Shotshipping (Ryo x Keith)
Ryo couldn't remember why he was in the hallway in the middle of the night. Had his other self taken over again? He hated not knowing. All he wanted to do was rip the Millennium Ring off and throw it as far away as he could. But he knew that would only make things worse.
He leaned against the wall of the grand, but dark hallway. The plaster was unforgiving, and the dim images of paintings hanging on the walls seemed to stare at him from all directions. He shuddered slightly, sliding down to the floor. The cool marble made him feel a little better.
Footsteps echoed down the hallway. Ryo was suddenly alert, and somewhat hopeful. He didn't know which way to go to get back to the duelist's hallway – maybe whoever was coming could show him the way. Although...it was more likely that it was not someone friendly.
Just a split second too late, he scrambled to his feet and tried one of the intricately carved doors. But the owner of the footsteps had already come around the corner, and Ryo's heart sank to see that it was none other than the American man Keith Howard.
The man still wore his sunglasses, even in the dark hallway, and he seemed a bit nervous about something. It was in the way he sent furtive glances over his shoulder, and kept patting his front pocket as though making sure that something was still there. Ryo could only imagine that he had done something not quite honorable. Then the man's eyes seemed to find Ryo, although it was hard to tell through his sunglasses. He stopped and stared for a moment, then took off his sunglasses. His bloodshot blue eyes leered out into the hallway at the suddenly panicking Ryo.
"You a ghost or something?" the man said, squinting at him. "No, wait. You're one of Yugi's friends, ain'tcha? What are you doing out all by yourself?"
"I had to use the bathroom," Ryo said, trying to think quickly. "What about you?"
"None of your business, brat."
He kept walking as he talked, until he was standing in front of Ryo. He loomed over the young boy like a mountain, and Ryo took a step backwards.
He wasn't quick enough, however, and Keith's hand shot out to pull at his hair.
"What's with the hairdo, kid? Ya trying to be a girl or something? What a sissy," Keith said, yanking hard on Ryo's hair. "And don't tell me that's a natural color, either. What's with kids these days?"
Ryo pinched Keith's hand to make him let go. Keith yelped and jerked back. He glared at Ryo.
"Ya wanna pick a fight?" he said.
"Don't touch my hair," Ryo said. "I'm pretty sick of people doing that."
"Hah. When you're a boy with hair like that, ya should get used to it."
His voice dripped with unnecessary venom. But Ryo refused to give ground, clenching his fists. His long hair was for Amane's sake. He had promised her, before she died: he would do all the things she couldn't for her. He had wanted to become her – he had managed to grow away from that, but his hair was his last link with his sister. To him, pulling on it was an unpardonable offense.
"Damn, I hate prissy boys like you," Keith said. "You're just like Pegasus. All trussed up like a little girl, and yet all the chicks seemed to flock around you. You make me sick – maybe I oughta cut your hair off for ya."
As Ryo's bubbling anger increased, he could feel his other half stirring inside him. His anger faded in a rush, and he struggled to regain control.
"What's the matter?" Keith taunted, obviously misreading Ryo's sudden look of fear. "Scared of me? Ya should be, punk."
Ryo trembled slightly. Any moment now. His dark half might take control at any moment. Despicable as Keith was, he didn't want to wake up again and find blood on his hands again –
"You should go," Ryo said quietly.
Keith looked as if he had been about to jeer at him again, but something made him stop. Something about Ryo's tone, maybe.
"Why?" he said suspiciously.
"Because if you continue to provoke me...I may not be responsible for what happens."
The acid of his dark half was spreading slowly through him. He could feel a tingling in his fingers and toes, as he started to lose consciousness in favor of the dominant spirit within him...
Keith snorted.
"Whatever. I got better things to do than trade words with a princess like you anyway," he said.
He shoved past Ryo, nearly knocking him over. His footsteps echoed like shots being fired in the hallway, and Ryo flinched. But then Keith was gone into the darkness, and the acid in Ryo's system had receded.
He allowed himself to breathe.
That had been...much too close.
A/N: I think Keith hates Pegasus for more reasons that one...if he's as stereotypical an American I think he is, he probably hates guys with long hair cause they break gender roles. So he takes that out on Ryo. Darn Americans...giving the rest of us a bad name...I hope all you international readers don't think too badly of us, although I wouldn't blame you if you did. Anyways, next is Shoreshipping (Ryouta x Shizuka).
