I'm so very sorry that it took so long to update this, things came up…
Disclaimer: All I own is the laptop I type on
To my lovely and appreciated reviewers:
DistanceBetween: Yes, poor Ryou does not deserve it. I never thought of that, but it does seem a bit like Ryuk. Ryou is my favorite, followed closely by Bakura, but Marik is definitely my third! Original is the best compliment you can give an author, so thank you!
Shminzi: I'm glad ^_^
Mittelan: That's good, I have to go over it a lot because I sometimes rush and I don't even know what I'm saying, lol. Glad you like the chapter.
SangNoire: I'm glad you like it, sorry for the long wait.
DolceNeko: I'm glad you like the story, interest vary so maybe that's why you are having troubles finding stories you like, but I think there is always someone trying ^_^. Sorry about the POV thing, I do sometimes switch around too much, hopefully that will calm down once we get deeper into the story.
NulTide: Original, yay! Still my favorite compliment ^_^.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh, any of the Yugioh characters I use in this story, I am just borrowing them. I also make no profit, what so ever, from writing this, I do this for my own enjoyment.
Demon in the Chapel
Chapter Three
As soon as Ryou walks through the door he is yanked to the side by the demon, if anyone seen this supernatural event, teachers, children, or the parents dropping them off, they completely ignore it.
"Who did it?" Bakura demands, crimson eyes intensely on the smaller's face, Ryou hasn't the slightest clue what the other's outburst is about though, looking up at the demon with curious and frightened eyes. "Your face, brat, what happened to your face?"
The boy reaches up to tenderly touch the ugly bruise and shifts his eyes to the ground before answering, "Uh- I-it's nothing, I-I ran into a door."
"Don't lie to me!" The demon grabs the boy's arm only to release it when he winces; eyeing the little one over it doesn't take long for him to figure out the child is hiding more bruises under his clothes. "Tell me who did it, now." Ryou trembles under the other's scrutiny, the excuse that worked all too easily on his father obviously isn't going to work on the demon.
The youth almost sighs in relief when those crimson eyes leave him, only to land on the tan blonde that just walked into the church.
"It was Marik."
Ryou's head snaps back to the man. "It wasn't!" He says a little louder than he means to, eyes start to peer at him, his face grows flush and he looks away, "it wasn't Marik."
"Don't lie to me," He orders again, "He's frantic, so afraid you are gonna tell on him."
What he is afraid of is Ryou telling his strict, religious father about the group he hangs out with. About how he isn't the good guy that he poses to be.
"He didn't do it," the child is almost pleading with the demon now, his tone begging the other to believe him, he doesn't look convinced though. "He re-"
"Ryou!" There's a call before a bundle of blonde and tan is all but bouncing towards him, Marik's small double ganger. To the whitenette's horror the other boy stops in the most awkward of places, halting just where the demon stands and merging with his image, face protruding sickly from the beings chest; it's like a horror movie.
Malik has his own concerns though, his happy expression turning into one of worry at the ugly, greenish-purple blotch marring his friends face. "Ryou, what happened?"
The pale child shifts uncomfortably and it takes all his effort to keep his eyes on the Egyptian before him, his stomach twisting at the image, before answering in what he wants to be a light tone, and a embarrassed smile on his face, "I r-ran into a door, heh heh."
"Look at you, what a pretty little liar you've become," Ryou tries to ignore the demon's taunts, still keeping his eyes trained on his friend who like Bakura doesn't look convinced, if anything his frown grows deeper.
"Ryou, if something happened," Malik steps forward to take a closer look and thankfully separating from Bakura's image," You know you can tell me. "
"Tell him Ryou," Bakura continues his cruel words, eyes practically glowing with malice. "Tell him how his older brother left those bruises on you."
"I-I jus-"
"Malik, you're gonna be late for class," Surprisingly Bakura doesn't say anything about the new arrival; though the look the demon gives the teen is one the child is glad he isn't receiving.
"Right!" Just like that the thoughts are wiped out of the young blonde's mind; he grabs his friend's hand dragging him along to the classroom as well.
Ryou glances back worriedly at Bakura, why isn't the demon following him? Something bad is gonna happen, something horrible! The look-a-like is always by his side to torment him, a constant torture. A smirk is made in his direction before the devil disappears, one that the child didn't like in the least.
The teacher is speaking but Ryou can't understand any of her words he is still mad with fear, waiting, just waiting, for something bad to happen. It's been a while now, it's gonna happen soon, he can feel it!
"Ryou?" The small albino jolts at his name, eyes coming up to meet his teachers, "Are you alright?" She's pretty, very pretty with auburn hair and ebony eyes, but her voice is shrill.
"Nasty slut, she fucked on this table," Bakura's words echoed in his mind, it makes him tremble to remember his claims, "She got off on it, knowing that her students sat around where she spread her legs."
"Ryou?"
"I-I'm fine," he finally answers, but avoids eye contact, a deep blush settling on his cheeks. Why do the demon's words haunt him so?
Inky eyes roam over him, he knows what she's looking at, there will be whispers later on; old women gossiping about him and his father, just like when mother and sister died. She looks as if she is about to say something- there's a scream.
All eyes are on the door from which the noise came from, the kids growing loud with fuss, but it doesn't overpower the high sound from the other side of the wooden slab.
"Hush children!" The teacher demands, taking back control of the situation. "You are to stay seated till I return," With that she storms out of the room in a hurry.
Just as soon as the door closes does disobedience arise, the children scrambling to the door to press their ears against it, wanting to know what's happening, hushed words filtering between them. Not Ryou though, he is frozen because Bakura at that time chose to saunter in, walking through the children as if he were a hologram, before quietly taking a seat on the table, though it has nothing to do with lack of chairs.
Ryou just sits there, eyes locked on the beast that still holds an unsettling smirk, heart pounding in… Fear? Worry? Anticipation?
"Wh-"
"Shut up I can't hear!" Malik's loud cry grabs the albino's attention and silences him, heart for some reason sunk in dread, and he knows why when the next words are spoken, "they're talking about Marik!"
Just like that the door is opened and the little blonde is running out, Ryou mindlessly gets up and follows. The Egyptian is feisty and fights through the large crown blocking his way like a hot knife to butter, the one on his tail is just the opposite though he squeezes and crawls to get to his destination only to wish he never arrived. By that time his friend was a mess leaning over his older brother and calling his name though the larger is completely unresponsive, though his chest rises and falls, his eyes stares up at the roof without focus like the dead.
"Ma-Malik," he quietly calls his friend, though he himself doesn't know why, and he is relieved it wasn't answered. He wants to say sorry, scream it, because he knows this is his fault, but he just silently watches the still blonde and the hectic one. He just watches when they pull Malik away, the boy fighting and screaming the whole time, and when they put Marik on the stretcher, even when those two are gone and the crowd of teens also disperse he sits there looking at the spot that they were at, guilt resting heavily in his stomach.
"Such a shame about the Ishtar boy," Ryou's heart jolts at those words and all too suddenly he is pulled back into the real world, "Though it is what he deserves, touching my things?"
"Y-your things?" He can feel a heavy hand run through his hair, gentle, the beast always treats him like glass physically, but mentally he is pushed to his limits.
"Yes, my things, you."
"No!" Ryou screams, he never screams. In a room still full of the bible school teachers and students still waiting to be picked up from the cancelled event though, he screams.
"Ryou?" his eyes bolt to the elderly woman that called his name, just a foot away from him, Mrs. Scissor. Chocolate eyes wander from his ex-teacher to those around him, they all give him odd looks, it looks as if this woman had lost a game of rock, paper, scissors to be having to talk to the "crazy, motherless child". "Are you feeling alright? Do you want to sit down?"
"I-I just wa-want to be alone," He mumbles more than speaks. The older woman nods and puts a hand on his upper back to gently lead him to the room she uses. Bakura fallows leisurely, tail flicking proudly behind him, the door is shut behind him and the demon makes his way to the table, again sitting on the on the wood as if he never heard of the invention called chairs.
"Please," Ryou doesn't hesitate to plead with the beast now that they are alone, "Please make M-Marik better."
"He-"
"He didn't!" the child cries, tears burn at his eyes, threatening to spill any moment, "He saved me! He saved me…" The last little whisper was more to himself and the tears do fall, large drops cascading down his cheeks. "I was being b-beaten up a-and h-he s-s-s"
"It's too late." Bakura tells him, though he doesn't seem in the least bit remorseful, "I can't fix him."
"Yo-you have t-too!"
"I can't." Those words are final. They are all that is needed to make the child's knees to buckle and his silent sobs turn into little wails of despair, this is his fault.
Bakura reaches up and rips something from around his neck before throwing it down before the distressed boy, it's a cross, that only brings the child more turmoil, how sinful that the being wore the symbol of their savoir, how utterly wrong.
"Pick it up," Brown eyes look up at the demon before down at the necklace, he shouldn't, but he does. The gold is warm in his hand, almost as if emitting it's own heat, and the crude though plain eye in the middle seems to stare at him, it is nothing though when he feels what seems to be a small… pulse! He drops the thing as if it had burned him, scrambling away.
"You should be more careful with that," Bakura scolds at if he hadn't thrown it just moments ago, "that houses your dear friend, Marik."
Wide eyes go back to the demon, full of disbelief and shock, tears still slowly trickling down his face, but it is replaced with a look of determination. He grabs the cross, Marik, and holds it close to him, swearing this time to protect the older male.