So I've not really got the time to work on HoM or the other two right now, simply because of the holiday season. I barely have time to sit down and eat, let alone write out 4000-ish words (so of course this chapter is 2000...)! Little chapters like this will keep me in the writing mood however. Also, good news! I have an Archiveofourown account, under the same name. I'll be reuploading all these fics there as well as here, but AO3 might have material that's not permitted here in the future. Mostly side chapters to HoM and LaD.
I'm pretty serious about this not becoming its own story, but I figure a casual extra chapter or two wouldn't hurt anyone.
"What was he doing with a time machine?"
"Hell if I know. Maybe he figured he could get one last rematch with Atem."
"But that's impossible! Time travel's way too complicated! You can't just use a tiny box like that to rewind the universe!"
"Know what else I thought was impossible? Fuckin' ghosts possessing people!"
They sound like a pair of comic book nerds arguing about the realism of their favorite's backstory. He almost wonders if they could've gotten away with this conversation in public, letting everyone assume the same thing.
The silent decision to skip school that day bugs Jounouchi, but neither the Thief King nor Bakura look up to it. They're back at Bakura's place, all three of them. He's gonna have hell to pay from Honda later for not telling him and Anzu and Yugi will worry, but maybe Bakura can help him come up with an excuse.
Bakura remembers too. The sheer confusion over what was going on and the Thief King's overwhelming hysteria were the only reasons he hadn't been able to retake control immediately. Once the Thief King had calmed down, he didn't even try to stop his host from reasserting himself.
They're on his couch, a empty bag of takeout in front of them. Bakura doesn't look too afraid or upset that he's a host, but then again he's always been good at hiding things. Jounouchi has a feeling the Thief King won't be pushing him around anymore, regardless - the person he'd dealt with in the alley was nothing like the monster he remembers. The Millennium Ring rests on Bakura's lap, the string not around his neck, but the fact that he's even touching the thing, even in the same building with it after everything the Thief King put him through...
Having someone else around makes the destruction of Domino all too real (and the look on Bakura's face when he asked what he remembered of it had him wanting to reset until he remembered Bakura would still remember), but it also means he's not alone.
How, or why? He doesn't care to think about it - might jinx himself. There's always the chance neither of them or only one of them will remember if he ever needs to reset. Not that he's planning on it unless a certain someone gets stab-happy again.
Who else remembers? His dad obviously doesn't, so maybe Shizuka doesn't either. He'll have to save her eyes again either way. In a way he's glad, because this time he knows she'll be just fine going into surgery. Maybe this time, she'll see something nice.
It could be a Millennium Item thing, but then again surely either Yugi or ... the other Yugi would've made contact already, unless they both think they're alone - but surely they'd have noticed the bizarre absence of both himself and Bakura. Same with the others.
Bakura clears away the debris from their food, leaving him alone with the Ring for a moment. It looks entirely innocent, just a lump of gold. If he touches it, would the Thief King feel it?
He doesn't get the chance to find out, since Bakura comes back with tea, moving the Ring to the coffee table. He's not much of a tea person, even though Bakura made it sweet, but he can appreciate the warmth.
"You and Yugi didn't happen to play any time travel themed RPGs, didja?"
"No, mostly just high fantasy."
"Damn. I figured you two might've made a time travel password or somethin', just for fun."
"That would've been wise. Should we make one?"
"Sure. How about... one of us says 'Seventh time's the charm' and the other says 'Looks more like eight to me'?"
"It's a little long, don't you think? How are we supposed to slip that into casual conversation anyway?"
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it!"
Bakura doesn't look too impressed, but he nods anyway. Whatever - Jounouchi thinks it's pretty clever.
He won't find out if Kaiba does until he wakes up from his coma and he hopes Mokuba doesn't have to go through remembering his own death anytime soon, it's not fun. Especially when it's more than once.
Maybe Malik will (oh god, Malik. Is he still down in the tombs, or is he terrorizing the underground already? What about the other Malik?), or Isis with the Necklace.
"Aw, hell," he mutters, sinking into the couch.
"What?"
"I just remembered all the shit we've got comin'. Pegasus, Otogi, Malik..."
Bakura joins him in slumping over. It's not comfy in the slightest but Jounouchi can't muster up the will to make it so.
"And us."
"You think the Thief King's gonna try the same trick twice?"
Bakura sighs as he looks at the Ring. "No, but I think we won't have a choice in the matter if we want to help Yugi and Atem. I mean, why else would we be sent to such a specific date?"
Oh. Right. The RPG game was when Yugi and Atem really first met. The first time they confirmed the other existed, even though they weren't really able to talk to each other just yet. If they remembered each other, no problem. But if they didn't, or if only one of them did...
"Besides," Bakura continues, looking pointedly at the Ring, "even after all that, we still need to deal with Zorc."
As if a switch had been thrown somewhere, the Ring goes ballistic, scratching and scraping at the glass top of the table like that demon was in the room right now. Bakura grabs it almost on reflex, wincing as one of the needle points leaves a jagged slash across his palm. He sucks air in his teeth, but doesn't let go and shakes his head at Jounouchi when he tries to take it off him.
"Bakura-"
"Shh!"
He works his hand around until they're safely out of reach of the frantic needles, the uninjured one holding it by the string. It's helpless in the air and as each second crawls past the swaying slows and the needles eventually cease their slicing, twitching every so often instead.
"Are you there? Give me some sort of sign, if you can."
The Ring doesn't react, now completely still.
"Not for nothin', but I don't think he wouldn't have any trouble pretending to be the Thief King."
"His name is Bakura."
Jounouchi ignores how un-Egyptian a name 'Bakura' is as Bakura lowers the Ring back down again, returning it to his lap. His other hand's still bleeding though the cut itself looks pretty shallow.
"I can't call you both Bakura, that's just confusing."
"I know, but'd be weird if you called me by my first name in front of everyone, when we've only just met."
Then Bakura looks away, almost shy. "Besides, it's not like you usually use my first name anyway, or me yours. The only person who did was Yugi, and he didn't do that until you two moved in together."
It's the past tense that riles him. The Yugi he knew was dead. The Yugi in this world, if he doesn't remember anything, might never be like his Yugi simply by Jounouchi's presence as someone who knows what's coming, rather than someone who's as surprised by all the twists and turns yet to come.
But Yugi is still Yugi.
"Bakura," he says carefully. "Do me a favor and never refer to Yugi in the past tense ever again."
He doesn't flinch, or even react at all, like he was expecting this to happen at some point. "Sorry."
Then he finally notices his hand. "I need to take care of this, I guess."
Jounouchi pretends not to notice that he's taken the Ring with him.
He's no master of reading people like Bakura, but he can tell the Thief King's in control if only because Bakura would never hesitate at the sight of him when he finally emerges from the bathroom, looking a little bit green around the gills.
When Jounouchi stays put, he relaxes just a bit, though the couch remains a barrier between the two. He leans on the door, but it's not like he's trying to slouch all arrogantly, like the wannabe thugs at school against the fence. It's as if all the life has left him and it's freaking Jounouchi out, to be honest. He's never had to deal with someone giving up on everything.
He can't imagine what it feels like for the Thief King as Zorc rots his soul again. It must be so much harder this time, since the memory of being free and himself, even if only shreds remained, is still fresh in his memory and not dulled by three thousand years of nothing else.
"Reset."
His voice is somehow even softer than Bakura's now, and that's just plain weird.
"Fuck no."
"Do it or I'll stab you again."
"As if Bakura would let you. Hell, even if you manage to keep him down long enough to do it, when when we DO reset Bakura's gonna throw you in the river and you'll be stuck there 'til we need you."
Amazingly that shuts him up for a moment, like he thinks Bakura actually would. Evidently he's remembered not to underestimate his host, especially not one that's had several years to mature his mind and strengthen himself even more.
But Bakura's not that cruel, even to someone like the Thief King. To be honest, neither is Jounouchi. It's weird. Maybe he's given up a bit as well, on bothering to keep hating the Thief King. Even if he's literally killed him a couple of times.
Eh. He was on neutral terms with Kaiba at the end and Malik was alright the few times they met and they both tried to kill him.
The moment of silence ends all too quickly, but not the way Jounouchi thinks it would. "Please."
"Why should I?"
He looks down at Bakura's hand, the now bandaged one. It's the same one that had the starburst scar from the RPG game, the one that always ached in the cold.
Then Jounouchi gets it. "I'm not resetting every time he scrapes his knee, man."
"I know."
But that one's his fault, Jounouchi thinks to himself, and rolls his eyes. "Fine. But this is the only freebie you get, understand? I don't want Bakura to be stuck with a scar either. Be more careful because next time, you owe me."
The Thief King nods.
When Jounouchi wakes up, the first thing he does is text Bakura. But he's from an era where texting has moved on from using the number pad to touchscreen. He can always reset if Bakura's response is just confusion.
fuk it dif pw - j
He can hear his father snoring downstairs as he waits for the reply.
Told you it should've been shorter.