***Lemons, snowballs fights, and plot in that order***
"Ryo, look!" Kek called from their bedroom window.
They'd yet to go all the way, though Kek's heart started two weeks prior. Every night they fooled around, and every night they grew too eager. They'd progressed as far as fellatio. Twice Ryo even prepped Kek, using his fingers to stretch Kek, but both times Ryo's fingers scraped against Kek's nerves and he'd begged for head instead because he didn't want Ryo to stop touching him inside. Kek exhaled, remembering. Heat bathed his face from his thoughts.
He'd never managed to leave Ryo's room afterward. Kek had developed the strong opinion that beds were meant to be crowded. He should get Ryo a puppy of his own, and then they'd have a properly full bed. Each day it seemed a few more of Kek's things managed to find their way into Ryo's room until it became their room. Ryo even started hanging Kek's clothes in the closet next to his own clothes.
He felt Ryo's arms slip behind his waist as Ryo peeked out the window. "Oh, it's snowing."
Kek grinned, fascinated by the specks of white. "I've never seen snow before."
"Here." Ryo pushed the window open.
Cold sucked at their bare arms, pulling gooseflesh from their skin, but Kek ignored his shivering and leaned outside. He held out his palm and watched the flakes melt against his dark skin. Kek tried licking one before it melted, but the dot of white was too small to register on his tongue.
"If it keeps up, we can take Kurimu out tomorrow and play in it."
Kek nodded. He backed away from the window so he could comb Ryo's snow colored hair. Ryo reached up and pulled Kek's head down for a kiss. They closed the curtains, but left the window open and the blinds drawn to let the fresh air into the room. Ryo set a chair next to the window and sat down. Kek straddled him. Their clothes slipped away from their bodies quiet as snow fall; they only broke their kisses to pull the shirts over their heads.
Tonight. It had to be tonight. With the cold, fresh air baptizing their skin, and the subtle, indescribable scent of snow sanctifying their bedroom. In front of the window, separated from the outside world by only a curtain panel, they needed to make love.
Ryo seemed to have the same idea. He saturated his fingers with lube and went straight to prepping Kek before their caresses sidetracked them. Kek lifted his ass a little and rode Ryo's fingers as his legs straddled on either side of the chair.
Ryo muttered soft, sweet things that Kek couldn't fully catch over the sounds of his gasping breaths, but he caught the sentiment and understood Ryo even without specific words. Ryo used his left hand to coat his erection, moving slow and awkward since he was right-handed. Kek lifted away from Ryo's fingers and shifted, sinking his weight down on Ryo's penis. Kek groaned as he pushed all the way down until he felt his ass cheeks press against Ryo's thighs.
He sat a moment, catching his breath, trying to get use to the odd sensation, and then he pulled up half way. Ryo gave a little cry and that encouraged Kek to slide back down. Kek used Ryo's shoulders for balance and kept his feet planted on the floor. Ryo held Kek's ass to help guide him as he moved. Their bodies gleamed with sweat, reflecting the gentle light coming from the bathroom down the hall. Otherwise it was dark and quiet like the evening outside.
"Ho-how does it feel?" Ryo asked, polite as ever and concerned for Kek.
Kek answered him with a kiss as he continued his slow pulls up and down. Ryo moaned into Kek's mouth, squeezing Kek's ass a little tighter.
It felt strange and a little like he rode a hot poker, but there was also a yearning for more that kept Kek moving up and down. Each time he lowered his body, he felt everything inside him open and shiver. Something needy swelled inside his belly and demanded more more more, but he couldn't give more, not yet. He was still adjusting.
Ryo didn't seem to mind the slow pace. He continued to make soft, crying noises, leaning over and kissing either side of Kek's chest. The lower bandages were gone, but the last section still had gauze taped over it.
Ryo reached down and grabbed Kek's shaft, his hand still wet from prepping Kek. This time Kek called out, clenching his muscles tighter around Ryo's girth. Kek leaned back a little to give Ryo more room and realized the different angle put pressure on different nerves inside his body. If he moved a certain way, the sensations on his down thrust were sharper, more needful.
He moved a little faster, reaching his left hand behind him and pressing his palm just above Ryo's knee so not to lose balance as he leaned back. Kek matched his circling hips to the pace in which Ryo moved his hand. The fingers on Kek's right hand dug hard into Ryo's shoulder as Kek held his breath and exploded between their bellies. Kek leaned forward, spent, thighs shaking and calves sore from continuous motion.
Ryo nudged Kek's face up so they could kiss for a moment. Kek gasped when Ryo lifted him up and dropped him on the bed. He never realized that Ryo was strong enough to pick him up. Then, Ryo was on Kek and inside him once again with the silent efficiency of a snow leopard hunting. He paused in order to douse Kek with addition lube. The gel felt like a cool, healing balm against Kek's hot skin. They moved, and moved, and cried out as the wind shifted the sheer, white curtains and dusted Ryo's carpet with snow. Ryo screamed Kek's name.
Kurimu whined when they set him down in the snow. When he realized Kek wasn't going to pick him back up, he sniffed around, marking snow drifts and exploring a line of hedges bordering the apartment complex. Kek and Ryo stood side by side, watching the Shiba and sipping coffee out of paper cups from the shop down the block. Ryo's coffee was barely brown because of all the milk and sugar, but Kek's was black.
Ryo smiled. "I liked it better when you drank it from my lips."
Kek leaned close to Ryo. Their noses bumped together. "I still can."
Ryo closed his eyes, but before Kek's lips could take his own, something wet and cold smashed into their faces. Ryo pushed the snow off his cheek and out of his hair, looking around but seeing only snow and shrubs.
Another snowball landed in Kek's hair. He growled and shook his head to free his hair of snow. They took cover behind the row of hedges. A snowball missed Kurimu by an inch and the dog yipped at the corner of the building.
"Bakura, you hit my dog and I'll slit your throat and paint the snow with your blood!"
A gloved hand extended from around the corner showing them a middle finger.
Ryo leaned close to Kek, whispering in his ear. "Where's Marik?"
"Right here." Marik's voice sounded behind them.
Ryo had enough time to turn around, but Marik shoved a fist full of snow into his face before he could react. Ryo gagged and spat snow from his mouth while blinking it out of his eyes. While laughing, he tackled Marik to the ground, and Kek used the opportunity to shovel snow on top of Marik's head.
Marik turned his head and closed his eyes, screaming. "Shit! No, that's cold! Bakura!"
Three snowballs arched over the hedge. One caught Marik and the other two missed. Ryo made his own snow ball and tossed it over the hedge when he saw Bakura running towards them. It wasn't so much a snowball fight as a four-way snow splashing, since no one had time to compact the snow into actual balls. Kurimu ran in circles around them, barking at them as they continued their mock battle.
"Fuck snow. I hate the cold." Marik jumped up and tried to brush the snow off his clothes.
"You started this!" Ryo shouted, panting from laughter and their snow war.
Bakura shrugged. "You were getting a little too cozy out here. Someone had to chaperone you."
"You mean cock-block." Kek looked around. "And you bastards made me drop my coffee."
Kurimu ran up to him and he scooped the puppy in his arms and tucked the dog in his coat. Ryo found their tipped over cups and put them in a waste basket. He couldn't stop shivering. His clothes were soaked through with both sweat and melted snow.
"I think I'm going up stairs and taking a hot shower," Ryo said.
"What? No breakfast?" Bakura acted offended.
"Assholes that throw snowballs at us buy breakfast - although by the time you come over it'll probably be lunch." Ryo walked inside and the others followed him.
"What am I buying?" Marik asked as they crowded into the elevator all at once.
Ryo pushed the third floor button for himself and the fifth floor button for Marik. "Sushi. Kek's suppose to show me how much wasabi he can handle."
Marik smirked. "Sure, watching Kek make a fool of himself is entertaining. I'll order it after we shower and change into dry clothes."
Bakura's lips curled back away from his teeth. "Hmm, yes, we haven't fucked in the shower yet. Good idea."
Ryo rolled his eyes, and Kek glared at Bakura in a way that suggested he'd been thinking the same thing until Bakura ruined it by claiming the idea for himself. The elevator stopped at the third floor and they stepped into the hall.
"See you guys in a few hours." Ryo waved as he and Kek walked to their apartment.
With Kek working but Ryo out of school, Ryo started walking Kurimu in the afternoons and then cooking dinner before Kek came home. That way they could spend the entire afternoon together before they walked Kurimu one last time and prepared for bed.
Ryo went to the park and watched children play in the snow as he walked the dog. Next, he went to the market to buy ingredients for super. He decided on leek and potato soup and then mousse for dessert. He wanted a dessert that he and Kek could lick off of each other's fingers, and if Ryo added instant coffee to the chocolate then Kek would love it.
Ryo hummed as he walked home, a shopping bag in one hand and Kurimu's leash in the other. The last time he'd been so happy was before he lost his mother and sister. Ever since Amane died, there'd been a loneliness in Ryo he could never avoid, and while he still missed her, so much it hurt, he didn't feel alone anymore. Now he had Kek, and Kurimu, and even Marik and Bakura. It amazed Ryo to see the difference in Bakura. He was sardonic as ever and always crossed his arms over his chest as if to ward himself away from the group, but Ryo noticed when he snuck scraps to Kurimu, or leaned a little too close to Marik with a content smile on his face, or got into a game with such intensity that it infected everyone and they'd lose hours of time before they stopped for the night. When Ryo wore the Ring, the only emotions he ever felt from the tormented spirit was rage, hatred, pain, and a sorrow cut so deep into his soul that Ryo never had the heart to fight for control of his own body as much as he should have.
But now Ryo watched as Bakura's soul healed as quickly as the the gash on his chest. He'd always have the scar - they all had their scars - but at least the wound no longer bled. Ryo couldn't imagine Ishizu protesting when she visited in the summer, not once she saw how happy Marik was around Bakura. Before, Marik wandered around campus looking bored and a little sad, but now he always smiled. He and Bakura both smiled. It was amazing.
Kek's transformation was no less miraculous. Not only with his personal changes, but how he treated Kurimu as well. Kek even managed to teach Kurimu to stop growling at people and let children pet him at the park, which made walks much easier. Ryo supposed that all any of them needed was an environment where they didn't have to always be on guard, where they could trust people without fearing physical or emotional harm. Ryo's hum turned into a song, some ridiculous love song he'd heard on the radio that made him think of Kek. Ryo had to stop in front of his door to fish out the set of keys and let himself inside.
Kurimu barked at the threshold, refusing to go inside. Ryo tugged on the leash a bit.
"Come on boy, we have to make dinner for Kek before he gets home."
Kurimu lowered himself to the ground, flattening his ears and growling.
"Kurimu, what's wrong with you?" Ryo looked into the apartment.
Everything seemed okay, so he turned back to the dog. He whistled to encourage the puppy to come into the apartment, but Kurimu continued to growl.
Ryo sighed. "Fine." He looped the leash over the doorknob. "I'll put the groceries up and then carry you inside. You never give Kek this kind of trouble."
Ryo checked the living room first, to be sure Kurimu wasn't sensing something Ryo couldn't see, but nothing stood out of place or felt off. Ryo turned back around and carried his shopping bag into the kitchen. He set the bag on the counter and went to go get the Shiba pup when a shadow caught the corner of Ryo's eye.
He spun, expecting the shadow to disappear – it didn't. Ryo shrieked and jumped back on reflex.
The Shadow grinned, inching forward, red eyes burning into the back of Ryo's mind. Ryo turned and bolted out of the kitchen, feeling stupid for not understanding Kurimu's obvious warning. The Shadow, Zorc's Shadow, blocked Ryo's path to Kurimu and the exit, so Ryo had no other choice but to sprint towards the bedrooms. If he could reach one of the beds the salt around them would protect him.
Ryo stretched his hand out for Kek's door, but something caught his hair and jerked him back. The ground leapt away from Ryo's feet as he crashed onto his back. Ryo struggled to sit up, but the Shadow creature dragged him by the hair down the hallway and back into the living room. He sat on Ryo's chest, pressing him into the ground.
Ryo fought, like a caged wolf he fought, but Zorc only laughed at Ryo's efforts.
"Bakura will kill you!" Ryo spat into the shadowed face, words his last means of defiance.
A grin peeled away from Zorc's face, a look made of teeth and malcontent. He didn't answer; instead, he covered his mouth over Ryo's as if to kiss him. Zorc pushed himself down Ryo's throat and inside his body. It was Ryo's nightmare, the dream he had of Bakura in the shadows, trapped and drowning in dark. Tears coated Ryo's cheeks, hot as stars, but everything else inside him withered and died, replaced with cold, empty black.
Kek knew something was wrong. The door stood open. Kurimu's leash dangled from the knob, but the Shiba was gone. Kek ran inside. "Ryo?" he called out, screamed. "Ryo!"
He saw Ryo sitting on the living room floor and surrounded by his sewing basket and cloth. Ryo ran a silver needle through pitch-colored fabric and hummed to himself as he worked. Kek new it wasn't Ryo, not anymore than his mother had been his mother. Kek crashed to his knees, tears burning his eyes.
"Ryo!" Kek screamed in Ryo's face, as if his voice could somehow reach Ryo if he shouted loud enough.
The thing, the not Ryo thing in Ryo's body, looked up with coffee-brown eyes and smiled. "Hello."
"Ryo, come back. Ryo you have to come back!"
"You're hurting me." Ryo said the words in a calm tone as he continued to sew.
Kek blinked his eyes, confused. He realized his fingers dug into Ryo's shoulders hard enough to bruise the skin. He forced himself to let go, gently holding Ryo's face instead. "Ryo. Ryo, I know you can hear me. You need to come back. Stop underestimating yourself and come back!"
A soft laugh, so much like Ryo's laugh – exactly like Ryo's laugh.
"You know, that banishing spell you used was a nasty trick. Had I been fully in the world it would have worked, too. Lucky for me the tear wasn't yet and I only had an arm in this plane. It worked towards my advantage, actually. You all thought I was gone, so I simply waited in the Shadows until the tear opened enough for me to slip through."
He forced his face down out of Kek's grip and went back to stitching. "This game, however, this game fascinates me. I used to watch him pull my thief away from my grasp every night and talk to him. I watched through the television." A smirk. "But I'd always get my thief back in the end."
Ryo's tone darkened, his whisper became a hiss. "My thief. Mine. I've held him for three thousand years. That tomb keeper had no right to steal what is mine."
He leaned towards Kek, close enough to kiss. "You're mine, too, but don't worry, I won't take you back to the Shadow Realm. I'm going to bring the darkness here instead." He giggled. "Once I get this doll finished, play the game, and come back into this world just like you two did."
Kek shook his head. His stomach burned as acid boiled into his esophagus. "Bakura will kill you. They'll find a way to seal you away again."
That sweet, musical laughter (Ryo's laughter) and Kek's love looked up at him again. "That's why I have you, isn't it? Why do you think I chose this frailer one? Because you love this boy and that makes you easy to control. You'll protect me as long as I'm in his body."
And Kek could only kneel on the carpet as silent tears singed across his cheeks because he knew what Zorc said was true. He loved Ryo - more than his own life, he loved Ryo - and even knowing it was Zorc, even knowing that the world would drown in black if not stopped, he couldn't sit back and watch Ryo die.
"Don't worry," Ryo cooed, running bone-white fingers across Kek's lips. "I'll be Ryo for you."
He leaned in to kiss Kek, but Kek pushed him away.
It didn't detour Necrophades. He simply pouted with Ryo's gentle mouth. "But Kek? Don't you still love me?"
"I love Ryo," Kek growled, trying to think of something to do, some ritual or prayer he could use to save his love.
"I'm all that's left of Ryo." He leaned in again.
"Hey!" Bakura's voice broke through the apartment.
Kek held his breath, thanking and cursing the gods in the same thought.
"Why did your dog start scratching at our door all freaked out?"
"Bakura don't!" Kek pleaded before Bakura realized what happened.
Bakura stopped, stared at Kek, stared at Ryo, and drew a switchblade from his jean pocket. "Fuck."
"Bakura, no." Kek stood, placing himself between Bakura and Zorc.
"Kek, you know what Ryo wanted – you know!"
"There has to be another way. There has to be an exorcism we could perform or a spell—"
"Kek. I won't enjoy this. You don't know how—" Bakura's voice broke. "How hard this is, but we don't have time for something else. He's making a doll, Kek. You know what he's planning. It's not about us!" Bakura screamed. "It's about everyone, everything. He'll destroy it all. You know he will."
"I definitely will," he said in Ryo's cheerful voice. "And after this world, even the gods won't be safe. I'll have it all."
"Get Yugi," Kek pleaded, his mind that desperate. "He always thinks of something."
"Yes, please bring Yugi over." Ryo smiled, the same smile he got when he saw pastry. "It will be fun to play with him again."
"It's not Ryo," Bakura hissed but didn't move.
"Ryo's still in there!" Kek insisted. "Just like you were when you were trapped in the Ring."
"Yes. He is. And he's begging us to kill him!"
"Fine!" Kek roared. "Kill him if you can, but you know you'll have to get through me first!"
Bakura grit his teeth. "If that's what I have to do, then I will."
"Then I hope you're ready to die, Bakura!" Kek charged him, fingers curled like claws ready to rip out Bakura's throat.
In the burst of seconds between Kek and Bakura, a dozen different memories flashed in Kek's mind. Blueberries and anime, the warm, tickling lick of a puppy's tongue against the palm, or the not-quite-there smell of snow, his co-workers, his first real kiss in the hallway, strangers in the park jogging as he walked Kurimu, Monster World campaigns with Ryo, Bakura, and Marik.
He got it; he understood. He never comprehended the determination of his opponents' faces in Battle City, could never fathom why they fought so hard, but now Kek knew that everyone had their own versions of the same story. Some had pets and some had lovers and some had friends, everyone had a breakfast they remembered, or a time they tried something new and enjoyed it, or a night they stayed up talking about nothing with whoever was special to them. That's why they fought, to keep those things alive.
But if Zorc returned there'd be no blueberries, or kisses, or strangers jogging in the park.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't let Necrophades consume all the beautiful moments people compiled together in order to create their lives.
Kek acted – everyday he acted to scare people – he'd gotten good at it, so when he blitzed Bakura, acting ready to kill, Bakura responded on reflex and jabbed with his knife. Kek pushed his body into the blade, holding Bakura's shoulders to ensure the edge sank deep into his own gut.
"You're right," Kek whispered into Bakura's ear as everything faded into fuzzy black. "It's not about us . . . it's about everyone, and I can't let him drown everything in Shadows, but still . . . I can't watch you hurt him either. I love him."
"What the hell?" Bakura choked on the words. "Why didn't you fight me!"
"Because, Bakura, you need to do it . . . you need to kill him . . . and, and take care of Kurimu."
Kek felt himself fall, and although it was hopeless, his last thought was a prayer to Ra that - somehow - Ryo could be saved.
***AN: Sorry where I ended this.***