Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh or Supernatural. This is a work of fanfiction.
Chapter 12
In the intermittent moments, Sam and Dean had backed away as the Shadows began to move and shrink. The pair were hidden around the corner of the alley, remaining out of sight of whatever might appear once the darkness cleared. They could hear inhuman screams as the blackness faded away into nothingness, dragging the demon with it.
The Winchesters were immensely relieved as they peered cautiously around the corner and saw their young cousin standing up from the pavement, dusting his jeans off as though nothing profound had happened. They watched as Yugi glanced over at the young woman on the ground and approached her still form, resting two long fingers against her neck. Satisfied that she was still alive and breathing, he removed the light jacket he was wearing and bundled it under the woman's head.
"Yuge, what happened?!" Dean called as they approached, somewhat cautiously.
Yami, still in control of the shared body, straightened from his kneeling position and tried to think quickly of a response. Yugi was still resting peacefully in his soul, exhausted from the attack, and would not stir anytime soon. This left Yami with the task of pretending to be Yugi. Normally, this wouldn't have been a problem as people usually assumed that was precisely who he was; however, Dean and Sam were unusually observant men. He could not afford to make a mistake and give himself away with the two Hunters.
The Spirit straightened, rearranging his expression into what he hoped resembled the wide-eyed innocence of his brother soul. His rage towards the demon had clouded his judgement earlier, and he hadn't thought through to the possible consequences should Sam and Dean discovered what he had done.
He certainly wasn't counting on them being right there as the Shadow Game dispersed and he was left standing there with an unconscious woman. There really was no good explanation that he could offer them.
Yami had one option: play dumb. Quickly, he adopted a confused expression, frowning slightly and rubbing the back of his neck.
"Um…I-I'm not really sure, guys." Yami pitched his voice higher and adopted Yugi's occasional stutter. The imitation was effective. He sounded very much like his young counterpart, if not exactly like him. The Spirit was mildly proud of himself for his impromptu acting.
Dean patted who he believed to be Yugi on the shoulder, glancing around the alleyway warily. "You didn't see anything?"
The Pharaoh scratched his head thoughtfully. "I mean, I definitely saw…something. I'm just not really sure what. She was acting crazy, though." He shrugged lightly and gestured to the young woman lying on the pavement. "I think she needs a doctor."
Dean knelt by the girl, his eyes lighting up as he found the clue he was looking for. "Sammy, check this out. Sulfur on her clothes. She was definitely possessed." That was one mystery explained, at least. He wiped the sulfurous residue on his fingers off on his jacket and began searching the alley for any other signs that might help explain what had caused the anomalous shadow wall. Some kind of magic, maybe? Was there a witch involved in this? Something else? Whatever it was had completely disappeared.
"Looks like she roughed you up a bit, huh?" Sam was checking Yugi's body over now with some concern, noting the angry bruising around his cousin's neck and inspecting him for other signs of injury. A trickle of blood running down the back of the teen's neck gave testimony to his head injury. He seemed to be steady enough at the moment but the wounds were relatively serious. They'd need to be treated soon. Maybe Yugi was hit hard enough to black out and really didn't remember what had happened.
Maybe.
But…there was something peculiar about his young cousin that Sam hadn't noticed before now. Something in the boy's mannerism had changed ever so slightly. Were his eyes always red? It was an unnatural color and an uneasy knot formed in the younger Winchester's gut. Yugi's gaze seemed more piercing and calculating than before, now that Sam was looking closely. It wasn't right.
Yugi was watching Dean conduct his investigation with curiosity, paying little attention to the younger Winchester brother checking his wounds. Sam continued his inspection so as not to alert the boy to his developing plan. He just needed to be certain. If he was wrong, then he was sure Yugi would understand. If he was right, however, well, he didn't really want to think about his kindhearted cousin under the oppressive control of some demon.
He carefully slipped the flask of holy water from his jacket's inner pocket, unscrewing its stopper. Yami turned to Sam just in time to catch a face fully of the blessed substance. The Pharaoh stifled a yelp, sputtering and blinking the water from his eyes.
Absolutely nothing happened, much to Sam's relief and disbelief. There had assuredly been a demon here; the sulfur residue left no doubt of that. It had attacked Yugi, but neither killed him nor possessed him. Unless, of course, it was one of the rare and powerful demons to whom holy water was no more than a mildly irksome mosquito bite. Sam couldn't completely rule out that possibility, he realized, feeling slightly nauseated. A similar situation had occurred with his father years before.
Yami tilted his head in confusion, his eyes wide as he wiped the water from his face with the back of his hand. His shirt was now quite soaked and clung to his skin uncomfortably. "Did I need a shower, or…?"
Dean reappeared at Sam's side now, holding the young woman in his arms and looking more than slightly astonished himself. He opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it again at the look Sam gave him. If Sam was splashing Yugi with holy water, there was probably a very good reason for it. Something made Sam think Yugi might be possessed. Even now, Sam did not seem completely certain. After all, the demon that was currently after Yugi's family had been a powerful one. Exactly how powerful, they did not know, nor did they know for certain that the same demon had attacked Yugi. There were an unfortunate number of "ifs" in this scenario.
"Yugi's" eyes were darting anxiously between his cousin's tensed visages now. "Sam? Dean?"
The Winchester's exchanged a final glance before turning back to Yugi with strained smiles fixed firmly on their faces.
"It's alright, Yuge. Sammy was just checking something real quick, weren't you, Sammy? Let's go back to the house and get you fixed up." Dean put his hand on Yugi's shoulder to reassure him. If there was something inside of Yugi even after the holy water, their best bet would be to get him back to the house where they could exorcise it.
Then again, that could be exactly what the demon wanted and expected. He didn't see that they had much of a choice in the matter, however. They had to be sure and they couldn't risk doing an exorcism here. If there was a demon and it escaped with Yugi, they may never get him back.
Sam nodded, "Yeah, sorry, Yugi. Holy water. I just wanted to make sure you were still…you. Looks like you're fine, though. Do you feel alright?"
A far-away look crossed Yugi's face before disappearing again. "Oh, that's…that's alright, I guess. I'm fine, other than the wet shirt and the headache." He smiled ruefully, trying not to appear troubled that his cousin thought he was possessed.
But Yami was troubled and feeling frighteningly cornered. Maybe Sam was being cautious, or, perhaps, he had seen through the Spirit's attempt at imitating Yugi. He mentally kicked himself for not playing his role more convincingly. He wished Yugi would wake up.
Still, there was nothing he could do about it now. He couldn't very well run away, which would take Yugi away from his family, and might even put the young one in further danger. Likewise, Yami wished no harm on the Winchester brothers. They did not deserve a Dark Game. They were only trying to protect Yugi, not hurt him.
He'd be lying to himself, however, if he pretended that he wasn't afraid of what they might try to do should they discover his existence. Worse, he feared what they might do if they discovered his ties to the Millennium Puzzle.
Yami did not want to return to the darkness he had known before. The very idea clawed at his heart with an icy grasp. It left him feeling suddenly very drained.
Reluctantly, the Spirit followed the brothers back to their car with a pit in his stomach.
Yugi awoke to the surreal feeling that he was floating. He hurt, but it was a far-away kind of pain. The Pharaoh must be in control right now, he thought to himself.
Something was wrong. He could sense his partner through their link. Yami was worried, perhaps even frightened. His spirit was knotted and tense as if he were tied in knots. Yugi reached out to the other soul, trying to soothe him.
/You are awake, thank the gods./ Yami sounded tired, exhaustion radiating from his spirit. /Are you feeling well enough to take over?/
/Yeah, I am./
Yami relinquished control to Yugi, nonverbally sighing in relief as he did so. The ancient Spirit retreated to the back of Yugi's mind, lingering there so as to advise Yugi on what he had missed.
Yugi took control of his body, gasping a little as he took on the full burden of his injuries. His head ached fiercely now and he was sore from the various bruises he received as the demoness hurled him against the brick alley wall. The teenager found himself sitting in the backseat of the Impala, slumped heavily against the door. He opened his eyes slightly, finding Sam and Dean sitting quietly in the front seat. Everything was unusually quiet. Looking to his right, Yugi saw the young woman who had attacked him earlier. She was unconscious and laying over on her side across the backseat, her head propped up with his jacket.
Yugi gently massaged his tender neck. /Ouch. Say, why am I wet?/ His shirt was damp and uncomfortable. Part of him considered taking the thing off to escape the moisture.
/Sam thought you might be possessed. He sprayed holy water on me. It didn't do anything, of course. I'm assuming that only works on demons./
The Spirit summed up the events Yugi had missed as well and as quickly as he could. He briefly described the Shadow Game, the demon's defeat, and being discovered by Sam and Dean. /They seemed to be satisfied by the holy water test for the moment but I'm not sure, Yugi. I think they suspect something. They're too observant. The way they looked at me…/ Yami's words trailed off as he replayed Sam's distrustful expression over in his head so Yugi could see.
Yugi cursed under his breath. The reason for Yami's thinly veiled anxiety was apparent now. If his cousins had noticed the other soul existing within him, even without understanding what they were seeing, they wouldn't let it be.
