A/N: So, so, SO sorry for the long delays! I just, life has come crashing down around me and it has become much harder to write and update like I used to, but don't worry, I am not going to abandon either of my stories. I promise I will see them through to the end, plus I got some more story ideas from watching GX, so no worries. I will finish this story, and I hope to have even more time now that the summer is here. Thanks for not giving up on me and being so awesome! And now, on to the story!

Unreal Truths

Chapter 27: Explanations

Ryou's POV

I froze in my tracks and stared up into the wide eyes of Marik's brother and sister.

In my rage I had completely forgot about the other two Ishtar siblings.

Odion's eyes were wide, but he wasn't looking at me or even Marik. I followed his gaze and realized he was staring directly at Mariku.

I turned and found the Egyptian yami had moved and was perched in the chair I had just vacated beside Marik; predatory bird style.

Suddenly all anger was forgotten as I found myself suddenly trying to mediate the situation.

Ishizu cried out and pushed past Odion and I, "I knew it! I should have known you were behind this!"

Bakura was up in an instant with his blade in his hand and fire in his eyes, "Watch your tongue woman, I'd say you're in a poor position to be making accusations.

I groaned and moved into the room, pushing in front of Mariku and acting as a wall between him and Odion, "Stop! Wait, don't freak out! Let us explain!"

Ishizu looked at me, her eyes wide in disbelief, "Explain what Ryou? Why Marik's dark half and Bakura are sitting in here as if they belong! My brother is in a coma and these two fiends are behind it!"

I narrowed my eyes and raised my voice, "Enough!"

Everyone in the room turned to look at me and I crossed my arms, "Now listen, I will not have us fighting in this room while Marik is laying here sick. So, we have a choice." I turned to look at Ishizu and Odion, "You can come with me outside and let me calmly explain this or we can sit in here and scream and shout at each other and subsequently get kicked out. So which one will it be?"

"I'm not letting them in here alone with Marik." Ishizu's gaze rested on me and I let out a huff of annoyance.

"Ishizu, Odion, with all due respect I am not going to have this talk with you in the same room as those two. It will only cause more unnecessary problems."

Ishizu opened her mouth to speak again but Odion held out his hand to silence her, "We should let him speak Ishizu…" He looked to Mariku and Bakura before turning back to me, "I am sure he has just as much reason as we do to hate them and if he thinks it's safe then I say we give him the benefit of the doubt."

I gave Odion a heartfelt smile and nodded, "Trust me, I only have Marik's best interests at heart here." I nodded back to the former tomb keeper then looked to Mariku, "He'll be fine." I then turned and walked back out the door, motioning for Ishtar siblings to follow me.

I led them down the hall a ways until I found an exit to an outside garden. I gave a small smile and opened the door; it would be the perfect place just in case we all lost our cool.

Walking over to a bench, I motioned Ishizu and Odion to sit beside me.

Ishizu took my invitation but Odion did not, opting instead to stand in front of me with his arms crossed.

"Okay Ryou, we're waiting for this explanation."

I nodded firmly and took in a deep breath, "Right, of course. Well…where to begin?"

"How about the reason why my brother is in the hospital?" Ishizu gave a deep frown and I shook my head.

"No…" I sighed and leaned back into the bench, "Let me start from the beginning and give you as detailed of a story as I can without any unnecessary details."

Ishizu and Odion looked at me expectantly and I began to recite the details, from Bakura and Mariku first bursting down my door, Mariku and I's newfound relationship, Bakura's struggles with Marik and I ended with the current situation.

The whole explanation seemed to take forever, though it may have only been fifteen minutes. Not like I would know, I didn't watch the clock.

When I finished my story I lifted my gaze so I could look into Odion's eyes, he seeming to be being the more understanding of the two siblings.

Ishizu fidgeted beside me, folding and unfolding her hands several times and looking intently at the floor.

Odion let out a small sigh and smiled softly, "Seems like a lot has happened in these past few months eh?"

I gave a small smirk in return, "Understatement of the century."

"So what do we do now?" Ishizu spoke up, her voice soft and timid and very unlike her.

I sighed lightly and ran my hair through my fingers, "Well, to be honest I don't know. I think though, that these complicated relationships change a lot."

Ishizu scoffed, "Honestly Ryou, I don't see how you can think that monster has changed at all."

Narrowing my eyes I turned to look at her, "Excuse me Ishizu, but I think I should be the judge of Mariku's character here, and if I say he's fine then he's fine."

"You have no idea of the things he has done Ryou!" Ishizu's voice rose to a near hysteric high, "He's killed people!"

I took in a deep breath and fixed her with a dark look, "He's not the same!"

"How would you know? You never met him before!"

"I don't care! I know what he's like now and that's all that matters!"

Ishizu opened her mouth to speak again but Odion interrupted her before she could piss me off even more, "Ishizu, stop for a minute okay? There is no use in getting all worked up over this."

"Odion-" She shut her mouth however when Odion held up his hand for silence.

"Just stop okay? Let's talk this through the mature adults we all are."

Ishizu sighed and nodded, "Right, sorry."

I gave a brief nod myself before turning back to look at Odion, "Okay well…to be honest, I don't think Mariku and Bakura are threats to any of us anymore. Mariku is very content with being my boyfriend and I think he gave up on the whole conquering the world thing long ago."

Odion didn't look completely convinced but he went along with me anyways, "And what about Bakura?"

"Bakura won't be an issue either, of that I am almost completely positive. His priority is Marik now, and I think it will continue to be that way." I ran my left hand through my hair, "Though I don't think he knows it yet. We just need to give him time to warm back up to the idea that he loves Marik and always has, and we need to get those two to fix this rut their relationship is currently in."

"This is insanity!" Ishizu stood up, eyes flashing, "I will NOT have the monster even associating with my brother."

There she went, pissing me off again. She honestly had the most amazing ability to do that.

"Ishizu listen-"

"No!" She shook her head, "I am calling the cops and we are ending this here and now!"

I cocked an eyebrow, "And what, pray tell, are you going to tell them Ishizu? Two young men who don't even technically exist are trying to take over the world by stealing seven gold trinkets that will unleash terrible power?" I allowed a slow smirk on my face as both she and I realized that I had the advantage here, "I think they would refer you to the nearest psychiatric hospital."

Ishizu scowled and I allowed myself to grin in triumph, "Now, just listen for a second okay? I know you two are suspicious, and really you have every right to be so, but with all due respect Marik and I have been the ones to be held hostage and tormented these last few months, and if I am not freaking out right now then no one else should be."

"Unless you finally lost your mind." Ishizu grumbled lightly and I felt my anger rise again.

"Ishizu enough." Odion gave a sigh and uncrossed his arms, taking the now-vacated seat on the bench beside me, "I think Ryou is right." At Ishizu's disbelieving look Odion held up his hand, "Sister, you didn't see Marik break down and cry for the first time since he was a child because of the loss of Bakura. You didn't hear him confess about how much he loved him and that he would do anything to get him back. You didn't see him go into our former home, dig through every single scroll and book, trying desperately to find a way to get him back. That's devotion Ishizu, and if Marik doesn't love Bakura then I would like to know what else would drive him to the place he hates in search for a way to bring a former deranged spirit back."

Ishizu gave a light sigh and shook her head, "I still don't like it."

I brushed the hair out of my eyes and met her gaze with a softened one of my own, "No one is asking you to like it Ishizu, but we need to think about Marik right now. I think that Bakura is what he needs most and forcing him to give up Bakura again is just not right." I sighed lightly and shook my head, "It's important to him Ishizu, and if we can get Bakura to realize his feelings for Marik again then I think we can all make this work."

Giving a confident nod, I stood up and looked between the two Ishtar siblings, "Now I think we should go back in there and calmly try to talk things through with Bakura and Mariku and maybe actually try to get some progress made. Okay?"

They both nodded and I smiled. No one could say Ryou Bakura didn't know how to defuse a situation!

The two got up as well, Ishizu letting out a small sigh and Odion taking the lead, walking back to the hospital entrance and holding the door for his sister and I.

I thanked Odion quietly and lead the two former tomb keepers back to Marik's room, but before we went back inside I stopped outside the door and looked back to my two followers.

"Now, please, I know it will be hard not to just freak out on the both of them but you have to keep your cool. Remember that Marik is the reason why we are all here and it won't do him any good if all we do is sit and argue by his bed side."

Odion looked to Ishizu briefly before turning back to me, eyes serious, "I won't do anything to either of them, but only for Marik and if they start anything then I have the right to react."

I took in a deep breath but nodded. I didn't want a fight breaking out, but I knew that Mariku would behave; it was just Bakura that I was worried about.

"Okay then, let's go in." I opened the door and walked in first, making sure that I was staying in between the two Ishtar's behind me and the two in front of me and the former tomb robber.

Mariku looked up when I walked in, his lilac eyes sparkling. I wasn't surprised to still see him perched beside Marik as I had left him, but I was surprised to see him holding his lighter half's hand gently.

I smiled softly and walked over to him, giving him a gentle hug, "How is he?"

"I don't know, the bond is still numb." He gave a light sigh and looked back to Marik, his gaze sad and confused. "Why won't he wake up Ryou?"

I felt my heart nearly break in two at the despairing tone in the yami's voice. I didn't know what to tell him, and I was at a loss for what to do.

I saw movement out of the corner of my eye as Ishizu walked into the room, her eyes on Marik's hand in Mariku's and her expression shocked.

I could have laughed if the situation had been less serious.

Mariku looked from me to Ishizu and then to Odion, finally going back to me.

I smiled and kissed his cheek, "It's okay Mariku, they aren't going to do anything so long as you and Bakura don't try anything either."

Mariku nodded, leaned further into my embrace and the repeated his question, "Why won't Omote wake up Ryou?"

"He's just…." I sighed, trying to think of the best way to put this. "Marik's body is really hurt and in order to help him heal, his body has gone into a deep sleep. It will take a while, but he will eventually wake up." I smiled reassuringly and rubbed Mariku's back, the Egyptian yami looking up at me, "You promise Ryou?"

I felt my heart sink into my stomach at his question, but nodded anyways, "Yes Mariku, I promise."

Apparently satisfied with my answer, Mariku turned his attention back to Marik and just clung to his hand tightly.

"So what are you going to do now?"

I looked back to Odion and saw that he was looking at Bakura, eyes questioning.

Bakura scoffed and crossed his arms awkwardly since he was holding Marik's other hand, "I don't see how that is any concern of yours."

Odion took in a deep breath but stayed calm, "I mean, I don't see Marik wanting you back in his house, and I don't think Ryou would appreciate your presence either."

"Now just hold on." I broke in, not wanting a fight to break out over something stupid, "Bakura and Mariku are going to continue living with me, and Marik as well as soon as he returns home."

Odion and Ishizu gave me questioning glances and Bakura looked openly shocked.

"Bakura and Mariku are not going to cause any more trouble, are you guys?"

Mariku quickly shook his head and Bakura gave me a dark look, probably because I was ruining his bad ass reputation, but it had to be done.

"Right Bakura?" I stared him down, really not in the mood for a fight.

"….Right."

Oh man if looks could kill I would be dead on the spot. Oh well, I was used to Bakura glaring at me, and I must say it was much better now than when he was sharing a body with me.

I gave a satisfied smile and looked to Odion and Ishizu, "See?"

Ishizu gave an exasperated huff and stared at me, "And you believe him?"

"Ishizu, we already went through this! If Ryou trusts them then-"

Odion never got to finish his sentence.

Suddenly Mariku stood and clutched his head, giving a sickly moan before promptly passing out and falling to the floor in front of me.

"Mariku!" I raced over and just barely caught the yami before he hit the ground.

I looked up at Bakura and his eyes were wide in shock, mirrored by Odion and Ishizu.

Could things get any more complicated?