Bakushipping (Bakura Ryo/Thief King Bakura/Yami no Bakura)

. . .

Ryo's bed is heavy with the demons that lay beside him every night.

It doesn't help to keep the lights on, but sometimes he tries anyway. The dark makes it worse. In the dark, he can start to imagine that his hallucinations of the bed shifting with bodies that lay beside him just to stare at him with glittering eyes are actually real. At least in the light, he can confirm with his eyes that they aren't. It makes it harder to sleep, of course, but since when has he ever been able to sleep? Even before this PTSD bullshit he would spend his long nights planning RPG campaigns. He misses those days now. He should have slept when he had the chance.

The demons are always the same. There are two of them. One on each side, usually just standing on either side of the bed staring at him. Sometimes when they're feeling extra naughty, they climb into bed beside him and he can almost feel them touching him, running their fingers through his hair, laughing as they cup his face in their hands, knowing that he can't do anything to banish their specters.

One is paler than a ghost, the other is dark with a twisted scar. Both of them smile too much and it makes their faces look ragged and horrific. He never quite remembers their eyes. They're more like holes torn in their faces and it makes them look like something out of a horror movie.

He watches a lot of horror movies now. Maybe being scared of something else will make his dreams different.

It doesn't work. He's already dealt with the scariest things in life and no evil monster on screen will banish or replace them.

He closes his eyes, the light of his desk lamp still pulsing through his eyelids, and tries to pretend that he does not see their hallucinations leaning over him and grinning maniacally.

"I hate you both," he says into the ceiling, but it makes no difference to them, and it never will.

They just want him to remember that no matter how much time passes, he'll always belong to them.

. . .

A/N: have I hammered home my cynical interpretation of ryo and y bakura and tkb's potential relationships yet? Lol. Next is Babbleshipping (Jonouchi x Kisara)