Merry Christmas, everyone ^^
Chapter 37: Slowly Working It Out
Suzette blinked at both of them before frowning. "You know Seto? How?"
"We're, uh…" Marik tried to explain, still staring in disbelief at the man whom they had only recently met. He had honestly never pictured him as having a girlfriend… Though, if he thought about it, perhaps he and Suzette were perfect together. They certainly had the same attitude, didn't they?
"We've only just met," Bakura came to Marik's rescue. "We were introduced by someone else."
"Ah, that makes sense," Fantine said with a nod. "If I remember correctly, he does not have many friends."
"When you're as important as he is, you have no time for friends," Suzette said almost defensively, putting her hands on her hips.
Bakura and Marik glanced at each other, both thinking how foolish that sounded. Marik had always recognized the importance of friends, even if he didn't have many, and Bakura was fairly new to the concept, but understood why someone would need human interaction.
And, let's face it, when a vampire hunter and a vampire who spent most of their time alone agreed that people needed friends, ya'll need friends.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Suzette snapped, looking over at Marik. "Get over here and act like my date!"
Marik rolled his eyes, feeling completely fed up with his "date" by this point. "And how, pray tell, do I do that?!"
"Put your arm around me!"
Marik looked physically ill at the suggestion. "I'd rather stick my arm in a piranha infested tank than put it around you!"
Both Fantine and Bakura burst into laughter at his words, but Suzette did not look as amused as she glared at Marik and skated over to forcibly grab his hand anyway. "A deal's a deal," she said as she glided off with him. "Now smile and laugh!"
"Why don't you try being pleasant, first?"
"Laugh!"
Marik rolled his eyes before plastering a smile on his face and laughing extremely forcibly.
Suzette just glared at him again. "We must work on your acting skills."
"And you need to work on your personality skills."
Fantine rolled her eyes as the "happy couple" continued to bicker. "Can you believe her?" she asked, turning to look at Bakura. "I knew I should have tried harder to convince her to call this thing off!"
"That might have been best for everyone," Bakura agreed, chuckling. He was probably feeling happier than he should have when Marik had reacted so negatively at the thought of even touching Suzette, but it was just too funny! And why did Bakura have the sneaky suspicion that sticking his hand into a tank full of piranhas was actually something he had done before?
"Well, anyway," Fantine spoke up, smiling at Bakura. "Shall we go rest for a bit? While those two get their act together." She gestured over to the two, who were visibly and almost audibly still fighting and definitely not looking like two people on a date. More like two bitter, sworn enemies that had just happened to find themselves in the same room.
Was it wrong of Bakura to laugh again? This one slightly more malicious than the last?
"Yeah, sounds good," Bakura soon agreed, smiling and taking her hand to be led over to one of the small snack tables.
"Would you like anything? A drink?" Fantine asked, smiling at him as they sat down.
"Mm, no, I'm not hungry," Bakur shrugged and simply leaned back into his chair. He was incredibly glad to be off of that death trap called an ice rink - he hadn't fallen yet, but he had gotten close a few times…
Fantine chuckled and leaned on the table. "All right." She glanced over at the rink, to her friend and Marik. It seemed they had come to some sort of agreement, as they were now skating hand in hand. They almost looked like they were dancing, actually, as Marik twirled Suzette around and then moved back into nice, even glides. "They look good. Now, anyway," she commented, looking over at Bakura and chuckling. "Actually happy, oui?"
"Yeah…" Was it just her, or did Bakura not seem that pleased about that fact? "Do you think the plan will work?" he had to ask, frowning a little. "Kaiba knows who we are, surely it would look suspicious if Marik hadn't mentioned a girlfriend before."
Fantine shrugged. "Suzette might just make it seem like a date, not that Már-reek is her boyfriend."
"That would be better," Bakura agreed offhandedly, still staring at the rink. Fantine followed his gaze, and felt almost certain that he was only looking at Marik, and not Suzette along with him. Sighing, she glanced back at him and noticed how focused he seemed; his eyebrows creased slightly and a small frown on his face, obviously not liking the situation (even though he knew they were not actually dating). Either he simply cared for his friend a lot, and didn't want him to go through something unpleasant, or… There was something stronger there. In fact, she was almost certain there was something stronger there; his feelings screamed silently in all of his actions and reactions towards his friend - if that's what he even was. He was happier with him, he was comfortable with him; he was simply better with him. It was so obvious: he had love for this friend of his… very strong love.
She chewed at her lip. Her only mission for the day had been to capture this pale man's heart and maybe take him home with her, but… if his heart was already captured, should she really complete her mission? Could she live with herself if she separated such a strong affection? Would it even be possible for her to? She knew what it was like to be in love, once… The aching in her own heart when she even passingly thought about it was proof of that.
"Bakúra," she announced, effectively earning his attention. "Do you like me?"
Bakura seemed taken back by the question. "Um, I guess? You're nice, which is a relief. I don't think I could handle being in Marik's shoes."
"Ah," she decided to get right to the point as she gave a little grin. "You'd much rather be in Suzette's, oui?"
"... That's…" she watched him blush a little, which made him look like a painted doll with his porcelain skin tone. "Why would you say that?"
Fantine chuckled a little before saying, "The way you look at him, mainly…" She sighed sadly and leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling. "And here I thought I'd have a chance, at least." She really liked this one; he was funny, and kind, and seemed to be an honest person…
So that was why she had to let him go.
Bakura shifted in his seat and looked away. "... Sorry…"
"Why are you apologizing?!" Fantine asked with a laugh. "I may be a little disappointed, but it's not your fault. You love who you love!" She chewed at her bottom lip, trying not to show just how disappointed she was. She'd pay for her decision later - oh, how she'd pay - but, for now... She wouldn't have him worry about her unnecessarily. She could push her emotions out of her mind, because this boy was clearly already taken. If by no one else besides himself.
"... I guess…"
She saw Bakura blush more and look away, so, she continued curiously with a chuckle, "I am surprised that you two are even here; isn't it hard to see your boyfriend on a date with someone else?"
"... He's not exactly…" Bakura cleared his throat, still not looking at her. "We're not… a "couple" or anything."
"So," Fantine drawled, trying to piece it together and figure this out as she leaned over on the table. "It is just a crush for now."
"Pretty much."
"Does he feel the same way?"
"I, uh, don't know," Bakura seemed uncomfortable now, though he still murmured, "We have kissed a few times, and he seemed to like them, but -"
"Then he probably likes you, too," Fantine interrupted with a giggle and an amused eye roll. "That would explain why he doesn't seem to like me very much: jealousy."
Bakura seemed surprised for a second, but then a small, humorous grin appeared on his face. "You think he's… jealous?"
"Most definitely!" Fantine laughed and laid back in her chair, crossing her arms and smirking a little. "You couldn't tell?"
"I figured he was just in a bad mood from Suzette," Bakura replied, laughing with her. "What would he be jealous of?"
"Well," Fantine chuckled a little. "We have been acting very kind to one another, you know!"
Bakura seemed to think over the "date" so far, his expression changing from amusement, to curiosity, to understanding, to more amusement. Eventually, a sly grin stayed on his face and he shook his head. "Marik should really know me better by now."
Fantine chuckled and nodded in silent agreement, looking back at the rink and feeling her heart plummet, the icy coldness in the room finally seeping into her.
This had been an important mission…
Marik was getting very tired, very fast.
As if Suzette hadn't been bad enough to him before, she was at least three times worse now with her ex here. She would constantly snap at him not to look at Kaiba, while she turned her head to look at him whenever she pleased. Not to mention she would hit him whenever the corners of his "happily smiling" mouth dropped even a fraction of a centimeter.
He felt like he was being imprisoned again, only this time by an overbearing girl instead of his father.
The one thing that he could barely get any enjoyment out of was seeing someone as cold-hearted and angry as Kaiba doing something as calm and graceful as ice-skating. His form was perfect; his legs never missed their mark and his arms followed his body in smooth motions, but his face… The whole time, his expression displayed absolutely no emotion. It was as if he gained no enjoyment out of skating yet no displeasure, either, but despite that his expression wasn't calm like it should normally be. It was odd to get a glimpse of every now and again, and Marik could tell some of the smaller kids were scared of him, seeing as how they were avoiding him at all costs on the ice.
"Let's take a break," Suzette suggested, giving a small giggle as if she was suggesting something else. Marik returned her request with a nod and a smile, but inside he just couldn't believe how good of an actor she was. She actually looked happy and loving whenever he looked into her eyes, but her words never matched the "sweet" feelings.
They glided over to the exit, Suzette timing it so that they would pass by Kaiba as they did so. Marik would have commended her for such careful planning, if Kaiba hadn't just glided past them as if they were strangers. He felt like laughing when he saw how hard she was trying to not show how much that bothered her - that giant smile did not match that crazed eye-twitch at all!
"Having fun?" Marik decided to taunt quietly, grinning at her.
She turned to give him a sickly sweet smile. "Why wouldn't I be~?"
"Because he hasn't even looked at you this whole time~?" Marik answered, snickering and pinching her cheek as if he was a loving boyfriend who just wanted to be near her. "You should stop while you still have some dignity left."
"Do you want those Items or not~?"
That was enough to keep him quiet.
They sat down at a table near the rink, giving Marik a chance to survey the area and look for Bakura; see how he was doing. He wasn't spying, just looking. Though he'd be lying if he said he didn't frown when he saw him laughing with Fantine. Or that he didn't try to strain his ears to catch even one word of their conversation. Or that he didn't start tuning everything else out except for his friend and his "date."
"Már-reek," Suzette's commanding voice broke his concentration. He sighed and turned his attention to her. "We need to up our game."
"What do you mean?" And why did he already not like the sound of that?
"I mean," Suzette put on an admittedly beautiful smile and leaned forward, placing her hand on top of his on the table. "When he looks over here -"
"And there's no guarantee he will."
"- then you kiss me."
"... What?" Marik was so shocked he forgot about speaking French. "Um, no. That was not part of the deal." He tried to move his hand out from under hers, but she tightened her grip.
"The deal was," she began to reiterate, "that you help me make my ex jealous. This is a way to do that."
Marik simply stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to think. All he knew at the current moment was that one of the last things he wanted to do was kiss this woman, whom he did not like in the slightest. The very idea repulsed him, and he wasn't even surprised when his brain made the comparison to how he reacted toward kissing Suzette versus kissing Bakura.
Marik opened his mouth to refuse her yet again, and maybe even leave the date right there and just steal the Items from them later - Bakura said he was a thief before, after all. Should be pretty easy if he didn't run into any more squirrels. But then he started to think…
It was one kiss, and the easiest way to get what he wanted. They had gone this far with this frustrating, aggravating plan, and by damned if he'd give up because of such an easy request. It couldn't be worse than anything else he'd had to face in his lifetime, right? Just a kiss. Nothing more, nothing less – it definitely wouldn't mean anything. It's not like he'd have to tell Bakura about it anyway. Or Pegasus for that matter, now that he thought about it.
"Fine," Marik said after a long moment of silence. "Just tell me when he looks over."
When his breathing got a little heavy, Kaiba decided to step off the rink. He loved skating – it always cooled him down after an intense duel or business meeting. Just him and the ice, with no one to bother him and nothing else to do except enjoy the rare quiet of his mind. Besides, Mokuba loved the arcade here.
"How are you doing, Moki?" he asked his little brother, ruffling his hair from behind and looking at the game he was playing. He grinned a little – it was one of his company's new arcade games. You were a dark magician wizard fighting through various levels to save the last of the dragons, who had been captured by an evil man. It had a few more buttons than a normal arcade game, but not more than a console controller. He was glad Mokuba liked it.
"Great!" Mokuba answered, rapidly pushing at buttons and staring with wide, glossy eyes at the screen. "I made it to the last level and only died three times!"
"That's great." Kaiba chuckled. "When you're done I'll buy you some hot chocolate. Are you sure you don't want to skate?"
"Nah!" Mokuba spared a second to grin at him and quickly turned back to his game. "That's your thing, Seto!"
"Right." Kaiba spared a rare smile for him, though they weren't that rare for his brother. He was the only one he could really smile for, as well as the only one he wanted to call him by his first name. They had been through a lot together, after all – suffering through foster home after foster home until they were adopted by their current bastard of a father. The only good thing about that final adoption was that the man had educated them both at an advanced level, allowing Kaiba to gamble with their "father" and win the company from him when he was old enough.
That had been a very successful day.
"Yes!" Mokuba exclaimed, jumping up and pumping his fist down with a proud grin on his face. "Beat the bad guy!"
"Good job, Mokuba," Kaiba congratulated, smiling a little. "Let's go get that hot chocolate then."
"Yeah!"
They wound their way through the chairs, the air crisp and chill from the nearby rink, though the brothers didn't mind. It was a fun day, just as the older had promised the younger, and nothing could ruin it.
"Seto, isn't that your ex-girlfriend?"
… Well, almost nothing.
He looked over to where Mokuba was gesturing, and was unpleasantly surprised to find Suzette with some man. He looked familiar, actually...
"Hey! She's with that tan guy from the cottage!"
Marik? Ah, yes, that would be why he looked familiar. How did he know Suzette?
"Ew! They're kissing!"
… They were on a date?! But he thought he and Bakura had been a couple? No, he was absolutely sure of it, actually. With the way they acted, there was only a minimal chance that they weren't. Which meant there were two possible explanations: either he had been wrong about Marik and Bakura, which he highly doubted, or Suzette was trying an ill-conceived plot to make him jealous and get them back together. Seeing as how she was ice-skating for her date, he highly suspected the latter. Huh, he had to give Suzette credit – if he didn't know Marik was gay it might have actually worked. For the time being, however, he just found it pathetic.
"Ignore them, Mokuba," Kaiba told his brother, turning him away from the two and pushing him to the cafe. "They're of no concern to us."
"You're so clever, Bakúra!" Fantine complimented, her eyes wide with thought. "Such an imagination!" He had been telling her of a new story idea he had thought of. It was a little different from his pure horror books, though it still had plenty of that. The plot mainly consisted of a man traveling through the world on horseback, continuously running away from the manifested hatred that follows him around as a giant beast. At first, the man assumes the hatred is what other people feel of him, but eventually he discovers that it's actually the hatred he feels for himself.
"In the end," Bakura continued, leaning back in his chair. "He has to find out how to feel good about himself to get rid of the demon. It's sort of a metaphor for life, eh?"
"You should fit some romance in there!" Fantine suggested excitedly. "He should try to think that he'll only feel better about himself if he can find someone else to love him, first! Of course, it won't work until he himself finds reasons to love himself again, but love interest could help with that a little perhaps?!"
Bakura actually seemed to consider it for a minute. "I don't really think I can write that sort of thing…" he stated slowly. He had never really considered himself a "romantic" guy, though now that he thought about it… If some of his recent experiences with Marik could be considered as such, perhaps he wouldn't be too bad? "I suppose I could give it a shot? Though that might alter the story a lot."
"That is the fun of it, no?" Fantine smiled, opening her mouth to say something else when her eyes moved slightly to the left of Bakura's face and her smile dropped. "L-let's go back on the ice!" she said hurriedly.
Bakura creased his eyebrows together in confusion and started turning to look behind him.
"No!" Fantine reached across the table and grabbed his face, pulling it back forward. She offered a very sheepish smile and stuttered, "R-really! I want to skate more!"
Bakura felt a burning suspicious feeling in his stomach as he pushed her hands off of him and turned around to look.
… Ah, now he wished he had listened to Fantine.
Marik… and Suzette… were kissing. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. Right here, right now, in the ice-skating rink, with their lips…
Bakura felt angry, bitter feelings form in his stomach, quickly rippling out to every inch of his skin as he let out a feral growl. How dare that bitch kiss Marik…!
He stood up, about to run over there and break them apart, and possibly cause lasting pain to Suzette while he's at it, when Fantine gripped his arm tight enough to make him look at her.
"Calm down," she told him, her tone calm and reasonable. "And think for a moment." She pulled at Bakura's arm a little before continuing, "Már-reek has shown absolutely no interest in her all evening, and Suzette is only interested in Kaiba. Their kiss means nothing."
Bakura felt his eye twitch. He knew that, but it was still kind of upsetting to see someone you like kissing someone else. He was about to tell Fantine to piss off and mind her own damn business when he looked into her eyes. They were fierce, and determined, and portrayed that she was going to do everything in her power to stop him from whatever he was going to do. Which was laughable, to be quite honest - what could a normal human do against a vampire? Not that she knew what he was, but still. It was probably why he started laughing, albeit a bit louder and more psychotic than he had meant, but at least he was sitting down at the table again, much to Fantine's relief.
"I'm going to kill her." Huh, it had been awhile since he had used the "m" word… Marik probably wouldn't like that.
Fantine frowned a little and crossed her arms, giving him a very pointed look. "You don't have the right - you told me earlier that you and him are not official yet."
…
Why did Bakura feel as if he was talking to Pegasus, all of a sudden?
The only response Bakura could offer was another growl as he crossed his own arms and clenched his teeth. Damn it, she was right. He couldn't do anything about this because they weren't officially a "couple" yet. Hell, he shouldn't even be feeling like this anyway because it was exactly as she said - that meant nothing, and Bakura knew that! So why was he overreacting!? Marik was just doing all of this for his mission! It's not like he'd abandon Bakura for Suzette. He had nothing to worry about!
Yet, despite all of this knowledge and logic, his emotions didn't want to seem to listen to any of it as the picture of Marik and Suzette kissing continued to run through his mind, and making him increasingly irritated the more he thought about it.
Fantine noticed his feelings, just by the look on Bakura's face, and sighed a little. "Come on," she said, starting to stand up. "You look like you need to talk with Már-reek, so I'll distract Suzette and you take him somewhere else to chat."
Bakura stared at her in surprise for a second, but there was absolutely no way he was turning down her offer. "Right behind you."
"What the hell, Marik!?" Bakura asked him as soon as he shoved his "friend" into the bathroom.
"I could say the same to you!" Marik countered, pushing his hand off and glaring at him, confused and a bit angry. "You ran over to us like a madman and then carted me off without any explanation!"
"Yes, well…" Bakura seemed to grow quiet at that, instead just staring at Marik. "... I needed to talk with you about something."
"And you couldn't just tell me that?!"
"I was upset," Bakura answered simply, sighing and frowning a little.
Marik raised a brow at his friend. Well, he must be telling the truth - usually he wouldn't admit anything like that. "Upset over what?"
"I saw you kissing Suzette."
"..." For some strange reason, Marik's stomach twisted into a knot and he couldn't look at Bakura any more, opting for the gray tiled wall as his view instead. "What? She wanted to make Kaiba jealous, you know that."
"I didn't like it."
Marik glanced at Bakura, taking just a second to take in how serious he was being. This obviously wasn't a joke to him, not in the slightest - he really, really cared about him having kissed someone else... It made the knot in his stomach even tighter, and he had to take a quick breath to feel minimally better. "... I promise it won't happen again."
"Marik…" Bakura frowned at him and stepped just a little closer, his hands clenching into fists. "I know you're just avoiding the real issue here."
"I'm not avoiding anything!" Marik snapped, turning to give him a frustrated look. "I'm just…!" He could feel a headache coming on. Damn it, he didn't want to do this now! He didn't want to deal with all of this emotional crap when he still had to suffer through the rest of this "date!" Not to mention that he had been suppressing his own urge to take Bakura aside and tell him to stop being so close to Fantine…!
Why couldn't they just talk about the "real issue" later?!
"One thing at a time!" he yelled, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Is that so much to ask for!?"
He saw Bakura scowl slightly and open his mouth to say something else. Though he never got the chance to, as Marik interrupted with more heated words:
"What do you want me to say, Bakura!?" He clenched his fists, seething through his teeth. "That I hated kissing her? That it was the most revolting thing I've ever had to do in my awful life, and that the only way I was able to work through it was by imagining it was you? That I hated seeing you smiling and laughing with Fantine all afternoon? That I hated seeing her cling to you, hold your hand, and kiss your cheek? Huh!? Is that what the "real issue" is? You and me wanting to -!"
He was never able to finish his rant when someone else walked into the room. Both of their heads turned to look at the newcomer, and both sets of eyes widened as they immediately recognized the pale man as a vampire.
A very happy one, at that.
"Mon Dieu, so it is true!" he exclaimed upon seeing them, his already huge smile widening into something that looked almost painful to the two other boys; those freckles looked ready to pop off any second. One of his hands buried itself into his strikingly, bright red hair. "You two are in France…!"
Marik and Bakura shared a look, both realizing they really would have to put this little conversation on hold to deal with the bigger issue of who this guy was, and how they knew them.
"Um, yes," Marik was the first to respond, giving him a quizzical look. "Do we know you?"
The vampire just laughed and shook his head. "Non, non! But I am not important - you two on the other hand!" He jumped once in excitement and went over to shake both of their hands. "Are the most important people in the world!"
"... What?" Bakura asked, point-blank. It was obvious he wasn't in the best of moods from having his conversation interrupted, but he was also just as dumbfounded and curious as Marik. "Why do you think that?"
"Because you are Már-reek and Bakúra!" the man said, as if that was the only explanation needed. Luckily, he continued with, "Vampire hunter and vampire, working together to make the world a better place for us! You are famous in the vampire community!"
"... Did you say famous?" Marik asked, feeling the blood drain from his face. That was so not good. If they were famous enough that vampires from far off countries knew where they were, how much longer until his dad figured out where he was? Most vampires give away vital information after being blood-starved and blood-teased… His father could already be on his way!
"Oui! Famous! Could you please sign this?!" The vampire held up a small, crisp, blank piece of paper and an ink pen, not sensing the mood. "I can't wait to tell everyone I met you!"
"Don't!" Marik yelled at him, stepping forward and starting to panic. "You can't tell anyone we were here…!"
"Quoi? Why not, monsieur?" It was finally the vampire's turn to look confused. "People will want to know!"
"Exactly!" Marik yelled, feeling terror washing over him. No, no, no! This couldn't be happening, this had to be some sort of sick joke! They couldn't be famous, people couldn't know where they were, people couldn't know who they were…!
"Marik." The Egyptian turned his wide eyes to his friend, who looked worried for him more than the potential danger. "Take a deep breath."
"Don't you understand what this means, Bakura!?" Marik yelled at him, going into full-fledged panic mode. "People know who we are! People know where we are! How much longer until dad finds out?!" How much longer until his dad comes and forces him away from his mission? How much longer until he'll have to undergo the painful ritual and get that ridiculous promise carved into his back? How much longer until his best friend was killed?
Bakura clenched his teeth, thinking about Marik's words for a second before turning to the other man and taking his pen. He uncapped it and signed it quickly before handing it to Marik. "Just sign it so he'll leave and we can talk."
With shaking hands, Marik did as requested, and the vampire left right afterwards. He had sensed something was wrong, and he didn't want to get in the middle of it - which was probably the best decision he could have made at the moment.
"This is bad," Marik muttered, shaking his head slowly and staring into space. "This is bad. This is bad!"
"Marik, you need to relax," Bakura advised, placing his hands on Marik's shoulders and looking straight into his violet eyes. "If we were really that famous, we'd have been found already. That guy was probably just over exaggerating."
"But what if he wasn't?!" Marik asked, dread filling his stomach as he stared back. "What if my dad's coming to France right now, and he catches us by surprise, and, and kills you…!"
He didn't even realize he was crying until Bakura cupped his face gently, his thumbs wiping his tears away.
"We've faced worse," Bakura reminded him with a small smile. "He's one man. Do you really think he can take down a trained vampire hunter and a crazy vampire?"
"You're forgetting that he's the one who trained me and you're not so crazy anymore," Marik was quick to remind him right back. Though he did find himself relaxing into Bakura's hands… It felt nice, to be comforted like this. It reminded him of his mother, and how she'd come into his room after dad's lessons and rub his back comfortingly, trying her best to take the pain away.
"That's true," Bakura admitted with a small chuckle. "But we have something he doesn't have." Bakura's voice was so sure, so confident, that Marik felt a little bit better, even before hearing what exactly they had. "A mission worth fighting for."
Marik just stared at him for a second, enjoying the soft, slow way Bakura's thumbs moved across his cheeks, even without tears. To be honest, Bakura's argument wasn't that convincing. Marik knew his father, he knew how cunning he was, how patient. He knew how he could stake them out for days, waiting for the absolute perfect moment to strike… Then come in so swiftly that Marik wouldn't be able to stop him from taking yet another happy thing out of his life. His dad would increase watch on him, probably put him through "obedience" training again until Marik became nothing more than a dog. There would be no escaping a second time to complete the mission - this was it.
He felt like crying. He felt like screaming. He felt like crumpling to the floor in defeat and just giving up everything they had worked so hard for. He felt like pushing Bakura away and yelling at him to go home and just forget about him. He felt like burning a building to the ground in pure anger and frustration.
Instead, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly and focusing on the nice way Bakura was stroking his cheeks - the nice way he was trying to calm him down.
It would be all right. That's what Bakura believed. Because they were a great team, and they've already accomplished so much together. They've been through hell and back, together, and as long as one of them believed they could make it… Maybe, just maybe, they could.
Together.
Not to mention that they were going to get the last two Millennium Items after this horrid excuse for a "date."
"... I guess you're right."
"Of course I'm right."
Marik chuckled from how quick he replied, and Bakura returned it with a cocky grin. He leaned in to kiss his forehead before finally releasing his face. "Come on - we've kept the girls waiting long enough."
"Right." Marik's cheeks felt surprisingly bare without Bakura's hands, while his forehead felt hot where Bakura's lips had touched. He started to follow his friend out, but just before they walked through the door, he grabbed Bakura's hand to stop him. "... Thanks."
They stared into each other's eyes for the longest moment, and Marik was prepared for the quick, brief kiss Bakura gave to him this time.
"You're always welcome, Marik."
When Marik and Bakura came back to the rink, they had the pleasure of witnessing an amusing sight: Suzette and Kaiba talking.
"You are so pathetic," Kaiba told her, shaking his head. "We're over, Suzette. Move on!"
"But I learned Japanese for you!" Suzette argued, her face red with anger. She looked as if steam would come out her nose and ears at any moment.
"I never asked you to do that."
"I designed an entire wardrobe for you!"
"Again, I never asked you to do that."
"I was nothing but nice to you…!"
"Suzette," Kaiba interrupted, giving her an annoyed glare that completely froze her. "I don't like you, and we are never, ever, getting back together. Get used to the idea."
Kaiba skated off then, leaving Suzette standing there, gaping like a fish.
And, no, Marik and Bakura did not burst into quiet, uncontrollable giggles at the sight of justice being served cold.
"There you two are!" Fantine greeted, smiling as she walked over to them. "So, did you talk it out?"
"Barely," Bakura replied with a grin. He laughed when Marik rammed his elbow into the cheeky vampire's side.
"Oh, shut up."
Fantine laughed good-naturedly at them before sighing softly and gesturing to her friend. "As you can see, her plan failed…"
"Oh, I still think she has a chance," Bakura joked. He gave a warm smile when Marik laughed at his sarcasm.
"Funny," Fantine commented, rolling her eyes with a smile. "Anyway, you two held up your end of the bargain, so…" She reached into her pocket and took out a small, folded piece of paper. "Here is the location of where we hid the Millennium Items."
Marik snatched the paper immediately. "Does that mean we can go?" Bakura had to laugh - he just sounded completely too excited by the prospect of leaving.
Fantine seemed equally amused as she chuckled and nodded. "Oui, you may go. I hope you both live well!"
"I think we will," Bakura replied, smiling at Marik, who happily returned it. With the last two of the items in their possession, this was it. Their mission was complete. All that was left now was travelling to Egypt, finding the stone slab Pegasus talked about long ago, and they could make their wish.
It seemed as if things were finally looking up for the two.
"Let's go, Bakura!" Marik turned and started walking out of there, feeling on top of the world.
Bakura laughed a little and turned to Fantine to tell her one last thing before they left. "Hey, thanks for today."
Fantine waved her hand a little as if to shoo his apology away, chuckling. "Please, I did nothing. Just calmed you down from a little temper tantrum."
Bakura laughed and grinned at her. "I don't think you realize just how bad that could have been."
"Oh?" Fantine returned his grin. "Then it is a good thing I will never have to find out. Now go, get out of here!" She nudged him with her elbow and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at him. "Go make it "official~""
Bakura laughed and nudged her back, turning to leave. "You're a great friend, Fantine," he told her just before jogging off to join Marik.
Fantine smiled, happy from the compliment. She laughed when Marik pushed Bakura away for one reason or another, but, as soon as they walked through the exit… Her smile vanished, replaced by a worried frown. She couldn't help but feel that the future held nothing bright for her…
For the current moment, however, she smiled and turned around. "Suzette!" she called cheerily, walking over to where she was still standing, quite shocked. "Come along! Let us skate!"
"What is the point!?" Suzette asked, scowling at her. "It did not work! I should just go home!"
"Please, Suzette," Fantine begged softly, smiling and taking her hand. "Let's have a little bit of fun! Before tonight…"
Suzette froze, her head snapping towards her, her eyes roaming across her face with intense focus. There was something in Fantine's tone that made her think something was going to be quite wrong later…
"All right. Fine."
I am an idiot.
That was one of the thoughts running through Fantine's head as she walked with Suzette through the streets of Paris late at night. They were going to see their most recent "boss," and she was sure that he was going to be upset.
I should have just stuck with the mission.
As she had said earlier, Fantine acquired odd jobs here and there. However, her longest one is, by far, something she, and her friend, had been born into. They worked for the "Egyptian Underground," as she liked to call them. Basically, these people were like Marik in that they associated with vampires, but they were different in that they had a much different goal in mind regarding the creatures.
But he didn't tell me the whole story!
Her family didn't do that much for them. At least, that's how it seemed to Fantine, anyway. Just a few very, very odd jobs here and there, like gathering peculiar ingredients for a ritual or housing a few of their people occasionally. Fantine's specialty for the Underground, however, was people. And, more specifically, how to tear two people apart.
He said they were best friends… not in love.
Her art was useful, since she could cause fighting between a pair of vampires and split them up temporarily. That small lapse was all the Underground needed to "take care of them," whether that be by death, torture, or experimentation.
This time, however, her "boss" had wanted her and Suzette to break up two "best friends." She had hesitated, and with that hesitation she was promised more money than she knew what to do with, while Suzette was promised the return of her ex-boyfriend.
And she had failed.
Shadi will just have to live with it.
She couldn't break those two up. They had what she always wanted - to be ridiculously in love… To feel so strongly that their crush is their entire world, and that as long as they're happy, you're happy. To be able to smile just by looking at someone, to be able to talk and laugh so easily with another… she longed for it.
And now, she would pay for that longing.
They arrived at Shadi's hideout - a small, "abandoned" bakery that had fallen to the spiders and rats over time. She knew this wasn't going to end well - she just didn't know how bad it was going to be.
"Well." Fantine clenched her teeth as her boss' deep yet somehow boyish voice reached her ears through the inky darkness. "I applaud you for showing up."
"If we did not," she called out, her voice clear and strong for herself and her friend. "Then that would just make things worse, non?"
"Oh, smart girl." Shadi emerged from the shadows, dressed in his ever-present white robes and turban. "But, evidently, not smart enough."
"You told me they were friends," Fantine started to defend. "Not in love -"
"They shouldn't even be interacting at all," Shadi interrupted her swiftly, his demeanor much too calm for Fantine's liking. It sent a crawling, creepy feeling over her skin as he watched Shadi pace around them slowly. "Bakura should have been dead long ago. I don't understand why no one seems able to kill him."
"Why do you not let Fate handle this?" If there was one thing Fantine noticed, it was how much the Underground liked to talk about "Fate." "After all, if he is meant to be dead, then Fate will take care of it eventually."
Shadi did not say anything for a second. He didn't even answer her question, instead whipping a thin rope against her knees so she would bend down, biting her tongue so as to not cry out.
"Do not talk as if you know anything," he told her, going around to face both of them again. "You failed your job. And you," he looked at Suzette, who clenched her jaw upon being looked at. "You didn't even try."
Fantine had to smile at how confident her friend could be at a time like this when Suzette responded, as cocky as a rooster, "I told you that I was only in it for Kaiba from the beginning -"
"And I told you that I could have him kissing the very ground you walk on if you both succeeded."
Fantine bit at her lip, cringing slightly from how annoyed Shadi sounded. These Underground types were tricky - some killed you even after you did their dirty work for them, because you were a liability. Others would kill you because of your personality… But Fantine had pegged Shadi as neither kind. He seemed fairer than most, and yet now he sounded almost the same.
"And now you will pay the price."
Before Fantine could think anymore, Shadi had seized her by the neck and slammed her against the wall, blocking off her air supply and slowly choking her to death.
"Fantine!" Suzette screamed, stunned and appalled. She rushed forward, but was quickly stopped shen Shadi took out a small dagger.
"Don't move," he told her, his tone as calm as if he was telling someone there was a fly on the wall. He looked back at Fantine, who was trying her best not to make any sounds. She was not going to give this man the pleasure of hearing her choke or scream.
"For deliberate insubordination, your price shall be your life." He plunged the knife into Fantine's heart, twisting it painfully. Despite herself, she let out one, small gasp, before her eyes blacked out and she crumpled to the floor.
"And yours," she heard Shadi's voice through her pounding ears and Suzette's panicked screaming. "Shall be watching your friend die."
"You have got to be fucking kidding me!"
Marik sighed as Bakura yelled into the sky. He should have expected this, he really should have expected this…
"You can't be serious!"
"Well, I am!" Marik turned to Bakura with a frown. "They're not real."
Bakura stared at him, trying to process what he was telling him. Marik just sighed again and looked back at the "Millennium" Ankh and Scale.
They had followed the directions written on the card, full of excitement and giddiness. They were both so happy that they had even held hands the entire way, bumped against each other occasionally, and snuck a few brief kisses in between here and there.
And now, here they were. Standing in a dark, deserted, cobblestone alleyway, a in the design as they had moved aside some loose cobble to find their prize.
Fake Millennium Items.
"Are you sure -"
"I'm sure," Marik snapped, throwing the useless items on the floor and scowling when they dented. "Does gold dent that easily, Bakura?!"
The vampire opened his mouth to say something, but then quickly closed it and shook his head instead. "... No."
"Yeah. So, I'm sure."
Bakura took a long deep breath, letting it out in a slow, pitiful sigh as he stared down at the cobblestone. The only sound to be heard was the distant vroom of cars driving past, the only smell lost dreams and wet dirt.
Marik was the first to turn and start walking back. Bakura quickly followed, shaking his head. "Well, this sucks."
"We're back at square one, Bakura," Marik told him, frowning and feeling anger rising inside of him. "We have no clue where the other two Items are, and now we have my dad to worry about on top of that…!" He made a frustrated sound and held a hand up to his head, stopping to rub his eyes. "Not to mention we just wasted an entire day on this stupid date! This more than just sucks!"
Bakura was silent, not sure what to say at the moment. Marik was right - their hopes had been crushed like the stones in the ground. They had no other leads - for all they knew, the Ankh and the Scale could be all the way across the world. And if they did find a lead again, who's to say those wouldn't be fakes, too?
"... We'll figure it out," Bakua said, patting Marik on the back. "I know we will."
Marik didn't feel like being positive. "Don't be so cocky."
"Haven't you known me long enough by now to know that I'm always just that?"
… Evidently, Bakura ruined Marik's plans to be angry the rest of the afternoon as a small smile formed on his face. "I hate you."
"I hate you, too."
Marik rolled his eyes and took a breath, looking at Bakura for a good, long minute. "... Let's go home."
"I agree," Bakura nodded, but then stopped Marik when he started to walk away. "But first, I have something to tell you."
The mischievous tone of Bakura's voice along with his conniving smirk immediately put Marik on edge. "Yes…?"
Bakura's smirk widened. "You and I going on a date," he announced, sounding quite pleased with his declaration.
Marik felt heat reside in his cheeks, his eyes widening as he looked at his friend. He… he was dead serious. "... That's one hell of a way to ask someone on a date, you know," he replied quietly, using the same words Bakura had used just yesterday night.
"I learned from the best," Bakura replied easily, grinning and stepping closer to him. "So, what do you say?"
Marik let out a breath of laughter, looking away with a smile on his face. He couldn't believe Bakura was actually asking him… Well, he supposed he'd have to talk about the "real issue" with him sometime, after all.
"When would this alleged date be?" Marik asked, prolonging his answer as long as he could.
"Valentine's Day," Bakura replied smugly, crossing his arms.
"What time?"
"When we wake up."
"Where?"
"Wherever you and I want."
"What would we do?"
"Whatever we want."
"Who's going, again -?"
"For goodness' sakes, Marik!" Bakura interrupted, laughing and punching his shoulder playfully. "Just say yes or no!"
"Yes or no~"
"Marik!"
"What?" Marik laughed, turning away with a smile clear on his face. "Yes, okay? I say yes."
Bakura exhaled in relief, smiling lightly as he stared at Marik. For a second there, he had actually thought he would decline. Not that Bakura was going to take no for an answer, obviously, but if he had actually had the audacity to say "no," well… Okay, he hadn't actually planned that far ahead. But it wouldn't have been good.
"We have to get home now," Marik broke the comfortable silence that had settled over them, turning his back to Bakura. "So, come on."
"Just a minute." Bakura used his vampirically enhanced speed to go in front of Marik, wanting to surprise him with another kiss. However, Marik seemed to be expecting that and quickly dodged Bakura's attempt, only to kiss the vampire himself a second later - this one the longest of the day.
Bakura almost whined when Marik pulled back, smirking just as much as Bakura did earlier. "Minute's up~" he sang, grabbing Bakura's hand and leading him back to Pegasus' cottage. "This way, Kitty!"
Bakura groaned and shook his head, but didn't complain when Marik chuckled and intertwined their fingers.
Maybe things didn't completely suck after all.
AN: *cries because the number of times the word "kiss" appears in this chapter is ridiculous*
WELL! I hope you all liked this chapter :D I know I did XD They're finally going on a date, yay~ Oh, and what did you all think of the death scene? I think I need to get better at those XP
My favorite scene is when Bakura calms Marik down in the bathroom~ What's yours? :)
Also, I'd like to thank everyone who's ever reviewed, followed, or favorited. You all are the reason I'm still going with this, so don't ever think for a second that you don't make a difference, because I wouldn't be where I am today without all of you! You are awesome! You make the world a better place! And you can change lives :)
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays ^^
~~~{REVIEW REPLIES}~~~
Darkmalicesama: Hi! :D I like your username! And thanks so much for being patient - I really am sorry these take me so long, what with school and a social life in the way XP But, nonetheless, I am happy you go for quality over quantity ^^
Thank you for calling me modest, as that is what I try to be (I do not want a big head XP), and I thank you for the compliment ^^ It's nice to hear!
And, ah, I'm sorry that happened to you… That's such a horrible reason to break up :( *hugs you* Would you like to talk about it? I know it happened in March, but still ^^"
I would love to talk to you personally! ^^ If you have a FanFiction account, please, PM me, and if you don't, then talk to me on my tumblr (even through anon, at least I can respond quicker than waiting until I update to talk to you!). My tumblr is: annzy-bananzys-corner. tumblr. com (remove spaces). I really would like to talk, okay? :)
You keep going, too ^^ You're amazing and so nice, and don't let anyone tell you different!
Love, Annzy.
RegalAngel: *blushes* Aw, thanks ^^ You're awesome, too :3 I'm glad you loved last chapter! And thanks for pointing out that "Matthew" mistake XD I've been writing far too much hetalia lately XD
Khristy (on chapter 5): Ah, sorry, no XD It's something much more innocent than that! But I appreciate the guess :)
cameron fortner: I MADE MORE SO NOW YOU JUST HAVE TO WAIT FOR THEIR DATE SO PLEASE CALM DOWN! I'M SORRY I MADE YOU CRY, I HOPE YOU FEEL BETTER AFTER THIS!
IrkenIshtarGamer: I didn't stop writing it! ^^ I won't stop, it might just take me a while to write *smiles sheepishly* I'm glad you consider this a book though ^^ Thank you!
NameOfMe: I UPDATED~ ^^ I hope you like this chapter! And I'm sorry you had to wait so long, but thanks for understanding that I'm busy ^^ *hugs*
Guest: Aw, thanks for re-reading it! Whenever I try to do that I tend to just look at all the mistakes XDD I'm glad you like it that much though! :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter ^^
KibaWantanuki: Ah, well… Fantine won't have to bug you anymore~ XD *shot* Ah no, really, I hope you liked her in this chapter - I wanted to make her a semi-likable character XD But at least now you know what happens between Marik and Bakura~ Their official date's coming up soon~
AnonInc: Oh, thank you for re-reading it! *hugs you* I'm sorry I take so long to update, but at least it's nice when I do? ^^" Worth a shot. Anyway, they're slowly getting together, so that's exciting~