Yuugi's alarm clock rang, but his body stayed still for a while. He suddenly sprang up and rubbed his red eyes, not noticing the sticky feeling of dried tears on his face. He slowly laid back down, being drawn back slowly by the warmth of the sheets. After a small moment, he opened his eyes again.
"Why… Why am I so tired?" Yuugi yawned.
Desperate apology!
Yuugi smiled and held back a laugh. "Why would I be angry? Did you have fun?" Yuugi yawned again. "You must have if you stayed up all night, right? Glad you had fun."
Relief.
"You're a lot less alert than you were last night."
Need Energy. I sleep. You awake.
"You're saving your energy to help me stay awake? Thank you!" Yuugi smiled and sent a mental hug. It wasn't as nice as the one they shared last night, but Yuugi stil enjoed giving them.
Happy!
Yuugi hurried to get ready.
The day passed quickly, but Jounouchi felt it wasn't fast enough. He had been dying to hang out with Yuugi, and asked if he wanted to go anywhere to eat after class. Yuugi suggested the new burger restaurant that opened up a few blocks down. Anzu ran pale and hurried across the room. She started spilling stories of people getting sick after eating from there. Midway through her stories, she remembered earlier on the news, there was a story about an escaped convict who was most likely armed and dangerous. She shifted her topic to that, warning Yuugi and Jounouchi to head home instead.
After all that, Anzu walked off, relieved. Jounouchi's eyes followed her. "Hey, Yug. Hasn't Anzu been acting off lately? She always seems to leave right after school." Jounouchi then smirked. "We should follow her. What d'ya say?"
"But… What about the convi-" Yuugi slowed down as Jounouchi looked at his puzzle. "Oh, right." Yuugi lifted the puzzle a little. He worried about Yami still being tired after last night.
"Let's do this!" Jounouchi struck a pose, trying to seem energetic enough to convince Yuugi.
"No way!" Yuugi retorted.
"Think if it like this: If the convict shows up, you and Yami will be there to protect her."
"Aight! Anyone moves, this bitch dies! Got that?" The convict, dressed as a normal restaurant manager, held his employee Anzu at gunpoint.
Jounouchi and Yuugi had followed her there and were sitting at a nearby table, eating their own burgers as it all happened much too quickly. She had just told them of her dream of saving money to study dance in New York. Now she had a gun at her temple, blindfolded poorly with the convict's tie.
"Told you we should've followed her." Jounouchi whispered. "To think she got a job to save up for New York, only to be caught up in this. Lucky we got here, huh?"
"Anyone can be lucky once." A voice deeper than Yuugi's spoke. Some point between the attack and the threats, Yami had already taken over, calculating how to handle the situation. As he spoke, a smirk creeped on his face, but was soon gone.
Jounouchi chuckled. "So now Anzu gets to meet you. What are you waiting for? Make with the magic!"
Yami looked down, ashamed, "I can't. I don't have the energy today."
"Wha… Why?"
"I woke up last night while my Lord slept, at his suggestion. Unfortunately, I stayed up all night, ad used up too much energy. I don't think I'm going to have enough power to even wake my Lord up again for a few hours. I apologize greatly." His voice was calm, but Jounouchi could see the expression on his face. He felt this was a greatly upset by this.
"What… What did you do?" Jounouchi asked without thinking.
"I was looking at my Lord. I had never been able to see him before." Yami showed a faint smile at the memory before quickly going back to his cold expression
"That's all? All night?" Jounouchi seemed confused. How long could that take? Yami was quick to defend himself. "And thinking."
Jounouchi sighed and looked back over to his friend in the convict's arms. "I guess it can't be helped. What are we gonna do? Anzu's in trouble."
Yami smirked, holding back a chuckle. "Watch and learn." Jounouchi noted the language. That felt… almost like a bet. Was Yami opening up to him?
While they had been talking, the convict had a helpless kid bring him vodka and a pack of Lucky Strike brand cigarettes. He laughed at the cigarettes, saying he chose the brand to reflect how lucky he was. As he laughed, Yami sood up and walked over, confidence in every stride, to the criminal's booth.
"Hey! Who said you could move?" The convict swung his gun hand in Yami's direction, not like anyone could see. Tables and chairs had been thrown around by the customers to hide and protect themselves.
Yami smiled and sat down. "You're lucky, right? Want to press your lucky further?"
The convict clenched his teeth and looked at the twerp before him. "What'dya mean kid?"
"Since you're so lucky, I thought you might want a game. What do you have to lose?" Yami leaned back in his seat and crossed his legs.
A scoff from the convict. "What's in it for me?"
"An escape, obviously. Even with your luck, you couldn't evade all the cops outside." Yami pointed to the police outside. "I can help with that."
The convict rolled his eyes. "Sure, you look like you got connections." Sarcasm was clear in his voice. No matter, he thought. He could always use this kid as a human shield or another hostage. "What's in it for you?" He placed the gun back to Anzu's head, pressing the barrel against her temple. She whimpered, but didn't dare say anything.
"I get you, and all these damned cops out of my hair." Yami opened the bottle of vodka and handed it to the convict, giving it to the hand that was holding Anzu close to him. "Here, pour some. It'll be fun." He then pushed the glass nearer to the hand, making it easier to pour for him.
Anzu choked up at the scent of alcohol, but she quickly regulated her breathing. "Who is this person?" She tried to do her best to see through her blindfold, but couldn't see anything more than a silhouette. She almost didn't want to see who it was. He terrified her, and couldn't tell who was a bigger threat to her.
The convict began to pour the alcohol. "Why even play a game?"
"Simple," Yami chuckled. "I'm bored."
"Bored? In a hostage situation?"
"Yes. This hostage situation bored me. I wanted to raise the stakes. Nothing like death hanging over you to get blood pumping, right?" Yami switched the crossing of his legs and crossed his arms over his chest.
The convict laughed. "You! I like the way you talk kid, you're a riot! Alright, you're on. What's the game?"
Yami opened the cigarette pack and handed the convict a cigarette, holding it to his lips. The convict took it easily, keeping it in his mouth. "Rules are easy. We choose single finger on one hand. With that one finger, we try to do the most damage to each other. So, with that," Yami sat up and placed his elbow on the table, leaning in close to the convict. "Which finger do you choose?"
The convict played with the weight of his gun. "My trigger finger, obviously. You?"
"I pick my thumb." Yami picked up a lighter and opened the lid. "Want me to light your cigarette?"
"Sure. I'll shoot that thumb off after you're done." The convict leaned in, letting Yami light the cigarette.
"Game Start" Yami chuckled, dropping the lighter on the hand the convict was using to pour his alcohol. It landed perfectly, staying lit and balanced. "And Game Over."
The convict's eyes went wide as the alcohol, which had begun to spill over the glass rim, began to puddle and spill over onto his lap.
"Best you don't move. If you shot that gun, the recoil would cause the lighter to fall into that vodka." Yami skillfully pulled Anzu out of the criminal's arms.
"Sh… Shit!" The convict cursed. As his mouth opened, the lit cigarette fell into the table, causing the convict to go up in flames.
Jounouchi quickly stood up and pulled Yami and Anzu away from the fire. "Come on, we better get out of here."
Anzu made her way to her friends after being interviewed by the police. "Ugh… I need to appear in court now… I've never been so scared in my life! It all turned out okay, I guess, except for…" Anzu trailed off, remembering the convict and the fire. "Anyway, the problem is, the cops are going to tell the school that I had a job if I don't quit. I'm going to have to find another way to make it to New York now…" Anzu looked down, but quickly looked back up and smiled. "I'm just glad we all made it out of the restaurant!"
She smiled, and Jounouchi smiled back, but she noticed Yuugi hadn't so much as looked at her this whole time. "Yuugi? Are you alright? You haven't said a word." She studied his face the best she could from the angle he was giving her. "You look off."
"Eh… Anzu…" Jounouchi scratched his head as he searched for a way to explain. "That's not Yug."
"What do you mean? That's definitely Yuu-" She trailed off as she looked into his eyes. The bright red that looked back at her didn't look like Yuugi. She noted his posture and his expression. It looked so much like Yuugi, but yet, nothing like him at the same time.
"I apologize Ms. Mazaki. I should have introduced myself." Yami bowed. "My name is Yami. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Anzu stood still, in shock. She recognized that voice. That was the man, or she guessed boy now, that stood up to her captor. The boy who rescued her.
The boy who set a man on fire in cold blood. The boy who sent a grown man to the emergency room. They say he might not make it to the end of the week. If he dies, this boy was responsible for it all. This boy will be a killer.
She swallowed the lump in her throat as she tried to find the words she needed. She didn't want to upset him, or rather, bring his wrath upon her. "So… You aren't Yuugi, you're Yami?"
"He's sort of a guardian spirit or something." Jounouchi explained. Anzu blinked. What kind of guardian spirit would harm another being so terribly? "He got freed when Yuugi solved that puzzle of his. He's saved my ass a few times, and even saved Honda and Hanazaki. He's a good guy, even if he doesn't look much like it." Jououchi noticed Anzu's body language and stopped talking.
Anzu remembered the puzzle pieces. She remembered Yuugi's grandfather and what he said aout the puzzle. It granted the Power and Knowledge of Darkness. She went over the word "darkness" a few times in her head, remembering the body count behind the puzzle's discovery. She gasped softly, and turned to Yami. "Where's Yuugi?" She didn't bother to hide her worry. Her best friend was in danger.
"He is within me." Yami placed a hand on his chest. "It is still his body, it merely alters itself to fit me and the puzzle."
"Can… Can I talk to him?" Anzu took a step forward, but then took another one back. She was afraid of him. What was he doing to her best friend?
The spirit bowed his head in shame. Jounouchi sighed. "That's the problem." Jounouchi pointed to Yami. "This guy stayed up all night and now doesn't have the energy to switch Yug back out. If he had more energy, that situation would have been dealt with a lot quicker, I'll tell you that. Don't worry though, Yug will come back. He always comes back. Yami has this think about not living Yug's life for him or whatever." Anzu didn't know how Jounouchi could be so calm about this.
"Speaking of which, Yami, when will you be able to switch back?"
"By this evening, if I go to sleep and recover. I should return to my Lord's home soon. I'm sure my Lord will contact you when he returns. I'll be on my way. Goodbye Mr. Jounouchi, Ms. Mazaki." Yami bowed and turned to make his way home.
"Wait up! Do you even know your way home? I'll take you. Anzu?" Jounouchi offered.
"Of course!" Anzu agreed. She didn't want to let Yami out of her sight.
Yami paused and turned around. He looked directly to Anzu, causing her to flinch. "Why?"
"Why? 'Cause we're friends! That's what friends do, right Anzu?"
Anzu didn't speak.
"That may be somewhat true for you Mr. Jounouchi, but Ms. Mazaki does not trust me. Do you, Ms. Mazaki?"
Anzu looked down and nodded. She gritted her teeth, a bit upset that he was able to read her so easily.
"I do not blame you. Neither do Mr. Jounouchi or Mr. Honda, truely. You do not know me, and you see me as a threat to your friend. However," Yami looked at Jounouchi and Anzu. "I am not upset. I respect your concern for my Lord. I honor you and regard you as allies. I hope to, one day, have your trust, but as long as my Lord is happy, I am content."
Yami looked at his puzzle. He didn't know why, but he couldn't make eye contact with the two as he spoke. "Your friendship makes my Lord very happy." Much like Yuugi, he ran his hands over the details. "Thank you for caring for him."
He let go of the puzzle, feeling the weight of it hit his chest. "As for your offer, it is appreciated. I do know my way, but if any danger were to arise, I would not be able to defend myself." He bowed. "Thank you for your aid."
Jounouchi and Anzu looked at each other before walking with Yami. Both of them thought to themselves "He's helped us, but I don't know if I can trust him."
This chapter was fun to write. I loved adding small details and filling in gaps that may have been lost in the original work.
I try to update every Tuesday and Thursday, but college makes that a bit difficult, so if I miss a day, please understand! I am working!
I do look forward to answering your reviews and comments as well, so don't be shy in posting. Little things make this all the more fun.