Day 16: Gravityshipping (Thief King/Ryou/Marik) - "Christmas Lights"
(This was originally posted on Marik's birthday, but FFnet is a bit behind. Marik deserves some good things on his birthday, so there.)
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"Watch it! You're going to fall!"
"I was robbing tombs before your family tree was even planted, I'll be fine."
"Still! It would be a shame to ruin the surprise with a broken neck."
"Yeah, yeah. Just pass me another string, brat."
Ryou carefully held up the end of another string of fairy lights. They'd already made it most of the way around the room. It was looking pretty good, actually, but they'd have to hurry before Marik got back. It had been hard enough to get him out of the house this time, they wouldn't get another chance.
Marik had been getting quieter and quieter as the 23rd approached, and more and more irritable about having the lights just so in their room. He never liked the dark, but his protectiveness over the lamps in the room was getting a little out of hand. And that was when Ryou remembered the box of fairy lights they hadn't put up for Christmas yet.
"Hurry! He'll be back any minute!"
"Yeah yeah, I'm on it." Bakura put his nimble fingers to work to secure the last of the lights.
And just in time, too. The front door slammed open, and they could hear Marik kicking off his boots in the doorway. Ryou and Bakura shared a grin before hurrying to join him.
"Welcome back, Marik!" Ryou beamed, but Marik's mood didn't lift the way it normally would at the chipper greeting. He just gave a vague hum of acknowledgement as he hung up his coat.
Ryou squared his shoulders. Marik clearly needed all the help they could give him. "So, we have a surprise for you."
Marik sighed and turned to them. "Ryou, I'm really not in the mood for surprises."
Bakura gave Marik a no-nonsense look. "We're not asking for permission. You need this, so don't argue."
Ryou tone was gentler. "Please, Marik? Just come see. We really think you'll like it."
Marik still looked unsure, so Bakura took matters in to his own hands and wrapped an arm around Marik's waist. "Come on, taking a look won't hurt you. Promise." He reached up to press a reassuring kiss to Marik's cheek.
Marik sighed. "Alright, fine. Lead the way." He let Bakura guide him down the hall as Ryou led the way. He leaned into Bakura more heavily than he usually would, but Bakura just tightened his grip to support him.
The entered the bedroom, which was completely dark. Marik scowled and opened his mouth, but Ryou cut him off. "Give me two seconds!" He bent down to the outlet and plugged in the extension cord.
As soon as he did, the whole ceiling lit up with twinkling lights, filling the room with a soft glow. Marik's jaw dropped.
Ryou turned a beaming smile on him. "We know you're having extra trouble with dark places right now, and we thought it would help if you could sleep under the open stars. But it's too cold outside for that, so…"
Marik held a hand to his mouth. He looked back and forth between the two as they smiled gently at him, waiting for his reaction. When he spoke, his voice was choked. "You gave me the sky."
"Of course we did. You deserve that and more. You should never feel trapped again. Not while we can do something about it." Bakura gave him a squeeze around the waist and dutifully ignored the moisture gathering in the corners of Marik's eyes.
Ryou quickly joined them and wrapped his arms around Marik from the other side. "So it's OK? You like it?"
Marik just swooped in to give Ryou a firm kiss as Bakura gently wiped the tears from his cheek.