A/N FORMAT.


Depth of friendship does not depend on length of acquaintance. ~ Rabindranath Tagore


It wakes him from his sleep, whatever it is.

Like a knife, drilling through his head. Ryou feels pain and violation all at once. And then it just stops.

He looks around his soul room. Every picture frame is in order, all of his games are in place. Nothing has changed.

Ryou frowns. Something has changed. He knows it. But if it is something (and it is), and the spirit wanted it to happen (Ryou doesn't for a second consider that the spirit might not know, the spirit knows everything)…what can he do?

("You're so worthless, host. And you will do nothing.")

Cringing, Ryou buries his head in his pillow, blocking out everything. His nice, neat prison cell is unchanged and that's all that matters. The outside world doesn't concern him anymore. It can't.

(Nothing.)

The word echoes for eternity, and never loses its meaning.

-0-

And that's the first moment Ryou realizes something is wrong. The spirit never uses the door. Sometimes he'll just appear or the door will vanish, but he never uses it. Ryou didn't even think that the door could be used (after all, no one goes in or out of it), it always seemed for show.

Ryou's body tenses as the door swings open.

A boy walks in. He is Egyptian, obviously, from the gold draped on him and his dark tan skin. Blonde hair, though, and bright lavender eyes.

He eyes Ryou up and down, then snorts.

"So you're his host. Heh. No wonder he called you weak."

"I'm not his anything," Ryou says, automatically. It isn't until the words are out of him that he understands that this boy must know the spirit.

Ryou wraps his arms around himself. The spirit never brings anything but darkness…shouldn't that include this intruder?

The boy looks amused.

"You definitely have his temper too," he strides closer, "Not that yours is even half as intimidating. You still look so fragile."

The boy chuckles.

Ryou's eyes narrow. This boy is mocking him. As if the indignities that the spirit constantly forces upon Ryou are not enough, this…stranger has the nerve to break into the manifestation of his soul and mock him.

"Who are you?" Ryou hisses, "Why are you here?"

(Of course, what he really means is, 'Why is the spirit letting you be here?')

"Malik," the boy answers, "And I'm here because I can be. You won't do anything about it."

The last sentence sends shivers down Ryou's spine, and makes him hate Malik all the more.

Malik flicks one of Ryou's picture frames.

"What are these?" he asks.

"Photos. They all have a meaning, I think. They are all supposed to represent something about me."

Ryou really shouldn't have responded, because frankly this boy, Malik, was a jerk. But, the last person Ryou has spoken to in forever is the spirit. And mostly, the spirit doesn't talk. He just watches.

(And Ryou would prefer jerks to darkness.)

"So…this is all of you," Malik sneers, looking around, "You're so boring."

Ryou again takes that insult to heart, even though he should be used to them. (By now.)

"What is your name, anyway?" Malik asks.

"Ryou Bakura," Ryou says, without hesitation.

"Ryou," Malik tries it out, and comes closer to Ryou, sitting on his small mattress in the corner.

Ryou backs up against the wall. Malik opens his mouth to say something, but then something catches his eye.

"What's that?" he asks, pointing at a small wooden chest at the foot of the light blue covers.

Ryou's eyes widen and he snatches the chest away.

"Nothing!" Ryou snaps, pulling the chest close to him.

Malik blinks, startled by Ryou's sudden action, and then glares.

"Let me see it," he orders.

Ryou's fingertips twitch, but then it hits him. Malik is not the spirit. So Ryou, he can say…

"No!"

Malik, who was so sure he had Ryou pegged, glares again.

"I want to see it! Let me see it!" Malik shouts, bizarrely like a child.

Again, with more force this time, Ryou says, "No!"

Malik curses in a language Ryou doesn't understand, and attacks Ryou.

"Give me that box!" he yells as he wrestles Ryou across his bed. Ryou clings to the chest tighter and desperately tries to push Malik off with his feet.

(The air suddenly feels colder, stiffer.)

"Just what exactly..." says a dark, shadowy voice, "Is going on?"

The spirit appears, leaning against Ryou's doorframe.

(The door has vanished.)

Ryou freezes, the slow terror that the spirit always brings slowing down his breathing. Malik stops too.

The spirit glowers at Malik, "Get out."

Malik, returning the spirit's stare, gets off of Ryou.

"Or what?" Malik snarls.

The Millennium Ring glows.

"Or I'll make you."

Malik sneers at the threat, but by his posture Ryou can tell he's threatened. And it's only now that he notices something. On Malik's waist, is a…well, a rod, you could say. It has the same eye on it that his Ring does. It's a Millennium Item.

Ryou suppresses a gasp. So that's why the spirit has allowed him here, even though they so plainly hate each other. Malik has a Millennium Item.

This time Ryou really does gasp. And if Ryou thought that either one of them would listen to him, he would have told them to stop fighting because the last thing he wants is a shadow duel in his soul.

But Ryou says nothing. And they stand there, hating each other.

Finally, Malik closes his eyes and laughs.

"Fine, I'll leave your precious host alone, Bakura, for the time being," Malik says as he walks past the spirit and out of Ryou's room.

Ryou watches him go, feeling more confused than he has in a long time. He meets the spirit's eyes.

The spirit's stare travels down to what Ryou is holding. They have emotion (they always do) but Ryou can never decipher it.

The spirit snorts under his breath, "Still?"

Ryou casts his head down, but clutches the chest tighter regardless.

-0-

His days are supposed to seam together flawlessly. Time doesn't exist here, everything lasts forever.

But Malik disrupted that. Ryou is aware of time now, before and after that event. He knows it and on some level, feels the days tick by.

(He realizes that more than his body is being stolen…)

The spirit hasn't told Ryou that he knows about this change, but Ryou assumes he knows anyway. Why wouldn't he?

Though there is a difference, there also isn't. He feels the days slip by him, but the days play out just as they did before.

Ryou is trapped in here (eternally) and the spirit roams about. Occasionally, he'll…visit… (that's not the right word at all, but Ryou has no words to describe the spirit) and then he'll leave.

"Who is he?" Ryou asks one day, while the spirit is watching him.

The spirit looks at him from across the room. The distance is great.

"No one to concern yourself with, landlord."

And that's the end of it.

(Hopefully.)

-0-

Wishful thinking.

The door rattles, and there is not a single person in the entire universe that it could be other than-

"Malik," Ryou says, as the boy steps in.

"You remembered my name. How sweet," he mocks, crossing his arms.

Ryou sighs.

"Why are you here, again?"

"It pisses him off. Which is reason enough, but I'm also going to find out why," Malik says, smirking.

Ryou shakes his head, "Why do you care? Aren't you guys…well, you have to be something."

Malik looks genuinely perplexed.

"You mean he hasn't told you?"

Ryou hunches over, "He never tells me anything."

Malik steps towards him. (Malik goes so much farther into his soul then the spirit does…)

That bothers Ryou, more than he would have thought.

"What's in that chest?" he asks again. Ryou sighs. He's tired, these separate days have made him weary.

"Letters," he answers truthfully, "From my sister."

Malik blinks, "That's it?"

Ryou nods.

"You were willing to fight me over that?"

Ryou frowns, "They're personal. I didn't want a complete stranger to read them."

"So. I walk into your soul and you're worried about me reading your letters," Malik shakes head, "You need to get your priorities in order."

"You wouldn't understand," Ryou mutters, "Can you go talk to him? Leave me alone."

Malik snorts, "Like I'd want to spend quality time with that bastard."

Ryou puts his hands to his temples. Figuring out where he stood with the spirit was hard enough, but combining it with Malik was just excruciating …

"You still didn't answer my question," Ryou points out.

"So?" Malik snaps, "I don't have to do anything I don't want to."

(Malik is extraordinarily childish sometimes.)

"It's only fair, I answer your questions," Ryou says.

Malik smirks.

"Alright, I'll tell you what I am to him, if you tell me what you are to him."

Ryou is taken aback.

"But I don't know," he asserts.

"You must have a guess," Malik says.

Ryou looks down.

"I'm his host. Nothing more. I'm the vessel that he needs to use."

(All the things the spirit has told Ryou himself…)

Malik scowls, "That's it?"

"That's it."

"There has to be something more!" Malik says, coming within feet of Ryou's bed, "He's so protective of you and whenever I mention you he-"

Ryou cuts him off.

"That's it."

Malik's eyes burn.

"There is more, and I'll find out what it is even if I have to stay here forever."

Ryou doesn't tell Malik that forever is a moot point now, because time moves again. In fact, he ignores Malik entirely, in favor of his slightly dusty blue wall.

Malik reaches out and grabs Ryou's hand.

Ryou shakes off Malik's touch. No one has been in this room other than the spirit, and the spirit never takes more than three steps inside. But Malik, he waltzes in and just…doesn't do things the way they are supposed to be done.

"What was that for?" Ryou asks.

Malik smirks (again).

"To see if I could."

-0-

"I told you," Bakura said, voice ice cold, "To stay away from him."

"Relax," Malik snaps, "It's not like I'm looking through your soul. And there's nothing you can do to stop me, anyway. You still want the Millennium Rod, right? Then you'll have to follow my orders."

Bakura's eyebrow twitches.

"Listen, brat," he sneers, "If I catch you in my host's soul one more time-"

"What's the big deal?" Malik says, "I think Ryou enjoys my company."

Bakura snorts, "Now that's amusing."

Malik narrows his eyes, "Whatever. It's not like I'm hurting him. We just talk."

The lavender-eyed boy waits for Bakura to say something, but no words ever come. He just sneers and turns around.

The sweet victory makes Malik smirk.

"Fine," Bakura snarls, "But if you don't stop meddling with my mind, I will-"

Again, Malik cuts him off.

"I'll stop at Ryou. Promise."

Bakura rolls his eyes.

In the silence, Malik takes the opportunity to ask a question that has been bothering him since he first met Ryou.

"Is he always like that?" Malik asks.

"Like what?" Bakura asks, bored and annoyed.

"Like only half there. Like he's ignoring you half the time?"

Bakura eyes harden, and Malik knows it must mean something, but he can't figure it out.

"Yes," his voice regains its cold edge, "Now don't you have some place to be?"

-0-

Ryou lets out a huge sigh.

"Again?" he asks, exasperated.

Malik struts in, "Don't sound so disappointed, shouldn't you be happy that I haven't gotten bored of you yet?"

Ryou's eyes steel up a bit, the way they do every time someone says something hurtful. (Or truthful, since those things seem to be one and the same now.)

"Maybe I've gotten bored of you," Ryou says.

Malik rolls his eyes, "Being mean doesn't suit you, Ryou."

"You don't even know me," Ryou whispers, "Why do you act like you do?"

Malik touches a picture frame. From where Ryou is, he can't see which one. (And even if he could, he wouldn't want to know.)

"You're not that hard to figure out," Malik says.

"Then why are you still here? There's no mystery left for you to solve," Ryou pleads.

"You're really ungrateful. I'm giving you company in this place."

Ryou flinches, "Having company in prison doesn't make it any less of a prison."

Malik perks up, "Is that what you think this is? Prison?"

"How could it be anything but?" Ryou asks, shaking his head.

"I don't know," Malik says, trailing his finger around Ryou's room, "Maybe a shelter. He's hell-bent on protecting you from the outside."

"He's not protecting me!" Ryou shouts, enraged (and part of him knows this is exactly what Malik wanted), "He's imprisoning me! He keeps me away and trapped here because he knows that if I was in control for one second I would stop him! I wouldn't let him hurt any of my friends ever again! He keeps me here to keep me out of the way!"

Malik takes a step back. It dawns on him.

"You hate him," he says, both shocked and awed.

("How could I not?" Ryou mumbles, the rage gone, but he's sure Malik didn't hear him.)

"Ha!" Malik laughs, "I knew I'd find something worthwhile eventually."

-0-

Ryou doesn't say anything when he walks in, which annoys Malik to no end. He's been around Ryou long enough to understand that a lack of words doesn't mean acceptance, it means denial.

The anger only feeds Malik's real reason for coming here again. He always knew that Ryou was Bakura's weakness, but he would never have thought that Bakura was Ryou's weakness as well. No wonder they were so co-dependent.

He tells himself it's to learn more information about the mysterious Spirit of the Ring, but really, it's for the look that was in Ryou's eyes.

Malik hates Ryou a little bit. At least, sometimes. The white-haired boy is always curled up in that corner of his and never does anything. And those stupid big brown eyes of his always have this wishy-washy look to them, like Ryou is simultaneously looking through him and past him.

Malik always feels like Ryou is ignoring him. But that day, when he pushed Ryou's button, his eyes had been one-hundred percent there. Ryou looked right at him.

That was satisfying, for reasons unknown to even him.

So he's come with a purpose this time, to goad Ryou into another one of his screaming fits, make him reveal something again.

"Ryou," Malik calls out to him.

Ryou looks up, but not really. His eyes are only halfway there again.

"I never did answer your question. Do you remember? About what I am to Bakura?" Malik says, and steps closer.

As he always does - Ryou's very predictable - he cringes at 'Bakura'.

"I remember," Ryou says softly, too softly, "But does it matter?"

"A deal's a deal."

"Maybe I'm better off not knowing," Ryou says and looks to the ground, "That's what the spirit said."

It boggles Malik's mind thinking about Ryou and Bakura talking. They're both so stoic and the only thing that brings anything out of either of them is each other. That bothers Malik a bit, thinking about it. Can Bakura get more out of Ryou than he can? Can Ryou get more out of Bakura that he can?

"You're kind of pathetic, you know that?" Malik lashes out, "You'd honestly prefer your ignorance? I thought you wanted to save Yuugi?"

Ryou's head shoots up and his eyes harden, but only for a second. He melts back into his fetal position.

"I couldn't save him, even when I tried."

"Not that Bakura is that dangerous," Malik snorts, "It's funny, actually. You act as if he's an unstoppable force, nothing but pure darkness."

And that thing happens when he's around Ryou too much. The truth spills out of him.

"You have no idea what true darkness is…"

Ryou trembles, which surprises Malik. He's never seen that before. And it doesn't make him feel guilty or taste something bitter in his mouth at all.

"Get out," Ryou says, without opening his eyes.

"What?"

"I said," Ryou clenches his fists, but still does not look at Malik, "Get out!"

-0-

"Do you like him?" Ryou asks, breaking their silence.

The spirit snorts, "No."

Ryou doesn't ask anything else, because strangely enough, that was all the comfort he needed.

-0-

Malik knows a lot of things.

He knows that, for whatever reason, Bakura really likes to keep Ryou safe. He knows that Bakura really wants his Millennium Item and hates the Pharaoh almost as much as he does.

And he also knows that Bakura would never be stupid enough to sacrifice the duel just because Ryou was squirming a little-!

-0-

His room is the same. It gives him a feeling a comfort and safety when he is repressed again.

Time doesn't pass, it crawls by in stunted increments. Malik. It's all his fault.

(Ryou might even hate him…)

The spirit appears. He's breathing heavily, but he's there.

"You're hurt," Ryou says, more surprised than concerned. After all, it is the spirit.

The spirit sneers, "The Egyptian Gods are powerful."

Ryou looks away, "The Ring's gone, isn't?"

The spirit nods.

"That's why you're here," Ryou muses, "And the reason I can't wake up?"

"And you're too weak to wake up yourself," the spirit says.

Silence.

"Why did you save me?" Ryou blurts out.

"You say that as if I did it for you. Heh. I did it for your body. I need you to survive."

That could be truth. Ryou runs through the words in his head again. It could. (And most of it, it would make sense, line up with all the spirit's other actions…predictable…)

But the spirit is never predictable.

"You really think Yuugi would have done it?" Ryou asks, unsure himself.

"I couldn't risk it," the spirit snaps.

"You could," Ryou counters, "You just…didn't."

Ryou looks up at him, at lost. Nothing makes sense anymore.

"Why?"

-0-

When Malik comes back (and Ryou knows it, that drilling sensation floods him), Ryou wants to ask the spirit if Malik is really worth the Millennium Rod.

Of course, he already knows the answer, so it's pointless.

-0-

"Me again," Malik says, softly, as he opens the door to Ryou's soul.

Ryou can't see him fully, but he can already tell Malik's changed. Though, he supposes, having your body ripped away from you would humble someone.

"What do you want, Malik?" Ryou asks, sighing.

Malik steps in. His walk is still a strut, but his eyes are tender.

"I'm not sure, actually," Malik snorts to himself, "I just thought I should see you."

"You were going to let me die!" Ryou says, sounding more hurt than he thought.

"I was not!" Malik says back huffily, "Like the Pharaoh was really going to attack! Ra, you and your other always overreact when it comes to each other."

"We do not!" Ryou snaps back. (They hardly react to each other at all.)

"Do too."

"Do not!'

"Do too!"

"Do - ugh!" Ryou exclaims, "I'm not having this conversation."

Malik glares at him for second, then laughs.

Ryou's eyes widen. The laugh is not condescending or dark, it's just a laugh.

Malik sits himself at the other edge of Ryou's bed.

"Do you know what's going on?" Malik asks. His voice doesn't have the laugh in it anymore. (Ryou misses that.)

Ryou shakes his head, "Some. All I know is that you and the ring are back. And you…um, don't have a body…"

Malik looks to the ground, and Ryou leans in closer because of it. Avoiding eye contact is weakness, right? And Malik's never showed him weakness.

"What happened, Malik?"

"My darkness…he took over me. He…forced…me out," Malik says, gritting his teeth.

Ryou tilts his head.

"He almost..." Malik is shaking in rage now, "He almost killed Rishid! And it would have been all my fault…I'm going to get my body. I'm not going to let him hurt anyone else."

Ryou is struck by Malik's words. They're so noble.

"He's evil?" Ryou asks, "Your darkness?"

Malik looks at him, "Nothing but."

"It must be nice," Ryou says, in that air-light voice of his, "To be so certain that he is darkness. Irredeemable."

It dawns on Malik.

"You don't hate him," he says, both incredulous and amazed.

Ryou looks away.

"I try."

Suddenly, Ryou feels something grab onto his hand. He looks up and Malik's fingers are intertwined with his.

"That's okay, you know," Malik says, caringly (something Ryou hasn't experienced in God knows how long), "To be on our side."

Ryou stares at Malik for a long time, before he squeezes Malik's hand back.

-0-

Even though Ryou's not angry, his eyes don't have that dullness to them. Malik feels a smirk coming on. Victory, however meaningless in the scheme of things, was still a victory.

Ryou jumps a bit, and his eyes regain that wishy-washy feel. He tenses too.

"Ryou, what-?"

"Malik," Bakura sneers, "Just what exactly are you doing?"

The Egyptian in question turns to see Bakura standing in the doorway. He's such a buzz kill.

Bakura's eyes travel down to Malik and Ryou's hands.

Malik chuckles.

"Jealous, Bakura?" he asks.

Bakura glares. "Get away from him."

"No," Malik says, enjoying rubbing this in his face all too much. He glances at Ryou, but Ryou's eyes are glued to Bakura.

Malik looks to Bakura, who is in turn staring at Ryou. It was kind of funny, actually. They were physically the same body but looked so different. Ryou was such a marshmallow, and then Bakura was all hard edges. Even their eyes were different. Ryou's eyes were shallow and soft - too soft - whereas Bakura's eyes were too dark and hard.

Malik makes a soft 'oh' sound. He gets it now. They each have what the other is missing.

"Wow," he mutters to himself, "You two have the weirdest relationship ever."

Ryou, ignoring Malik's comment, looks at them both. He speaks slowly, as if just then he's decided on something important.

"You could stay longer, if you'd like."


A/N LATE UPDATE IS LATE. -ashamed- I tried so hard guys, I was finishing up the planned oneshot and then suddenly my muse was all 'THAT ONESHOT SUCKS AND YOU NEED TO WRITE A NEW ONE. BUT I WON'T GIVE YOU INSPIRATION FOR TWO DAYS AND THEN WHEN I FINALLY DO YOU HAVE TO WRITE THIS IN A DAY! MMWWWHAAAHAHAHA.'

Anyway. I pretty much D: all weekend.

Reviews will make me feel so much better!