DV: Hey, guys! I'm so sorry I was away for so long. Shit happened, and yeah. I'll try not to let it happen again. Anyway, enjoy!
Reviews:
SweetAnimeLover: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it! And don't worry, so do I. She is an idiot. And sorry for the wait!
Ern Estine 13624: They probably will. Sorry for the wait!
Athina Ioakimidou: There's a list on my profile of who is who.
"Um..."
Bakura looked up. A boy with short, curly red hair stood at his desk. His hands were behind his back. Bakura almost tensed, but managed to stop himself. "What do you want?" Wary. Not many people talked to him. He had tried to change it after the summer, but everyone was still scared of his hair.
The boy bit his lip before shoving an envelope towards Bakura. "H-Here." Bakura hesitated before taking it. The boy fidgeted. "Y-You can open it."
Bakura pushed his glasses further up his nose and opened the envelope. A badly cut piece of red card in the shape of a heart fell out. Bakura hesitated again before picking it up to read.
I reely like you and i hop you like me to. Happy valentines day. Rally.
The boy smiled as Bakura finished. Bakura read it again before taking one of his pencils and writing on the card. He crossed out a few words and handed it back to Rally.
Rally frowned but took the card and reread it.
I really like you and I hope you like me too. Happy Valentine's Day. Rally.
"I corrected the spelling and grammar for you." Bakura gave a grin – the closest he ever came to a smile. "Now you can give it to whoever you made it for and she won't make fun of you."
Rally opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Slowly, he nodded. "Okay," he mumbled.
Bakura frowned. He could have been a little more appreciative. "That's what you wanted, right?"
Bakura was one of the best in the class at English. It had to be what he wanted.
Rally swallowed and nodded. "Yeah. Thanks."
The Artist ran. Gone was the almost casual ease he carried out previous missions with. His movements were tense, but precise as he jumped over a sensor. The others followed. Not one triggered the alarm.
Things had tightened since Panda died. Polar wasn't off the team, but she hadn't been on any missions since. She hadn't volunteered herself for any missions, and the Artist hadn't put her on any. It was too soon.
Two weeks wasn't long enough to get over the sense of revolt in the group. And that sense was killing them.
The Artist glanced back as they reached their destination. Everyone got cans? He signed.
Everyone had been working harder at sign language since Panda's death too. It was also a possibility that his voice had been recognised on a recording, so they didn't want to take any chances.
They all nodded – Griffin, Giraffe, Phoenix, Necro, and Dove. None of them had wanted Dove to come, but he had insisted.
The Artist nodded. Go.
Similar to their first missions, they split up into groups of two. It didn't take long – they couldn't afford to take long anymore.
The cans hissed too loudly as the paint coloured the grey walls. The Artist occasionally paused and glanced over his shoulder at the cameras to make sure that they were out of sight, and line of sensors.
They regrouped before long. They needed the mission, but it couldn't be long. Shrew had warned them about that. The ATRA were expecting them.
Go, the Artist signed again, and they began running.
Cans were stowed in zipped pockets as they made their way through the ICU. They weren't keen to repeat what had happened to Panda. They couldn't. They had to get out. After everything they'd worked for – to get this close and not get out wasn't an option. Not anymore.
The Artist stopped dead as they reached section seventeen. He flicked his fingers at Giraffe and Phoenix, who darted for their coffins.
They always travelled back in pairs. No more, no less. It was riskier in the sense that it took longer, but it caused less risk of catching a sensor or causing enough noise for Zorc to come out and check what was going on.
Once Phoenix and Giraffe were back in their coffins, the Artist flicked his fingers again.
Dove and Necro went next, slower but quieter than the former two.
You okay? Griffin signed it as they waited for the two to make it, but the Artist ignored him. For now.
He could text him once in the coffin. Now; now it was too risky to talk. Even to sign.
They had to get back.
Necro's door closed a second after Dove's, and the Artist ran with Griffin.
Their coffins were still next to one another, so that posed little to no bother. The bother was the new camera.
They had to make it. The Artist jumped and landed on the second step from the door. Griffin landed a step behind him and made a dash for his own coffin. Just made it.
The Artist let out a sigh and slipped inside.
It was louder than he would have liked – their landing – but they hadn't set off a sensor. Zorc's coffin was still dark.
They were safe. Zorc's coffin was always dark, provided he hadn't heard anything.
If he did, the black would be gone in an instant and his head would be poking out the door, scowling into the semi-darkness.
The Artist slipped the can into the box under his bed. He would need to transport that to their meeting spot the next night somehow. Or dispose of them another way.
It just wasn't safe to keep that many anymore.
Nothing was safe anymore.
Again. Yugi's grip on his bag strap tightened as the school cafeteria came into view.
You can kill a revolutionary, but it feeds the revolution.
They had been writing similar ones since Zygor had died. But no one was looking at it. There were two thin, red lines of spray paint drawn through it and another quote sat beside it.
Resistance has no strength of its own. We feed it with power by our fear. Conquer that fear, and we conquer resistance. – A.T.R.A.
Yugi ran a hand through his hair. It fell into his face, so he grabbed it and forced it into a ponytail. His bangs still annoyed him, but not as much.
"What happened?" He heard Heba ask someone behind him.
"The Draughtsmen," someone sighed in response. "The ATRA cut them off again."
"Good!" Someone else huffed. "They're fucking everything up. They deserve to be cut off. Maybe they'll give up."
Yugi chewed his tongue and glanced to his left. Heru was staring at the quotes, his eyes flickering between the two. Yugi watched as Bakura walked up to the other and tapped him on the shoulder.
That didn't look good.
Heru nodded and followed him a bit away from the crowd. Akefia came into the school just as they walked away, and followed behind them. Yugi then followed Akefia.
"What are you doing?" He heard Bakura snap at Heru as he reached the alley the two had gone into by the school.
Akefia was aware of him – probably. But he didn't say anything.
"Nothing."
"Damn fucking straight. You're not meant to be doing nothing."
"Whatever." Yugi glanced around the corner to see Heru fold his arms. Akefia was definitely aware of his presence now. Again, he said nothing. "Can I go now?"
"Not until you tell me why exactly we're all risking everything if you're going to fuck everything up." Bakura glared at him.
Heru matched his glare. "I'm not fucking everything up. Now if you don't mind, I actually prefer avoiding restrictions." He turned to leave the alley but Bakura grabbed his arm, forcing him to face him again. "Can't you take a hint? Fuck off!"
"Tell me what you're planning," Bakura hissed.
Yugi saw Akefia move out of the corner of his eye, but didn't stop him. The latter walked into the alleyway. "Necro, that's enough."
Bakura scowled at his older brother. "What are you doing here?"
"I followed you." Akefia's stare was cold, but not angry. "Now let him go."
"Not until he tells the truth." Bakura glared at Heru again. "The entire thing is being fucked up by the ATRA, which he was meant to break apart!"
"You fucking try switching places with me then," Heru challenged. "It's harder than it looks."
"You've had two weeks!"
"As I said, take my place if you want." Heru spread his arms, palms up. "I don't care. But if you don't, I'm breaking it down from the inside, and I'm going to take as much time as I need to do it."
"Well said, Shrew," Yugi commented, stepping into the alley. "Necro, let him go." Bakura scowled, but released Heru. "He's the one who volunteered to go into ATRA and do what he could to dismantle it, knowing full well the dangers of the job. We're not forcing him into any more danger that necessary. They would be suspicious if he tried anything before now – he had no choice but to help cover it."
Bakura's scowl deepened, and he pushed past them. "All I'm saying," he muttered, "is it's happening too damn often for it to be normal."
"Nothing's normal," Heru called after him, but if Bakura heard him, he ignored him.
Seto glanced over the email. What is going on? Will help any way possible.
Good. That counted four emails. Four contacts who understood him. Four contacts he could at least somewhat rely on. It was better than nothing.
It was a lot better than the nothing that they'd had only a few weeks previously.
Seto bridged his fingers and leaned forward. The cursor blinked at him as he stared at the screen. What could he say? How much could he say? Not much. If there was even a point zero zero one percent chance of the ICU getting the email, he couldn't divulge much information.
Plus there was always the chance that one or more of his contacts were working with the ICU. Or in the ICU. Hell, he could have been completely wrong and they could all be from different branches of the ICU.
A tiny smirk crossed Seto's lips. Yeah. That was so likely. The smirk vanished. But it was still a possibility. He couldn't risk it.
"Hey." Jounouchi stepped into his office, a brown paper bag in his hand. "The dinner you ordered."
"Thanks," Seto mumbled, not taking his eyes off his laptop.
Jounouchi set the bag on the table and sat in the chair next to Seto. "Any luck?"
"Don't you have work to be doing?" Seto spared him a glance.
Jounouchi shrugged. "I'm your assistant. I work when you tell me to work. Am I working?"
Seto sighed. "Yes. Help me figure out what to say to these contacts." He slid the computer to Jounouchi.
The blonde scanned it. The emails had been copied and pasted into a Microsoft Word document, to be deleted later. The document wouldn't be saved. "None of them seem like they're from the ICU based off their language."
Seto hummed in agreement. "But at the same time, my emails don't seem like I'm from here either."
"I'm basing the judgement off your emails." Jounouchi turned to him. "These aren't as studiously precise."
"Neither are your emails."
"Yes, well I'm not a CEO, am I?" Jounouchi raised an eyebrow. "If these guys were ICU and as high as they are, they'd be a lot more precise and insistent. To the point kind of thing. Like a kid at school – we didn't want to know how to solve the equation in different ways; we just wanted to know how to solve it."
Seto hummed and glanced over the emails again. "I see your point. They're more curious than anything. They want to know the answer, and then figure out ways to solve it on their own."
Jounouchi nodded. "Whereas literally everyone in the ICU was taught find a way to get the answer, and then if it's wrong, and only if it's wrong, learn the right way."
Seto bit back a chuckle. "I think you and I have different memories of school. But you're right." He leaned back in his chair. "So they can be trusted for the next stage at least. But we need to find out where we are."
"Why? What's the next stage?" Jounouchi quirked his head.
Seto tapped his index fingers on the armrests. "Explaining part of it. A few people held captive – we managed to get a hold of a laptop to email them."
Jounouchi shook his head. "That's not going to work. You're Seto Kaiba. They know you. And if we said that, they'd assume you were the kidnapper."
Seto sucked his lower lip between his teeth. "Fair point."
Jounouchi stretched his arms behind his head. "I say we go for it. Tell them the whole thing. In 2008, a bunch of kids were kidnapped. Now we're being held against our will in a building that produces an environment-like atmosphere where we work and shit."
"Your language is atrocious; we really need to work on that," Seto sighed. "And we can't go straight off the deep end like that."
"Sure we can." Jounouchi shrugged. "They'll trust you."
"I haven't been going as Seto Kaiba in meetings. I've been Blue Kendrick."
"So?" Jounouchi shook his head. "There had to have been search parties at the time. 'Specially for the rich kids like you. Tell them who you are, bring up an old photo, and bam. You're you again."
Seto sighed and shook his head. "We need to find a way to ease them into it."
Jounouchi snorted. "Like the kidnapping story was any good."
"Shut up." Seto closed his eyes. Maybe Jounouchi was right. "It doesn't make sense. How could about two thousand kids just disappear without anyone noticing?" He mumbled.
"They didn't." Jounouchi shook his head. "Like I said; there had to have been search parties."
"Yes, but why didn't they find us?" Seto frowned. "We're in an impossibly large building. Anyone using Google Maps could have found it."
"Maybe it's in an Area-51 like place?" Jounouchi suggested. "No one allowed go there?"
"Still. A building this size in Japan would have roused suspicion."
"We could have been moved to another country."
Seto shook his head. "Remember Dove's story? He was on a boat from Britain. I was on a boat, but you weren't. You were in Japan. So unless they transported everyone from and in Japan without them waking up on the boat or plane ride, I don't think that's happened."
Jounouchi scratched the inside of his thumb. "Underground. It's the only thing that makes sense. Or under the sea."
Seto shook his head again. "Not under the sea. We didn't have the means for it at the time – if it was built under the sea, either it'd have flooded by now or there'd have been huge public uproar because of the building. It has to be underground."
Jounouchi grinned. "Artificial light, heat, wind, everything. Get typing."
Seto rolled his eyes. "I can't fit it all in one email without someone getting suspicious about my file sizes."
"Then hurry up!"
"The speed I do it at today isn't going to matter. They need to see it, read it, and respond."
Jounouchi glared at him. "Well maybe if you send it now, they'll see it sooner and respond sooner." He grabbed the paper bag and pulled it over to them. "And once you finish that, eat the damn food."
Seto shook his head as he began typing. "Your language really is a problem though."
"Shut the fuck up."
"My point exactly."
Mehi slipped into the club relatively unnoticed. Dark hoodies, jeans and t-shirts were common attires there so no one paid her a bit of attention.
All of their focus was on the Santa pole-dancing to Santa Baby. Mehi did her best not to pay any attention to the dancer with her legs wrapped around the pole as she made her way to the bar. Again, not many people were there.
Most people sat at the chairs and tables right across from the stage once they got their drinks.
"How is it that every damn time you come in here, I'm always the one on duty?"
Mehi grinned as she sat down. "Nice to see you too, Delta. I take it it's a slow night?"
Akiza nodded. "Yeah. Should pick up in a few days – the week before and after Christmas is always good. Did you talk to Giraffe?"
Mehi nodded. "Smoothed the whole working thing over. He's looking for a job elsewhere and I'm helping, but I get that it's just a job." It sounded like a scripted episode of Oprah, and Mehi could tell by the lift in Akiza's eyebrows that she heard it too. "Look, I'm not pretending I like it. But I'm putting up with it; I know he's trying to find something else."
Akiza hummed and ran over the counter with a wet dishcloth to clear it down. "Better than what I expected, to be honest. No offence."
Mehi shrugged. "None taken." Akiza was the type of person who had seen too many people in tears and pain for the same reason to be optimistic about Mehi's reaction to Marik's job.
"Good." Akiza raised her gaze to meet Mehi's again. "And did you talk about what we talked about?"
"Sort of." Mehi fidgeted, pulling at her sleeves. "I'm not even really sure what it is."
"I think you do."
"Shut up. Not everyone has everything figured out like you do."
Akiza narrowed her eyes. "I never said you had everything figured out. I said I didn't believe that you don't know who you are or what you're feeling." She folded her arms. "Tell me your name."
Mehi shot her a glare. "Are you kidding," she hissed. "My bracelet-"
"Yeah, yeah, don't pretend you don't call Giraffe and your friends by their real names when you're alone." She rolled her eyes. "I'll tell you mine in exchange." She took Mehi's hand and placed it over the silver chain on her neck. "Akiza." They both winced at the burn. "If I say my deadname, it doesn't work. Because it's not my name anymore. If your bracelet burns, you know that it's your name."
"And if I change it?" Mehi raised an eyebrow.
"From experience, the burning goes with whatever name you actually identify with," Akiza assured her. "Just say it. Trust me." She placed a hand over Mehi's bracelet.
Mehi swallowed. "This is stupid. I should go find Giraffe-"
"He's changing. He told me to send you in at nine. We have a few minutes. This will only take a few seconds." Akiza met her gaze. "I know you're scared. But trust me on this."
She swallowed. "Mehi." She almost smiled when the bracelet shot white-hot pain through her arm for a second.
Akiza jerked her hand back from the heat, but she was grinning. "What'd I tell you?"
"Yeah, yeah," Mehi mimicked, standing up. "I should really go find Giraffe. What number dressing room is he in."
"Nine. His name's on the door." Akiza winked. "Have fun."
"Not what I'm here for!" She called over her shoulder. Akiza flipped her off as she left.
The room wasn't hard to find. Marik had told the security to let 'Phoenix' in when 'they' came. Mehi appreciated the neutral pronoun. She didn't want to go by male pronouns, but she didn't want to go by female pronouns until she came out. Officially.
Giraffe was pinned to the door; a silver, tacky cardboard star with the name written in marker. Mehi knocked before entering.
Marik turned to grin at her. "Hey." He pulled down his shirt. Mehi caught a glimpse of the scars on his back. He hated them, and she did too. They were lucky that Pegasus had placed rules about how far punishments could go just after it happened.
"Hey." Mehi returned the grin and kissed his cheek. "You know, I always seem to arrive just after your performances end."
"Huh. Imagine that. Not wanting my girlfriend to see me strip in front of strangers." Marik shrugged, his grin growing. "Can't imagine why that's unusual." He kissed her cheek. "Maybe I'll give you a private performance."
She hummed. "Sounds great. But maybe after dinner."
Marik chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, sure. I've got shrimp cocktails waiting for us." He smiled at her. "But close your eyes. I've got a surprise for you before we go."
Mehi raised an eyebrow. "I thought that was waiting until after dinner?"
"Not that kind of surprise." Marik swatted her shoulder. "Just do it."
"As the actor said to the bishop," Mehi snorted, but she obliged. She heard rustling, like paper creasing for a minute.
"Okay. Open."
She opened her eyes again to see Marik holding out a large paper bag to her. Hesitantly, she took it and peaked inside. Clothes. She took out a hideous pink jacket. A blue skirt rested underneath. She glanced up at Marik. "Is this-"
"The girls' uniform," Marik confirmed.
Mehi shook her head, clenching the jacket. "How did you even-"
"I pulled a few strings." Marik smiled. "There's three of the uniform in there. And a few extra t-shirts and things. Plus, I did a bit of research and got you a few things to help with dysphoria - a Nubra, breast forms, push-up bra." Mehi slowly shook her head. "You don't need to wear it now," Marik rushed to add. "Or anytime soon. Or at all if you don't want to. I just... I just thought it would be better for them to be there for you when you're ready – if you want to – rather than having to wait to get everything."
Mehi shook her head again. "Marik..."
"Should I have not got them?" Marik asked.
Again, a shake of her head. She dropped the bag by her side and pulled Marik into a hug. "Thank you." She couldn't wear them. He had to know that. He had to know that. "It means a lot." But she couldn't wear them. She should tell him. She should tell him that she was never, ever coming out. That she was just going to stay as Kek. That way, she couldn't be ridiculed or anything, and she wouldn't lose anyone.
"You don't need to thank me." Marik returned the hug. "I know this is hard, and terrifying. But no matter what happens, I'm going to do my best to help you through this. Okay?"
Mehi nodded. She had to tell him. She couldn't do it. She wasn't brave enough. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." Marik pulled back enough to smile at her. "But this is all because of you. Because you were brave enough to tell me. I know it took a lot. So thank you."
Well, yeah. She did tell him. And he took it well. A lot better than she had ever expected. After a moment, she returned the smile. Maybe she could.
Heru stepped into the meeting room. A visitor badge clinked against his dog tag, loud in the silence. Chazz spared him a glance, and a nod. It was the friendliest gesture in the room.
Vivian didn't notice him – or pretended not to. Valon noticed him but ignored him. Cathy was just watching him.
And Rally just turned a page in their book. Odd. Rally generally greeted him with a small grin. Sometimes even a spoken greeting, and small talk.
Heru rolled his eyes and took the last seat by Rally. Rally shifted away from him.
"Hey," Heru mumbled, despite the action.
"I'm not talking to you."
Heru frowned. "Why not?"
"You know why."
He couldn't think of anything he had done to Rally. In fact, he had done his best to be almost painfully nice to them. They were the most likely to help Heru inside the ATRA. What had he done to get their only aid on his bad side?
"I can honestly tell you that I have no idea why." Rally scoffed and turned to another page. Heru frowned. "Can you tell me what I did?"
Rally used the excuse of Zorc walking into the room to ignore his question. They quickly marked the page in their book and closed it.
Heru cringed at the action, despite the much more important matters at hand. Chazz, Vivian, and Valon sat up straight. Cathy just let her gaze flicker over to Zorc.
"You're doing well," he admitted after a minute. "Much better than I had expected you would do."
"If you didn't think we'd do this well, why'd you even start the damn group?" Chazz muttered.
Zorc glared at him. "That is none of your concern."
Fear. He wanted the fear factor. He wanted the Draughtsmen to know what he could do – how much power he had. How much more influence he had. He wanted them to feel powerless as he organised their nemesis. He wanted them to feel fear again.
Heru knew it. Yugi knew it. Everyone knew it. The ATRA was nothing more than a group forged to fuel fear.
"When's our next assignment?" Vivian asked.
"I have a source," Zorc replied, "that says the Draughtsmen are going to strike later tonight."
"That's a bit pointless, isn't it?" Valon raised an eyebrow. "They generally strike on important dates. What's the seventeenth of December to anyone?"
"There are actually a few holidays today," Rally commented. "A few minor Christian ones, Kurdish Flag Day, Accession Day in Bahrain-"
"Oh my God, no one cares," Vivian groaned.
"He has a point." Zorc glared at her. "These dates could all have significance to one of the Draughtsmen. If we know all of the holidays, we can narrow it down by religious orientation."
"It could also be the date of a death or a birth of someone one of them respects," Heru cut in.
Zorc hummed. "True. But we'll get to that later. The Draughtsmen will be targeting the icuPark this time – the south Clock Tower."
"Why? Not much of a strategic location." Chazz leaned his head back.
"Nerds for Pokémon Gone," Rally muttered. "It's the best place for lures in the ICU."
"Exactly. And nerds share photos. They want it over the internet," Zorc agreed. "We need to make sure that doesn't happen. I want you all here by one tomorrow morning. Understood?" He didn't wait for a response before leaving.
The second he was gone, Heru turned to Rally. "So, what did I do?"
"I need to go." Rally began to stand, but Heru pulled them down again.
"Just tell me."
Rally glanced at the others. None of them were paying attention. Then they glared at Heru. "You want to know why?" They hissed. "The Draughtsmen are doing nothing wrong. We were forced into this. If we try to leave, we'll be killed. But you joined voluntarily. You joined out of a petty hatred, or something. I don't care why. You joined for the sake of joining to bring them down."
"Why are you only angry with me today?" Heru shook his head. "I've been to other meetings and on missions with you."
Rally scowled and looked away. "I only found out today. I thought you were another inmate."
Heru sighed. "Look, I can't explain it, but I didn't join because I hate them."
"Then quit."
"If I do, he'll kill me."
"Then you shouldn't have joined in the first place." Rally stood up, but Heru pulled them down again. "Let me go back to my cell."
"In a minute. It's your last day in jail, right?"
Rally hesitated before nodding. "I can't leave the ATRA though. Zorc made it clear what'll happen if we try."
"I'm not talking about that." Heru shook his head. "Zorc's told your sector leader to let you leave your cube after curfew?"
Rally frowned. "My cube?"
Heru hit the side of his head with the palm of his hand. "Sorry. Unit. We call them cubes in section seventeen. Anyway, you have permission, right?"
Rally glanced around again before nodding. No one was paying attention. They were all doing something – anything – to avoid having to go back to their cells.
Heru chewed his lower lip. This could either help, or completely fuck everything up. If Rally was just a good actor, the latter was most likely. "Come to section seventeen tomorrow. Around midnight. Got it?"
"But-"
"Great." Heru stood up. "See you then." He left the room, nodding to the guards on the way out.
Please don't let them be a good actor. Please don't let them be a good actor. Please let him have done something right for once.
Thanks again for coming.
"Thanks again for coming," Bakura translated for Yugi.
Yugi gave Ryou a smile. "You don't need to keep thanking me. We're friends. I wanted to be here for you."
Ryou shrugged, his leg jerking up and down as they waited in the uncomfortable plastic chairs. Still.
Bakura didn't need to translate the almost careless action. "But nothing." Yugi shook his head. "I wanted to be here for you, and I am here. You didn't force me into anything."
Ryou nodded. Thanks, he signed again.
Yugi shook his head, grinning slightly. "You're impossible."
The door swung open, and the smiley doctor walked in with a manila envelope in his hand. He sat behind the desk, facing them. "Hello again, Dove. How have you been doing?"
Ryou tilted his hand from side to side. So-so. I've been out of breath a lot.
Bakura translated for him, and the doctor nodded. "That's a normal symptom. We looked at the remaining test results to confirm that it was leukaemia."
"But...?" Yugi prompted after a moment. His smile was gone, his eyes narrowed and fingers bridged.
The doctor's gaze flickered to him. "But the tests came back negative. We looked at a few other possibilities and narrowed it down. The cancer began in your lung and spread to your bones, which explain the breathlessness."
Ryou swallowed and nodded. How bad is it?
"How aggressive is it?" Bakura asked.
The doctor leaned back in his chair. "It depends. In the lungs, the cancer appears to be quite aggressive. There's a liquid that everyone has in their lungs, but in Dove's, the liquid never drains. It just keeps filling up. That's why he's experiencing difficulties breathing." Ryou nodded. "However, we managed to catch the cancer quickly. It hasn't been in the bones for long. We need to drain his lungs before we start the chemo though. Once we drain his lungs, we'll need to sample some of the liquid inside to see if he needs to take the route of radiation therapy or if the option of pills is available."
"Which is better for him?" Bakura asked.
"No matter which road you take, the destination is the same," the doctor explained. "The cancer won't just go away. We can try and subdue it, but there's no cure per se."
"That's not what I asked. Which is better for him?" Bakura repeated.
"The pills are an easier route, but as I said, it'll take him to the same destination," the doctor explained.
"How likely is it that the pills will work for him."
His smile was back and bigger than ever. "Well with our technological and medicinal advances, the pills have a success rate of ninety percent, if he responds to them. The response rate is seventy percent."
Yugi was already on his phone. "I have several studies right here that say that these percentages are exaggerated. Can you give us exact percentages?"
The smile dropped a little. "Success rate of eighty-seven percent if there's a response. Response rate is sixty-five."
"And if he doesn't respond?"
"We'll be looking at radiation therapy," the doctor replied, "but based on Dove's medical history, he has a higher chance of not needing the radiation."
"You already told us he had a different type of cancer, and you were wrong," Yugi protested. "Could you have gotten it wrong again?"
"The results were mixed up by a filing error." His smile was a lot more strained. "We haven't mixed it up this time. We checked it with the second sample, and it matches. We can begin therapy just after Christmas, provided that Dove wants to do it. We'll give him a few days to think about it." He stood. "I understand that this is hard to process, but I do have other patients to attend to. Dove, you can contact me through the hospital if you have any more questions, and once you make your decision on the chemotherapy." He left the room without giving them a chance to argue.
"Fucking useless prick," Bakura muttered.
Yugi shook his head as Bakura took Ryou's hand and squeezed it. "Dove, we're going to help you through this. And we're not leaving without you." They couldn't use their real names in places like the hospital. Too many cameras.
I know. Ryou nodded, his face pale.
Yugi glanced at Bakura. "We'll pull back. Until we find out whether or not the pills are working for you, we're not moving forward. We can't risk it."
Ryou's head shot up and he glared at Yugi. "No. No way," he muttered. "You are not putting anyone's lives on the line because of me."
"Dove, he's right," Bakura insisted. "You need to be treated-"
"I don't even know if I want to start chemotherapy." Ryou shook his head. "It's going to completely destroy my immune system if I do. It's only going to prolong my life by a bit. No matter what, the cancer isn't going away." He swallowed. "I don't want this to be put off because of me. I want everyone out as soon as possible. Understood?"
Yugi held his gaze for a moment before nodding. "Understood."
"You can't be serious," Bakura snapped. "Dove, you need-"
"I need to do what I want to do here, Necro." Ryou looked up at him. "I'm going to decide whether or not to take the chemo after a few days of research and weighing up pros and cons. But no matter what, we're getting people out. Whether I take chemo or not, people are getting out, and I'm not going to be a reason why it's put off. I'm going to be with them. So are you, so is Calico, so is everyone in section seventeen. We're getting out. Got it?"
Bakura gritted his teeth. "Fine," he muttered. "Fine. But I swear, you're getting through this. You're not dying from this. If you do, I'll-"
"Kill me?" Ryou gave a feeble grin. "Sure."
"I will." Bakura folded his arms.
Ryou shook his head and stood up. "Come on." He coughed. "Let's just get out of here before we're forcibly removed. We need to get back – you have work. Both of you." Yugi sighed but the two followed him. Ryou glanced back at them. "And thanks for being here," he mumbled. "I don't know what I would've done without you two."
"Tried to get the doctor to pay attention to you signing and gotten exasperated when the prick left as quickly as possible without answering any of your questions?" Bakura guessed.
"Necro!"
"Hey, I'm just saying!"
Heru stood in the door of his cube. The cameras were on, but none were pointed towards him. Hopefully Rally knew better than to traipse into their view.
They weren't meant to be out tonight. Well, not until one that morning. So they were meant to leave later. Their section leader didn't know that, but if Zorc glanced over the footage, he would know.
Finally, he saw a hooded figure come into view. They slipped around the cameras and made their way over to Heru. "Why am I even here?" Rally hissed. "If Camula finds out-"
"She won't find out if we're careful and keep our voices down," Heru assured them. "Just follow me."
He turned and began walking, with Rally reluctantly following him. He didn't blame them. He could be leading them straight into a trap.
He paused at the manhole. "Keep an eye out for any cameras pointing this way." Rally nodded and looked around as Heru pulled up the manhole just enough to slip inside. "Get in."
"But-"
"I'll follow you. Go!"
Rally nodded and lay on their back, sliding under it. They fumbled for a moment, trying to find the ladder, before gaining footing and climbing down.
Heru followed with practiced ease, lowering the manhole cover with one hand while he used the other for balance. It closed with a tiny shlink and he climbed down the ladder.
Rally was waiting for him at the bottom. "What are we even doing here?"
"Just follow." Heru turned and walked down the tunnel. Rally wrinkled their nose, but followed.
The tunnel was little more than a slightly cleaner sewage system – the same model as section seventeen, but with muddy brown water and a terrible stench.
Heru paused when they turned a corner and reached the meeting door. "Wait here," he said. "I'll come out and get you in a minute."
"But-"
"Just trust me on this." Heru opened the door a crack and stepped inside. "Sorry I'm late," he said, closing the door.
"It's fine," Yugi assured him. "Now that everyone's here, can we start the meeting?"
"Not everyone's here," Heru spoke up.
Bakura frowned and glanced around. "Yes, everyone's here."
Heru shook his head. "I may have a new recruitment to the Draughtsmen waiting outside."
"You brought them here without consulting us?" Mai snapped.
"Mai." Yugi shot her a look.
"No; you blame me for putting everyone in danger, but he can just bring whoever he wants to spy on the meeting?"
"They're not here to spy," Heru protested. "They're part of the ATRA-"
"Oh, like that gives us reason to trust them," Sid scoffed.
"Look, they didn't want to join; Zorc was threatening to kill them if they didn't," Heru explained.
"Did you consider that they could have been lying to get close to you?" Yami spoke. "It's common knowledge that the Draughtsmen are in section seventeen. They could have been trying to get your trust so they could get closer to the section, and closer to us."
"They're not like that," Heru protested. "I know this kid. They're the one that was sent to prison for impersonating the Artist in their own section."
Yugi's eyebrows arched. "Scooter?" Heru nodded. "How do we know the ATRA hasn't changed him?"
"Changed them," Heru corrected. "And it hasn't."
"So on top of everything, the kid's a freak?" Bonz scoffed.
"Bonz." Yugi shot him a glare. "They're not a freak for using neutral pronouns, and I won't stand for that behaviour in this group." Bonz folded his arms and fell silent. Yugi turned back to Heru. "You trust that they're not a spy?" Heru nodded. Yugi chewed his tongue for a moment before nodding. "Bring them in." His decision caused multiple protests, but he scowled. "I said bring them in," he repeated, louder.
The others fell silent as Heru opened the door. "Scooter, you can come in now."
A few moments later, Rally stepped into the room. Heru closed the door and Yugi stood up, offering them a smile. "Scooter. It's nice to meet you in person."
Rally hesitated. "You too."
"Why don't you introduce yourself?"
Rally hesitated. "But... you just called me-"
"We all use real names here," Yugi explained. "I'm afraid I only know you by Scooter."
Rally swallowed. "Rally Dawson." They winced slightly at the heat that shot up from their ring.
Yugi nodded, his smile growing. "You can take a seat by Akefia and Heru." Rally followed Heru over to the two empty chairs and sank into it. Bonz scowled. It used to be Zygor's chair. "Well, Rally, I doubt Heru mentioned it because of confidentiality, but I'd like to formally welcome you to the Draughtsmen's meeting."
Rally's eyes widened and they glanced around. There were no utterings of 'really' or 'you're kidding'. It made sense. No wonder the cubes had all been dark. They were in a sewer having a meeting. Why else would they be there? "Am I-"
"You're not in any trouble," Yugi assured them. "Heru said you could be trusted, and I trust him. If you want, there's always a space open in the group." He smiled. "Of course if you don't, we'll need to wipe your memory." Rally's eyes widened and Yugi shook his head. "Sorry. That was meant to be a joke. I'm not good at making jokes. No memory wiping, but we'd need to keep an eye on you to make sure you wouldn't tell anyone."
"I won't." Rally shook their head. "I'd love to join."
"Excellent." Yugi looked around. "So now that everyone's here, can we begin?" There was no objection, so Yugi sat down. "Heru, you said to cancel the mission tonight."
Heru nodded. "There's a leak. Somewhere. Zorc had a source that there was going to be a mission tonight; we need to be at the ATRA meeting area at one this morning to go the park and spray over the Draughtsmen quote."
"Finally, some use for having you in that group," Bakura grumbled.
Heru shot him a glare. Yugi just held up his hand. "Let's not start the argument again."
"Did Zorc mention who the source was?" Jounouchi asked.
Heru scoffed. "Of course not."
"I don't see why you can't just tell us where the ATRA base is," Keith muttered. He was coming back to his normal behaviour after his long bouts in the zoo. "We could put on the costumes Miho made and attack them. Well, those of us who look similar anyway. That way we wouldn't have distinguishable body features."
"The costumes were a bad idea," Rally spoke up. "Zorc put Dingo on trying to identify who everyone in the photos was. The can only confirmed that it was Zygor who was in one of them. You're lucky that Dingo's useless at technology; he accidentally deleted the pictures and Zorc never backed them up on the cloud."
Yugi nodded. "Thank you, Rally." Mai seemed a bit paler than before. "In addition, Rally and Heru would need to be absent from the meeting if we were to physically attack the ATRA. It wouldn't take much for Zorc to wonder who tipped off the Draughtsmen, who joined most recently, who joined voluntarily, who's in section seventeen, and who's missing from the meeting that everyone just happened to be attacked during." Keith slumped in his chair. "It was a good suggestion. But there's too much on the line for Heru, and now Rally, to do that. Plus, the Draughtsmen is meant to be a mainly peaceful group. We spray quotes, we rally support, but we don't attack someone."
"Peacefulness is getting us nowhere." Mana folded her arms. "Yes, we're getting support, but not enough. We need to do something bigger."
Yugi hummed and nodded. "Something bigger, yes. But we're not going to do anything violent. If you have any suggestions for something bigger, I'd be glad to hear them."
After a moment, Otogi spoke. "You could hack the ICU television system and broadcast a message. If you wore a mask that covered your entire face and modified your voice, no one would know who it was. You could also use a computer at school to do it so your IP couldn't be tracked."
Yugi nodded. "Not a bad idea. We'd need to get into the school though. Does anyone have any night jobs there this week?"
They all took turns cleaning the school; washing windows, sweeping floors, stocking the cafeteria. The only night job was sweeping floors.
Jounouchi raised his hand. "I do." He worked two jobs – one was part-time janitor, so he got jobs at the school most weeks. "But I can't give you the keys. They'd link it to me."
Yugi nodded in agreement. "Any other ways to get in?"
"The locks for the gym are still under repair," Honda commented. "If we do it over Christmas or New Year, we should be able to get in with minimal security, and we'd have more time to do it."
Yugi nodded in agreement. "We'll work on assembling a team for that next meeting. We'll push out our mission until the dance at school. I'll do it, and I'll approach one of you to do it with me at the dance."
"Why not before?" Jounouchi raised an eyebrow.
"If no one knows who's doing it, they'll be less likely to leak it to anyone." Yugi looked around the room. "I trust you all. I trust that none of you leaked any information to Zorc directly. But I need you all to be extra careful about who you talk to, and what you say. Zorc could have a number of people tagging everyone in the section. Anything you say to anyone outside this group could be monitored and brought back to him."
"Isn't that a little paranoid?" Sid raised an eyebrow.
"Maybe," Yugi agreed, "but it's paranoia and care that's gotten us this far." He looked around once more. "If no one else has anything else to say, that's the end of the meeting. I'm aware that Heru and Rally need to leave to get to the ATRA meeting on time."
Marik nudged Mehi. She swallowed and raised her hand, like a pre-schooler who needed to go to the bathroom. "I... I need to say something."
Yugi's gaze fell on her. As though sensing her nerves, he gave her a smile. He probably did sense them. Her hands were sweating and her free one clenched in the pocket of her hoodie. "Go ahead, Malik."
She took a deep breath. "I understand that this probably isn't the best place or time to say this, but-"
"It's fine," Yugi assured her. "You can say whatever you need to."
Mehi nodded slowly. "Thanks. I just..." She swallowed. Marik squeezed her hand. "I've been doing a lot of figuring out stuff lately with help from a few people and... I just thought that... That I should tell you guys."
"Well go on, spit it out." Bakura crossed his legs.
"Shut up," Marik muttered, shooting him a glare.
Mehi didn't even respond. Bakura's annoyed scowl faded and he sat upright again as she toyed with the sleeve of her hoodie. "I... Fuck it, I'm just going to say it." She shook her head. "I'm transgender."
For a moment, no one spoke.
"Fucking freak."
Mehi flinched and Yugi stood up, eyes blazing. "Sid, shut the fuck up."
"I'm not staying as part of this group with him in it."
"She's a girl, asshat," Marik snarled, glaring at him.
"No, it isn't."
"Call her it again. I fucking dare you." Bakura stood up and walked towards Sid, but his brother held him back.
"No one's making you stay. Any of you." Yugi looked around, his eyes landing on Mehi again. "What pronouns and name do you want us to use?"
She was shaking – barely. To most, it probably looked like she was just hunched, but Marik could feel the tremors in her hand. "She and her, and Mehi."
Yugi nodded and looked around again. "If anyone in here has a problem with Mehi, you can leave. Now."
Sid glared at Yugi. "You're not going to do this."
"Believe me; I am."
"If you kick me out, I'm going straight to Zorc."
"Go ahead," Bakura snarled. "See how far away from this room you get before I break your jaw."
Mehi stood up abruptly. "Shut up!" Sid's lip curled, but he joined everyone else in silence. Mehi walked towards the door, boots clunking. "I'm out. I'm not going to be the cause of this going to hell." The door swung shut behind her. Rally stood up after a moment and followed her out, not casting a look at Sid.
Yugi cleared his throat. "Meeting adjourned," he muttered. His voice sounded strained.
Everyone began to leave in twos and threes. Sid was the only one to leave alone. Bonz hung back with Keith.
Marik stayed until Yugi and Yami were the only ones left. "What are you going to do?" Marik asked.
"I don't know."
"Well figure it out." He left the meeting room.
"Phoenix, I need to talk to you."
Mehi pulled down her gym shirt, pretending not to hear Yugi.
"Phoenix!"
She walked out of the changing room, letting the door swing shut behind her. Yugi scurried out of the changing room after her. His shoes were untied, and in his gym uniform, he looked less like the Artist, the fearless leader of the Draughtsmen she had come to see him as, and more like the kid who hid behind her in dodgeball.
She stopped at the locker room. "I'm not talking about it."
"Phoenix-"
"That bastard outed me to the school."
"I-"
"Don't try defending him. Look at my fucking locker." She pointed into the locker room.
TRANNY. WHORE. FREAK. FAGGOT.
Black smears of paint decimated the green metal.
"Would you let me talk?" Yugi shook his head. "I wasn't going to defend him. I know what happened."
"Yeah." Mehi pulled at the rubber band around her wrist. "Everyone does."
"I told him to leave."
Mehi blinked. "Come again?"
"Sid is no longer part of the group." Yugi met her gaze, and back was the fearless Artist.
Mehi shook her head. "No. No, no. You hear what he said. He's going to go to Zorc about this- you can't just let everything go to waste because of this-"
"Mehi." Yugi folded his arms. "I've thought long and hard about this decision. And I've made sure that Sid won't go running to Zorc about this. We need you and Rally more than we need him, and we need to make the group a safe environment for everyone. He was threatening that safety, so he had to go."
The bell for gym rang, but neither of them moved.
"You can't know for sure he won't go to him."
"But I do." Yugi raised his eyebrows. "I'm not going to let this go to waste."
"And if he does?"
"He won't."
"But if he does?"
"I have it sorted."
Mehi snorted. "The less I know, the better. Right?"
"Exactly." Mehi shook her head and turned away, but Yugi caught her arm. "Mehi, trust me on this. He's not going to go to Zorc."
"But-"
"No. No more buts. I know for sure that he's not going to go to Zorc, and you're going to need to trust me on it. Okay?" After a minute, Mehi nodded. "Good. And are you coming back to us?" Mehi nodded again. Yugi smiled. "Excellent." He glanced around. No cameras. Most students were already in the gym. "This needs to be quick. Christmas mission, I'm going to be approaching you. Be ready."
Mehi's eyes widened. "But- At the meeting-"
"I said what I had to say to get the source to lay low." Yugi shook his head. "I wouldn't leave anyone so ill-prepared for a mission. I'll handle the cans. You pick out the quote this time. Wear whatever you want, but just make sure you can move in it. Okay? Just nod if you understand. We need to go." Mehi nodded. "Perfect. Any questions?" Mehi opened her mouth, then shook her head. "Good." Yugi turned towards the gym. "Let's go."
Mehi snorted, regaining a little composure as they walked. "I thought you'd skip this week."
"Nah, tennis is good for agility and reflexes."
Mehi nearly burst out laughing. "Calico, tennis is next week."
Yugi's face fell. "Tell me it's not-"
"Dodgeball," Mehi confirmed.
"Kill me," Yugi groaned, "please."
Mehi pushed him towards the door. "Come on. You can hide behind me again."
Yugi looked hopeful as they slipped in with the groups. "Really?"
"Nope. Have fun improving your reflexes, kid."
"You're late."
"I'm sorry. I did what I could to get here."
Zorc hummed. "There was no quote on the park wall last night. My team were humiliated."
"No one saw."
"I did."
"I'm sorry; they got word of the leak and postponed it."
Zorc's eyes narrowed. "How did they get word of the leak? You're not getting cold feet, are you Retriever?"
Jounouchi shook his head. "Of course not! It wasn't me!"
"Then who?"
"I don't know. They left an anonymous note." Jounouchi shook his head. "We all wear masks down there so there's no leak of identity. A few people even wear gloves and write instead of talking."
Zorc sighed. "Fine. What information do you have for me?"
Jounouchi hesitated. "You swear if I do this, my sister's surgery will be covered?"
"You won't pay a penny."
Jounouchi nodded. "And it'll work?"
"I'll have the best doctors in the ICU take care of her. Princess will be able to see again if you tell me."
Again, Jounouchi nodded. "And no waiting list?"
"None."
Jounouchi swallowed. "They're planning something at the Christmas Dance."
Zorc narrowed his eyes. "How many?"
"I don't know. Probably just one."
"You're useless."
"That's all the information we were given!"
Zorc scowled but nodded. "Fine. Get out of here."
"We had a deal."
"Yes, yes, your sister's operation. Provided something happens at the dance, it will be sorted." He glared at Jounouchi. "But if something doesn't happen-"
Jounouchi looked away. "Trust me. Something's going to happen."
"I can't do this," Mehi whispered, staring at herself in the mirror.
Her hair had been brushed down and burned into curls, framing her face. Marik had painted her face with a touch of make-up – silver and grey eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, foundation, purple lipstick, she didn't even know the names of some of the things.
Her nails were decorated silver, a shiny fake diamond on each one.
The dress almost looked like a t-shirt and a skirt. A grey top with a lace neckline, cotton bodice that reached her bellybutton, and short sleeves. A think violet sash that wrapped around her waist and stomach and tied at the back without a bow or a knot. A puffy lace skirt of lilac and lavender – not frilly; nice. The Nubra, breast forms, and push-up bra combined gave the illusion of actually having breasts, which made Mehi comfortable. Too comfortable. She couldn't get used to it.
A silver locket hung heavy around her neck, and black combat boots adorned her feet.
It wasn't her. It looked gorgeous. And it made her more comfortable that she'd felt before. But it wasn't her. It was too soon to do this. She'd only just come out. She'd only come out to the section.
"The school won't let me in."
"Yes they will," Marik assured her. "There are a few transgender and non-binary kids at school, and one or two aside from me cross-dress. They let us all in without a problem, and they'll let you in too."
"But..." Mehi gripped the sides of the dress tightly. "Marik, I don't know if I can do this."
"You can."
She turned to look at him. He wore a longer dress – a light purple bodice with black sequins that hugged his hips and trailed down to his ankles. He was wearing the black heels Mehi had passed up. "I can't. I can't go in wearing this. You heard what Sid said, and this is section seventeen."
"Sid's an asshole who got exactly what was coming to him when he was kicked out." Marik folded his arms. He wore more make-up than Mehi, and his nails were painted black to match the dress, but he didn't look like a girl. Well, maybe. From the back. Because Mehi knew him?
If she saw him on the street, would she mistake him for being a girl? Possibly. It didn't matter. What mattered was she looked like a girl.
"But the others-"
"Are perfectly fine with it and would literally slaughter anyone who tried to fuck with you," Marik pointed out.
Mehi looked in the mirror again. "Can't I just wear jeans and a t-shirt or something?"
"It's the Winter Dance – they want everyone to dress up," Marik pointed out.
"Yeah, but I could wear a nice t-shirt, or a shirt, or-"
Marik took her hands. "Mehi, if you're not ready to dress like this, that's okay."
Mehi shook her head. She didn't know. She was never comfortable in formal clothes. Was it just that?
"What if something happens?"
"We'll kick their asses." Marik gave her a smile.
Mehi smiled feebly. "Mar, I'm stronger than you."
"Then you'll kick their asses, and there'll be no problem." Marik's smile grew to a grin. "It'll be okay. I promise."
Mehi glanced at herself in the mirror over her shoulder. Down, her hair softened her jawline, giving it a more feminine shape. She was almost able to kid herself that she looked like the doll. "Okay. Let's go."
For the distance between section seventeen and the school, the journey was much too short. Mehi's hands felt clammy and too hot in Marik's cool palms.
"It's going to be okay," Marik murmured at random intervals. Mehi just nodded.
Bakura and Ryou were waiting for them at the door. Bakura wore a pair of nice jeans and a polo t-shirt, and Mehi almost wanted to turn around, go back to her cube, and change. Ryou, however, was wearing black dress pants, black shoes, and a black t-shirt with a blood red collar and wrists. That made the ratio of casual to dressed up one to four, and Mehi didn't want to be the odd one out inside.
But she was already going to be the odd one out, so it didn't matter.
But if she went back now, she'd be late.
Bakura gave her a grin and a hug. "If anyone says anything, I'll fight them."
"Necro, you can't fight. What if someone challenges you on that?" Ryou huffed. "Are you going to hide in a vent?" His voice was nice. Mehi didn't think she'd heard it before, though she knew he had been talking recently.
"I can fight."
"No you can't; I've saved your ass more times than I can count," Ryou scoffed.
Bakura smirked. "You love my ass."
"That's debatable."
"Hey, I have a great ass!"
"I really don't want to stand here talking about your ass." Marik folded his arms. "Can we go inside?"
Ryou nodded, silent again. Sure. He turned and held open the door for everyone, making Mehi closer to the front of the group than the back. Which she hated. With every fibre of her being. No escape route. It wasn't close enough.
"Hey." Bakura nudged her. "Relax. Any dickheads will be busy trying to spike the punch. Just avoid the table there and you'll be fine."
Mehi hummed and the doors opened. The gym was shrouded in darkness, laser lights flashing and somewhat illuminating the throng of bodies in the middle. There were two tables – one for drinks, and one for snacks. As Bakura had predicted, the bigger crowd was at the former of the two.
In the corner with a few other Draughtsmen, Yugi waved them over with a huge, ear-splitting grin. "You guys look great!" He called over the music. One or two seemed to avoid Mehi as the four integrated into the group, and Sid was nowhere to be seen.
Good. She didn't need to talk to them anyway. Marik was right. Fuck them.
Comments floated towards her. She knew Marik heard them too. The same ones that decorated her locker. But she just pulled him onto the dance floor when they got easier to hear.
It wasn't long later that Yugi tapped her on the shoulder and nodded. Marik's eyes widened. Mehi saw him shake his head, but she just kissed his cheek and followed Yugi through the people.
"Girls bathroom, use the vents," he muttered. "The roof."
Mehi nodded and moved a bit faster so it didn't seem suspicious. They couldn't both leave at the same time.
She slipped into the girls bathroom. Someone was there. She recognised her – Tori. She frequented the zoo every few months.
A smile hung on her face for a moment before falling. "Hi, Phoenix."
Mehi tried not to wince as she returned the smile. "Orca."
Tori pushed past her and left the bathroom, moving faster than usual. Mehi let out a shaky breath. She knew it would happen.
She made her way to one of the stalls. It didn't matter. She locked the door once inside, stood on the toilet, and pushed at the loose tiles in the ceiling. One gave way and she pushed it to the side. She gripped the sides of the hole, keeping herself aloft by pushing against one wall with each foot until she managed to pull herself up enough to climb through the gap. She slid the tile back into place and glanced around.
There wasn't enough space to do anything more than crawl, and the tiles creaked under her weight. They'd need to be fast. She glanced to the left in time to see The Artist squirm up and push the tile into place behind him.
"Which way?"
The Artist pointed forward. "There's an air vent up ahead. I've got a screw driver; we can get through that to the janitor staircase and use that to get to the roof."
Phoenix nodded and began crawling after him. Now she was grateful for the lacy skirt – the layers made the journey easier on her knees.
It didn't take long to reach it – opening it quietly took longer. The Artist passed the hatch to Phoenix to hold as he climbed through. Then she climbed through backwards, pulling the hatch into place. She had to hold it steady for The Artist as he screwed it back into place.
After standing up, she glanced around. Janitors' stairwell. Just as The Artist had said.
"Come on," The Artist muttered, beckoning her to the left. She followed him up the stairs, pulling on gloves that he handed to her. "Did you get a quote?"
She nodded. "Yeah. I'll tell you at the top."
The Artist nodded and passed her back a can of spray paint. "Every language you know."
She hummed in agreement, and slowed as they reached the top. The Artist pulled a master key out of his pocket – he had gotten an imprint of Zorc's and made a plastic copy of it. Well, Diabound had gotten the imprint. The Artist made it real.
The door swung open and they slipped out onto the roof. A narrow line of cement with a wire railing surrounded the pointed glass pyramid of the gym. They could see the flashing lights inside.
The Artist muttered a curse. They had all thought they'd pull down the blinds for the dance. "Do it quick. Only in English." It was the most widely spoken language in the ICU. Only one or two people didn't understand it.
Phoenix nodded and they began painting. Too late.
They could hear sirens. "Someone tipped them off."
They kept going – rushed. The writing grew a lot sloppier than normal.
"Go!" The Artist hissed the second they were done.
Phoenix grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the door, but Zorc appeared at the top of the stairs, blocking them. "The Draughtsmen."
Mehi pulled Yugi closer, an arm wrapping around his neck.
"What are you doing?" He muttered.
"Saving your ass." Mehi glared at Zorc and whipped a pocket knife out of her combat boot. One could never be too careful on missions. She pointed the blade at Yugi's neck. "Call them off."
"Phoenix-"
"I knew someone tipped you off." She narrowed her eyes. "I'm not that stupid."
Zorc took a step forward and she pressed the blade into Yugi's skin. He hissed. "Don't move unless you want his blood spraying all over the roof." Zorc stopped. "Call off the ICUPD. Now." Zorc did nothing. The blade dug further in, drawing a thin line of blood. "Now."
Zorc slowly pulled out a phone. "Hostage situation. Fall back," he muttered into it.
The red-blue lights in the corner of Mehi's eyes began to recede, and the sirens stopped wailing.
"So, you're the Artist?" Mehi didn't respond. "If you come quietly, the penalty won't be as big."
"Bull fucking shit," she laughed. "You're going to kill me the second you get your hands on me, just like you tried to do to Giraffe."
"Phoenix-"
"No." She glared. "Leave the roof. I'll let Calico go."
"And you?"
"I'm not turning myself in."
Zorc laughed. "There's nowhere to go! There's nowhere to hide! Every inch of the ICU is monitored, Phoenix."
She didn't flinch. "My name is Mehi Kosey. And you're not going to catch me. Whether or not I kill him." She moved the blade to Yugi's temple. "But go ahead. Let me kill him, and let me get away. Let the whole ICU know that you let someone die because you were too stubborn to try and catch me some other time. Because believe me, they'll know."
Zorc's eyes narrowed, calculating. Slowly, he backed towards the door. Hand wrapping around the doorknob. Turning. Backing off the roof and closing the door.
"I'm sorry," Mehi whispered to Yugi.
"Don't be." She hadn't moved the knife yet. "Other side. The fence isn't electric. You can leave me up here. Stab my arm."
Her eyes widened. "What?"
"He'll be back in a few moments. Stab my arm." He glanced over her shoulder. "Do it, or I will."
After a moment, Mehi nodded and pulled Yugi over to the wall. "Only if he comes back." She climbed over the railing and began to scale down the fence.
The door swung open. Yugi yelled as the knife dug into his leg, and he collapsed. Mehi dropped off the fence once most of the way down and pelted through the nearest back alley. The sirens were up again, blue-red lights blaring.
Manhole. Manhole. There!
She pulled it up and dropped inside, yanking it closed after her. It thudded, loud, but was masked by the sirens.
Run. Run. Run.
Yugi was limping when he got back to his cube the next morning. A bandage was wrapped tight around his thigh.
Yami was waiting for him, and Marik, and Bakura. No one else. Anymore would have been suspicious.
"Are you okay?" Yami asked, taking Yugi's overnight bag from him as he stepped out of the hospital trolley car.
Yugi smiled at him. "Don't worry; I'm fine. Nothing's wrong; just damaged tissue. It'll heal soon enough, and I'll be back to normal." The cart drove off.
"What happened?" Marik asked. "The dance ended when they saw the writing and heard the sirens."
Yugi swallowed. "It didn't work out."
"No shit. But where is she?"
"Safe." Safe meant hidden. Hidden meant the sewers – the only place unmonitored. "For now."
"But you got it done," Yami pointed out.
Their first successful quote since Zygor's death.
Those who do not move do not notice their chains.
"So what?" Marik hissed. "They're looking for her. They think she's the Artist!"
"Exactly," Bakura agreed. "You promised, Calico. No more deaths."
Yugi pushed past them, stepping into his cube. Outside was too monitored. Inside, Rosa swept towards him, curling around his ankles with a purr. Zorc had let Yami into the cube that morning to feed her.
"We'll get her out, it'll be fine," Yami tried to assure Yugi.
He held up a hand, stopping him. Yami used to idolise him. The Artist. He still did. He could see it in his mannerisms, speech, opinions.
"They're right, Yami."
He picked up Rosa and turned. Bakura closed the door behind them. Curfew had been completely lifted. They could go to anyone's cube, any time before eleven.
"It wasn't worth it."
He had acted too slow. He should have done something.
"If Mehi dies, it's my fault. And a quote isn't worth a death."
He let out a sigh.
"If Mehi's caught, I'm giving myself up."
Yami's eyes widened. "Yugi, you can't. You know-"
"Yes. I know."
"There won't be an Artist," Marik pointed out. "Yami will take my place."
Yami shook his head. "I- Yugi, I can't- If you hand yourself in-"
"I die."
Yugi met his gaze. His eyes flickered to Marik, to Bakura, and back to Yami.
"But if I don't, she dies. And I can't let that happen."
He scratched behind Rosa's ears.
"If Mehi is caught, I'll hand myself in. I'll tell them I blackmailed her into joining the Draughtsmen and made her pretend she was the Artist. Yami will be the new Artist. And no matter what, you'll all still get out of here."
DV: So, yeah. Hope you guys enjoyed that little bit of torture. Please vote and review! See you next time, Murdering Majestors!