Chapter Eighteen

Akeno had gotten almost no sleep that night on the hard wood floor. She was always at the mercy of Bakura and the thought of making herself fully vulnerable in sleep made her even more uneasy thus contributing to her insomnia. Exhaustion wore on her, however, and a few times her eyelids of iron would slide shut and send her into a restless sleep lasting at most half an hour. At some point, she noticed it was getting lighter out. Just great. I've barely gotten any sleep and in a few hours I'm going to have to put up with this bastard… I hope he's a late sleeper. Of course, he awoke as soon as the sun's first rays hit his bed which happened to be right after Akeno's eyes drifted shut.

Bakura sat up and glared at the drawn curtains, undoubtedly something Ryou did to help brighten the atmosphere. He growled and sharply twisted to one side, cracking his back. Lazily looking over the side of the bed, he saw Akeno lying on her back with her eyes shut. He reluctantly got out of bed and nudged her with his foot.

"Get up," he said in a hoarse voice.

She groaned and curled into a ball, attempting to prolong her sleep.

Bakura, being impatient, kicked her in the rear with more force than he would any other part of her weak little body. "Get the hell up, girl!"

She yelped and bolted upright, hitting her head on the nightstand in front of her. "What was that for?!" she exclaimed before realizing who had kicked her. He looked about ready to murder her.

"Sorry! I didn't know it was you!" she said quickly before he could threaten her.

"Who else would be waking you up at this hour?!"

"I-I don't know! My mom?"

"Do I look like your mother?!" he spat.

She was thoughtful for a moment. "Well, you both have brown eyes… That's about it," she yawned.

Was she playing with him or just being stupid? Bakura tried to calm himself. It wouldn't do any good to strangle her… and to be honest he wasn't awake enough to do it. "Shut up," he growled and walked out of the room.

Akeno sat on the floor, looking after him slightly dazed. After rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she finally got up and went to see what he was doing. He was hunched over the kitchen table looking tired and disheveled. His hair was messier than usual, his eyes were half open with slight lines under them and his expression clearly said 'I am not a morning person.' She would have laughed had he not glared at her. She eyed the other kitchen chair but decided it'd be safer to just stand.

"Good morning, master," she said attempting to start off the day nicely seeing as she was stuck with him.

He grunted and crossed his arms. "Go prepare something to eat."

She resisted sighing. Typical. Looking into the fridge, she realized there wasn't much food aside from the basics. She turned back to look at Bakura who appeared to be sleeping sitting up. "Um, what would you like?"

"For you to be the ideal pet- silent, obedient and out of my way."

"What would you like to eat?" she asked dryly. "Master."

"Something that isn't toxic," he answered, not looking at her.

Rolling her eyes, she decided to make something quick and simple. It seems all these years of cooking for myself is finally paying off. At least I can't mess up scrambled eggs now. A thought crossed her mind as her stomach stirred.

"Master… am I allowed to eat?" she asked meekly.

"No."

She frowned but continued to push the eggs around the pan so they wouldn't burn. Her stomach growled in protest. Keep the balance, she told herself, if I pass out I won't have to deal with him at least. Akeno served him breakfast and forced herself to smile. Don't let him know he's getting to you… well, it's a little late for that but don't give him the satisfaction of knowing your still upset.

"Can I do anything else for you, master?" she asked sweetly.

"You can shut your mouth and get out of my face."

Her smile faltered slightly and she nodded. Not knowing what was appropriate to do, she sat on the floor beside his chair. She glanced up at him for approval but he ignored her and started eating. After a few minutes, the silverware stopped clinking and Bakura stood abruptly. He seemed to be operating normally now and didn't appear to be as drowsy.

"Eat," he said as left the room.

Akeno sat up on her knees to look over the table- he had left some eggs for her. Not wanting to risk pissing him off so early in the morning by sitting at the table, she grabbed the plate and fork and ate out of her lap. This is kind of gross but… at least I can eat! Her stomach applauded as the first bites reached it. Bakura came back in jeans and a dark blue shirt. "Hurry up and get changed."

She quickly finished and headed down the hall towards Ryou's room. He had left out the clothes he wore the other day. Well…it's better than going out in his boxers… I wonder what he plans on doing…

After a few minutes of walking in silence down the street, Akeno spoke up, "Master, where are we going?"

He shot her a glare. "Are you stupid? Don't call me that in public."

"Then what should I call you?"

He growled softly. "Bakura…" he said reluctantly.

She nodded though he wasn't looking.

"So Bakura, where are we going?"

He gritted his teeth and she almost laughed had it not been for the death glare he gave her. Better not test my luck… or his patience!

They came to stop in front of a pet store. Does he want a cat or something?!

"Um Bakura, why are we-"

He shook her. "Don't abuse this privilege of using my name. You should be thankful I even let you outside," he growled.

"Sorry." Jerk!

Bakura pulled her by the arm inside the shop. "I thought you weren't allowed to have animals in the apartment?" she questioned, looking at the barking puppies as he dragged her through aisles.

She heard him mutter something but didn't catch it. The two stopped in front of a shelf of pet supplies. He studied the goods for a moment then picked up a black leather collar with metal spikes. She took a step back as he turned to her. He roughly clasped it around her neck.

"W-what's this for?!"

"Every pet needs to know its bounds. This is to train you," he said calmly as if it were a normal thing to say.

"What's this for? What's this for?" came a voice behind them.

They turned to see a large red parrot perched in its cage. "Every train needs to know this pet," the bird said wisely, turning its head to the side.

Bakura undid the collar and tossed it back. He next picked out a silver chain with small sharp bits sticking out. She realized it was a choker, something used to train dogs that pulled too much on leashes. She gulped and tried resisting when he forced it over her head. He smirked and slid a finger through the end link and yanked on it so that it tightened around her neck.

"Gah! Its pulling my hair!"

"Stop attracting attention!"

"You're the one being weird in public! If Tea were here, she'd think this was for a kinkfest!"

"You insolent little-"

"Stop attracting hair! This is a kinkfest!"

"Shut up!" Bakura shouted at the bird which squawked and started flapping madly.

At random, Bakura grabbed a leash and shoved Akeno out of the store, collar still around her neck, while the store owner tried calming his parrot. She loosened the collar and pulled her hair through once they were a good distance away.

"It seems I haven't taught you well enough. You can expect to be punished," he said severely.

Just great! Way to open your big mouth, Akeno!

"Now tell me. Where do you live?" he asked suddenly.

She was caught off guard. "With…you?"

He snorted. "Where are your belongings?"

"Oh. It's about five blocks away, on Teiichi Street."

"Is anyone home at this time?"

An ache arose in her chest. "Oh. No, I live alone," she said looking at her feet, trying to avoid Bakura's gaze.

"Take me there," he commanded.

Had Akeno not lived there for three years, the landlord would've been reluctant to let them into the apartment without ID. "Thank you," she said to him. "I can't believe I locked my key in the room." Actually, I think I lost it either in the graveyard when I was being attacked by those creeps or assaulted by this creep or on Kaiba's blimp where I was being abused by…nearly everything else.

"Are you sure you want to move out, Miss Hitoshii?"

"Yes, sir. Tomorrow someone should come to remove my belongings and put them in storage, would you let them in for me?"

"Ah yes of course," he said. "You take care."

"Thank you," she said, bowing politely as he left.

Akeno stepped inside and on instinct, took off her shoes. She couldn't help but notice Bakura didn't, either because he wasn't familiar with the custom or he simply wished to show disrespect towards her and her home. Before she had time to ask, Bakura told her to pack the things she'd need. Wordlessly, she complied.

It seemed like forever since she had last set foot in her room. She longed to plop on her bed but knew Bakura wouldn't be very happy with her relaxing. She pulled a blue suitcase from under her bed and began rummaging through her drawers, gathering her clothes. Once she crammed all she could fit in the one, went to her closet to get her small duffle bag. In this she packed other practical items: her hair and bath products, first aid kit (she couldn't be too careful, living with Bakura), some shoes, and all of her savings. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a light flashing; she had messages on her answering machine. She turned the speaker volume down so Bakura wouldn't hear and hit the play button.

You have six messages. First message: "Akeno, I know today's the anniversary…"

It was her friend, Emi's voice.

"I can imagine how you're feeling. You shouldn't go through this alone. Give me a call and I'll come over, okay?" BEEP.

Second message: "Akeno, please call me. I'm worried about you…bye." BEEP.

Third message: "I was knocking on your door for like an hour. The doorman said you left late last night. I told you not to go alone. I said I'd go with you. I mean there are serious creeps out there; you could've been hurt… Just call me, will you?" BEEP.

Fourth message: "If you wanted me to be worried sick about you, you won. You're my best friend, Akeno. PLEASE talk to me…" BEEP.

Fifth message: "It's been days since I saw or talked to you! What's going on? I swear I'm going to break down your door if you keep this up! I told you before I won't let you be reclusive, even if you're depressed. It isn't healthy! Call me before I rip my hair out!...Bye." BEEP.

Sixth message: "Akenoooo…. CALL ME!" BEEP.

End of new messages.

Akeno felt a wave of guilt hit her. Emi had always been there when her other friends became frustrated with her depression and gave up. I can't call her. I couldn't possibly explain all this, even if I did, knowing her, she'd probably try to assault Bakura…and that wouldn't end well. She sighed. For her own safety, I can't tell her.

Remembering something, she crossed over to her bedside table and opened a small wooden jewelry box. A soft music started playing causing her to smile. She reached in and gently removed a gold necklace. It was thin golden chain with two gold rings hanging on it; one of them was studded with small diamonds and was inscribed: To my darling, Natsuko, my love for you is never-ending. She clasped it around her neck and tucked it in her shirt.

"I guess this is it," she said aloud to her room.

Once in the main room, she saw Bakura had emptied the contents of her closet and was now inspecting the refrigerator. She watched him for a moment then said, "Um I'm done, master."

He took out a jar of pickles and shook it, eying them suspiciously then put it back. "How come," he began while still rooting through the fridge, "You didn't continue those adorable family portraits?"

Her heart skipped a beat. He was talking about the pictures in the main room. It had been a tradition her parents had started when she was born, to have their picture taken each year on Christmas. There were fourteen pictures and she was now seventeen; it was obvious that the series had abruptly stopped. Akeno walked over to the last picture and picked it up. A pain welled in her heart as she examined it- her father had his hair combed to the side and he wore his trademark horn rimmed glasses, he stood straight with his arm around her mother who looked beautiful as ever with her long black haired curled and her eyes shining. Her fourteen year old self was giving a big smile, showing off her braces, standing in the middle with her mother's hand resting on her shoulder. She'd give anything to have one more moment like that…

She drew in a shaky breath and forced her eyes away from the picture. She looked up to find Bakura staring at her with an unreadable look. "I…" she was at a loss for words.

"Well?" he pressed, "You're going to answer your master, aren't you?"

She hesitated. "Uh…after the last one, we just…it kind of… fell out of habit."

Bakura snorted and brushed past her. "Get your bags. We're leaving."

Akeno nodded and shoved the picture in with her other belongings. She followed Bakura out of the building and down the street. She ignored the weight of her bags for the weight she held in her heart was far heavier. She walked a few paces behind Bakura, her master, and sadly stared at his back.

Please don't watch over me now. It'd be too painful to imagine you seeing this…seeing me. I failed you both and now I've failed myself. I have given you nothing to be proud of…I'm sorry.