A Little Fall of Rain

Summary: When the angel Ryou becomes smitten with a mortal who he believes can do no harm, he creates a misunderstanding, resulting in the wrath of the young demon Malik whose unrequited love was never satisfied in life.

Rated: T

Genre: Supernatural/Romance

Author's Note: Fellow Bronzeshipping fangirls? Two Words: Whipped Cream. This story finally earns its 'T' rating. Tendershipping fangirls? Ryou's back. :D The last portion of this chapter is a conversation between Yami and Ryou. The absence of anything other than dialogue is intentional; I'm trying to make it more…dramatic. Ooh! And the lyrics of Malik's absentminded singing are from Houkiboshi, Bleach's third ending song.

Disclaimer: Yuugiou is not of belonging to me. Whoo, that was painful to type. Go Engrish!

Plumet Attack

Marik usually left school campus to buy lunch, but that morning he had decided to make the infamous ham sandwich that had terrorized Malik all those years ago. He didn't know why he felt the need to slop together a grade school meal, but something about Malik's presence seemed to have triggered a nostalgic effect on the normally irritable teen; after all, it was a measly ham sandwich that had given Marik enough courage to give the smaller blonde such a memorable 'compliment.' It wasn't the only compliment either; Marik had snuck in a number of kisses throughout a majority of their middle school and high school life, but had never admitted to performing them out of pure affection. At first, he just wanted to tease Malik, thinking everything to be a game that neither would tire of playing. However as the two boys grew older, Marik found himself wanting to play the game more often. He started to notice the odd way Malik held his pencil, the way his hair seemed to change color when rays of sun hit it just right; and more than once he caught himself staring at the younger boy during his less interesting classes, earning stares from nearly half of the classroom. Even before Marik had begun learning the fundamentals of psychology, he knew that he had become infatuated with his next-door neighbor.

And that frightened him.

It wasn't that he was ashamed of having feelings for another boy; Marik had always been rather ambiguous when it came to his sexual orientation. However, falling in love with someone he had known for so long could have jarring effects on their friendship. If he had managed to develop a relationship with Malik, their friendship would have evolved into something bigger, more intimate. But what would happen if the relationship were to end? Would that mean their long friendship would be dissolved as well? Despite Marik's sincere yearning for a real romance with Malik, the dread of destroying what they had worked so hard to accomplish held him back. It wasn't him denying Malik's cravings for affection…it was his fear. Perhaps one day Marik would pluck up enough nerve to tell the other blonde how he felt. But, to be honest, he doubted it would be anytime soon.

The psychology student picked up the sandwich and finally began eating. It was cold.

But it was delicious.

"Marik!"

Said blonde coughed as Bakura landed a hearty slap on his back, bringing with him the unwelcome stench of formaldehyde.

"Sick Bakura! Ugh, did you just get finished dissecting?"

"Yup," he panted, beads of sweat clinging to his silver hair, "we got the corpses today! You should see them; they're so creepy! We…we were supposed to cut into the abdomen today, but when Takeshi-sensei wasn't looking I started messing around with its eyes, and-"

"Bakura, I'M EATING!"

"Huh? Oh yeah, guess the details would be too gruesome for you, considering you're taking pussy psychology. I guess I should just go talk to the more manly students around here. Let's see, I'm sure Otogi's taking something interesting."

"Otogi's taking fashion design," Marik smirked, "but I'm sure he'll love to hear about how you screwed yourself on the first day by botching your dissection."

Bakura paled. "Wha-what? What do you mean botch?"

"The professors check the bodies everyday for any foreign marks and deduct points for anything that wasn't involved in that day's instruction. Didn't you know that?"

"N-No! You're lying! You're using that reverse psychology stuff aren't you?"

"Believe what you want Bakura… But I warned you…"

The medical student plopped down beside Marik and tore a off piece of his sandwich. "Eh, I'll figure it out tomorrow. Hey this is pretty good Marik, never knew you had a talent for putting stuff on bread."

"Go fuck yourself."

"It was a compliment stupid," Bakura frowned, "Someone's being extra grumpy today! Aww…whatsa matter? Malik didn't put out last night?"

"SHUT UP BAKURA!"

"You know what? Fine! If you don't want him, then I'll take him. I've always wanted to taste Egyptian c-"

"Malik doesn't like you," Marik blushed, tearing another hole into the sandwich, "and he'd drop kick your ass out the door if you even touched him."

"Oh yeah, well…I GOT TO SEE MALIK TOTALLY NAKED BEFORE YOU CAME HOME LAST SATURDAY!" Bakura yelled gleefully.

CHOKE! HACK! SPIT!

"WHAT?"

"HA HA! YOU GOT OWNED!"

"Is that true Bakura?"

Both boys turned to see a shockingly pink Ryou standing behind their table holding a tray of several different types of cupcakes. His large eyes rested on Bakura, who had began to sputter out a string of nonsensical words.

"Nuh…uh…yuh…I…uh…see…"

"I suppose I'd misjudged your character yesterday," the younger boy said airily, "It seems you aren't the perfect gentleman you claimed to be. How disappointing, you had such potential…"

"You're that kid who dropped all those puffs in Malik's hair," Marik said, narrowing an eye, "And who bought Bakura all that useless junk. I didn't know you went to this school."

"I just transferred," Ryou said in a huff, sitting uncomfortably close to Marik, "I came all the way from Osaka because I heard that they had marvelous classes concerning Child Development over here."

"I guess," the blonde coughed, scooting away from the angel.

"Oh, how rude of me! I didn't mean to be so imposing! It's just that ever since yesterday I've been meaning to tell you how sorry I was for ruining your date's hair. Though he does seem a bit vain-"

"He's wasn't my date," Marik interjected, "we're just friends."

"That's not what you said yesterday," Bakura said gloomily.

"So, you're free?" Ryou asked, "By which I mean you're single, right? No lover to tie you down?"

The medical student looked up suddenly. Mahogany eyes darting from Marik's indifferent expression to Ryou's odd grin.

"You could say that," Marik said slowly, narrowing his eyes.

Ryou smiled and looked away momentarily, trying to remember what he was supposed to say next. He couldn't even believe he had allowed Yami to talk him into 'stealing' Marik. Not to say the blonde wasn't attractive, he just wasn't anywhere near as appealing to Ryou as Bakura was. But according to the older (and supposedly wiser) angel, the key to sending Malik back to Hell was to take away what he had come for. If Marik had found love in Ryou, then Malik would have no choice but to go home. It was cruel, almost too cruel for Ryou's taste, but it needed to be done! …Didn't it? The angel bit his lip and allowed himself a quick glance at Bakura. He looked so betrayed…it was only yesterday when they had their little pseudo date, and already Ryou had broken it off. He didn't want to have anything to do with Marik; he just wanted to help Bakura find his way… but in order to do that, Malik had to be removed from the picture. And that meant…

"You have any plans this weekend?" The angel pressed, attempting to place his hand on Marik's arm. The blonde noticed and quickly withdrew the limb, glaring daggers at the forceful newcomer. Malik was never this clingy and they'd known each other for forever!

"Don't take this the wrong way, but if you try to touch me again I will hurt you."

"Eh? I'm sorry! I suppose that was rather intrusive, wasn't it? Forgive me, I just…well…"

Marik blinked and looked at Ryou inquiringly. Was he trying to hit on him? Because frankly, having someone you hardly knew try to score with you was slightly unnerving. Especially if that someone was a polite young man that could have easily been toppled over by a slight breeze.

"We're planning to go to clubbing Saturday night, not that it's any of your business."

"Ooh! How fun!" Ryou squealed, secretly loathing the idea of entering an alcohol filled sex pit with drunken young adults, "Can I come?"

The blonde thought for a moment. Saying 'no' seemed rather rude, but saying 'yes' would almost certainly invoke the wrath of Malik, who had spent a good majority of the previous night thinking up morbid ways to decapitate Ryou. The smaller blonde seemed adorably naïve and slightly immature, but if you managed to get on his bad side you'd discover that he was actually extremely clever and frighteningly persistent.

Other than having Malik to deal with, Marik also didn't really like that the younger boy was trying to force himself into their close little group of three. He had been out with Bakura once and had humiliated the love of his life by dropping a box of pastries on his head. What made him believe he had any right to invite himself in?

"No."

"Yes!" Bakura blurted out, "We'd love it if you came!"

"Bakura, I don't think Malik-"

"Who cares about him?" the other student snorted, causing Ryou's eyes to brighten. "I don't care what you say Marik, you're getting whipped by that sassy little bitch and you like it."

The angel's heart nearly burst with joy. Bakura had successfully thwarted Malik's attempts to draw him into Hell! Score one for the good guys!

"Fine! Fine, fine, fine, fine, fine," Marik sighed, throwing his hands into the air, "he can come. But it was your idea."

"Okay then, no problem!"

"Great!" Ryou smiled, "I'll see you guys there!"

The bell rang and Ryou dashed away, silently cursing himself for not being able to pull Marik toward the path to salvation. Malik seemed to already have a strong hold on the human's heart, distorting his decisions. The angel sighed softly, irritated at his powerless situation. How strong was this demon anyway? He was young but still managed to work his magic on an innocent mortal! Unless Marik really…? But that was impossible. No one could love a demon willingly; it had to be a trick! But it seemed impossible to break the two blonde's apart…

Bright brown eyes burned with determination. If Marik didn't want anything to do with him, then so be it. All he had to do was make Malik believe otherwise. The angel flexed his fingers experimentally, closely examining the delicate folds of skin around his knuckles. If he could somehow force Marik to kiss him…

"You're dead Bakura," Marik said nastily, walking slightly ahead of the love struck medical student, "you know Malik hates that guy's guts."

"What can he do?" Bakura scoffed, brushing away the warning, "He's like five inches shorter than me and only eats vegetables. What am I supposed to be scared of? Is he gonna hold an onion to my face and make me cry?"

The taller blonde smirked and held out his right hand for Bakura to see. There were three white scars encircling his pinky, as well as a dark scab that looked to have never healed.

"What's that?"

"I was six and he was five when I made the mistake of making fun of his hair. He tried to bite my little finger off, I needed to get twenty-seven stitches, and I couldn't move it for six months. He was only five Bakura. Think of what he could bite off now! Hell, he could bite off your whole arm!"

"You're exaggerating!"

"Believe what you want to believe," Marik drawled, "you just better pray I don't let it slip that you invited that little puffball to go clubbing with us."

"Anata no koto omou to, mune ga itaku naru no," (1) Malik sang softly, lilac eyes glues onto the small screen of Bakura's new iPod. Since his two 'landlords' had conveniently left a rather large sum of money on their dressers, the young demon thought it only fitting to use it to buy a few odds and ends for the room's very empty interior. Nothing too noticeable; a new lamp, a few bean bag chairs, some books…and for some odd reason several cans of whipped cream.

"Ima sugu aitai yo, dakedo sora wa tobenai kara…" (2)

The boy's pink tongue peeked out to remove a sticky drop of strawberry smoothie from his tanned hands, savoring the sweet tartness of his favorite fruit. A medium sized iced drink was another indulgence Malik treated himself to using Marik and Bakura's money. He knew was a tad selfish…but the tempting call of strawberry was too seductive to ignore. And besides, they could always earn more money.

He smirked, drawing his finger lazily though the light pink slush. He then brought the digit up to his awaiting lips and began sucking on it lavishly, knowing very well just how suggestive his actions were. If only Marik were here to see it…

"Malik! I got off early, there was an explosion in the west side of the quad and…Malik where'd all this stuff come from?"

Malik's eyes targeted the aforementioned blonde and he stood up, pocketing 'his' iPod and offering Marik a sip of his cherished smoothie.

"I did a touch of shopping while you two were off learning about the different ways to get inside a person's head!" He said happily, "you really should be more careful about where you leave your money. With little demons like me running around it might not be there when you get back!"

Marik blanched.

"Whatever happened to asking?"

"Well I didn't want to bother you," Malik said innocently, large eyes glittering apologetically, "I mean…I thought you'd be happy…but…"

Sniff, sniff…

"Oh no," the taller blonde groaned. 'Not that look…'

"Mariku-sama," the demon cooed, "you aren't upset with me are you? I was just trying to help…"

'MUST RESIST! BUT…CAN'T! TOO CUTE…! MUST…GIVE IN…MIGHT…EXPLODE!' Marik sighed, acknowledging defeat. Damn that child's power to make him feel all warm and gooey inside. "Don't worry about it…I was just kidding you! I love the…new squishy things."

"They're chairs dumbass," Malik snapped, his personality quickly reverting to its typical cheekiness, "and I see that even after all these years you still turn to putty when I look at you like that."

"Ever consider that I was just teasing?" the other blonde lied smoothly, "We've known each other for so long that I'd be surprised if you didn't try to get your way with that look. But really…I like the stuff you got."

"Really? Then you'll love what's in the fridge."

"…What's in the fridge?"

Giggling mischievously, the small demon popped out with two cans of whipped cream, shaking the cardboard tubes intensely. Marik's plum eyes widened at the two star shaped nozzles aimed right for his school uniform, ready to release a white stream of sugar filled creamy goodness. Speaking of sugar, Marik took a mental note to inspect Malik's smoothie for any signs of the stimulating substance.

"Open wide!"

Marik quickly turned one of the bottles towards Malik just as the demon was pressing down on the tips, only achieving in drenching them both in the sweet icing. He then grabbed two more whipped cream cans from the fridge and the two friends engaged in a messy (yet delicious) whipped cream battle, each of them managing to cover the other with the sticky goop. Malik squeaked as he realized that he was out of ammunition, and quickly dodged the oncoming fire of sugared bullets and pounced on a breathless Marik, both of them laughing maniacally at the pure insanity that was taking place. The demon scooped up a wad of whipped cream and smeared it on Marik's already white face, trying to get as much as he could into the taller blonde's mouth. Marik retaliated by flipping the smaller boy onto his back and tickling him fiercely with his cream coated hands.

Malik squealed adorably, rolling from side to side in order to avoid Marik's skilled fingers. He knew every single one of the demon's tender spots and was currently exploiting them for no reason other than to see the boy laugh.

"S-Stop it! I can't breathe!"

"You asked for it! You may have started this battle, but in Ra's name I will finish it!"

"M-Marik! Q-Quit it! I-I-Ahahahahahahahahaha!"

"You'll have to do better than that you wicked little thing!"

"Pl-Please! I can't take it!"

The tickling stopped momentarily, and Malik, blinded by tears looked up into Marik's face, expecting to see the older teen's smug look of accomplishment. But almost as soon as he was able to regain his breath, Marik captured the small blonde into a passionate kiss, thoroughly enjoying how the dessert topping only emphasized the exotic taste present on Malik's lips. The demon was momentarily stunned, enthralled and shocked at how Marik's tongue navigated into all the possible reaches of his mouth, and eventually he kissed back, releasing all the frustration he had been hoarding since the last few moments before his death…

Marik had noticed the boy's inexperience at kissing and easily regained control, turning an already heated gesture into one of maddening lust. A part of him was screaming 'STOP,' but there were so many others screaming 'MORE.' So many years of concealed affection bursting forth in one grandeur moment of pure…pure…

Pure love…

While the two blondes were in their own little world, Bakura had bounded up to the room to try and prevent Marik from revealing that he was the one that had allowed Ryou to go with them on Saturday. Sweaty and breathless, the medical student wrenched open the door to find his two roommates engrossed in a fiery display of romance, covered head to toe with a creamy white substance. The unidentified 'goo' was also splattered on the walls, floor, and even on the ceiling, leading Bakura to believe that several years of pent up sexual tension could allow one's…(ahem) to fire at incredible distances. A disturbing thought…but oddly arousing.

Wait…I thought these two were friends…

"I can't wait to hear the excuse for this one," Bakura said loudly, placing a sock covered foot onto Marik's back. "Lemme guess…Malik was choking on his own release and you had to help him breathe."

The kiss finally broke and Marik turned angrily to his roommate, face licked clean of all previous messes. "You've got a sick mind, bastard. This stuff's whipped cream. Get your mind out of the gutter!"

"How would that even work?" the smaller blonde blinked, unable to get the image out of his head. "Thanks for emotionally scarring me forever Bakura…"

"Well excuse me princess," the other student sneered, directing the comment at the blushing Malik, "I thought you two were just friends. Feh! Whatever. You dumb blondes are responsible for this mess and you're going to clean it up! Whether it be whipped cream or whatever…and I do mean 'whatever.' Get to it, chop chop!"

"You think you can boss me around?" The two blondes snapped, displaying their strange habit of seeming to have the same thought as the other.

"Uh, yeah? I'm sick of cleaning up after you two! First paper, then the glass, then-"

"Bakura invited Ryou to come with us on Saturday," Marik barked immediately, causing said teen to turn a deep shade of red.

"What?"

"MARIK!"

"You pushed me to the edge Bakura," the tall blonde said solemnly, "I had no other choice…"

"He was hitting on Marik!" Bakura retorted, hoping to shock Malik enough so he could plan an elaborate escape plan.

Malik quietly stood up and walked to the bathroom with a dazed expression on his face, causing the two remaining teens to trade curious glances. Marik was surprised the boy hadn't conked Bakura on the head, and Bakura was surprised that he was still able to hear. After a few awkward seconds, Malik emerged with a small smile on his face, wiping the last remnants of the whipped cream from his bare arms.

Bakura relaxed at the sight of the blonde's calm face, believing that Marik's kiss had somehow numbed him of any feeling other than joy. They were oblivious to the uncontrolled rage that was currently coursing through Malik's veins. Nothing ever went according to plan. Why wouldn't he just go away? He was always there, wherever Malik went. And now he was trying to muscle in on his Marik?

Over. My. Dead. Body.

As soon as Bakura's shoulder's eased down, Malik viciously grabbed him by the ear, pinching it fiercely between his delicate fingers. In another swift motion, the demon kneed Bakura between the legs and gave him a harsh slap, causing the poor medical student to bear a painful looking handprint on his cheek.

"Despite my small stature and undeniable beauty (thanks for noticing), never forget that I am fully capable of preventing you from ever having children. Why you decided to invite a preachy little troll who despises my very being to go clubbing with us is beyond my understanding, but I doubt you have the balls to un-invite him. …And even if you did have the balls, I'm sure they'll be out of order for quite a while. Now be a dear and clean this mess up, Marik has to change my bandages."

"But I'm-!" Bakura began, but was silenced by Malik's frightening glare. He had never noticed it before, but the young blonde's pupils were strikingly similar to that of a rabid feline. Was that…natural?

"Clean it. Marik, come to the bathroom and undress me."

"With pleasure," Marik said eagerly.

"I meant the bandages stupid," Malik huffed, extremely disgruntled.

Bakura cast a loathing glance at the taller blonde who mouthed 'sorry' and disappeared into the bathroom with his little friend slash lover slash dominating snooty bitch slash hot boyfriend. Choosing to room with Marik instead of Yuugi was really beginning to look like a mistake.

"What do you mean you couldn't get the human to agree?"

"Well Malik's control over his heart seems to have intensified. It's almost as if…as if he really does love-"

"Don't be an idiot Ryou! It's because you spent so much time with that other human. That little wretch's power has grown stronger. Soon his influence will completely overpower-"

"But he doesn't seem evil! He may be a little…explosive, but it's typical for any being around his age. Yami…I know how you feel about demons, but…I really, really believe that that human truly loves Malik."

"So now you're using its name?"

"Yami, I asked the council for the records on his death…and…he…"

"He died in sin, just like everyone else down there. "

"But under his circumstances-"

"Heaven doesn't make mistakes!"

"I never said it did! But Malik's crime isn't nearly as severe as a majority of those who are damned! Yami…I can't do this. He doesn't deserve any of this!"

"He's a demon!"

"Why does that make it okay to cause him pain? To…to destroy his dreams?"

"BECAUSE THEY DON'T DESERVE TO HAVE THEM!"

"Yami you're being unreasonable! You can't honestly compare the death of a seventeen year old boy who rejected the divinity of the Heavens due to heartache with the death of a mass murderer! It's just not the same!"

"He's beginning to affect you. It seems the demon's power is more potent than I thought. You're not thinking straight…"

"I'm thinking perfectly fine! It's you who's-"

"What about Bakura? Have you noticed anything different about him? Has the demon's presence tainted him any further? Has he strayed from the right path?"

"Yami, Bakura isn't under the influence of Malik. He's just a little confused…but after I'm finished with teaching him how to make the right choices…he'll finally…be with me… Malik isn't doing anything to him!"

"Are you willing to bet his life on it?"

"I thought so. Enough with this nonsense about that demon's innocence. No matter how severe their sins the fact remains that they weren't good enough to share the skies with us. We are superior. You need to pull Marik away from Malik, it's the only way to ensure Bakura's salvation, and you know that!"

"But…I…fine."

"Good. I know it's hard for you, but believe me. Malik had his chance. You're just trying to give Bakura the same thing."

"I suppose…"

"Don't doubt yourself Ryou. You and I both know this is for the best."

NO, the title is not a typo.

(1) When I think of you, my chest begins to hurt,

(2) I want to see you right now, but I can't fly through the sky.

REVIEW! FIVE FOR NEXT CHAPTER!! THE DEMONS RETURN!!