Lone Phoenix: Sorry, I didn't see your chapter 7 review before I posted 9... LOL, my fic, compact? Thanks! I hope you enjoy the fluff in this chapter!
Princess Strawberry: Sorry I made you uncomfortable.... I really really love your stories, though! As you requested, this chappie will have some Y/Y fluff, so enjoy! Oh and btw, I've almost finished "Peaches and Chocolate"!
daisy: Glad you like the gifts, I love mine! strokes her Mr. Snuffles plushie You're welcome for the dedication, but stop torturing poor nuva; the fluff in this chapter's sure to make her ill! Bakura's fair game, though! whacks Bakura upside the head See? Keep on reading!
PanDora: It's cool, I know how school is... damn Shakespearean Sonnets.... anyway, I know his total turnaround is going to be suspicious, and therein lies the beginning of this chappie! Please stick with it!
Assassin of the Shadows: Glad you're still with us! Why is Bakura the bad guy... hmm, every story needs a scapegoat? LOL, seriously, I have no idea, but someone has to be the bad guy, so why not the mean ex-criminal? I hope you stick with it... Bakura won't always be our scapegoat!
Warnings... Quasi-angst, fluff, sorta graphic kissing scene... that's about it!
Disclaimer: Not mine already!
Chapter 10: O Starry Night
Either Ryou was being obstinate or he had suddenly gone deaf, but whatever it was, Bakura was feeling beyond frustrated. For what seemed like the ten thousandth time, he rapped on Ryou's bedroom door, trying the knob at the same time. It hadn't taken him long to figure out that his hikari had barricaded the door, and the stabbing pain in his shoulder corroborated that fact. Just as well; he probably wouldn't appreciate me barging in on him. Not exactly the best start to things at all.
After five more minutes of suppressing his desire to tear the door off its hinges, Bakura suddenly got an idea. Closing his eyes, he went back into the Ring, and came out next to Ryou's bed. Now, why didn't I do this before? I need to use my head a lot more often....
His thoughts were frozen by the display on the bed before him. Ryou was fast asleep, and if Bakura strained, he could hear him breathing lightly. The pillow beneath his head was tearstained, and the picture was on the floor where Ryou had dropped it. The darker of the two stared at his hikari stonily as his mind went into a tailspin. He had been so busy hurting Ryou that he'd never gotten a really good look at the other boy when he wasn't in pain or angry.
Ryou's hair was spread out against the pillows like a river of white against the dark bedding. His face was completely relaxed, if a little pale and tragic. His clothes were in disarray, but his yami could see clearly the slim outline of his form through the faded jeans and green shirt. The lighter boy's sweater was on a chair across the room.
All this, Bakura took in at once. I wonder if that hair's as soft as it looks. As if it moved of its own accord, his left hand ran through Ryou's ivory mane, and the corner's of the sleeping teenager's lips turned up ever so slightly. The yami let himself touch his hikari's hair once more, drag a feather-light touch across his face and down to his shoulder before he came to his senses. What the hell am I doing? Yeah, sure, he's beautiful, but he's my hikari, and a weakling besides! Growling at his own incapacity to control himself, Bakura went back into the Ring, staying there this time. At the muted flash, Ryou jarred awake, his head snapping from left to right. Fortunately, there was no trace of his yami. Reaching for the cordless phone that lay on his dresser, the albino boy curled up under the covers. He suddenly had a chill, for some reason.
Maybe it's time I call in the cavalry, he decided.
* * *
At the game shop, Yugi was finishing up for the night. Yami was taking note of what inventory they were running low on, and putting new rare cards in the display case to replace those they'd sold. Since Duelist Kingdom, the shop had been busier than ever before, largely due to Yugi's newfound fame as King of Games, and with Grandpa away on vacation, Yami had been conscripted to help his hikari. Not that he minded; any day spent with Yugi was a good one.
Sighing, Yugi slammed the drawer of the cash register shut and filed the receipts away. "You done yet, Yami?"
"In a minute, aibou." The taller of the two scrawled something down on his notepad and put it away. "There, finished." He turned back to Yugi. "What do you want to do now, love?"
The smaller boy blushed redder than the tips of his hair. Yami had a way of doing that to him, no matter what he said. "Want to put on a movie?"
Yami shivered, remembering what had happened the last time they'd watched movies. "To be honest, I'm not really in the mood to watch a movie," he replied.
"Oh, neither am I." Yugi admitted, coming around from behind the counter.
"So why'd you suggest it, aibou?" the other boy asked, puzzled.
"I never said we'd actually watch the movie, now did I?" Smiling, Yugi leaned up, pulling Yami downwards by his leather choker, and kissed the inquisitive expression from the ex-pharaoh's face. Breaking off almost immediately, the hikari winked at Yami. "I was planning on doing something much more interesting than some silly movie."
With a growl of mock frustration, the spirit of the Puzzle swept Yugi up into his arms, tearing the leather belt from his neck with his teeth and letting it drop to the floor. Immediately, he commenced suckling on the soft flesh beneath it, and Yugi arched up into his embrace ever so slightly. Encouraged, Yami let his mouth trail down further, just below Yugi's collarbone, and was just about to undo the top button of his hikari's shirt when the phone rang.
"Ignore it," Yami murmured against Yugi's bare flesh, as he nipped at his throat lightly. Yugi drew breath sharply in pleasure, but somehow managed to muster the willpower to get away from his boyfriend's touch long enough to answer the phone.
"Hello?" he said, his voice going up an octave as Yami knelt down and wrapped his arms around him, burying his face in his love's hair.
"Yugi, it's Ryou." the sad voice on the other end replied. "Have you got a minute? I really need to talk to somebody."
Yugi bit back a cry of surprise as Yami's questing hands found their way under his shirt and began massaging his slim upper body. "Hang on a sec, will you, Ryou?" Slamming the hold button, the hikari turned back to his yami indignantly, reflecting on how amazingly innocent Yami looked, even as he teased one of Yugi's nipples.
"It's Ryou, I have to talk to him." Yugi said, and Yami nodded, drawing his aibou's lips into a slow, sensual kiss.
"I'll be waiting," he replied huskily when they parted, and the short boy fought to control the raging hormones that, at the moment, were telling him to blow off Ryou for Yami. Thankfully, before any more of his hikari's control could go out the window, the spirit of the Puzzle disappeared up the stairs to their room, and Yugi picked up the phone again.
"So sorry about that," the tricolor haired boy apologized, pulling up a chair. "What's the trouble, Ryou?"
"It's Bakura," came the shuddering reply, and Yugi knew at once that Ryou was crying again. Joey was right, then.
"What's he done now? You know Yami would be more than happy to...."
"No!" The vehemence with which the albino boy defended his darker half surprised even Yugi. "Please, I couldn't live without him. I really, truly, couldn't. No matter what he does to me... I still love him."
Yugi sighed heavily. "Okay. So, what can I do to help?" He tried not to think of Yami, sexy as hell, upstairs, waiting out what could prove to be a long conversation.
"Would you mind just listening? Not saying anything, not giving advice, just... listen to me?"
The petite boy leaned against the counter. Yep, this was definitely going to be a long one. "Okay, Ryou. Breathe deep, and start from the beginning."
* * *
While Ryou was pouring his heart out to Yugi, and a very frustrated Yami was pacing around his bedroom, Joey and Seto were blissfully ignorant of everything but each other and the soft lapping of the water against the rowboat they had taken out on the lake. There was nobody else around, and Joey was overcome by the sheer perfection of the moment. This must be what heaven feels like.
The stars were especially bright that evening, and for the longest time, the two boys just sat in each other's arms and stared at them. Gradually, a chill wind started to pick up, and Joey shivered even through his ever-present jacket. Seto took note of his love's discomfort, and wrapped the other boy in his trench coat, clutching his precious bundle close.
"Aren't you cold?" Joey asked after he'd warmed up some. Seto's trench coat wasn't only long, it was warm and heavy. How did he manage to wear this thing every day?
"Not really." Despite his confident reply, the brunet sneezed a few seconds later. "Okay, maybe a little."
The blond laughed, unwrapping a few folds of the midnight blue coat and stretching them out over his love, who in turn tried to pull his share tight around him without showing it. Realizing it was probably time they headed back to shore, Joey made to leave the comfort and safety of their makeshift blanket to start rowing back, trying not to think about the cold. Unfortunately for him, Seto's embrace was as uncompromising as the billionaire himself.
"Not yet, puppy," the brunet said.
"But it's freezin', Set!." Joey complained. "Even you're cold!"
"Being cold is a small price to pay for this." Seto replied as he kissed Joey's cheek chastely. "Come on, when do you think we'll see a night like this again?"
"Fine, then." The blond burrowed deeper into the warmth that was Seto, secretly glad he didn't have to move. "If we get sick, though...."
"We won't." Seto rested his head on Joey's, whose own head was on his shoulder, "Trust me."
* * *
Two hours later, Yugi trudged into his bedroom to find a shirtless Yami sprawled out on the bed, asleep. Poor guy, must have tried to stay up, the short boy figured as he glanced at the clock. One in the morning. Good thing we don't have school tomorrow, or I'd be totally shot.
As tired as he was, though, Yugi found that sleep eluded him. He lay in bed, the sound of Yami's breathing comforting in the darkness, and stared up at the same star-studded sky that Joey and Seto were watching. Ryou had told him all about what had gone on with Bakura that night, and then vented for another half-hour. After that, Yugi had comforted him as best he could, but the effort had taken its toll on him, sapping whatever had been left of his flagging energy reserves. Worse, it had cut into his time with Yami.
Yugi knew that the spirit would harbor no grudge about that; his hikari's friends were just as important to him as to Yugi himself, and he loved him for that, but the smaller boy felt bad just the same. They were supposed to spend the evening together, after all. What was a relationship where one person couldn't make time for the other when they wanted it?
Unconsciously, Yami rolled over, throwing one arm over his hikari in the process, and a fresh wave of exhaustion rolled over Yugi. Yawning widely, he wrapped both of his arms around his love's and drifted off into a dreamless sleep. I'll think about it tomorrow.
* * *
Well into the night, Ryou stared at the group photo, feeling completely alone. He didn't cry again; his tears were spent for this night and probably more than a few nights to come. Nor did he sleep, for he hadn't heard Bakura since he'd barricaded himself inside his bedroom, and wanted to be awake should his dark side find a way in.
Of course, as we all know, Bakura had been in the Ring for quite some time, watching his hikari like the proverbial hawk. The guilt pangs had shown no signs of abating, and he couldn't get the beauty of Ryou's sleeping face out of his head. However, confronting the other boy before morning would likely do more harm than good, so the spirit of the Ring kept his distance, no matter how much he wanted to get the whole thing over and done with.
Sometime around three-thirty, Ryou fell into the sleep of the exhausted, and Bakura left the confines of his soul room. Trying his best not to look at his hikari, he pulled up a chair and leaned back, propping his feet up on the windowsill. It's going to be a long night, he thought as he stared up at the crescent moon well overhead.
* * *
Well, that's Chapter 10! Review please, and I'll see you all hopefully soon with Chapter 11. Of course, that's presuming you all still want me to continue... anyway, comments/criticism welcome! Ja ne, readers!
