!! LMAO! D

Bakura: *is worried* I don't like the sound of this.

^___________________________________^

Bakura:...I'm going to die, aren't I? You're going to kill me off, aren't you? I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE!

Ummm...Baku-chan, you're over five thousand years old. How do you figure that that's too young to die? Anyway, I'm not killing anyone off in this fic. "What Is Forever?"...maybe. This fic--NO! You'll just be having some...difficulties...this chapter. D Oh, and because I promised difinity that I would dedicate the next chapter of "Youth of the Nation" to her if she gave me Ryou in her "Auction Off the Bishies!" fic, this chapter is dedicated to her. Hope you like it! ^_~

Ryou: *doesn't know if being owned by Neko-chan is a good thing or a bad thing* ...

*GLOMPS*



WARNING: This fic contains YAOI and SHOUNEN-AI. (Probably more shounen-ai than yaoi, though...) The main pairing is YAMI/YUUGI. Second main pairing is BAKURA/RYOU. More pairings starting within the next couple of chapters! Soooo...until then, you'll just have to wait. 'Kay? 'Kay. *nods*

DISCLAIMER: Neko-chan no own. SO LEAVE NEKO-CHAN ALONE!! ;-p (Eh...but Neko-chan will own Yu-Gi-Oh! when she takes over the world. But, until then...'tis not hers. *pouts* And some of you may ask: "Why is Neko-chan talking in third person?" The answer: 1) Neko-chan has had very little sleep. 2) She just had a LOT of sugar. 3) She's been watching waaaaay too much Ranma ½ for her own good. [Shampoo and female-type Ranma are Neko-chan's favorite characters! And Ukyo's just too cool. ^_^...])





Chapter Ten

Bakura stared at his reflection in the mirror and bit his lip, trying his hardest not to burst out into tears. 'Must...be...strong... I WILL NOT CRY!!!' It was true. He wouldn't give in to his more emotional urges and burst into tears. He was stronger than that. He had to set an example for Ryou. It wasn't THAT bad... Oh, but how he wanted to just bawl his eyes out.

His once beautiful silvery-white hair was now...brown. It matched his eyes perfectly.

The spirit's lip began to quiver and he bit it harder. 'NO! I WILL NOT CRY!' He closed his eyes tightly, crunching them, hoping against hope that what he saw reflected in the mirror wasn't true. It...couldn't be true. Could it?

There had been one thing that Bakura had forgotten when he decided to start the chocolate pudding food fight with Yami. Dark foods stain white objects. And, though his hair wasn't COMPLETELY white...it was white enough to stain. And now, instead of his _beautiful_ head full of silvery-white hair...that same hair was now a dark, chocolate brown. Chocolate pudding, chocolate-colored hair. Bakura decided that he hated chocolate in general.

He quickly stripped off his clothes, turned on the shower, put it as hot as it was able to go, and grabbed all of the shampoo and soap objects located in the bathroom. (He also grabbed the toothpaste, just to be sure.) He would not give up until his hair was back to its original, BEAUTIFUL silvery-white. Damn that stupid Pharaoh, anyway...

Two hours later, thoroughly wet, soaped, and pruney (LOL! Think: Raisan...), Bakura stepped out of the shower and stared at the mirror. It was no use. Because of all the heat that he had used (the hot water had run out fifteen minutes into the shower--which had to tell you just HOW hot the shower had been), the mirror was completely fogged over. Oh, well. Easily fixed.

He grabbed the towel that Ryou had laid out for him and wiped the mirror, finally revealing his reflection...which STILL had chocolate-colored hair.

Wavering between growling in anger, howling his rage, or collapsing to the ground in a puddle of his tears, Bakura grabbed his towel and quickly wrapped it around himself, wandering downstairs and looking for the one person who could help him. His hikari. He finally found Ryou curled up on the couch, the fireplace going, with a big, thick book cradled in his hands.

"Hikari. I...I..." the words choked him. He didn't know if he would be able to get them out. But he had to try! For his hair, he _had_ to try! "I need your help, hikari."

Ryou blinked and finally looked up from his book. Noticing Bakura's hair for the very first time...he blinked again. And yet again. "...what can I do to help you?" Ryou asked slowly, hoping against hope that Bakura wouldn't notice the mirth shining in his eyes. The evil spirit of the Sennen Ring did NOT look good as a brunette! 'Must...not...laugh!' "Wh-What do you want me to do for you, yami?" Ryou asked again, trying his hardest to keep a straight face.

A plaintive reply. "I want my hair back."

Ryou frowned and gnawed on his lower lip thoughtfully. Now THAT posed a huge problem. Usually stuff that was stained STAYED stained. And it looked as if Bakura had tried his best to UN-stain his hair. ...was that a smell of minty toothpaste? (Ryou thought about asking, but then decided that it was safer not to.) Still biting his lip in thought, his dark brown eyes lit up when an idea finally occurred to him. "Ne! I got it! I got it!"

It was Bakura's turn for his eyes to light up. "R-Really, hikari? You really do have an idea to make my hair return to the way that it was before the food fight? I'll get my beautiful hair back?"

Ryou nodded. "Hai. If it all works out, then your hair will return to normal. Buuuut...there is a chance of--"

Before he could finish, Bakura interrupted him. "I don't care what the risks are! I WANT MY DAMN HAIR COLOR BACK!" 'And, for all of this...Yami Yuugi WILL pay. Oh, yes. Yes, he will...' He cackled a bit, but then stopped when Ryou gave him an odd look. Instead, he smiled broadly at his hikari. And, for some reason, he got an even odder look for THAT. Eh, must've been his somewhat-sharpened canines. (Can't be an evil yami without 'em! Pharaoh no Baka isn't evil, so he isn't _special_ enough to have pointed canines. So there!)

Ryou sighed and pushed himself up and out off of the couch, taking his yami's hand and leading him back into the bathroom. "All right, yami. I'll try my best to make your hair white again, but I can't make any promises. Anyway, get back into the shower and I'll be back in just a minute. Okay?"

Bakura nodded absently and stepped back into the shower, deciding to keep his towel on for his hikari's modesty's sake. True, he was just as comfortable naked as he was fully clothed--it didn't matter either way to him. But, for some reason, it mattered a great deal to Ryou. Eh. His hikari just needed to learn to lighten up.

"I'm baaaaa~aaaaack!" Ryou caroled as he pranced back into the bathroom. He looked a tad bit...perkier, but what was that plastic jar of...whatever...that he carried in his hand? Bakura instantly became suspicious.

"Ryou, what's that in your hand?" he asked, trying his hardest NOT to sound as suspicious as he was feeling. Too bad that Bakura was a naturally horrible liar. (Which was NOT a good thing when he was a Tomb Robber way back in ancient Egypt. Luckily for him, though, most of the palace guards were dumber than dirt. Something that Bakura took great pleasure reminding Yami of. Of course, he taunts would have been more effective if Yami could have even _remembered_ how dumb his guards had been.)

Ryou looked down at the plastic bottle, cringed, and sweatdropped. "Well, Bakura... This is what we call bleach. This basically makes things that are stained UN-stained and it... 'makes your whites whiter.' I know that it seems like a long shot, but I was thinking about maybe bleaching your hair back to normal."

Bakura blinked. And his jaw dropped. "N-NANI?! Pharaoh told me that bleaching your hair makes it fall out! I'd rather be a brunette than be bald!"

The gentler boy raised an eyebrow. "Oh. So you want to show up to school like this tomorrow? Just think of how many jokes and jibes Yami will be able to toss your way because of your hair. And you would have been able to fix that right this minute by allowing me to power the bleach on your hair. So. Which one will it be, Bakura? Brunette and made fun of? Or bald with dignity and pride?"

The spirit didn't even have to think about it. He snatched the plastic container from Ryou's hands, unscrewed the top, and dumped all of its contents onto his head. Yes, maybe he went a little overboard on the whole 'bleaching' thing...but he would NOT give Yami even _more_ reasons to make fun of him! Like Ryou had said, he DID have his dignity and pride.

He started to reach for the shower head to rinse off the bleach when Ryou grabbed his wrist, stopping him. "No, yami. You have to let the bleach seep into your hair. If you rinse the bleach off immediately, it won't have a chance to get into the hair and...hopefully...bleach out the chocolate pudding."

Bakura sighed and slumped down onto the tiled floor, pushing out his lower lip in a put-out pout. (Not that he would actually admit to the fact that he was pouting! No, he was...sulking. Yes, that was it. He was sulking. No evil spirit would ever pout! Pout--no. Sulk--yes. And Bakura was very good at _sulking._)

Ryou giggled and looked down at his yami, squatting down so that they could be eye to eye. "It shouldn't take THAT long, yami..." he gently pointed out, smiling at Bakura with kind, sparkling eyes. It was then that Bakura got a flashback of something that Yami had told him. Something that they had talked about mind-to-mind not even a week before. Something that he was beginning to suspect...

***~~***Bakura snorted and Ryou sighed. ~You do realize that your hikari just lied to you, right, Pharaoh no Baka? And about something as important as his well-being. Ryou and Yuugi both know what we are here for and they know how important their safety is to us. They are, after all, _ours._ You must punish him, Pharaoh, for lying to you.~ Bakura thought at Yami.

It wasn't done often (After all, why WOULD they want to talk to each other??), but the yamis were able to communicate to each other telepathically, somewhat similar to how they talked with their aibous...and yet different.

~Yes, I DO realize that, Tomb Robber no Bakamono. But I know that Yuugi only lies because he cares about me and he truly doesn't want to see me hurt. Why do you think that Ryou hates to call you when he's in trouble?~

~Because he knows that I will beat him for it.~

~I always knew that you were dumb, Tomb Robber, but not THIS dumb.~

~What do you mean by THAT?!~

~Stop asking me questions, Tomb Robber, and start asking yourself those same questions. It might take you a couple millennia, but I'm sure you'll still be able to _eventually_ find the answers...Bakura.~***~~***

Maybe, just maybe...

"Bakura, turn around and close your eyes. I'm going to wash out the bleach now. I don't want to get any of the bleach or shampoo in your eyes, so don't open them until I say it's alright, okay?" Instead of replying, Bakura just did as his hikari bid, still lost in his own thoughts.

'Maybe, just maybe... But could it even be possible? It may be, because Bakura often saw the looks that Yuugi shot his own yami when he thought that the Pharaoh wasn't looking. And the small hikari must have been good at judging when to shoot glances at Yami because, to this day, Yami still didn't realize that his oh-so-lovable (so lovable it made Bakura physically ill) hikari was in love with him. Or, there could be another explanation---and this one was Bakura's favorite. Yami was dumber than a doornail. Eh. I'd probably go with the latter choice. Probably all that inbreeding the royal families had to go through to keep their bloodline "pure." What a bunch of crap. But, then again, everything I experienced back then was like going through several levels of hell.'

"There. I'm done. Come out of there and look in the mirror. Wait! Don't open your eyes yet, Bakura! Here. Feel my hand? Grab onto it and I'll lead you out of the shower, alright? ...okay. Easy. Easy. Careful. I don't want you to trip." Ryou's hand was purposeful and strong on his own. Why hadn't he noticed that before? Maybe...maybe because he was so determined to make Ryou stronger that he never noticed that Ryou was _already_ strong. But he was strong in a different way than the Egyptian was. Hmmm...it was something to think about. "Down. Just slowly bend down. There's a chair already set out for you. Now, on the count of three, open your eyes. One... Two... Three!"

At the final count, Bakura finally opened his eyes and looked at his reflection in the mirror. 'By Ra,' he thought to himself as his eyes widened. It was true--the bleach had been able to take away the chocolate pudding stains that had penetrated his hair. But, in doing so, it had also made his hair brighter than ever. Now his hair looked like freshly fallen snow that sparkled in the warm sunlight.

Ryou smiled and rested his chin on his yami's head. "I like it, Bakura. It looks nice," he said, allowing his smile to broaden just a touch more. The spirit blinked; his eyes shifted until he was looking deep within Ryou's eyes--his reflection's eyes, at least.

There was a warmth there. A friendship...companionship...that he hadn't expected. And, deep within those dark brown eyes, almost buried under his other emotions, was an emotion that Bakura had never seen before. Well, that wasn't exactly true. He HAD seen that emotion before...but only when Yuugi was looking at Yami or vice versa. No one had ever looked at him in that way before. Ever.

***~Stop asking me questions, Tomb Robber, and start asking yourself those same questions. It might take you a couple millennia, but I'm sure you'll still be able to _eventually_ find the answers...Bakura.~***

'Maybe...just maybe...'

Blinking slowly and contemplating the scenario in his mind, Bakura slowly turned around, cupping Ryou's face in his palms. Surprised, Ryou's eyes widened...but he didn't pull away. And that was the opening that Bakura needed to have given to him. "Ryou..." he began, frowning slightly as he tried to find the words. It was hard for him to do so, but he wouldn't stop now that he had finally started. No one and nothing could stop him at this point in time. "Ryou...do you know why I always hit you and beat you?" Mutely, Ryou shook his head, which was still clasped in Bakura's pale hands. "The reason why I hurt you is because I want you to become stronger. When I lived in ancient Egypt, I went through many, many trials. It was a fight to live. I had to become strong. If I hadn't become strong, I would have died long before I was sealed away in the Sennen Ring. This is another reason why I've always been so possessive of my things, also. If I HADN'T been so possessive, they would have been taken away from me. I had to learn this at an early age.

"The reason why I'm so possessive of you...the reason why I hurt you so much is because I don't want you to have to relive what I had to. I don't want you to have to experience those types of things. And that's why I treat you the way I do. So you don't have to become _me._"

"Yami..." Ryou whispered, his large brown eyes wide.

But Bakura didn't give him a chance to continue. Slowly tugging his face forward, Bakura brushed his lips against his hikari's slightly open mouth. And still--Ryou didn't pull away. 'Maybe... Maybe, just maybe...Pharaoh no Baka isn't such a baka after all...' Bakura thought to himself as his hands dropped away from Ryou's face, only to wrap around the smaller boy's waist. 'Maybe... Maybe, just maybe...maybes can really and truly happen.'

It was then that Ryou pulled away from the spirit's lips, brushing his own against Bakura's ear. "Aishiteru, yami..." he whispered before finally returning to his yami's lips.

'Ah. Pharaoh no Baka isn't a baka _at all._ Amazingly, he is surprising perceptive. Have to remember to pay attention to him more often. Or...maybe not... And he was right. Must make a note to self to say that to his face one of these days. Or...maybe not...'

'Ai... Ai...' Bakura began to think back to his hikari. But the words were so hard to say. He had been hurt so many times and he was still scared of being rejected. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't say 'aishiteru.' 'Ai... Ai...'

'Shhh... It's alright, Bakura. I know. I know that you love me.'





A/N: SEE?! Neko-chan ISN'T as evil as all the reviewers say that she is!! ;-p Ha! SO THERE!

Yami: NANI?! You finally make this an official Bakura/Ryou...but there's no Yami/Yuugi yet?! OMAE O KOROSU!!!

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEE! Wait! Wait! Wait! I wanted your scene to be...ummm...special! O.O;; Yeah, that's it! Special! So the readers will just have to wait a bit longer for a little bit of shounen-ai between the two of you! 'Sides...the wait will make it even more sweeter when it finally comes! So there. ;-p

Bakura: *is in a bubble of happiness*

Ryou: *is permanently attached to Bakura's arm* *^_^* Neko-chan, Bakura and I would just like to say that we simply adore you.

Yami: Yeah, well, I DON'T.

...*BONKS Yami*... Pffft. Be quiet, you. Or I probably won't put any Yami/Yuugi shounen-ai stuff until after chapter twenty-five or so. So... ;-p D

Yami: *shuts up*

Anyway, read, review, and tell me what you thought of the chapter, 'kay? (And I hoped you liked it, difinity!) *does her happy, hyper, genki dance*



Translations:

urusai--yup. I had it wrong all along. URUSAI is "Shut up!" Urusei is...I don't know 'cause it isn't in my English/Japanese dictionary. Thank you for pointing it out to me, Itoshii-chan. *glomps*

Aishiteru: I love you.



Thank-Yous: Little Kaori solo Yuy-Maxwell, Neko Oni, Silver Dragon, Digimagic, Blue, FukaiMori, Orca, difinity, Wanita, DracownyGirl, Bringer of the Storm, SilverLily, Demoness, LilyKitsune, Lil' Cherry Blossom, Yo Xi Wang, Saiai No Hito Mokushi, Burning-Yami-Rain, Yami Tsuki Tenshi (I love your new name!), Promise, Sage of Zelda 64, Seventh Sage, KittyKatu, Mystery, Vera (*twitches* Y-You... You added this fic to your favorites and put me on your favorite authors list?! *pauses out from amazement* DOMO ARIGATOU! *tackle glomps*), NC (Thank you for the beginning of this chapter's idea! *high fives*), Soulwindow, Naya, tenshimagic, Kirby, Dracou Malfouy (I seriously hope your surgery went alright!), Invader Zia, Duet-Sama AKA The Chibi Master, Kilandra Yamitea, Itoshii-chan, Chibi, Songwind (Ne...*blinks*...I didn't know that you read shounen-ai! Yay! *glomps* And I'm glad that you likies so far. *blushes*), and Ni-chan (LOL! I saw your review right before I uploaded. Hope you like. *^_^*)

Thank you to all that review! Seriously, guys, you're the main reasons why I didn't dump this fic in the beginning. Soooo...just to let ya know: I appreciate you all! *GLOMPS*

~Neko-chan