Yugi: Look what I just found!
Ryou: What is it?
Yugi: PhantomBrat left a note stating that in the event of her not responding to us, we are to announce that the 129th reviewer gets a sneak-peek of a future chapter PM'ed to them.
Ryou: That is soooooo awesome!
Bakura: But why the number 129?
Yugi: I guess it's a PhantomBrat thing. If she notes it, we post it.
Yami: Yugi, don't mess with the Thief's mind…you don't know where it's been.
Ryou had earned a broken left arm and dislocated the same shoulder, while Malik had bruises up and down his arms from the chaos caused by Castiel's selfish desire to learn who stole his blood nearly three decades ago. Malik, being the only one able to attempt cooking refused to prepare dinner as punishment for the way they were treated. "We're not making breakfast for anyone either," he pointed out. "Not even our brothers because of you seven. Don't even think of going near Yugi either! We'll take care of him."
"Don't be harsh with them, Malik. They are afraid of that which they do not understand," Akefia stated. He added, "Leave the care of Atemu's offspring to his brother and the Pharaoh. Tend to your own wounds and rest."
Knowing better than to argue with the ancient Daywalker, Malik sighed and obeyed, going to where his brother sat glaring at the other Hunters.
Bobby and John watched as Atem refused to leave Yugi's side despite his own exhaustion. It was now morning and the injured Supernatural hadn't stirred since the Blood-seal was released. His breathing was short and came in pants, concerning Bobby. The Hunter felt that he needed to intervene. He got up and carefully approached his weary son, "Atem, let me watch over him while you get some rest."
Atem shook his head, "Yugi is my family. I can't let him wake up and not see me here. I've been with him every time he's been hurt or sick since I found him. He expects it now. I don't want to let him down."
"I'll wake you if he so much as twitches," Bobby promised.
"Swear you won't hurt him," he asked, skeptical.
Bobby held his hands up, "I swear. I want another chance with you boys, if you'll allow it."
"Why the sudden change of heart?"
"That brother of yours is the reason. He's not like the ones we Hunt, is he?"
Atem shook his head, "No, they aren't. They were living off of dogs' blood when we found them and refused to harm us when we had them in the basement. Yugi's had it the worst though. He's been kidnapped twice, Turned, his soul stolen and his body used as a Shadow-wraith, poisoned, murdered and brought back, sick various times before and after we found them, wheelchair-bound, and now all this. I don't know if he'll recover as easily this time. What that angel did may have damaged what progress he's made with recovering from his last kidnapping."
As they talked, Mariku approached them was several objects. Atem noticed the mentally unstable Daywalker, "What is all that for, Mariku?"
"Medicine for Pharaoh's favorite. Blood, honey, and Holy Water. Need you mix for him. Make take spoon every half hour till wakes," he stated proudly. "Honey good germ killer, blood for vampire side, Water for angel side. Even balance of all. Need your blood, Atemu's blood too. Got Pharaoh's blood, need yours now. Give and mix. Give to little princeling. Make better faster."
Atem looked at the stuff and took the sealed syringe, "Thanks. Where did you learn this?"
"Blood heals vampires faster, Holy Water fix angels. Honey heal all. He need all three. Learned from watching. Good memory. Can tell time when Kefie dress as woman and go looking for Questionables to eat. Kefie hate when men hurt women, do it to protect them. Take care of Pharaoh's favorite, make better." Mariku wandered into another room as Bobby and Atem followed the slightly insane vampire's instructions.
Atem gave the concoction to Yugi slowly to make sure that he didn't choke on the thick liquid. There was a faint moan of discomfort, but he didn't stir.
Atem dozed off, leaving Bobby to keep watch over the hikari. He felt awful that he had traumatized the twin of his son so badly. The small Supernatural had meant them no harm and had been so helpful in everything he could do. Now Yugi was severely injured and his friends refused to speak to anyone. The two were aware of what had happened and were worried for Yugi.
Bobby prepared another spoonful of the strange 'medicine' for Yugi to take. He carefully dripped it into his mouth, making sure not to go too fast so that it went down right. Yugi's eyes cracked open as he tried to get away from the concoction. He had seen Bobby and the red liquid and began panicking. "No-no-no-no-no," Yugi whimpered. "Please stop." Tears ran down his cheeks.
Bobby took the spoon away and grabbed the wet towel they were using to keep Yugi cool to clean his face. "Easy son," he soothed. "Easy. I'm trying to help you. Oh, Yugi, I'm so sorry about my reaction. I didn't give you a chance."
Yugi sobbed, from the emotional and physical pains, waking Atem from his nap. "I wanna go home," he whimpered. "I don't like it here."
Atem picked up Yugi's hand, "Everything'll be ok, Yugi. Besides, Ishizu said not to move you until she gets here with the van. She doesn't want to take any chances with your injuries. That Angel is also going on Trial when we get home."
Atem soothed his brother as Bobby watched. He felt an outsider, but wanted to be there for his boy, soon to be boys if Yugi wanted him. Ryou carefully, and wearily, approached Bobby, "Yugi trusted you with his life. He's scared that you'll hurt him again if he lets you get too close. Seeing you with that blood frightened him, reminded him of what happened yesterday. He wants to trust you, but you'll have to work to earn it back. His trust isn't easy to earn the second time around."
"What do you mean?"
"When we were still normal, not having been Turned, Yugi was friends with a boy named Jou. That's what we called him anyways, his name was really Jounouchi. This boy was Yugi's friend up until middle school. That was when everything changed. Jou got really mean and picked on us, beating Yugi up after school and stealing our money. One day, Jou went too far and Malik wound up in the hospital after blocking Yugi from him. Jou was arrested and sent to a counselor in lieu of going to a juvenile detention center. He realized that he had hurt his former friend and had severely injured another.
Jou tried to apologize for weeks but Yugi was so terrified of him that he hid or ran away. The only option left for Jou was to leave a note in Yugi's locker and at home. He even offered Grandpa to do all of Yugi's household chores for a month to try and get Yugi to speak to him again. Yugi overheard the offer and graciously refused. We found out that Jou's bullying was rooted in his family life; his mother had left and took his little sister away, leaving him with an abusive father.
He took his anger out on the friends with a somewhat stable family-life and nearly lost our friendship altogether. Yugi's grandpa got in touch with his mother and told her that he was being hurt and that he was staying with them until she could take him with her. She picked him up a week later."
"So if your friend tried for weeks before Yugi would speak to him, then I'm a lost cause," Bobby muttered. "What I did would probably take years."
Ryou shook his head, "Not really. I saw you try and calm Yugi when he woke up and saw you with the medicinal blood-syrup. You pulled it out of his sight and cleaned his face as soon as he started crying. You're trying to correct what you did to hurt him. Just be careful not to force the bonding or you'll push him away."
"Dad, Yugi wants you," Atem announced. "He's willing to let you tell him what you were doing when he woke up and got scared."
Bobby sat in the folding chair next to the couch. "Hey, Yugi. How are you feeling?"
Yugi sighed, "Hurt."
"So Atem wants me to tell you what I was doing?" A nod confirmed the question, so he continued, "I was trying to give you a medicine that that vampire with the mental issue suggested. He said it was to help you get better faster."
"Do you hate me," Yugi whimpered, frightened of the answer.
Bobby was stunned. "No," he replied. "No, I don't hate you, Yugi. I didn't understand what you and the other two were. The way I reacted was wrong, especially after you boys had done so much to help us around the place."
Yugi looked up with a weak grin, "Remember that dead snake that bit Ryou before a bird killed it?"
"Yeah. What about it?"
"Malik was the bird that killed it," Yugi laughed weakly. "The snake bit Ryou and Malik killed it. He's been sneaking out and killing rattlesnakes when no one was looking. He left their heads and rattles on Dean's car as a joke."
Bobby was shocked, "That rascal…" He grinned, "I like that kid."
As Yugi drifted off to sleep, Bobby looked up at Ryou. The white-haired hikari gave him a thumbs-up with his free hand and smiled before readjusting his sling and heading off to find his twin.
Yugi: I think I like this chapter.
Bakura: Too sappy for me.
Ryou: Why do you like this chapter, Yugi?
Yugi: Bobby is nice to me.
Malik: I like the part where I leave dead rattlesnakes on Dean's car!
Amethyst-Jade: Me too! By the way, PhantomBrat's no longer out cold…she's hiding and hoping that nobody else pops out to scare her half-senseless.
Mokuba: Until next time.