Author's Note: I just started my new full-time job this week. I'm officially adulting now. That's crazy.
As usual, thank you to everyone reading. If you like, please leave a review/fav/follow!
Disclaimer: Me no own Yu-Gi-Oh! Rated T.
Bon Appetite!
Bakura turned in his sleep, enjoying the warmth of his bed. He felt himself slipping into a deep, comfortable sleep. He was always hot when he slept, so the sheets always fell off his torso to rest at his hips, his shirtless torso radiating heat. His face was shoved in a pillow as he slept on his stomach.
It was during this restful period that Bakura became aware of a chirping noise. It was annoyingly repetitive and refused to let up. Bakura tried to ignore it. He knew he hadn't set an alarm for the next morning. He was probably imagining it. Much to Bakura's chagrin, the noise didn't go away. What the bloody hell is that noise? Bakura started to blink, his dark brown eyes bleary and unfocused. The dark room around him told him that the sun hadn't even rose yet.
What time is it? Bakura pushed himself up on one elbow, searching for the clock on the table next to his bed. It was 4:47 am. The fuck? Bakura looked around for the source of the noise, recognizing the culprit coming from his coat pocket. He reached his hand out into the pocket, digging around until he pulled out his work cell. To his surprise, it wasn't ringing. Well if that's not ringing, then what is?
Bakura dug around his other pockets, trying to find the annoying ringing noise that still seemed to be emanating from his coat. He searched until his hand clenched on a cheap flip phone that now buzzed in his hand. Bakura froze, groggily trying to piece together what this meant. A disposable phone, ringing at a godforsaken hour in the morning, with only one other possible caller knowing this number. Bakura he pulled the phone out to confirm his worst fears, looking at the number on the screen.
Fucking Marik.
Why the hell was Marik calling him so damn early in the morning? He groaned as he slammed the phone down next to his clock. Maybe if I ignore him, he'll get the message. Bakura already had to mentally prepare himself for Marik on a good day. A tired Bakura woken up at the crack of dawn was hardly a Bakura ready to deal with Marik. Bakura buried his face into his pillow, plopping back down and ignoring the ringing. Bakura paused as he heard the ringing stop, hesitantly hoping for the silence to remain.
After a few moments, the ringing started again. Apparently Marik desperately needed to talk now. Why does this happen to me? It was like there was a god out to ruin Bakura's life. Bakura growled as he slammed his hand down on the phone that buzzed loudly. He propped himself up again, flipping the phone to his ears. His eyes winced at the light of the phone. Bakura didn't bother to hide the irritation and anger in his voice. "What the hell do you want Marik?"
"Bakura! Is that you?" The ear-grating noise of Marik's voice rang loudly through the speaker. Bakura had to hold the phone a couple inches away from his head. "Of fucking course. Why the hell are you calling me so bloody early? It's 5 o' clock in the morning," Bakura grumbled, his voice venomous. "It's not that early. In a couple of hours, the sun will rise!" Bakura just stared blankly in front of him at Marik's declaration.
"What the fuck does that have to do with anything?" Bakura snapped, feeling less tired and most frustrated. "I don't know, but it's true! No need to snap at me like that, Fluffy!" Marik retorted, sounding quite huffy. Bakura sighed in exasperation. He could not take much more of this conversation. "Marik, why the hell are you calling?" Bakura was starting to figure out that it was just easy to give Marik what he wants and hope he goes away. Perhaps if he took the bait, he could get this over quickly and get back to sleep.
"Right! I wanted to call you about my mission! I got the Millennium Eye like you asked. In-and-out, no problems. I did it all by myself! And Pegasus never knew I was there. Pretty great, huh?" Marik prattled on. It took a moment for Bakura to realize what Marik just told him. As soon as his words sunk in, Bakura's eyes shot wide open, suddenly alert and awake. He pushed himself up into a sitting position, shocked.
He… what?
"You… the Eye… You retrieved it?" Bakura finally managed to stutter out. How was this even possible? How the hell did he pull this off? He was supposed to fail this damn mission? "Yep! I have it right here with me! I am a master thief!" Marik kept complimenting himself as Bakura felt himself zoning out. Bakura hadn't anticipated this. He figured Marik would have bailed or failed this mission. Instead, he had another Millennium Item.
Bakura sat up and swung his legs off the side of his bed, ignoring the chatter coming from the other line, finding himself completely confused as to how to feel about this issue. In his mind, he knew he should be pissed. He had spent weeks trying to figure out a way to steal back the Millennium Rod. He just succeeded… only to find out that he now needed to find a way to steal the Eye. Marik, once again, just screwed up his plans. He couldn't be incompetent when Bakura needed him to be so.
And yet, Bakura found he wasn't as annoyed as he thought he would be. He was just shocked that this loud and overbearing brat actually succeeded. Bakura had set him up for failure. He left out important information. Security details were missing. He didn't tell Marik about the rumors of Pegasus putting the Millennium Eye into his left eye socket. He didn't tell Marik much except the bare minimums to convince Marik to go in by himself and try stealing a priceless ancient Egyptian artifact. It was the perfect recipe for failure. And yet here he was discovering that Marik succeeded.
Bakura felt something odd towards Marik that he didn't want to feel. He was a proud man and would never admit this, but Marik actually had managed to impress him. Bakura would likely have backed down from this mission had he been in Marik's shoes as a new thief. But Marik didn't. He stepped up the challenge and now he reaped the benefits of his work. He stole a Millennium Item. For as much as he annoyed Bakura, Marik wasn't just hot air. There was something to this kid.
In the midst of that odd sense of admiration, Bakura felt an intense wave of defeat. He wasn't the kind of man to give up. The whole situation with Marik was proof of that. Bakura didn't let Marik stealing the Rod stop him. He always believed with hard work, he could overcome any adversary or roadblock. Yet he couldn't help feel like some sadistic deity was watching Bakura struggle and fight against the inevitable flow. It was almost like the universe was mocking him, like his bad karma finally caught up. And it caught up in the form of Marik Ishtar. Fantastic.
"Bakura? Fluffy? Hello? Are you still there?" Bakura snapped back to the phone, realizing that had he been sitting in silence for quite some time. "Right. I'm here. You've got the Eye. Good." Bakura stated, his mind flying. Bakura knew he should probably just steal the Eye from Marik, but another idea was popping into his mind. One that he wasn't sure he wanted to pursue, but part of him felt compelled. Had Marik called him tonight after he failed, he would have brushed him off. However, Marik's supposed success got Bakura thinking that this kid, unfortunately, had potential.
"Yep! So we are supposed to meet all covert and everything, right?" Bakura was surprised when he heard himself chuckle. "I don't know about covert. Listen – meet me for lunch today at the sub shop out by the university entrance. Noon. Toss this phone after this call is over. And let me sleep." Bakura held his phone away from his ear as he heard Marik laughing his loud, nasally laugh. I don't think I'll ever get used to that.
"Right! Consider it done! I'll meet you there! Nightie night, Fluffy!" Before Bakura could reprimand Marik on that nickname, the brazen youth had already hung up the phone. Bakura also knew it was better to just leave it. He powered down the cell, mentally noting to toss it when he got up later. He plopped back down on his bed, face buried in his pillow. He turned his face slightly to the side to see his alarm clock. 5:03 am. Damn.
Bakura sighed. Well this was unexpected. Marik just kept throwing surprise after surprise at Bakura. And this time, Bakura felt less angry and more, well, confused by it. It truly was like a higher being was now playing with Bakura. He thought he had this kid pegged. He thought he had finally figured the brat out. That he was immature and brash and impatient and only succeeded the first time because he had an armed entourage helping. But if what Marik said was true, he completely a difficult extraction mission from a wealthy billionaire…
I'll wait until I see the Millennium Eye in person. Bakura decided, flipping over onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. He could verify the artifact in person. If it were a fake, then he would leave Marik. No string attached. He already had the Rod – he would lose nothing by ditching Marik at that point. But if Marik actually got the Eye, then perhaps things could still progress. Perhaps Marik could be more of an asset than Bakura realized. He closed his eyes, feeling annoyed, amused and dejected by how this night turned out...
Bakura took his time walking to the sub shop. Part of him was eager to go there, to see if Marik had the Millennium Item. Part of him hated the idea of having to see Marik again after he thought he was done with the brat. He knew this meeting was unavoidable as unfortunate as that was. On the chance that Marik really did have the Eye, Bakura could not afford to miss this meeting. Damn kid. He can't ever do things as expected, can he?
He glanced down at his phone, seeing that is was a quarter after twelve. Marik could wait for him. Bakura shoved his hands in his pocket. He hadn't been able to get much sleep after Marik's phone call. He was up by 7 am, unable to stay in bed. Ryou had been shocked to see his brother already awake and waiting for him in their living room. Ryou was more of a morning bird while Bakura was definitely a night owl. It had been a definite change. Thankfully, Ryou didn't press him that morning. Even Ryou seem to understand the sacred silence that must occur in the early morning hours.
Bakura had spent most of his morning thinking, events from the past few weeks playing out in his head. His brother, who demanded to know what he had been doing last night, eventually accosted him after 10 am. After half an hour and no progress, Ryou eventually dropped the issue, clearly not happy with Bakura's silence. Bakura didn't particularly care. Ryou could deal. He had bigger things to think about. Like how to handle this situation with Marik. Even after several hours of thinking, Bakura was still stuck, unsure how to manage this new development.
So now Bakura walked to the end of the street, turning right as he saw the entrance of the campus. The sub shop would be across the street. And in that shop, Marik would be waiting for him. He ran across the street. The area around the university was significantly less busy than it had been during the week, with students most likely indoors studying. Bakura subconsciously touched his bag that he slung over his shoulder. He didn't know what supplies he might need for today – it was better to be prepared for anything.
Bakura walked into the shop, noticing quite a few customers sitting around at the tables. He looked around and shifted his bag higher up on his shoulder, eyes searching for the young Egyptian teenager. It didn't take long to spot Marik, who was sitting at a table by the window looking at a menu. A young waitress was talking to him and Bakura got the sense it wasn't just for his order based on the way she kept touching her hair and fiddling with her bracelet.
Marik hadn't noticed Bakura yet, so Bakura decided to walk over to his table, the waitress unaware of Bakura's approach. This looked like it could be fun. "There's another ramen shop not too far from here, maybe a block or two away. Have you been there yet?" Marik glanced up at the waitress and shook his head 'no.' The waitress took this as incentive to keep going. "Well you definitely should go there. The food is cheap and tastes awesome."
Bakura smirked, slipping into Marik's line of sight and creeping right up behind the waitress. "Well, I'll be sure to take him sometime." He murmured softly into the waitress's ear, the young woman jumping and dropping her notepad. Bakura chuckled as he watched the flustered woman quickly bow out of the way and hurry back to the kitchen. That was fun. An excited voice calling his name turned Bakura's attention back to Marik.
"Good morning to you, Marik. Shall we cut right to business?" Bakura plopped down on the chair across from Marik, not giving him time to start rambling about something pointless. He turned his body, resting one elbow on the back of his chair and laid his other hand on the table, turning away slightly. Confidence and ease. That's how he would start this conversation. Probably not how it would end, but at least it was a start.
Marik seemed confused for a moment before nodding. "Oh right. Yeah we can do that." Marik turned around to the coat hanging off his chair, digging around into the pocket. After a moment, Marik turned back, suddenly hesitating as he glanced around at the other patrons. He then reached for Bakura's free hand. Bakura resisted the urge to jerk his hands away, allowing Marik to take his hand between his two warm hands. He felt a round, metal object press into his palm. Marik pulled his hands away and placed them on his lap, nodding earnestly at Bakura.
Bakura just stared into Marik's lilac-colored eyes before turning his attention to the object in his hand, his pulse now starting race. He curled his hand to glance at the item. In his palm, he saw a golden orb, unblemished and well-crafted. At the center was an exquisite eye design, one that matched that on the Rod, Necklace, and Scales. Bakura felt his breath catch as he stared at the Item. This was it. The Millennium Eye. He really did it.
Bakura felt himself almost freeze in that moment, everything seemingly slow around him. His eyes locked with the golden eye before him. He rapidly thought through the events of the last 24 hours. Marik went on his mission to Tokyo to Pegasus's estate. He sent Odion and a few men to guard the Millennium Rod. I stole the Rod and returned home. He was supposed to fail. He didn't. He now has the Eye. Which means I have four of the Items and Marik has one. Two still need to be retrieved. But the question is – how did he do this?
Bakura flicked his maroon eyes up to Marik, his face a careful mask as he studied the youth in front of him. The kid in front of him was starting to fidget in his chair, trying to stay quiet but uncomfortable with the long silence that had developed. Bakura sighed before extending his hand holding the Eye back across the table. "Tell me what happened last night. Be as explicit as possible." Marik agreed to the request, thinking back to the previous night.
"Okay, well I arrived in Tokyo by motorcycle yesterday morning. I used the maps provided to explore the subdivision. I noticed that several deliveries were being made to Pegasus's estate. Something about a video game project. I was able to get in while these deliveries were made and bypass the security system. Once Pegasus returned that night, I was able to hide until he chose to retire for the night." Marik glanced upward, as if trying to recall all the details. He frowned his eyes. "Not all the details on the file you gave me were right. The interior layout was completely different. You should probably do better on that."
Bakura had to bite down the urge to either make a snarky response or an angry retort. Oh, my bad. Oops. The fact that Marik seemed to rub in his face that he got something wrong was highly degrading and annoying. Okay, perhaps he wasn't really rubbing it in Bakura's face. In fact, the kid probably meant no offense by it. But this is Marik here. Half the things he says is an offense to all things living. Bakura just waved off Marik's response. That seemed like the safer reaction.
"Well, I had to carefully travel around and avoid his personal security. But since I was in the house, it wasn't too bad. Most of the security was outside. There was one bodyguard outside of his bedroom. So I took him down – quietly Bakura. I didn't kill anyone. Geez. I'm not as bloodthirsty as you." Marik snapped somewhat annoyed at Bakura's expression. Bakura raised one eyebrow dryly. So apparently he could get under Marik's skin. This was promising.
"Once I was in the room, I got the Eye. No problems there. It was right next to him while he was sleeping. I took it and ran before anyone could spot me." Marik sat up a little straight his seat, a large, smug smile on his face. "No one ever saw me. Pegasus was out cold the whole time. And I stole it right under everyone's noses! With my skills!" Bakura wasn't listening at this point. Marik could boost his own ego all he wanted. Bakura was caught deep in thought.
So he really did it. I guess that rumor about the Eye being in Pegasus's socket was false. Damn. Well, the kid did well. Bakura admitted to himself. He did exactly as he told and he had the Eye. Now what? The way Bakura deduced it, he had really two options. The first was to steal the Millennium Eye. All the time and preparation trying to steal the Rod for nothing. It didn't matter if he had the Rod if Marik still had another Millennium Item. He would have to go through the entire process again of setting up another pointless trail for Marik to follow to distance himself from the Eye.
If that would even work. Marik had yet to mention anything about the Rod. Bakura had intentionally left the safe emptied so he knew Odion and his men knew the Rod was stolen. He thought it was strange that Marik hadn't said anything. Perhaps he's intentionally not telling me. It wouldn't serve Marik for him to do well in this mission and supposedly lose another Item. He still thought of Bakura as an ally. He didn't suspect Bakura was the one to have stolen the Rod. If he told Bakura that someone else stole the Rod, then Marik could lose Bakura's support. Why reveal such a crucial detail right now?
Bakura sighed as he glanced vacantly up at Marik who was prattling on. Stealing the Eye would be rather complicated indeed. If he tried to set up Marik in another situation to distract him, Marik would take more serious precautions in guarding the Eye. Hell, he might even keep the Eye on him. It's much easier to keep close and far more difficult to steal. That led Bakura to his second option.
He could work together with Marik.
The idea should repulse him. Marik was arguably one of the most annoying human beings Bakura ever had the displeasure of meeting. He was immature. He was childish. He was impulsive. He was stubborn. He was naïve. He was unbelievably stupid. He only got the Rod because he used explosives and had a sister working in a museum, i.e. sheer dumb luck. Two weeks ago, he would have sooner strangled a person than even consider the possibility of a partnership with Marik.
And yet here Marik was having stolen another Millennium Item. And it had been a rather flawless performance. For someone complete new to the field, it had been a rather spectacular job. It had taken Bakura several months of practice and on-the-job training to learn the necessary skills of stealth and discretion. When Marik took himself seriously, he actually had the potential of becoming a great thief. Bakura reluctantly had to admit that Marik had surprised him and not in an irritating way.
Marik started ordering food for both of them when Bakura didn't respond to Marik's pestering. The youth seemed to accept Bakura's silence fairly well and continued to ramble on. Bakura wasn't even sure if Marik was talking to him or just talking to fill the space. He just grabbed the water in front of him and took a sip, closing his eyes. His snowy locks fell into his face, hiding his eyes as he thought over this possible business arrangement.
The idea of working with Marik was not very appealing. Marik was annoying as hell. Chances are, Marik would piss him off on a daily basis and Bakura would probably burst a blood vessel trying to tolerate his antics. But at the same time, this could work. Marik didn't want any of the reward money – he just wanted to meet Yami. They gather the Items. Bakura gets the cash. Marik gets his damn important meeting. They split and never see each other again. If they cooperate, then Bakura only had to worry about finding two more Items. And Marik had proved he's not useless baggage. In fact, he could be useful.
Bakura smirked inwardly, a twisted thought working in his mind. Perhaps my little nuisance can be a rather useful tool. Marik could serve his purpose. There's no need to tell Yami about Marik yet. Hell, he wouldn't talk to Yami in awhile. He'll keep promising Marik his wonderful, magical meeting with Yami. Marik will continue to do his biddings and help get the Millennium Items. And perhaps if Marik didn't piss him off too badly, perhaps he might even tell Yami about his helpful, little companion. Just maybe.
But then again… maybe not.
"Bakura? It's time to rise and shine, sleepy head!" Marik chirped cheerfully, touching Bakura's hand on the table. Bakura snapped out his thoughts as he glanced up into large, lavender eyes and a smiling face. "Good morning!" Marik laughed at his own joke as Bakura watched the waitress bring out their food. Had he really zoned out for that long? Marik was bouncing in his seat as the waitress brought out two subs with fries. Honestly, it's like babysitting a child some days.
"I'll admit Marik, you've done alright. You got the Eye. It appears you might have what it takes to make it in this field." Bakura murmured softly, looking curiously at the sub Marik had ordered him. Apparently, Marik had an aversion to meat and decided to get Bakura a veggie sub. Marik lit up, excited and eager by the news. "You really think I'd make a good criminal?" Something about the way he phrases it… "Perhaps. You've done pretty well so far. But…" Bakura smirked as he pulled his backpack onto his lap.
Marik watched him with a raised eyebrow as Bakura unzipped his bag, reaching into it. He felt the cloth and gripped the shaft. He pulled out the carefully wrapped article and placed it on the table between them. Marik's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "You still have a lot to learn before you get on my level." Bakura reveled in the shock look that was etched on Marik's face. The confusion and bewilderment made this moment completely worth it. Marik could only gape as the wrapped Millennium Rod that laid on the table.
"But… how did you… That's…" Marik could only sputter out words as he stared at the stolen Rod. Bakura had debated whether to mention the Rod. Well, since he picked his poison, he couldn't avoid the obvious reality that he stole the Rod from Marik. May as well come clean. And make it clear to Marik who truly was the expert. Make it clear to him that if Bakura wanted to, he could steal both Items.
"Like I said. I'm as good as they come." He smirked as Marik's awed expression. "Take notes. I expect my students to at least not disappoint me." Marik stared for a moment before his face took on a tentative smile grew on his face. "You mean- I'm… " Bakura just glanced away. This brat could be so embarrassing sometimes. "Hurry up and finish eating. I don't want to waste the day when we could be researching. There are two more Items to find."
Marik beamed at Bakura, practically glowing at Bakura's implications. He shoveled the rest of his sub into his face, barely taking the time to swallow. Bakura felt his eye twitch, losing his appetite. Yes, there truly was a god who enjoyed watching him suffer. He had no idea what the hell he was getting himself into. He wasn't even sure if it would be worth the effort in the end. But it was a gamble Bakura was willing to take. If he got his reward in the end, it will all be worth it.
Marik jumped up from his seat. "Shall we then? If we need a private place to investigate the other Items, I know a place that could work!" Bakura was slow to follow, stiffly standing up as he grabbed the Rod to place back in his bag. "Sure, why not? Let's get out of here." Marik waited until Bakura was packed up before skipping to his side, his stupid smile still stretched across his face. Bakura followed the excited youth out of restaurant, listening to him chatter excitedly about everything and nothing along the way. What am I getting myself into?