A/N: I need some opinions from the readers! I have the rest of this story mostly written up, but ended up writing a "spicy" scene. If I include it in the story, I'd have to change the rating from T to M, otherwise I would just do a "fade to black" type scenario. Let me know in a review or a PM whether you would like that type of scene included in the later chapters or not :) if I don't get any feedback on it, I'll probably just keep it out to avoid the change in rating!
III.
Anzu flinched, heard the scream, but her eyes were fixed on the wild eyes of Bakura. He was not the one screaming, she noticed, and there was only a determined, pinched look on his face before his body began to fall. Instinctively, she broke away from her friends. It was not Jounouchi or any of the others that stopped her, however, but Kaiba. He grabbed onto her arm as she made to hurry towards the platform.
"Leave him," he said in his flinty voice. "This is still a duel."
"He's still human, Kaiba," she snapped, jerking her arm from his grasp. "He deserves some compassion! He saved Ryou."
"Are you stupid?" he returned coldly, glaring at her. "He also put Ryou at risk or have you already forgotten?"
Nonetheless, Kaiba did not reach for her arm again and she hurried to the side of the platform. She hesitated too long, faltering as Yuugi's eyes settled on her – or rather, the darker spirit of the Sennen Puzzle, the pharaoh. Flushing under his stare, feeling his disapproval, she turned her gaze back to Bakura and was startled to find that he, too, was regarding her thoughtfully. There was a brief, guttural laugh that emitted from his lips and then he collapsed forward, his body smoking. The sickening sound of his body hitting the platform stirred her from her immobility and she pulled herself up onto the platform nimbly, darting towards his prone form.
Gently, she reached out to the figure, pulling him up to prop against her and felt the heat of the blast in his skin. His eyelids fluttered before closing and the full weight of him leaned against her. "Help me!" she yelled to her friends that were staring after her, stunned. Above them, the darkness of the shadow realm began to fade until it was only the night sky above the blimp that existed.
After Yuugi was announced as the winner due to incapacitation, Jounouchi hurried to his friend to check on him while Honda and Otogi assisted Anzu. Peering down into the face of their unconscious friend, she could see nothing in it that reminded her of the spirit. All she saw were the dark circles beneath Ryou's exhausted face, the pucker between his brow of pain, and the familiar soft angles of his features.
"Is he breathing?" Otogi asked anxiously.
"Yes," she answered, "but he needs to be in a bed with some ice. He feels feverish from that blast."
"Nurse Mazaki here to save the day," sneered Kaiba as they lifted Ryou from the platform. She shot him a nasty glance as the boys picked up Ryou and carried him to the doctor that had been called.
Anzu remained behind and realized that she was not alone. Malik was watching her from several feet away, regarding her with an icy stare. His face looked strained and she became aware that it was likely his scream that she had heard when Slifer had unleashed the attack on Bakura. With Bakura possibly dead and banished from the Sennen Ring, there was no one to protect her from Malik. He had used the fake Malik, Rishid, to cover for Bakura, stating that he had been controlling him the entire time. She doubted that had been a gesture of good will on Malik's part, suspecting that Bakura had extracting that excuse from him as a result of their association.
"Nicely done, Anzu," Malik said in his smooth accent as he approached her. He folded his arms, a slow smile forming on his lips. "Jumping up there to save your master like a good slave."
She gritted her teeth, summoned what little fighting energy she had left, and coldly told him, "He's not my master."
"Lover, master – whatever word you want to use," he dismissed, waving a hand. He smirked at her flushed face. "So, not so far from the truth, then."
She could not deny the description, thinking of how close she had been to giving herself entirely to Bakura. She had no confidence in herself in regards to him. While she was otherwise strong-willed when it came to men, having rejected more than her fair share of dates, there had been something about Bakura that broke that resolve. She flattered herself in acknowledging that he had seemed similarly affected.
But that had been before she had seen him shot down in the duel. She was not even sure he was alive anymore.
"What do you want, Malik?" she asked at last, refusing to engage in a personal discussion with him.
He smiled slyly at her, taking note of her avoidance. "You may not be aware, but he's not dead. Since I've been using the Rod, it's possible for both him and I to take residence in your mind. I doubt he'll need to coerce you since you're such a willing participant, but you need to get the Sennen Ring and keep it safe. He'll need it later to take control of his host again. You've been doing a good job of hiding your association with this from your friends. They'll trust you with the Ring."
Anzu was still processing his first sentence, startled at the flood of relief that had washed over her. Once her mind had caught up to the conversation, she frowned at him suspiciously. "Why are you trying to help him?"
"I might need him later. Don't worry," he added as if anticipating her next question, "I'll make it out that I've been controlling your mind to avoid suspicion."
She dearly wanted to hit Malik square in the face, but had a feeling that he had more than just a Sennen Item to protect himself. Instead, she merely nodded and made her way past him, not much caring to spare more words for him. He either saw too much into her actions or had been poking his way through her thoughts when he controlled her. Either way, it made her uncomfortably.
She felt his gaze on her back as she walked to the elevator and shivered uneasily. Once she was safe within the elevator taking her from the duel arena on the top of the blimp, she allowed herself to release a long breath.
Seeing Bakura getting hit during the duel had been alarming. She had not thought she would care if he lost the duel. The sight of his body smoking and falling, however, had struck something within her heart. She was not so dim-witted that she could not recognize the tenderness for what it was. He had protected Ryou up there and had been doing his best to keep Ryou out of harm's way even though he continued to use his host's body. She had hated him deeply when she saw him leaving Ryou bleeding up there, but after hearing that otherworldly scream, she knew that must have been Malik's plan and not his own.
Additionally, she had to recognize that he had done his best to protect her, as well. She might not trust his ultimate goal, but as far as their bargain went, he had remained faithful to it so far. His anger towards Malik upon finding out that she had been put in danger was something she could not address herself. She had mistaken kindness from the pharaoh to be more than it was – she had no intention of making the same mistake with Bakura.
"Yuugi," Anzu called out when she saw him standing outside Ryou's room. The pharaoh was holding the Sennen Ring, a frown on his face. He looked up when she approached and she smiled, waving a hand. "Here, I'll take that. I think it's best we keep it safe so that nobody else can get to it."
He glanced at it and then nodded. As he handed it to her, he quietly said, "He protected Ryou from dying there. Malik wanted me to attack him and kill them both. If the host dies, so too does the spirit within it."
Anzu felt a chill run down her spine and gripped the Sennen Ring a little harder. It was warm to the touch. So that's what you were planning, Malik.
"He and I are not so different, are we?" he mused aloud. "Bakura must feel as I do...lost in a fog, existing for thousands of years without ever finding peace. I cannot blame him for what he has done. If it were me and I had the opportunity to return to the past – to find peace again – would I go to the lengths that he has?"
"It's hard to say," Anzu answered, lowering her gaze to the Sennen Ring. "I was wondering, Yuugi...if he wanted to help, would you work with Bakura? He seems to know more about the powers of the Sennen Items and the tablet. Maybe it would be worth a shot?"
He was silent for a long time, inspecting the palm of his hand as though he could see the answer in the lines there. "Yes...," he said slowly, "I think I would. I wonder...who is he, really?"
The question was rhetorical and he seemed to drawn inward, far into his thoughts and away from Anzu. She, too, was lost in thought, looking at the smooth gold of the Sennen Ring. Somewhere in this tiny item was that spirit and it seemed hard to conceptualize that an entire person could exist in such a thing. Her heart gave a tiny pang of remorse as she realized, just like with the pharaoh, Bakura would also be gone one day. Neither of them could exist in this world.
Unwilling to look too closely into her developing feelings, she smiled and said, "I'm going to go inside and keep an eye on Ryou. Maybe he could use the company and will wake up."
"I'll leave you to it," he said and then paused, eyeing her thoughtfully. "Actually, Anzu – I've been meaning to ask you something."
"What's up?"
His eyes slid down to the Ring in her hand. "You and Ryou have been close, even in Duelist Kingdom. Have you ever spoken to Bakura or has he ever shown himself to you?"
Her heartbeat quickened and for a brief moment, the lie was on her tongue. Facing him, however, she did not have the strength to lie to him. Even if her heart was turning elsewhere, there was still the nostalgic feelings of warmth for the pharaoh. She would never admit to any of them that she had been engaging in more than friendly acts with Bakura, let alone admit to feeling warmly towards him. It was not so much shame as it was she expected the pharaoh to be disappointed or disapproving, like an overprotective father. In her mind, he was still something akin to a fairytale prince – perfect, yet delicately flawed.
Casually, she lifted her shoulders in a brief shrug. "Sometimes. He's not really that bad – when he's not being controlled by Malik, that is."
He appeared thoughtful as he nodded, acknowledging her reply. "Thank you, Anzu." Without another word, he turned and left her watching him. Something in the simplicity of his words made it appear as if there had been more questions he had regarding her interaction with Bakura that he did not want to voice quite yet. She was thankful for that, as she was not sure she could give him the answers.
Dismissing it for the time being, she entered Ryou's room and shut the door behind her. Ryou was lying prone on the bed, his brow puckered. Pulling a chair to the bed, she settled next to him and released a small sigh, twisting her mouth as she looked to the Sennen Ring. She heard the next duel being announced on the intercom and knew that everyone would be heading up to the duel arena.
Carefully, she set the Sennen Ring atop Ryou's chest and then leaned her elbow against the bed, resting her cheek against the palm of her hand. She did not know if this was what was needed for him to wake up, but she was willing to wait.
She did not have to wait long until he stirred. Bakura's eyes snapped open and he turned his head to settle his gaze on her. She stared back at him, not moving from her relaxed pose.
"I thought you died, you know," she said by means of greeting.
"They cannot kill me," Bakura stated plainly, rising slightly in bed, grasping the Sennen Ring. "I've ensured that as long as the pharaoh lives, my spirit will, too. I will revive every time." He chuckled and there was an edge of bitterness to it. "You can never destroy the darkness."
Anzu chose not to respond to this. His comment seemed to be more for himself than her. Instead, she asked, "What now? You're out of the tournament."
"For now, I'll be biding my time to see what happens. If Yuugi wins the tournament, he will likely take the Sennen Rod and the god cards."
"What about Malik?"
He made a disgusted sound, waving a hand. "He argued with me the whole damn duel and would rather cheat to win. If that's how he chooses to duel, that's his business – I have my own ways I like to win."
"Bakura..." She hesitated as he cast her a sharp look. "I think he meant for you to die in that duel."
"Unlucky for him, he won't be able manage that. He'll learn that soon enough." He paused, eyeing her, and then leaned down, tipping her chin up. "Keep that in mind next time you go charging into a shadow duel."
She stared back at him and for a brief moment, she considered leaning into him. She feared rejection, though, and instead pulled away from his touch, resting back into the chair. She wished she was able to sort out her feelings for him, but like it had been with the pharaoh and Yuugi, it was murky. There was certainly more basis there than there had ever been with the pharaoh and while she had finally determined her crush on Yuugi had not been reciprocating his own feelings and was directed more towards the pharaoh, it had taken a long time to reach that understanding. With Bakura, she had spent less time with him and yet seemed to have gotten further with him than any other man she had been interested in.
And this, of course, brought her to the next convoluted part of the entire mess.
Outside of the boys she had gone on lunches or to cafes with in primary school, her deeper attraction to men had almost always been directed towards ancient spirits in chunks of gold. The others that she had gone on dates with had never made her feel like a damsel in distress like the pharaoh and she certainly had never felt anything quite like what she did with Bakura – whatever it was that she did feel, anyway. She had still not yet come to a decision on that account.
"Since it's up to Yuugi now, then I guess you don't need me anymore," she spoke at last.
"Our agreement was until the Sennen Items were collected. Even after the Ishtar's Items are won, we're still missing two others."
She hesitated, averting her gaze. Once the Sennen Tauk and Rod were obtained, between him and Yuugi they would have five of the seven Sennen Items. The last time she had seen the other two Items had been in the Domino Museum shortly after she had started high school and Yuugi had finished the Sennen Puzzle. She recalled the dead, cold eyes of the man named Shadii and wondered how, exactly, Bakura planned to access him.
"You know something," Bakura's voice cut into her reverie, forcing her to look back at him. His eyes had narrowed into warning slits.
"I guess you weren't there, were you?" she mused aloud, ignoring momentarily the suspicion lying in his features. "It was a long time ago – shortly after Yuugi pieced the Puzzle together. We went to this museum exhibition where one of Yuugi's grandpa's old archaeologist friends worked. Anyway, this man showed up and..." She trailed off, frowning to herself. "I don't remember much, actually. He used one of the Sennen Items to control my mind and I was standing at the edge of a plank on the top of the museum."
Bakura snorted derisively. "How many times do you get your mind controlled, girl?"
She shot him an irritated glare. "It's not my fault that's the go-to power for people with one of these things!"
This comment seemed to amuse him as a smirk briefly lit his features before fading again. "Who is he?"
"He said his name is Shadii, but I don't think he's here anymore. I think he went back to Egypt."
"Better for me that he did," Bakura remarked, unbothered. "The closer he is to the tablet, the easier the Items will be to obtain. Until then – " He abruptly sat up and leaned over the bed and with deft fingers, pulled her halfway across the bed so that they were nearly nose-to-nose. "You're going to be here helping me," he finished.
And just what is that going to entail? she inwardly asked him, frowning at him.
She pulled herself away, rising to her feet and he obligingly released her, satisfied he had made his point.
As she made her way to the door, she felt her heartbeat quicken as a thought crossed her mind. Feeling the warmth collect in her cheeks, she lightly told him, "You said next time there wouldn't be any interruptions – are you planning to keep that promise?"
She heard him laugh softly. "That," he replied, "is one promise I can keep. I'm a man of my word after all, Anzu."
She felt the shiver travel down her spine upon hearing her name roll off his tongue, but only nodded. She did not turn around, aware of how hot her face had gone and only after she had stepped out of his room and was some feet down the corridor did she allow herself to release a shaky breath.
It took all her will not to turn back around and return to his room.
The sound of a voice startled her awake. Jerking up in her sleep, Anzu blinked blearily. Tomorrow they were set to arrive at the destination Kaiba had set up for the Battle City finals. Jounouchi, Yuugi, Kaiba, and the sadistic dark side of Malik, Marik, would all be competing against each other. While Anzu had no love for Malik, she had been a good deal more careful about locking her door now that she had seen what Marik was capable of when he got an idea in his head.
Looking around the room, Anzu half-expected to find the deranged man lurking somewhere in her room. There was no crouching figure or gleam of the Sennen Eye, though; she was quite alone.
And then, she heard the whisper of the voice, but it was in her mind. Wake up, stupid girl, the voice hissed and she cringed into the bed, unsettled by the sound of an inner voice. She assumed this was how Yuugi felt when the pharaoh was talking with him. After a few seconds where she oriented herself and shook off sleep, she recognized it as Malik's sleek, Egyptian accent.
What are you doing in my head? she thought silently. Get out, Malik!
I don't have time for your nonsense, he snapped back at her. If you want to help your lover, I'd recommend you get up to the duel arena.
Anzu felt her stomach clench slightly. Her lover? At first, her mind went to Yuugi, but then she remembered she was talking to Malik and the only person he would be referring to would be Bakura.
Feeling her way in the dark, she hastily dressed herself and shoved her feet in her shoes before rushing out of her room, heading in the direction of the elevator. After the elevator had taken her up to the duel arena, she peered into the thick, violet fog and considered returning to her room. It was clear to her that someone was engaging in a shadow game. Bakura had not appreciated her putting herself at risk last time and she doubted he would thank her for getting involved again.
What are you waiting for? Malik's voice spat in her mind.
What am I supposed to do? she retorted. I don't have a Sennen Item and I'm not a duelist – I can't help Bakura. He's just going to get mad that I tried to interfere.
Let me put it this way, Malik said in a cold tone. Either get your ass over here to give yourself a chance at getting out alive or die as soon as my other half finds you!
Flinching at the near-scream his voice had risen towards, she reluctantly stepped into the fog and while it took her several minutes, she eventually found her way to the duel arena. Even with the flash of lights and glow of the creatures on the platform, everything seemed to be swathed in shadows. Her eyes found Bakura in the gloom and, strangely, Malik was standing beside him, though he seemed blurred around the edges.
"Bakura!" she called out and involuntarily recoiled as Marik's heavy-lidded eyes landed on her. In an attempt to smother her fear, she asked him, "What are you looking at?"
"A foolish woman," Marik replied, his mouth stretching into an unpleasant grin.
Sending him a disgusted glance, she stepped away from him so she was closer to Bakura's side of the platform. As she expected, he was not happy to see her. Grimly, she debated on whether she should wait for him to start yelling at her. Instead, he had rounded on Malik.
"This is your doing." There was a note of accusation in Bakura's voice.
"She will be helpful," was Malik's mild reply.
"I don't remember giving you permission to use her, Malik," Bakura snarled at him. "I already told you my sentiments regarding that last time. Clearly you've forgotten."
"Don't be an idiot. We don't have the luxury of holding onto romantic notions of the male ego. I asked her to come and she came. Let her make her own decisions."
Bakura seemed to seethe on the spot, gripping his cards a good deal harder than necessary. Anzu was afraid he planned to hurl the duel disk as hard as he could at Malik, though she doubted that would do much as he appeared to be somewhat transparent. While she shared Bakura's opinion on being involved in a shadow game, it seemed that Malik had some plans for her and recalled his remark about them having a residence in her mind. Observing each of the men's life points, she wondered if Malik expected them to lose the duel.
"How touching," Marik said sarcastically, smirking. "Always nice to see where your enemy's weakness are." His eyes slid back to Anzu and even as she stiffened, she saw Bakura tense in rage, his jaw tightening in annoyance. He was on edge more than usual. "Though I thought this one was the pharaoh's. Interesting find, Malik."
"Nobody asked for your opinion," Malik told him, "so keep it to yourself." Turning to Bakura, he hissed, "Get a hold of yourself. It's our turn."
Anxiously, Anzu watched Bakura scowl down at his cards, but he did not seem as if he were concentrating on any duel strategy. Even from her vantage point, she could see the tension in his body. There was a tick in his jaw and his forearm kept spasming, as if he were trying not to throw a punch at someone. Why he was so enraged, though, she could not say. Looking more closely, she also saw that part of his body was missing. He looked like an unfinished painting or a drawing that someone had partially erased. Alarmed, she swung her gaze over to Marik. He, too, appeared similarly smudged.
What's going on? she thought, noticing that Malik was entirely intact. This must be part of the shadow duel. Whoever loses is going to be eaten up by the shadows!
"Bakura," she called up to him again and leaned up to the platform, pressing her hands against it. She saw his mouth compress into a thin line before he looked to her. She hesitated, aware that she had never had to motivate him for anything. Spurring her friends into action was easy, as they often just needed a little extra support and some kind words. She had no idea what to say to Bakura, spirit of the Sennen Ring and ancient tomb robber. She eventually settled for simplicity rather than motivation. "I'm okay with this. Don't worry about me – you need to focus on the duel."
He barked out a brief, course laugh. "Malik has done a good job of brainwashing you."
Insulted, she glared up at him. "I'm not brainwashed!" she angrily said. "You told me to help you and that's what I'm trying to do! Stop being an ass about it!"
There was a brief pause as Bakura contemplated her from the platform, a speculative gaze on his face. After a few moments, a slow smirk curled his lips and he chuckled, turning away.
"Fine," he said at last, "since you're insisting."
Relieved, Anzu backed away from the platform as he played a card on his duel disk. Malik was looking at her from behind Bakura and she was not entirely comfortable with his curious gaze. Thankfully, Marik took his and Bakura's attention from her with the duel. He did not seem overly concerned with Anzu's presence.
She had seen Bakura duel and knew that, while he was a skilled duelist, he was sometimes more impatient than other duelists. Like Ryou, he seemed to do far better at tabletop games than card games. She was unsure if this was something he had adopted from Ryou or if it was a past skill that he had brought into the present. Either way, his lack of patience often resulted in him making rash decisions while playing and it must have been something that Malik had also picked up on.
She knew when Bakura and Malik were going to lose and braced herself, anxiety unfurling in her belly. Marik was cackling like a madman on the other side of the platform and she tore her gaze from him to the other two men. Malik had a grim, determined look on his face while Bakura had taken on the air of a spectator, watching Marik with interest. He glanced down at Anzu, who met his gaze and nodded mutely. It's okay, she silently told him. Just this time, I'll let you use my mind. But never again. This is the last time I get used like this.
The blast of the Winged Dragon of Ra hit Anzu, even though she had backed away from the platform. She went skidding away from the platform and as she heard a scream that sounded so familiar to the one she had heard during Bakura's duel, something hard went pelting into her chest and she coughed weakly, grasping at her chest. Blood had drawn where the sharp pendants of the Sennen Ring had hit her in the throat. It was glowing softly in her hand. She could still hear Marik laughing maniacally to himself.
No time, a voice sharply said in her head. She winced at the harshness of Bakura's voice. Take the Ring and give it back to Ryou.
That wasn't your body? she asked as she swayed to her feet and stumbled towards the elevator. She violently jabbed at the elevator buttons, breathing hard. Her head felt heavy and she wondered dimly if having too many spirits within one's physical body could cause such heaviness. The question was inane and a hysterical giggle bubbled up from her lips as the elevator slid down back to the main floor.
No, Bakura answered her, cutting into her giggles. If Ryou dies, I have no physical host to return to. And before you ask, Marik isn't concerned with him. As far as he knows, he killed me and Malik in that duel.
Enough explaining, Malik's tense voice said. There's something else we need to do. Go to my sister – get Isis and move Rishid out of his room. If Marik kills him, I'll never get my body back and the pharaoh will lose this tournament and the god cards.
Anzu bit back the sarcastic retort she had for him, instead hurrying as fast as she could with her weak legs to Isis's room. The door slid open easily and to her surprise, Isis was sitting up in bed, cradling her head. The older female started at hearing the door and then froze when she saw Anzu standing in the doorway. She was sure she looked like a nightmare – disheveled and barely dressed, bleeding and clutching onto the Sennen Ring.
"Quick," Anzu said and her voice sounded hoarse. She had cried out instinctively when she had gotten thrown away from the platform, but had not thought she had done so very loud. She supposed the sound would work to her advantage and make it appear as if Malik were controlling her rather than her approaching her of her own volition. "We need to save Rishid."
Isis moved fast and even though Rishid was a large man, the two females were able to move him into Isis's bedroom and get him settled. With Malik in her head instructing her on how to talk to his sister, Anzu looked no more suspicious than anyone else had when they were controlled by him.
Once he was safe in the room, Anzu slipped away while Isis was leaning over Rishid, eager to get back to her own room. The blood had dried where the pendants had cut her up and she was feeling beaten and bruised from the aftershock of the blast. Before she could go to her own, though, she had to return the Sennen Ring.
Stumbling into Ryou's room, she made her way to the bed and collapsed at the side of it. She remained propped against the bed, her arm leaning against the side for a handful of minutes. She was exhausted and her body was shaking from the effort of trying to raise herself back to her feet. After being tossed around, running from a madman, and then heaving a human body across the blimp, she supposed it was natural for her body to be low of energy.
Carefully, she pulled the Sennen Ring from around her neck where she had hung it during transporting Rishid and slid it beneath the covers to rest on Ryou's chest. After covering it, she slid down, her back leaning against the bed. Even though it was dim in the room, there still seemed to be more light than when she had been at the duel arena. Looking down at her legs, she gasped to herself upon seeing the ugly bruises that were beginning to form around her knees and thighs. Raising her arms, she saw that some yellowing bruises had begun to form on her forearms, as well.
Hearing a sound behind her, her head whipped around to find Bakura sitting up in bed next to her, the Sennen Ring in one hand. His eyes, however, were trained on the bruises on her legs. She expected him to say something insulting, but he surprised her by his silence. Whatever was on his mind he was not planning to share.
Bracing a hand against the bed, she slowly managed to get to her feet again. As she did, a wave of dizziness passed over her and the room went briefly black. She felt Bakura's hands on her shoulders and a moment later, her body was being effortlessly lifted. "Stupid girl," he grunted and when the spots had disappeared from her vision, she found herself looking up in his face. He had picked her up and was leaving the room.
"Are you taking me back to my room?" she murmured faintly.
"Where else?" he demanded brusquely.
It took great effort for her not to pass out in his arms again and rather than trying to hold a conversation, she focused instead on remaining awake. His arms were warm around the coolness of her skin and when her head lolled to lean against his chest, she could hear the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. Closing her eyes briefly, she listened to the beats and found it somehow comforting. It distracted her from the pain in her body.
When he settled her in her bed, she was grateful to finally be able to sleep, but the room spun above her. The sensation was similar to when she would get the flu. The blankets were pulled up around her and she felt Bakura's hand pass idly over her hair, though she was already drifting off into sleep. As she did, she felt a warmth spread over her body and she allowed sleep to overtake her.
The next time Anzu woke, last night's duel and the succeeding events could have been a dream. Her body felt less painful than it had when she had woken up and after inspecting herself, she saw that the bruises had left her body. Running her hands over herself, she frowned in confusion at the lack of pain. She had felt like such a mess yesterday it was hard to conceive that this could be real.
Listening with half an ear to Kaiba's announcement over the speakers, she glanced around the room until her eyes landed on a small, torn piece of paper on the bedside table. Picking it up, she read the simple message scrawled upon it: Last time. Don't do it again. It did not take a powerful mind to interpret the words upon it and she knew that it was left by Bakura. She was not sure how, but he must have used his Sennen Ring to accelerate the healing process of her body.
Rather than throwing the message away, she opted to save it and after another quick perusal of her room, she collected a change of clothes and went to the shower to clean herself up.
For now, at least, she would not need to worry about anything else where Bakura was concerned.
End Part III.