Okay! Hello everyone! I'm not dead (surprisingly) and here's the next chapter! But first, I would like to say something - I'm almost at a hundred reviews… THANK YOU! Sincerely, I've gotten so much positive comments for this story, and I would just like to thank you all for reading this, and I would especially like to thank those who reviewed. All your reviews motivate me to write! So if you think that reviews do not do anything, you are sadly mistaken.
So! Since I'm so close to 100 reviews, I would like to make a contest (since that's what most people do for this occasion). BUT! Since I believe that saying whoever is the hundredth reviewer gets something actually discourages reviews, instead I'm going to say that anyone who reviews this chapter gets the following chapters dedicated to them. For example, if "YamiFan2.0" reviews first, and "ILikeKittehs" reviews second, the next chapter (chapter 28) will be dedicated to "YamiFan2.0," and the chapter after that (chapter 29) will be dedicated to "ILikeKittehs" etc. etc. AND, whoever IS the hundredth reviewer gets… um… I don't know… what do you want? XD I honestly could not think of something for the hundredth reviewer… I could write a story of your choosing for you if you want ^_^"
Thank you all yet again, when I look back on the previous chapters, I actually cringe at some of the words and sentences I used… so I'm glad to see that I'm improving, and it's thanks to each and every one of you that I am doing so =) But enough of me thanking you… (you're probably bored stiff…)
READ THE CHAPTER! I HOPE YOU ENJOY IT! =)
Chapter 27: Deciding Factor
Narrator
"Are you sure you're ready for this Marik?" Bakura asked as they walked the streets of Domino.
Marik took a deep breath. "No, but I'll have to do this sometime," he said, offering a weak smile.
Bakura took a little bottle out of his pocket, "I have sleeping pills if you want them."
"Maybe later…"
They walked on in silence for a while. The two Item-hunting males were on their way to the airport holding two traveling bags each filled with the necessary items for traveling. Their tickets had them landing in New York, and - according to a website that Bakura found called "Millennium Watch" - there was said to be a Millennium Item there. Isis had obviously known they were going there anyway, so he probably didn't even have to look it up, but he wondered… was there even an Item there? Isis saw them there obviously, but that didn't necessarily mean that an Item was there did it? These internet sources could hardly be called 'reliable'…What would happen when they found all of the Items anyway?
Bakura's body froze as he realized that as soon as they found the Millennium Items, that they had no other reason to hang out. He quickly had to thaw himself out and keep walking though, lest Marik realize something was wrong and ask him about it. But… once they did find all of the Items… and make their wish… their journey was over. They had no other reasons to see each other anymore, Marik would probably go back to his family (or not…) and Bakura would go back to his empty, lonely house… No more would he see the Egyptian's smile, no more would he hear the annoying and yet somehow beautiful voice drifting through his house, no longer would he be able to joke around and argue with the boy whom he had become attached to…
He glanced at Marik from the corner of his eye. He looked nervous - his bronze forehead sweating slightly, his pearl white teeth biting his pink, slightly chapped lips absently, his violet eyes glazed over with an anxious fog, his delicate, creamy fingers fidgeting against his suitcase handle.
He looked so cute when he was nervous.
Even though Bakura had just acknowledged it, he couldn't picture that one day Marik wouldn't be with him. He couldn't even remember how he had lived without the tan Egyptian annoying him, causing him grief, making him laugh and smile and making him feel things he hadn't felt in a very long time if not ever. He couldn't imagine that a day would come and he'd find that Marik wasn't there - he just couldn't. It just didn't seem logical to him, even though he knew it was going to happen.
Bakura tried to push these thoughts away, seeing as there was no point in dwelling on the inevitable… after all, what reason would Marik have to stay with him? Unless… they become more than just friends along the way… that would be the only way wouldn't it? Bakura looked at Marik again. Now he was looking at the ground, probably trying to rid himself of his fear or just stop thinking about it - just like Bakura was doing with his thoughts. He smirked, hiding his depressing thoughts from his face and said, "Relax Marik. The least that can happen is that the plane will crash and we all die horrible painful deaths - relax!"
Marik glared at the vampire next to him, "You're enjoying this aren't you?"
"Why would I be enjoying this?"
"Because that's what you would do."
Bakura chuckled, "I suppose I might be enjoying it just a little."
"You'd think best friends would be nicer to each wouldn't you?"
Bakura rolled his eyes, "Stop bringing that up! I swear those words have no more meaning to me anymore." Marik had been bringing up the fact that they were now best friends whenever they started to argue or even just to start an argument or a mini-fight. It was beginning to piss Bakura off - royally.
"I'm just bringing up a point," Marik said with a grin, "besides, you're the one who said it."
Bakura's eye started to twitch, "That may be true, but I don't bring it up every five minutes like some first grader who's proud of a crappy drawing they drew," he smirked, "Why are you so proud of that fact anyway?" He put his arm around Marik's shoulders and whispered in his ear: "Could it be that you know we're one step closer to becoming more?"
Marik blushed slightly and pushed Bakura off of him, "In your dreams."
You have no idea…
They walked on in silence for the rest of the time, leaving Marik to think many possible outcomes that could come from riding a plane… Let's see, you could make it to your destination without any hindrances, you could get minor turbulence, you could major turbulence, or, oh yeah, you could crash and die. OH! And let's not forget crashing into water and drowning to death! Yup, totally worth the risk! Marik kept thinking these types of thoughts until eventually they reached the airport. When he first saw the airport, he was filled with dread, memories of all the times his father had forced him onto those unnatural flying birds flashed through his mind. He was filled with anger and hate, and he could feel something welling up inside him, building, as if feeding off of his anger and hate… He pushed that back and tried to calm himself down. He was not with his father right now. He was with Bakura, and Bakura was not his father. Definitely not.
However, no matter how much Marik tried to calm himself down, he just kept feeling cold, hard, plain fear grip his heart and squeeze every last bit of warmth out of it. He hated planes. He hated them and feared them. Every time he stepped foot onto the metal death trap, or even saw one for that matter, he felt frozen. He didn't want to move, he didn't think he could move. He just felt like he was going to die, even though he's rode by plane many times (none by choice) and obviously hadn't died, he jut couldn't help but feel that he was going to die. And he didn't want to die, not yet.
And, as Marik was thinking all of this, Bakura was thinking about how he had acquired the current attire he was wearing right now:
…
"Hey Bakura!" Marik announced as he walked into the house, slamming the door behind him, "Guess what I've got!"
Bakura raised an eyebrow, "An annoying disposition?"
Marik stuck his tongue out at him, "No! I got you a change in wardrobe!" Marik said as he took a black item of clothing and presented it with a smirk. "Try it on!"
Bakura stood up from his desk where he had been writing and took the thick, smooth cloth from his friend. He unfolded it all the way and stared indifferently at it. He turned to look at the smirking Egyptian. "…Where the heck did you even find this?"
Marik smiled, "Special ordered."
Bakura stared at the cloth again. It was a long, black cloak with a giant hood - guaranteed to cover all of his face - that went down past his feet. It was very thick so that not an ounce of sunlight could get in or so that it could not get torn, and it was obvious that Marik actually expected him to wear this thing. He looked at Marik again. "I can't wear this. I'll look suspicious."
"More suspicious than you would if you were wearing a trench coat?"
"Yes."
Marik grinned, "Well, fine then. But good luck finding your trench coat."
Bakura narrowed his eyes at him, "What did you do with it?"
"Moi? I didn't do anything!" Marik said innocently, "your coat was just accidentally given away to someone who needed it more…"
Bakura groaned and put his palm to his forehead, "You're just trying to humiliate me, aren't you?"
Marik grinned cheekily, "Why, whatever gave you that idea, best friend?"
Bakura tilted his head back and groaned.
"Just consider it payback for making me wear a dress."
…
Bakura's eye started to twitch. Damn you Marik. Bakura looked at the cloak he was wearing at the moment (noticing the odd stares he kept receiving), and wondered, what had possessed Marik to do this? Was it really payback for the dress? Or did he make it up right then and there? Maybe he just doesn't want me to burn… or die…
Bakura looked at Marik again, who was still dreading the plane ride. Ever since the vamp had learned about Marik's first friend… he felt pity, something he rarely felt. A nine-year-old child shouldn't have to go through so much, never… Bakura focused his attention back on walking to their plane, but he just couldn't get the picture of a young Marik crying out of his head…
That picture tore him up inside.
He hated crying, absolutely hated it. If you were crying, then that means something terrible has happened. And when kids cry… that's even sadder, because children are innocent - they don't' do anything wrong. They don't deserve any ill treatment or hardships like adults do… no, innocent children ages zero through twelve don't deserve any of that sort of thing… and if they are aware of it and cry because of it, then that's just sad… That's the only thing that's truly sad. And Marik crying or unhappy? That's worse than death (in his opinion).
Bakura sighed. He admitted, he had a soft spot for children. But that was because they were so innocent. Not like adults; adults make their own choices and choose to do bad by their own free will. When you're a child, you barely have any choices, and you're more easily succumb to peer pressure. That was why Bakura never killed children, or was mean to them - because they didn't do anything. Teenagers on the other hand… well… they're kind of just like 'mini-adults' really, so that was fine.
During all these thoughts, the duo had been walking deeper into the center of the airport, and as they walked further and further, Marik's feet kept getting heavier and heavier, and they had to walk along very slowly, which was kind of pissing Bakura off because he did not like doing things slowly. He felt his eye start to twitch again, but he had to control himself or else Marik might not get on the plane at all. Why did he fear planes so much anyways? They were perfectly safe, not much different than riding a boat actually. A boat in the air…
As Bakura pictured a flying boat in his mind, Marik's heart felt like it was beating a hundred times per second. His ears started ringing and when he saw the actual plane his vision started to blur. "I can't do this!" he cried out suddenly, looking down and putting his arms behind his head. "I'd rather walk or swim to New York than take one of those death traps!"
Bakura blinked at his friend, and couldn't help but notice that people were starting to stare. "Marik, calm down."
"Easy for you to say! Mr. Nothing Can Kill Me 'Cause I'm a Bloody -"
"Marik," Bakura interrupted forcefully so that he wouldn't finish that sentence. People were blatantly staring at them now…
"Don't 'Marik' me!" Marik yelled, "If we were meant to fly we'd be birds!"
"Marik -"
"Who came up with flying anyway? I'd like to tear their eyes out and -"
"Marik, people are starting to stare."
"Do you think I care?" Marik exploded, "Let them stare! Just don't let me get on that flying contraption of death!"
"Marik!" Bakura said, grabbing him by his upper arms, "Re. Lax. Look at me." Marik didn't tear his gaze from the floor. "Look at me," Bakura said powerfully, tightening his vice-like grip on Marik's arms. Marik grimaced and looked at the pale boy reluctantly. "Everything is going to be fine. Okay?" he said slowly and clearly.
Marik let out a noise of disbelief, and Bakura took one hand away and put his hood down. The expression on his face was a mix of determination, anger, and concern, though Marik had to look hard for the concern. Thank goodness that there wasn't any windows or unnecessary sky-lights nearby. "The plane is not going to crash, okay Marik?"
"How can you possibly know that?" Marik asked venomously, now angry that Bakura was treating him like a child.
"Because if that plane even thinks about crashing, I'll tear it apart piece by piece and rip them to shreds."
The corners of Marik's mouth started to twitch upwards, "Planes can't think."
"Well, that's it's problem then isn't it?"
Marik's smile brightened slightly, and then started to disappear, "But…" his gaze went to the side of Bakura's head so he wouldn't make eye contact. "… I don't want to die…" he whispered.
Bakura's grip tightened once more, "Who said we're going to die? If, mind you I said if, the plane does, by some off chance, crash, then I'll protect us. I'll make sure that neither of us die."
Marik raised an eyebrow disbelievingly.
Bakura smirked. "Don't you trust me?" he asked.
They stared into each other's eyes for a while, before Marik smiled and said, "Despite everything you put me through, yes."
Bakura smiled and released Marik. "Besides," he continued, "A plane is just like a boat really. A boat on air," he smirked, "so what 'floats my boat' is air - not water."
Marik laughed, "Wow. You still don't like that phrase do you?"
"It's not my favorite, no."
Marik sighed and closed his eyes, opening only one in the next second to look at Bakura. "… You promise you'll protect us?"
"Of course, I'm a man of my word."
Marik laughed and pushed Bakura's hood back on his head. "You look better with the hood on."
Bakura stuck his tongue out playfully at his comrade.
After a few hours, Marik and Bakura were boarding the plane. Their flight would take about sixteen and a half to seventeen hours, so they both figured they'd just sleep through most of the trip. They had been staying up late a lot lately, and Marik admitted that he was kind of looking forward to much needed sleep. Not that he'd be able to sleep without the aid of some sleeping pills, but… sleep is sleep.
Their bags were being loaded onto the plane as they took their seats, and they had to admit that the plane did look pretty nice. The floor was carpeted with dark blue carpet, the seats were royal blue with regal red crowns inside, and the walls were all white, offsetting the blue and red. There were also red blinds to cover the windows in case you didn't want sunlight. Which Marik pulled down right away, even though Bakura was wearing leather gloves and the cloak went well past his hands, you couldn't be too careful right?
As they sat in their seats and waited for the plane to take off, Marik looked around the place anxiously. It didn't matter how nice the plane looked, the fact was that this thing was going to be in the air soon, and then from there it would be quite easy to just fall. He knew Bakura had promised to protect them if anything happened but… what if he couldn't do anything? What if they were crashing during the daylight? It wouldn't matter if Bakura had his cloak because the wind would pull it back and reveal his skin, and he'd burn. And there was no way that Bakura could protect even himself while he was burning. Marik shuddered at the thought. Why must he continue to think these types of thoughts? Why couldn't he just think about books, or movies, or something normal like a normal person. He sighed mentally. Like he could be normal while he was sitting next to a vampire.
Meanwhile, Bakura found himself feeling… strangely tired for some odd reason. He was a vampire! He shouldn't feel tired, yet his eyelids kept slipping and he found himself having to snap his eyes open every minute or so. These chairs were just so comfy. He had always heard (or read) that airplanes were horribly uncomfortable for sleep… Why was he tired anyway? He shook himself awake and looked at Marik again. He jumped a bit when he saw Marik's face though; he looked about ready to have another meltdown. "You okay?" Bakura asked.
Marik smiled weakly, "Never better…"
Bakura scoffed, "And you were doing so well on Santa's sleigh…"
Marik chuckled, "That's because you were the one driving. I have absolutely no idea who's driving this thing."
"If you want I could go check."
"I'm pretty sure they don't let passengers in the pilot's room."
Bakura smiled mischievously. "Who says they have to know?" Bakura said before he stood up. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom… be back in a bit." He walked down the narrow isle of the plane to the lavatories, closed the door behind him and locked it, leaving Marik to raise a brow at his friend's antics. A few seconds late, he swore he heard someone saying something in his ear. He turned, and barely recognized the vampire in the shadows of his chair. "Bakura?" Marik whispered, surprised. He hadn't seen this power in action yet. It looked pretty cool. "What are you doing?"
"Going to see the pilot and having some fun, what's it look like I'm doing?"
Marik smiled, realizing he probably looked like a madman talking to his chair like this. "Don't get caught."
"How can I?" were the last words spoken before the shadow moved along the plane to the pilot's room. Marik chuckled, happy that Bakura was willing to deal with his fear. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, enjoying the quiet, convincing himself that he was anywhere else than on a plane…
In about two minutes he felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked up to see the exact replica of what people think death looks like grinning victoriously at him. But that was all you could see through the dark hood, the mouth - the eyes were completely hidden, except for a sparkle, but even that looked scary. "Guess what?" the spirit said, "The person driving the plane is some guy named Ryuzaki." The cloaked figure sat down next to the Egyptian man. "He was talking into his intercom with some guy named "Insector Haga" and that guy was calling him "Dinosaur Ryuzaki." Can you believe that? Talk about ridiculous nicknames."
Marik laughed, "Are you serious?"
"Dead serious."
"Speaking of dead, you look like Death."
"It's because of this damn cloak you picked out for me. Why did you have to get it again?"
Marik smiled, "That trench coat was getting old."
"I liked that trench coat," Bakura insisted stubbornly.
Marik shrugged, "Too bad." Suddenly, a loud wail came on over the plane's intercoms, causing everyone to cringe from the sound and cover their ears . "Attention passengers," a male voice surrounded them, "we are about to take off, if you would all take your seats and put your seat belt on, that would be great. Thank you!" The announcement ended with another squeaky wail, and everyone was a little disgruntled and annoyed at the sound system.
Marik and Bakura raised an eyebrow at each other.
"Worst," Marik said.
"Announcer," Bakura continued.
"Ever!" they finished in unison before putting their seat belts on. It took Marik the time it takes to put your seat belt in for him to realize that the plain was going to take off. Into the air. Miles upon miles up in the air. Where it could easily fall. And crash. And get decimated. And where he could easily fall. And crash. And die.
He found himself having to take deep breaths. Why the hell was he the one closest to the window? That was not smart planning on his part… Obviously Bakura noticed Marik's discomfort, but did not know what to do. It didn't seem like anything was going to get him to be unafraid of heights. "Do you want the sleeping pills now?"
Marik shook his head. He knew he needed to conquer his fear, he just wasn't sure how yet… but he knew that sleeping through the problem was not going to solve it, so he was going to try not to take the pills this time.
Bakura sighed. "Just pretend you're on Santa's sleigh again Marik."
"Easier said than done…"
"Come on, just close your eyes and pretend you're on Santa's sleigh."
"I can't!" Marik said, turning to face Bakura, "I can't just pretend I'm -" Marik's sentence was cut short as he felt the plane jolt forward. He took a deep calming breath and closed his eyes. But he couldn't imagine he was on a magical sleigh pulled by eight flying reindeer - that was just impossible at this point, especially with all the noise going around… Oh gosh, are they going up? They are…
Bakura bit his lip. He didn't like seeing Marik like this - he was used to over-confident quirky, kiddish-ness, not depressing, fearful, adultness. "Go to your happy place Marik," Bakura said, remembering something he read in a book about a character doing just that same thing when he wanted to accomplish something.
"I don't have one of those."
"… Well… What are things you like?"
"I don't know!" Marik said, his voice getting more frantic as he felt the plane continue to ascend into the air.
"Oh come now! Let's see…" he smirked, "Do you like alcohol?"
Marik opened his eyes purely just to glare at his companion, "What do you think?"
Bakura chuckled, "Okay… What about candy? Halloween?"
"I guess… What? I'm supposed to imagine myself in a licorice forest with candy raining from the sky with a chocolate river running past?"
"… Actually, that sounds pretty fun."
"Bakura!"
"All right, all right! Think of happy things, like um… You're on your own with that one."
Happy things… Marik thought, not trusting his voice to come out right, Happy things… Like… Dolphin riding! Yeah! That was fun! Or uh… Um… Watching the stars! With Bakura! Yeah, okay… Or uh… For some reason, Marik's idle mind brought up Christmas. But now when he was riding the sleigh with Bakura, it was after that… When they got home… When they were giving each other presents… Yes, for some odd, inexplicable, unexplainable reason, his mind remembered… while he was trying to think of his happy place… his mind remembered when Bakura… kissed him…
His eyes shot open and he felt heat start rushing to his face, and it didn't help when Bakura asked, "What's wrong now?" worriedly.
"Gah…" Marik said, obviously flustered, "N-nothing…!"
Bakura raised an eyebrow, "It was obviously something for how flustered you are… What were you thinking about anyway?"
Heat shot to Marik's face and he turned his head away from his… friend… "Oh just… Um… Summer…" Marik lied.
Bakura sighed, "You're a horrible liar when you're like this Marik." Now Bakura was even more curios as to what he could have been thinking. What would cause him to blush like that? "Come on," Bakura tried again, "don't best friends tell each other everything?"
"I have never heard that statement," Marik argued.
Bakura was starting to get impatient, but he also realized that this was distracting Marik from the plane ride, so he needed to keep this up as long as possible… "Oh come on, what's the worst that could happen?"
More red appeared on the already tomato-red Egyptian's face, "I don't even want to think about it…"
Bakura scrunched his eyebrows together, he really couldn't figure out what memory could possibly cause Marik to act like this… What could he have thought of? "Come on*… it can't be that bad!"
"It was."
Bakura was starting to get frustrated at Marik - why wouldn't he just tell him? "… Please?" he asked, hoping that his unwonted use of the word 'please' would make Marik tell him." Marik just shook his head in response. Bakura groaned and leaned back in his chair: "I give up!" he exclaimed. Although, if he had known what Marik had been thinking about he would probably have tormented him for hours on end and never let him forget it and would have felt overwhelmingly happy for the rest of the day - or maybe for the rest of the week. But as it was, Bakura did not know what had mysteriously wound up in Marik's so-called 'happy place' and so would not do or be any of those things. "Hey Marik," Bakura said, "Do me a favor? Open the blind."
Marik looked at him quizzically, "What for?"
"Just do it."
Marik shrugged, "Your skin." He opened the window and his gaze was trapped on the window. He could feel the red that had been pooling in his face disappear almost completely. They were so high up! Oh my gosh, how could he have not noticed? Everything looked so small… and so far away… Was that a cloud? That was cloud… oh god, they were in the clouds? That impaired the pilot's vision! He could so easily fall from up here… And as Marik kept staring out the window, he could imagine falling from the plane and hitting the ground… like in all those falling dreams you have where you wake up right before you hit the ground… Only this time he hits the ground.
His whole body jerked as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head to the death-like figure sitting next to him again. "Just imagine that you're a star Marik," he said calmly, "Looking down on the world… or whatever it is stars do since I obviously have no idea."
Marik managed to smile, "You got that right." The tan boy gradually looked out the window again. His vision swam from the height, but he tried to do what Bakura said… Pretend to be a star… pretend to be a star… yeah, this wasn't working… Marik was about to tell Bakura this, when the vampire mumbled, "You're certainly as pretty as a star…"
Marik blinked once, and then scarlet reunited with his face again, "What did you say?"
Bakura smirked, "What do you think I said?"
Marik stared at his friend for a few seconds before slowly turning his head back to the window again. Suddenly, imagining he was a star wasn't so hard anymore…
After a while, Bakura was sound asleep in his seat, and Marik was still looking out the window. He had tossed around the idea of being a star in his head, and now… he wasn't so scared of heights anymore… I mean, there wasn't really anything to be afraid of, Bakura was right - plane's are pretty safe, and it actually did kind of feel like riding a boat… The rocking motion and the plane engine's endless drone was even starting to put him to sleep somehow… He smiled, I suppose I should thank Bakura… He looked at said vampire out of the corner of his eyes. He looked really… cute… when he was sleeping. So peaceful… So unlike when he's awake… Marik smiled, "Thanks 'Kura." He sighed, closed the blind and decided to give into the temptation and get some sleep of his own.
However, as soon as he feel asleep, the person next to him woke up. He looked at the sleeping form before him for who-knows-how-long, but it was at least a few minutes if not more. He smiled sadly at the body and ran a hand through his hair - taking the hood off in the process. He sighed and blew out his lips, and stared at the boy a little longer. Just as he was about to shake him awake, he heard soft snoring. Crap, he thought. He didn't want to wake him if he was sleeping already… What if he was having a good dream? But he needed to talk to him… it was important. He shook him gently by the shoulder, hoping that would do the trick, but when it didn't he shook him a little harder. The Egyptian's eyes fluttered open, but they remained closed in the end. Gosh, who knew Marik was such a heavy sleeper? Although he probably hadn't been getting much sleep what with excitement and research and all… The white-haired boy shook him again, and this time his eyes opened all the way. "What do you want Bakura?"
The white-haired boy smiled sheepishly. I'm not Bakura… he thought. "Marik-san…" Ryou said quietly, "Hi… how have… things been going?"
Ryou
He blinked at me confusedly a few times before replying awkwardly, "Um… Pretty good…" I could tell he wanted to ask me the same, but… well… It kind of went without saying how things have been going for me. I leaned back in the chair and idly played with my fingers. "Um…" I start hesitantly - I can tell this is probably very awkward for him… It's kind of awkward for me as well… "Where are we going?" I finally asked since I have no idea.
"Uh… New York…"
I straighten up. "Really?" I've always wanted to go to New York… but it's not really me going, is it? "How… exciting…"
Marik nodded slowly, "We think there might be a Millennium Item there."
I sighed. Millennium Items. The bane of my existence… I wish I never got tangled up in this whole mess. "How many do you have now?"
"Five. Out of seven."
I offered a weak smile, "Well, that's good then."
Awkward silence passed before Marik said, "Thanks… For uh…"
"Your welcome," I interrupt. I don't really want to hear it…
Marik scratched the back of his head, "Bakura's been pretty good, in case you're wondering…"
I look at him - I had been wondering that… "Could you explain more please?"
"Well, uh… He hasn't killed anyone."
I sighed, "That's good," I smiled at him, "I think that's mainly because of you though."
He scrunched his eyebrows together - confused, "Because of me?"
I sighed. Riiight, he didn't know how Bakura felt… silly me. I smiled knowingly, "Ah, never mind." Sigh… Why? Why do I feel the need to play matchmaker? Not that these two need me but still… Why do I feel that way?
You know, I always knew that if I was in any book that I'd be a side character. I always knew that. I don't have any qualities that a main character has - courage, determination… I don't have any of it. Not only that, but I'm indecisive, can be taken advantage of easily, and lack self-confidence… Yes, I always knew that I'd be a side character - destined to help the main characters out at any costs… disposable, kind of useless… the story could go on without me, I'm just added for fun.
But you know, that's why I've always liked side characters. They help people even if it hurts them, even if they get nothing out of it, and I liked that. I liked how… selfless they were, and I tried to copy that… It's funny really, how I have a chance to do that now…
But… Is the price too great?
"What's it like?" Marik asked suddenly - probably to get rid of the awkward silence.
I blinked at him, "What's what like?"
"Um…" he said while avoiding eye contact and rubbing the back of his head, "… You know… being inside the Ring…"
"Oh… It's kind of, well," I paused to think a bit, my hand on my chin, "It's kind of like staying at a really dark hotel… only the only channel on your TV is through Bakura's eyes… and the audio is Bakura's thoughts and what he hears…"
It was silent for a little bit, and then we laughed.
"I'm sure that's an interesting channel," Marik commented.
I smiled, "It's full of drama, I'll tell you that. He's an angsty one he is…" I mumbled the last part.
"What?"
"Nothing!" More silence. "You can't move around much though, and it's lonely," oh how lonely it is… "And going to sleep is… scary…"
Marik looked confused. "Scary?" he asked, "How?"
I smiled sadly at him, "You never know when you'll wake up… Or if you'll wake up…"
"… Oh…"
I stared at the floor for a little bit before snapping my head back to Marik, "What's Bakura like?" I asked
"Huh?"
"What's he like?" I asked again, "Is he nice?"
Marik stared at me for a little while, digesting my random question. "Why?"
This time I avoided eye contact, "Because… if he's controlling my body, I want to know what he's like… I mean, I know nothing about him!… Nothing really… Er, nothing that I want to know anyways…"
Marik looked suspicious now, "Well, what do you know about him?"
I know how he feels about you. "Oh," I answered, failing at concealing a knowing smile on my face, "Nothing much, just a bit of his past… and I don't really like what he's done so far…"
"Why? What did he do?"
I hesitated, "He…" my voice got low, secretive, "He killed people - for fun, and drank their blood…" I looked at him sadly, "And not just as a vampire…" at that moment, I felt the urge to cough, though I don't know why - was I coming down with a cold? Or the more accurate question would be: is this body coming down with a cold? Could vampires even get colds? Maybe it's just too awkward in here so I feel the need to cough…
Marik seemed to be digesting this, and I could tell a little of what he was thinking through his eyes - they're like a window to his soul or something… okay, now I know I'm a writer…
He's wondering if I'm telling the truth… then deciding that I am… and now he's thinking about how he could see Bakura doing that, but realizing that he (probably) wouldn't anymore… Did I ever mention that I can read people fairly well? Another side-character quality I have…
"Look," I say, interrupting his train of thought, "I just wanna know what you think of him. You seem like a good judge of character…" I lean back in my seat, "I just want to make sure I'm not doing this for naught."
Marik grinned a little, " 'For naught' ? You're definitely a writer."
I smiled, "You bet'ya I am."
He sighed, "Well…" he began, "Bakura's… um… an interesting character…"
"Go on…" I pressed.
"Uh…" a miniscule blush appeared on his face, "half the time I have no idea what's running through that thick head of his…"
I suppress my giggles, "And…?"
"… Despite how mean he acts, I think… he's a pretty nice guy - he certainly understands when to leave someone alone and when to… bug them…"
I nod, "I see… Anything else?"
Marik smiled nostalgically, "All in all, he's a pain, but he's a good friend."
I nodded, but couldn't help but feel a little depressed… I mean, Marik's opinion is… kind of biased, even if he doesn't see it. And I know Bakura's changed a lot because I've seen some of his memories and I've seen him now… but, can he really be trusted? I mean… he used to kill people… for fun… that's not really something you can change is it? …
… But, everyone deserves second chances…
Another side-character belief…
"You know Ryou," Marik said, looking at the floor, "ultimately, it's up to you whether or not you take back your body…" I look at him now, wondering where he's going with this. "I mean, it's unfair to ask you to sacrifice so much… especially since I barely know you," he looked at me now, "If you took back your body right now… I'd understand… but I'd need the Ring."
I blink at him and look away, "But…" I whisper quietly, "Bakura's your friend isn't he? It'd be mean to… take your friend like that…" After all, I was awake when Isis explained what happened to Marik's first friend…
Marik was silent for a while, obviously wondering if I knew about his friend… Then: "It's meaner to trap someone in their own body just to be selfish," Marik said a little harshly, though out of the corner of my eye I saw his eyes soften in the next minute. "Besides…" he continued, "Bakura's inside the Ring isn't he? So we could still talk. I think anyway…"
I bite my lip. "But…" I say and then stop. Why am I saying 'but'? Shouldn't I be happy? Marik's pretty much telling me I can have my life back! I should be overjoyed! I should agree, hand over this stupid, problem-causing necklace, hop on the net flight to Japan, and live my life!
… But…
If I did take over… Then Marik would have to collect the Millennium Items on his own, and I'd be stuck halfway across the world until I buy another ticket… Not to mention the fact that I still don't know what year it is, and I don't know what Bakura's done in all this time. Plus… I really do want Marik to find the Millennium Items… after all, technically I am a vampire, and I'd like to be accepted thank you very much. But… Can Bakura be trusted?
In the end… I'm so confused… I don't know what's right, I don't know what's wrong, I don't know what to do or if I should even do anything… I don't now what's left, right, up or down… I'm so mixed up… What's the right thing to do? What should I do? Can I even do anything anymore? I've been detached from my body for so long… Will I even know how to control it anymore? Do I even remember how to live properly? I don't remember where anything is… even if I was in a familiar place, I probably wouldn't recognize any of it… What should I do, what should I do?
"… Marik?" I ask, my voice despondent, "What year is it?"
"Year?"
"Yes. I would like to know the year please."
"Um… It's 2011... Why?"
I sighed, "Then that means I haven't been… living for roughly two years…"
Marik looked down. "Oh…"
"I wonder how much things have changed…"
"Not much."
"Do you know what Bakura's done with all that time?"
"I know he wrote some books… but I don't know what they're called."
"They're probably dark and depressing," I inferred.
Marik looked at me and smiled. "You're probably right."
It's silent again, but then I feel something rise up in my throat, and I let out a deathly, hoarse-sounding cough. "You okay?" Marik asked.
"I'm - fine…" I say between coughing. What's wrong with me? Surely vampires don't get sick do they?
"Maybe you need some water?" Marik offered.
"That's - probably a good idea," I hacked out the last part of "idea" so that it sounded like, "iDEEah."
Marik called over a waitress and ordered a water, which was hear in five seconds flat because the lady didn't like my coughing. I thanked her for the water and gulped it down thirstily. It helped me a little, but my cough just sounded wet now instead of dry. Marik scrunched his eyebrows at me before lifting my left arm sleeves to my shoulder. He gasped and dropped the sleeves hurriedly. "Your mark!" he said, "It's-it's blood red!" he cursed, "I tell Bakura he needs to hunt more! He just doesn't listen!" He said this all hushed though so that no one but us would hear. "You're gonna have to bite me," he said seriously.
If it's possible, I paled more than my already albino, vampire skin. "Now? H-here? With other p-people around?"
Marik looked around. "No one's paying attention to us," he said, "Just bite my wrist - that red needs to go down."
I felt horror rise in my throat - I still have an itsy-bitsy problem with biting people. Actually, it's more like a humongousaurus problem. I just, can't bite people, I just can't! It seems… so… wrong! You know, if I did take my body over I would probably die in two months from starvation… just because I would bite anyone. I shake my head. He sighs and takes a Swiss-army-knife out of his pocket. "Do you see this?" he asked me. I nodded. "I will do it if you don't, so one way or the other - I'm gonna lose blood, and I'd prefer if it were put to good use."
I fidget a little bit more, wondering why he's so willing to give up his blood to a practical stranger. Is he just that nice? Does he care that much for me? I feel a little better at that thought… but as I look into it more, I realize that Marik's just one of those people who would prefer it if no one would have to die early, or from unnatural causes. He's probably seen so much death that he's sick of it now, and he probably just wants me to live purely because he wants everyone to live...
I think all this before taking his hand and biting down on the main vein there. I hear him suppress a gasp, and I pray that this isn't hurting him in any way… I think I would hurt myself if this was hurting him, but… I have to admit… this is delicious! It's better than anything! And at this moment I'm thinking it's even better than heaven… No wonder Bakura likes it so much… How does he control himself? Ever? Especially since this particular boy's blood is supposed to taste even more delicious to him…? Dear god, how can anything taste this sweet? I want more… So, much, more… I could drink the entire thing it's so good… but as soon as that thought crosses my mind I take my mouth away from him and look to see how he's doing. I gasp audibly. Oh no! I think as I feel my body run cold, I must have drank more than I thought! His skin was paler than normal and his eyes were fluttering open. What do I do now? What do I do now? I look around hurriedly for another waitress, but he puts a hand on my arm to stop me. "I'm… fine…" he tried to assure me, but it didn't have much affect since he even sounded weaker… dear goodness, I did this? I feel guilt and disappointment well up inside me - guilty for Marik and disappointed in myself for not being able to control myself more. Though I've had rare experience with this sort of thing… but that's no excuse! "What can I do to help?" I ask, eager to wrong my mistake.
"You can… not freak out," he said with a grin. "I've had worse, I'll be fine." I still feel horrible, and it must have shown because he pointed to my shoulder and said, "How is your mark now?"
I lift up my sleeves to see my mark. It's only a pink now… a rosy pink though. "Huh," he says, as if his current state is no big deal, "looks like you didn't drink enough…"
I feel what color might have been residing in my face leave, "I didn't drink enough," I say incredulously, "I leave you looking and feeling like this and I didn't drink enough?" My voice gets louder and louder with each word, and he shushes me so that I won't make a scene, but I'm just so… shocked! Outraged! Angry! But mostly at myself - how could I do this? How? I don't care that I'm a vampire, I should have some control dang it! I should be able to stop myself before… I mean, I could have killed him just now! I could have just left his as a shriveled up prune, and it was as easy as drinking a juice box! I can't handle this much power, I can't handle this much strength, I'm supposed to be a side-character! The most control I'm supposed to have is the power to bring people together… I can't handle this, I can't handle this, I can't… "I can't handle this!" I finally say in a hushed, yet loud and fierce whisper, "I can't handle this much power, I can't do it! And I certainly can't drink blood - what if I…" my voice cracks as I say this next part, "What if I… kill someone?"
"Shhh," Marik said, trying to be calm and reassuring, "It's alright," he said calmly, "I'm fine - really! And you just haven't had any experience with drinking yet. When you first start out, there will be a few mishaps -"
"Mishaps?" I interrupt, shaken, "How is killing people a mishap?"
"- but you'll get better with practice," he finishes, ignoring my question.
I lean back in my seat and press my palms against my eyes. "I just don't think I can do it…" I whisper, "I'm not used to so much… power, so much control… Maybe I should stay inside my body - until I'm human again… or until this body is human again… I don't know, whichever you prefer, but at least then I'm not a danger to anyone."
Marik scratched his head. "Well…" he said, "if that's what you decide…"
"I mean," I continue, "I don't want to drink blood! Not if it means I might kill someone, and vampires need blood to live don't they? I'd die within a month if I was on my own…"
"Oh I'm sure you'd last longer than a m-"
"Not to mention the fact that I'd probably forget that I can't go out in sunlight and die that way!"
"Don't say -"
"I'm not just a danger to others, I'm a hazard to my own health! The only way to keep me alive is by locking me up."
Marik looks at me. Not saying a word, just looking at me - probably thinking that if he speaks again that I'll just interrupt him once again. "Ryou," he says almost as if he's testing the waters, "I'm confident that if you took back your life right now that you would be able to function just fine. I'm sure that you would not kill anyone, and that you would not die in a month, or forget about the dangers of sunlight. But," he says when I look disbelievingly at him, "if you feel that you wouldn't live, then…" he paused, trying to decide what the right thing to say is, "Then… well, it's up to you what you do then."
I lean back in my chair, still upset over the state I put Marik in. I sigh loudly, "I think… I think I just need rest and think for a while…"
Narrator
A few hours passed since Marik and Ryou's talk, neither of them saying a word, but neither of them ignoring each other either if that's possible. They had an understanding that they just needed to sit and think about life for a while, and they didn't want to interrupt the other's thoughts. Actually, they were too busy with their own thoughts to even think about interrupting the other's.
Ryou was still pondering whether or not he should take his body back. Now, he had not only his past fears (he wouldn't know how to continue living from what Bakura did with his life; he would feel guilty about leaving Marik on his own; he wasn't sure how to continue living as a vampire; etc.) but he also had new fears as well, namely the fact that he would probably… kill someone when he went… hunting… That term sounded so wrong in this context… Not to mention that he'd probably die in a month, but that was of little concern to him compared to the idea of murdering someone, and enjoying doing it since blood was obviously the most delicious thing to ever come into the universe and he wouldn't mind drinking more… and more, and more. His mouth started to water as he thought of the taste, and he had to mentally shake himself. He couldn't help but feel a little scared of the blood lust… it seemed as if he'd do anything for even a sip of that delicious, life-giving liquid…
Even kill.
And honestly, the fact that the idea of killing sounded okay to him as long as it was for the tantalizing, crimson, sweet-yet-salty solution that scared him the most. Even if these thoughts were fleeting and lasted only for a millisecond or a second at the most, they scared him. If he thought so highly of someone's life-source now, then how could he improve? Especially since he sort-of knew Marik (a little) and still felt the urge to just drain him dry and lick his lips… how would he fare any better with a complete stranger? It didn't seem possible to him, and it scared him that he might kill someone… It scared him that killing someone was now as easy as drinking a flimsy, cardboard juice box. Everything about vampires scared him… It scared him down to his bones, and he felt so cold… so cold… even though he was wearing such a thick cloak… he felt a chilling fear that wouldn't go away, as if a thick, cold, dark fog had landed inside him and just wouldn't go away, and with each passing second the fog turned colder, thicker, darker, until he even started to shiver from the feeling… The fog crushed his ribs, making them tighter and tighter, and making him feel horrible and wanting to cough even more… but he resisted the temptation to cough up his lungs as he tried to bring some warmth back into his body by fidgeting. Why oh why oh why did he have to be a vampire? Why couldn't he have just never gotten bitten? Why couldn't he just have passed up that vampire in the woods and continued on his way to his home? Why couldn't he just live a normal life without fear of hurting anyone - including himself? Why? Why…?
And as Ryou was questioning why and feeling the cold, hard, fog bring him down, Marik was dealing with his own thoughts and worries.
Even though he said he wouldn't blame Ryou if he took his body back, he couldn't help but wish that he wouldn't… that he would stay inside the Ring… After all, it would be more convenient for him if Bakura was there physically to help him. He did need someone to help him in case he got into a tight spot, and Ryou made it pretty clear that he would just go home if he took over again. Not that he would have been useful in a fight (probably) but still, he needed someone to help him - not just someone to talk to him and cure his loneliness.
But… he couldn't help but feel guilty and… a little, wrong at these thoughts. I mean… you shouldn't lock someone up just because it'd better benefit you, that's just selfish! And he did not want to be selfish, oh no, he wants to be everything but that. Just like his sister and brother, just like his mother… But definitely not like his father - his father was probably the most selfish man alive.
He shouldn't ask Ryou to sacrifice so much, that's just… cruel… that might even be worse than death, Hell, he doesn't know, it seems like Ryou doesn't mind too much, but he was probably understating it - just a tad - for Marik's sake so that he wouldn't feel so horrible and mean. But… then again… Ryou did say he was thinking about staying inside because he doesn't want to kill anyone, even if it would be accidental… if he decided that, then it would be his decision and not Marik's, and he wouldn't have to be guilty… But… wasn't wishing that Ryou would make that choice selfish too? Gah… he's so confused right now…
Marik resisted the urge to cuss as he thought of the fact that this whole problem could be solved if Bakura had drank Pegasus' potion instead of giving it to Yugi… Then he and Ryou would be separated and he wouldn't have to be going through any of this guilt, and Ryou wouldn't have to be going through such a tough decision, because knowing Ryou, he's probably thinking of what's best for Marik (and mankind in general) before he thinks of what's best for himself…
He really is the exact opposite of Bakura, isn't he?
But Bakura must be a little selfless too… after all, if he was selfish, he wouldn't have given Yugi that potion, would he have? Speaking of which, why didn't he use it for himself? He had said that he thought that it wouldn't work… but was that the only reason? Or was there more? Did he, not want Ryou to have his own body for some reason? And if that's the case, why not? Marik thought hard, trying to figure this out. I mean, knowing Bakura, he would usually jump at the chance to have his own body, so why would he give it away like that? It didn't make any sense…
Of course, he didn't know that Bakura was kind of… jealous of Ryou. After all, this was Ryou's body and Ryou's looks - not his, even if he might have looked similar to this form long ago… And Ryou had so many good qualities: kindness, patience, a good-nature, calmness, general happiness… whereas Bakura was usually cruel, impatient, mean-natured, chaotic, and cynical. Honestly - though he hated to admit it -, given the choice between the two… he could see Marik… falling for Ryou more easily than Marik falling for him… and he hated it. He hated everything about that thought. He had a feeling (though he had never really thought it - he didn't want to process the feeling into an actual thought) that if Ryou acquired his own body that Marik would forget all about him and spend time with Ryou instead… that was why he had hated it when he found out that Marik and Ryou had talked for a while, he didn't want this horrible feeling to happen. So in a way, Bakura had been selfish when he had given Yugi the potion. Just not in an obvious way…
Suddenly, the calm of the plane was interrupted by a hoarse, rib-rattling cough coming from an angelic-looking vampire sitting next to a tan Egyptian ex-vampire slayer. The fog that had taken rest in Ryou had gotten too great, and he just had to cough. Marik jumped at the sickly sound and turned quickly to his vampire acquaintance. "Are you okay?" He asked worriedly. He had never heard such a bad cough in his life - not from a human and certainly not from a vampire.
At first, Ryou was hacking up too much painful phlegm to answer Marik properly, but he was eventually able to hack out a horrible, throaty-sounding, "No."
Marik was about to say something else when another waitress appeared. "Excuse me," she said nervously, "But is your friend okay?"
"He just has… uh…" Marik said, thinking quick, "He just… has asthma! Yeah… uh, he'll be fine in a bit… could you get us some water please?"
"Of course…" she said with a worried glance at Ryou, who was starting to cough up blood now. Luckily the waitress didn't notice the little drops of crimson.
"Dear god Ryou!" Marik said frantically, "This isn't normal! There must be something seriously wrong with you!"
"B-bu… wha?" he couldn't even say the entire word he was coughing too much. His chest ached something awful - each time he coughed he could imagine himself coming closer and closer to death. The fog weighed in even heavier, coming in torrents of searing pain that he desperately wished would end. But his wishes were in vain because another cough was always there - just around the corner, waiting… waiting… but the pain was the worst in his left arm… stinging, twisting, agonizing pain swirled around in his arm, making him wish it would just fall off.
Just as Ryou thought that, the lady came back with water and handed it to him, this time noticing the drops of blood. She let out a little squeal of surprise and asked hysterically, "Are you sure that's just asthma?"
"Yes," Marik said, somehow managing to sound calm, "he'll be fine - just leave him alone for a few minutes."
The waitress had absolutely no idea what to do, she had never had to deal with this sort of thing before - she had just gotten hired a week ago! If a passenger died under her care she would get fired for sure! "Are you sure sir?" she asked once again, "Because I'm sure we could find a doctor on board -"
"NO!" Marik practically yelled, "I mean, no," he said more in control, "no, he doesn't need a doctor - he just needs some rest…"
The waitress highly doubted his words though, because Ryou was looking worse with each passing second. "I'll… I'll find a doctor!" she announced, "Just stay here sir!" she took one step to go find a doctor - quick, when she suddenly stopped, and her eyes hazed over. Suddenly, she forgot what she was about to do, and walked calmly back to her quarters to go check on someone else. Huh, the plane seemed much quieter now for some reason…
Marik quickly put his Millennium Rod away before anyone could see it and turned back to Ryou. Dear god, he looked like a walking corpse he was so pale… blood was dripping from his mouth, and the coughs just getting worse and worse… Marik bit his lip, and had a hunch that he should check his mark again…
Marik felt frozen in place when he saw Ryou's mark.
It was black - completely black - and spreading. It went down in swirls across his arm, covering his appendage with the black death. It even went up his shoulder and, now that Marik looked closer, up to his neck, and who knows where else it had spread. Marik had only seen this type of thing once, and it wasn't good.
This only happened when a human's body was rejecting the change into a vampire.
Marik found himself having to take deep breaths to get his breathing back to normal again, but it seemed his breath just kept increasing with each bone-shattering cough Ryou let out. He was even wheezing now it was getting so bad. "Ryou," Marik managed to sound calm even with this new information, "Ryou, listen. Your body is rejecting the…" he was about to say "change," but that term didn't really fit since he was already a vampire, "… vampire inside you."
"Wh-wha?" Ryou managed to sound shocked through his death-bringing coughs, "B-bu… I've bee a hampire fur…"
Marik paused. Ryou was right, he had been a vampire for over a year now, his body shouldn't be rejecting the change… unless…!
I-it wasn't really Ryou who was the vampire - it was Bakura! Bakura had taken over when Ryou had gotten bitten, so Ryou had never undergone the change even though his body had!
Does… does personality have anything to do with your body rejecting the change? It must have… this was proof! … Wasn't it…?
Even though this didn't make much sense to Marik at the moment, he knew one thing - if Ryou wanted to live, he needed to go back inside the Ring - now. "Ryou," Marik said again, quietly, "Listen to me, you have to go back in the Ring, if you don't, you'll die. Do you understand?"
Ryou looked horrified, and his look was only amplified by how pale he was and with the blood leaking out of his mouth. Not to mention the pain that he felt amplified agony. "I'll, I'll…die?" he choked out right before another pool of blood escaped his mouth. This blood didn't even taste good - it tasted rotten, bad, rancid - nothing like Marik's blood had tasted earlier. It didn't taste sweet and lively, it tasted sour and deathly.
And painful.
"Yes!" Marik said, panicking now. By the looks of things, Ryou would die in a few minutes if he didn't leave soon…! "You need to go - now Ryou!"
He tried to say "okay," but his mouth was too full of the vile blood, so he just nodded and closed his eyes - trying to focus through the pain and bring himself into the Ring's sanctuary. It came easier than he had thought - it was as if the Ring called to him, inviting him to a place where he wouldn't feel any pain, where he could rest, build up his strength… and as he entered the place, he felt no more pain, just an overwhelming exhaustion that he quickly gave in to. He watched as darkness formed patterns in front of his eyes, before overwhelming him - enveloping him in a warm embrace that induced the idea of sleep even more…
The only way Marik knew that Ryou had went back in the Ring was because the pale, blood-covered body had stopped coughing and was now still - like he was sleeping.
Or dead.
For one, terrifying moment, Marik feared that Ryou had been too late and had died before he could reach the Ring, but he let out a sigh of relief when he saw Bakura's hand twitch slightly. He must have still been alive, he must have, Marik couldn't even imagine what would happen if Bakura woke up and found that Ryou had somehow… disappeared…
Speaking of which, he better clean Bakura up before he woke up - he'd certainly want to know where all this blood had come from…
After Marik had cleaned Bakura up as best as he could, the realization of just how tired he really was settled in and made him let out a huge yawn. His eyes slipped closed and he shook himself slightly to stay awake, but then he thought - why was he staying awake for? Ryou was gone - Bakura was asleep, and he had a good amount of hours before they landed. He settled down into his chair comfortably, putting aside all the drama that had just happened and trying to leave his mind completely blank so that he could sleep, because he'll be damned if he didn't need sleep right now.
But it seemed that fate did not want him to go to sleep just yet, because just as dreamland was about to claim him, Bakura woke up. He stretched his arms out, and Marik's half-open eyes focused and snapped his mind away from the fuzziness of sleep and back to reality, even though the fuzziness came back with a vengeance.
Bakura looked over at Marik. "I had the strangest dream," Bakura said.
"Hm…" Marik said, trying not to sound annoyed, "Is that so? What was it about?"
"I dreamt that this horrible, blackness was spreading across me."
Marik froze. "R-really? That's odd…"
"Yeah, it started at my mark…" Bakura lifted his sleeves, and for a few seconds Marik feared that the blackness hadn't went away yet and that Bakura would question him about what had happened while he had been asleep, and he did not want to explain everything…
But, his mark was just fine - no black, just a little red. "Hm…" Bakura said suspiciously, "I could have sworn… ah well, evidently, I need to go hunting."
Marik nodded in agreement, and then closed his eyes again. But something kept ticking around in his head, and he resisted the urge to sigh. "You can…" he began, "bite me if you want."
Bakura raised an eyebrow skeptically, "Really?" he asked.
Marik nodded, "Why not?"
Bakura stared at him before shrugging. "I don't know. He leaned forward and bit down on Marik's neck - savoring each and every drop of the most delicious substance on Earth - if it had to be compared to anything, it couldn't - the taste was out of this world.
And for Marik… well, this was much more pleasurable than when Ryou had drank his blood, that was for sure.
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Ryou
… Well…
In the end, it wasn't really up to me whether or not I take back my life… The decision was made for me by my body - not consulting me or my feelings whatsoever…
Does this mean… that I'm weak? That's not much of a surprise I guess… I always knew I was weak, but… I'm so weak, that I can't even handle being a vampire? What does that mean for me in the future then? That I can never live again because I'll just die in a matter of hours? Probably no more than a day? Does this mean that now I'll be stuck in the ring for who-knows-how-long?
Does this mean… that I'm not meant to live anymore?
Maybe that's what's happening… Maybe I'm just not meant to live anymore - maybe I only existed so that Bakura could come alive and help Marik collect these cursed Millennium Items… Could that be my whole reason for existing? My whole purpose? If that's so… then what should I do now?
There it is, that same question again… only this time, I just can't live. If I do, I'll die…
Why is life so unfair?
I lived my life well and good, helping others, achieving my goals, going to school and getting a good job… I lived a good life, but… I don't think I lived it long enough. I'm only 21! (Well, I should be around 23... But I haven't been, you know, actually alive for about two years…) I'm still so young… there's so many things that I wanted to do.
Like fall in love.
I don't think Bakura realizes how lucky he is, to have Marik I mean… I wish I could have done that, meet someone nice, have fun with them, spend the rest of my life with them… No, Bakura doesn't see how lucky he is. Not at all…
But, I digress, in the end, it wasn't really my decision to "stay inside" as I'll call it. But… I probably would have ended up choosing this anyways…
So, in the end, was my body really the deciding factor? Or was it just one more reason to stay inside…
I think that's a question I'll be wondering forever and ever, though I'll never really ever know… will I?
For some reason, I felt that was the best place to end it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter because I actually re-read it. Usually I only re-read certain sections if I know I want to improve them, but this time I actually re-read the entire thing because I just wanted to make it perfect (but knowing me, there will still be mistakes -_- )
I would just like to thank everyone again for reading up to this point. I know the prologue was really lame and probably turned a lot of people away, so I thank all of you who stayed after the suck-ish prologue. I especially thank all of those who reviewed, they all helped me a lot… in fact, the idea that Ryou would not be able to live because of his body rejecting the change was inspired by Bec, so you should all thank him/her (I cannot for the life of me tell… I'm sorry TT_TT) Thank you so much Bec! Your reviews help me so much you have no idea…
Also - my birthday was on the 15th B) Guess how old I am! XD A birthday present from all of you could be to get me to 100 reviews XD Please…?
~~~{REVIEW REPLIES!}~~~ (NOTE: the length of the reply has to do with the length of the review… short review=short reply and long review=long reply. There aren't any other factors… ^_^")
Vi: Haha, for some reason, I'm happy that I made you almost die from laughter XD I think that I'm the least-funny person in the world, so when I hear a comment like that I'm happy ^^ Thanks! And did you enjoy Ryou? XD Thanks for reading and reviewing! (If my previous statements didn't drill that into your brain already XD)
Bakura Lover: When I first started that chapter, I was wondering that too: how I would transition the fact that Bakura is a cat. But then it came to me while I was writing XD That happens a lot… Thanks a bunch for reviewing! =)
Bec: Ha, yes, the last chapter was long… But so is this one XD And I would like to thank you (again) for asking that previous question about Ryou! That helped a lot here, because if you hadn't asked me about that, it would have seemed like Ryou was just sacrificing waaaay too much for it to be realistic, so I thank you kindly! =) I also agree with you on Isis, in the manga, it seemed like she was just… there… In the anime too actually. I didn't like how she didn't really have much of a role or personality whatsoever, so whenever I imagine her I imaginer her protective and loving towards her family. Also, I want her and Bakura to not get along yet XD Hee hee…
Lol, no, I put Rishid in the last chapter because I wanted Bakura to feel like he had some support. I imagine Rishid much more accepting, considering with how much he put up with in the original anime and all… and it's obvious he loves his brother, so he'd be willing to do anything for him. I can't see Marik or Bakura using them either (except in Bakura's case when he refers to himself as "ore-sama") but I generally like them just 'cause they're fun to say… Especially if you're trying to call someone a name, you can just add an unusual or inappropriate honorific for the situation and bam, automatic insult. And I some mangas the characters get so mad! It's pretty funny XD But yeah, Marik's Egyptian so he doesn't use them (I don't think he used them in the Japanese version either actually… don't quote me on that) and Bakura's just… Bakura… XD
I was unsure whether or not first-person views would have worked well either, because you're right - you can only tell form one characters POV, and I usually hate that because I'm like, "Well… what is the other guy thinking?" but I wanted to try something new, and it seemed like this would work the best in some cases (of course there's a down-side to every POV…). I'm glad I made you forget the format changed at all though ^^ That's good… I try to make this as close to an actually book as possible, and in this one book when it changed from different character's POV's they just put there name inside a circle in front of the area of the person's side, so I thought, "Hey, I could do that!" only I can't circle it…
Yes, Marik's horrible childhood came to me while I was writing about the torture-instrument-filled basement, and at first I'm like, "This is so sad!" but I sucked it up because I need to be able to write sad things to make the story more real… I tend to cry if I feel something is sad, but lately I haven't cried much. If I was a little younger, I probably would have cried, but as it is, I think I'm done with that now… I would hate it if the story ended with Bakura having to die to save Marik, or vice versa. That's just… no! I mean… it's like… how would either of them move on? Ever? And I had a good spring break - currently I have a four-day weekend because of Easter =) so that's good for me.
Thank you very much for your review! I always love your reviews - love them.
Bakura's deep brown eyes: Ooooh, they're random letters! Lol, okay XD And of course I still write! I would not give up this story… not 27 chapters in! Oh no! I will try to update quicker - but my teachers just love to pile on the homework, it's like they all thought: "Hey! The year's almost over, so let's overload the kids with homework!" -_-" Thanks for reviewing! =)
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Why the start point was there in the story:
*"Come on… What do I have to do?"
Marik closed his eyes and silently pleaded: Please don't bring up the usual threat. Please don't bring up the usual threat. Please don't bring up the usual threat.
Bakura was just about to say, "Tell me or I'll kiss you," because that always seemed to work, when something in his brain clicked. Kiss you…
Could he be blushing at the memory of me kissing him?
Bakura found his mouth turn up into a blinding smile. Thank goodness the cloak's hood covered most of it. He leaned back in his chair, feeling that they were up in the air by now. "Never mind," he said triumphantly, "I think I figured it out."
Marik looked at his friend with wide eyes, "Y-you do?"
Bakura chuckled, finding himself unable to wipe the smile off of his face. "I think I do… yes…"
If it was possible, Marik's face went ever redder with embarrassment and, for some reason, guilt. He buried his face into his hands and groaned. He started mumbling about something or other, to which Bakura could only catch bits and pieces of, even with his advanced vampire hearing. "What's that Marik?" Bakura asked, clearly enjoying himself while cupping a hand around his ear, "I didn't quite catch that."
(A/N: In the end, I decided that I didn't want Bakura to know… XD I'm so evil. Also: I apologize for such large author notes… ^_^" )