Hey, guys! Just to let you know, this will be a looong chapter. I got a little too into it. Also, Bakura swears a bit...so, just to brace yourselves, one f-bomb, then a couple minor ones. Enjoy! :)
Bakura's POV
On the outside, nobody would have been able to tell if I was having any thoughts at all besides getting to a destination. On the inside, my brain wrestled itself with conflicted thoughts upon learning that Lucy and I have an ancient past. I remember everything else about my past, so why can't I remember her? Was she even in my past, or was Marik lying to me? No, there has always been something familiar about Lucy Devereaux. Perhaps this trip to the museum will be beneficial for my apparently lost memories. Ryou will just have to miss it.
There was a different chill in the air, now that I had left the alley, now that I had left Marik and Lucy. I watched my feet in front of me as I walked. I could swear people were staring at me as I sauntered through the streets. Their eyes seem to follow my every step. I looked up. Nobody was watching me at all. In fact, many seemed in a hurry. You're such a fool. Stick with the plan: my only purpose here is to keep an eye on the Pharaoh. No distractions…not even...
"Lucy…!" I said bitterly, and quiet enough for an audience of one to hear. Unfortunately, she may have to be a distraction. She may ask questions... Of course she'll ask questions! Why was she there? Did she follow me? Why did she have to be there?! I continued to get more and more frustrated until I was across the street from the museum. My rage grew more when I saw Lucy was already there, along with the Pharaoh's host and that girl he hangs out with. How did she get there so fast?
I crossed the street with clenched fists and my eyes never left Lucy's deep blue ones. I a smirk run across my face. I remember those eyes…
"Bakura, hey! A little tardy to the party, where've you been?" I feel as if the question itself had a hint of treachery. You know exactly where I've been.
"I left a little later than expected," I said, heaving out heavy breaths from climbing the stairs to the entrance. I walked behind Lucy and whispered, "And I ran into a friend of ours and had a conversation." She didn't move, but as I continued walking, I saw her face was a touch more pale, and her eyes had widened, her pupils dilated.
"Well it's nice to see you, Bakura," the other girl had said. I think her name is Téa. "We were just waiting for you to get here so we could go in together." Wait; is this the girl who always has something to say about friendship? Ugh…annoying bitch.
She and Yugi looked happy enough, but I knew they were faking it. They know of me. They know of my presence in the Millennium Ring and how I can control Ryou at a whim. They know I'm the bad guy because of our little Shadow Game in Duelist Kingdom. They're suspicious of me, and they have a right to be so. I must act like Ryou. I'll be undercover; perhaps they will believe it…will Lucy? I shall try nonetheless. "The pleasure's mine, Tea," I said with a smile.
Lucy still hadn't moved. Her long brown hair attempted to do as she may have wished: run away with the breeze, which blew away from me, into the traffic of Domino City. I have to wonder, does she know I saw her? Her expression shows she has a clue, but is it the right one?
"Bakura," I turned to see the Pharaoh had taken control of his host, Yugi, "It's good to see you again," He spoke with a cold suspicion that made me fear he knew it was me, and not Ryou. Perhaps he was testing me. Or was he trying to confirm whether it I was Ryou or not? "How have you been? Has the Spirit of the Millennium Ring not been a bother?"
A bother? Well, perhaps…only a little. "Actually, Yugi, all has been pretty quiet since we left Duelist Kingdom. I'm not quite sure what's happened, but it's relaxing to know all is well. How are Tristan and Joey? Did his sister do well on the operation? He hasn't talked to me in a while, so I wouldn't know…" Listening in on a few conversations with these mortals has actually proved to be useful to me. I'm pleasantly surprised. Imitating Ryou is no joy ride, though. I hate using a high voice; it makes me feel like a doll. It's shamefully disgusting.
The Pharaoh's voice eased up, "Yes, she's doing fine. They're all doing fine. It's good to see you're alright as well." It seems as if he bought it. "Lucy, are you alright?" She had been in the same frozen position since I put her there. Her eyes have gone back to their normal size, but I could still see she was thinking things through.
"Oh?" She awoke from her trance, "Yes, I'm fine. I'm sorry, I was just thinking…"
"Is something wrong?" the Pharaoh asked, putting on such a believable empathetic display.
"No!" Lucy responded in a hurry, "I was… I was just wondering if I did my history homework. Being at the museum reminded me of it."
"But Lucy, we don't have any homework. We're on a break from school…" Téa said.
"Oh…well I feel dumb," she said putting her finger to her mouth. Either she really was worried about something, or she's quite the liar. "Let's go in now, huh? We're already later than we should be special thanks to Fluffy here." She turned and winked at me, took my hand, and then we were off.
So she does know…
Lucy's POV
We went into the museum and immediately headed towards the ancient Egyptian stuff. There are so many artifacts, my mind's just blown! There's jewelry, ancient texts, tools they used, even a few mummies! It was so surreal!
Yugi and Téa wandered over to a certain stone. It looked huge, and I really wanted to see it too, but they skipped so much to get there. I decided to take this slowly and one step at a time, starting from the opening items of their ancient tools, which were actually really cool. Bakura stayed with me. He hasn't said anything since we walked in. "Hey, Bakura, are you alright?"
He was looking at some of the jewels. His eyes seemed to say that he was lost in his own world. "Yes and no, why do you ask?" He sounded almost dead. Does he know I that I was there?
"You've just been really quiet since we walked in."
"It's a museum. Aren't we supposed to be quiet?"
I tried to look him in the eyes, but it was hard because the glass preventing anyone from stealing the treasure got in the way, "Something's bothering you. Why aren't you telling me what it is?" He must know. His body language just screams that he knows.
He blinked. I felt my heart beat faster, almost unnaturally. He turned his face to me slightly and just stared at me… those brown eyes that felt so cold once, now resemble warm chocolate… I could just melt in them… Wait, what?! What am I thinking? He sighed, "Lucy, I think you know what's been putting me off."
I froze. "You saw me, didn't you?"
He turned away, and was proceeding to more artifacts, but stopped. "Yes," he said, without turning his head, and he continued on.
That one word made my heart sink. I followed him, "I didn't mean to. Honestly, Bakura, I didn't."
He quickly spun to face me, "Then what the hell were youdoing there?!" he spat in a hushed tone, "Did you follow me there? And how the bloody hell did you get here before I did?" I couldn't answer. I just couldn't speak. After a moment of silence, he persisted, "Answer me!"
"I got lost and received directions from a guy, and it led me down that path!" I protested, "I was going down a different alley originally when I heard my name, along with other things...Hearing my name makes it my business. Also, Marik gave me a ride."
"Damn you!" Now he gave me his full attention. He was facing me, and there was rage all over his face.
I don't know what to do. I can't move… "Bakura…" I was scared, for real this time. He had tried to scare me before, and that was nothing, but the fury now present in his face horrified me so much I can't even breathe correctly. I feel like I'm hyperventilating. And I still can't take my eyes off of his…
He looked around him, and after noticing the newly developed sense of concern on his face, I did the same. People were starting to stare. "Come on. We need to discuss this more privately," he said.
Should I follow him? "Y-You have to p-promise not to be s-so angry," my voice was trembling. I sound so pathetic.
"You're afraid now. I can hear it," he whispered with a sense of pride in his voice, "Let's talk."
Bakura's POV
I led her down through the main hallway of the museum. She peered into the doorways to the different exhibits as we were walking. "Where are we going?" she asked.
"Outside. Our tickets allow us to come back in when we're done," I could hear the bitterness in my own voice. I don't care. I'm too upset to care.
When we got outside, we found another dark place and Lucy sat down. This time, I checked every nook and cranny I could before even uttering a sound. Nobody's around, and that's all I need to know.
"Alright," I said, leaning against the building next to her, "we can talk openly now." I said that, and then it was quiet between us. Allowing the conversation to flow seems to have stopped it in its entirety. How ironic.
Though no words were spoken, my mind asked her many questions. I just can't get them out of my mouth…Why can't I speak?
"So," she said, breaking the silence, "who is going to talk first?"
"How much did you hear?" I asked quickly, finally able to let the words fall out into play.
"I heard you say 'What do you know of Lucy?' and that up to the end where you left Marik, telling him that you were late…was that really your excuse?"
Fuck! She heard that much? That's basically everything! "No, of course not! I saw your hair from behind the corner of a building! Didn't your mother ever tell you not to eavesdrop? Especially on conversations that could be dangerous!"
"Whoa! Slow down, Bakura. I told you I heard my name, and I was curious. My name kind of made it my business."
She's right. I have to slow down… this is getting out of hand. Perhaps she didn't hear much. After all, she hasn't asked me about… "Is there anything you'd like to ask me? Was there something peculiar that you may have heard in our conversation?" Let's see if she heard…
"Um, yeah… Ryou. He is your 'host'? And Yugi is the 'Pharaoh's host'?"
I can't take it. She can't know about this yet! I hit the building I was leaning on with a clenched fist, "Damn it!"
She backed away; right to fear me when I'm angry, "What's wrong? And please tell me? Just to clarify?"
"Damn! Damn! DAMN!" I shouted, hitting the building again three more times, causing my hand to go red, and a few minor scrapes to form. I can feel my blood pulsating.
Suddenly I was knocked to the ground. Lucy jumped on top of me and pinned my hands down, her blue eyes looking at me, "Get a grip! I know you're upset about this, but if you could just explain, I'll try to understand as best as I can! Without any form of judgment, I promise!"
"Lucy…!" I could easily fight her off, but I don't want to. Why can't I control myself anymore? "I did say to Ryou I would tell you…I just didn't want to. I still don't."
"Tell me what?" She got off of me and sat down next to me.
I sat up, and held the Millennium Ring in front of her, "You know what this is, correct?"
"Yeah, it's the Millennium Ring. Yugi has the Puzzle."
I nodded my head, "Yes, and do you know about their ties to the ancient past?"
"I don't, which was another reason why I wanted to come here. I was wondering if you or Yugi, or maybe both of you, could tell me more about them."
"I know more about ancient Egypt than any archeologist or professor in any part of this world."
"How could you know that?" She asked, looking perplexed, but sounding intrigued.
Deep breath…let it out. "Because… I am from ancient Egypt."
She looked completely shocked. She sat up and looked straight ahead into the emptiness beyond us, "How exactly is that possible?"
"I am not Bakura, rather the spirit of the Millennium Ring. I am Bakura's Yami, his other half…only darker. I take possession of his body when I please. I refer to him as Ryou; he still calls me Bakura. Whichever one of us is in control, we both respond to Bakura."
She sat in silence. That story sounded absolutely ridiculous. Iwouldn't believe it if it were told to me, and I'm the spirit…this is going to go downhill rather quickly.
"Actually," she sounded like her peppy self again, "That makes a bit of sense…"
"Really?" I felt the dumbstruck feeling in my facial expression. She believed that?
"Yeah…it explains that feeling I got whenever you two switched places on me. Like how you went from being nice and innocent looking to this—"
"To this," I said, standing, "'This' being me…" What a fool I've played myself for. I let her distract me from my goal: observing the Pharaoh. How could I be such a fool…?
"There's nothing wrong with this you. I get along better with this you." Wait, what? "I don't mind Ryou at all, but, when you take control, there's a familiar feeling that I can't explain…can you explain it?"
I smirked, "You heard that part too, huh?"
"What Marik said, our past…what is our past? Do we have a past? You said you know so much about ancient Egypt because you were there, and I believe you, as crazy as it may sound," she chuckled, "What is our history? Were we friends? Enemies?"
"That, Lucy, I can honestly say I do not remember… the Pharaoh lost his memories, including his own name, perhaps I have lost a few of my own in this eternal solitude."
"Right, so the spirit of the Pharaoh, I presume, resides in Yugi's Millennium Puzzle? And you both know of each other's residing spirits and such?"
"Correct," I turned to her and held out my hand to help her up. She took it, and I walked back towards the museum entrance, when she stopped me.
"Bakura?" she took my hand.
There was a feeling in my stomach I couldn't describe, and my heart started beating strangely again. "Yes?"
"How long were you alone for in the Millennium Ring?"
Daring to want to answer, I looked over at her. Those eyes…it's so frustrating. I know them, but I don't remember anything… Her hair, her face, her body, her attitude, I sense such familiarity, but I don't remember her. "What year is it now? Past 2000?" I asked.
"Uh-huh," she nodded.
I picked up the Millennium Ring and held it in my free hand, "More than 5000 years."
She gasped, "That's an awful long time to be alone," she said, squeezing my hand in hers.
"Yes, it is…but in life I was alone…so continuing on as a spirit hasn't fazed me much." Growing up alone, providing for myself, fighting off foes, creating a name for myself as the King of Thieves… I did it all on my own.
"What do you mean? Did you not have a family?"
I did once… "That is a story for another time, if I ever feel like telling it." I took my hand away. "Are you coming back into the museum, or should I just leave you here?"
"I'm coming," she said.
We continued to walk back. My stomach still in knots, and my heart beating slower, but still at an abnormal pace, hopefully it wasn't noticeable. I feel weak knowing I'm in this condition. Lucy was right beside me, and I kind of like that. I like having her around. She doesn't bother me like others do. She's different. If only I could remember our past…
"Hey, Bakura?" she suddenly asked.
"Is something else on your mind?"
"Well, I have other questions which we can talk about later, but I wanna say something…"
We stopped walking. We were at the foot of the stairs to go back into the museum. "What do you wish to say?" I asked.
"You don't… You don't have to be alone, you know…"
"Clearly you have no idea how hard it is for me to make friends. I don't have friends. I hate people."
"Do you hate me?" she looked at me with those innocent blue eyes… Ra, how they sparkled. There's so much light in them.
"No, I don't hate you. You're different. It probably has something to do with our past…we must have known each other then, and that's probably why—"
"I'll be your friend," she said, cutting me off.
"…" I can't say anything. "I'm…speechless, Lucy…um…" I'm making this way more awkward than it has to be. "I guess I'm not used to…human interaction."
"Neither am I, to be honest. I've moved around so much in such a short period of time that I gave up on trying to make friends. I've been beaten up for being the school weirdo, but I left soon after, just as I knew I would."
She's been beaten? For not having friends?...Sounds a lot like Ryou. "I don't know how someone could do that… I've beaten up people, but only if they deserved it. I mainly just threaten or…" my voice failed me when I realized what else I've done to people.
"Or what?" Lucy asked.
"Or…kill them." Her face was horror-stricken. "But that was a long time ago. I haven't done that since I had my own body."
"What were you like back in ancient times?" she was just like a child, asking so many questions.
I remember what I was like. Untamable, unstoppable, people living in fear of my name… "That's also a story for another time."
"Okay…so, does that mean we're friends?"
Smirking at the thought of having a friend, I said, "Yeah, I think we can be friends." I wonder what having a friend will be like.
"Awesome!" she seemed to glow. Perhaps it was the sun illuminating her face. I'm not used to the light, but I could get used to this.
"How about we go back in now?" I asked. "Yugi and Téa are probably waiting for us somewhere inside, or looking for us, even."
"I don't like Téa that much, honestly," she said as we headed up the stairs, "All she does is talk about Yugi. That's all she cares about, and it really just pisses me off at this point."
"She pisses me off too. They both do, honestly. But, just so the Pharaoh – who, in case you haven't noticed, is in control of Yugi's body – and Téa don't get suspicious of me, I have to act like Ryou. They like Ryou."
"Well, if you're tired enough, why don't you just let Ryou take control? I don't mind talking to him if you wanna rest, or does a spirit not need to rest?"
"You ask a lot of questions."
"I'm curious! I've never met a spirit before…and an evil one, at that."
I laughed out loud. When was the last time I actually laughed? "Well, I'll give you that. Spirits don't really need sleep, but their energy gets weaker with the amount of strength they use, such as me continuously possessing Ryou's body. It takes a lot of energy."
As we reached the top of the stairs, I decided that it was probably best to let Ryou carry on from this point. I took one last look at Lucy before I left. She just looked at me and smiled. I bent down and whispered in her ear, "Goodbye for now," and left her with Ryou.
It was definitely a brightness I could get used to.
Well, FINALLY! Lucy knows now! Now things will get interesting...and they're falling for each other too! Woo! This is so much fun! Please comment, anything you want to say, please, it would be my pleasure to read. Any ideas, or opinions, criticism, anything! I love hearing what you guys have to say! Thank you so much for reading!