Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Vampire Hunter D. So there.

I want to thank Aldedron very much for becoming my beta reader; she has been awesome beyond all awesomeness. Thank her for the chapter you're about to read, she's the reason that it was possible to upload in such a timely fashion! Not to mention, responsible for something that D says later on in the chapter, making later chapters far more interesting, in my opinion.

Now read and enjoy!

Chapter Eleven: And The Die is Rolled Again

"I've decided to help the wandering traveler," D stated, removing his thumb from his mouth, which he had been chewing on the nail in thought, to be clear. "You have nothing to worry about; we will return your family's great treasure to you."

'"Thank you,' says the traveler, 'I promise you I will reward you when you find it! I will wait here for your return.'"

D cocked his head and glanced at the girl sitting beside him. She shrugged with an 'I have no clue' expression on her face. He gave her a small smile and nodded. "We will be out shortly," he said, "We are going to move into the forest now."

Fingers raced over a small keyboard, and then stopped abruptly after hitting the enter button; a nod. "There is a fifty percent chance of being attacked in this particular forest. You can roll when you are ready."

"Not bad odds considering," the girl replied, giggling, "That's at least what my big brother would say. It's my turn to roll." She shook the dice in between both hands and tossed them. They clacked against the wood and spun their dance of chance. Both she and D watched intently as they slowed and then stopped. Upon looking at the numbers the girl groaned, and it was D's turn to shrug.

"I'm gonna die, D-kun, if this keeps up!" she cried in exasperation.

"Don't worry, Amami-chan," the boy stated, "Remember that we went to the village and bought some healing potions after the last battle. I'll watch your back."

"My hero!" the girl cried, hugging him. D at first looked uncomfortable, but then he chuckled and patted her on the back.

"So how many do we have to fight this time, Dark Master?" D asked as Amami let go of him.

It had been two weeks since D's near drowning incident and life did not seem like it could get better in the boy's mind. Nor was it any different in Bakura's. D had grown into a sort of a chatterbox toward the people he trusted fully (while this group only consisted of Bakura and Amami, it was a start) and was faring well in school, getting used to the life of a child out of a sterile compound. His hand had not bothered him over this period of time either. They had even held a civil conversation with one another concerning their situation. Bakura continued his work without any other incidents; in fact it seemed there were less raiding parties than ever when they went out. All of the leaders of each 'party' had held a meeting with Kaiba, and all seemed well. There was even a chance that they would open their doors to stragglers again, now that the guards were not as harried. As the end of that meeting wound down, someone had made a suggestion that a celebration be held between all of the Domino City factions "for still being around!" as they put it. At first Kaiba had thought it was pointless, but Mokuba stated that it may be a wonderful idea to keep morale up. In the end Kaiba agreed, and it was a reminder to all how influential Mokuba could still be. Life was turning out to be pretty good considering the situation.

Now D and his good friend were playing Monster World, on a bright Sunday afternoon, a game that Bakura was continuing to teach them. D had helped Amami create a character, and Bakura spending a good half of the night had created a little figurine for her. She needless to say, had been pleased. Bakura had surprised D with his own figurine the week before, and both the human warrior and the elven mage stood on the field that day, awaiting the reply of the Dark Master.

"You are in great luck, the roll only allowed for three monsters to appear on the field. You have the first attack if you can roll it."

"Yeah, that's perfect luck," the girl said, pouting. She grabbed the dice again and was about to roll until they heard a knock on the front door. All of them stopped what they were doing and listened. There was another knock on the door and Bakura stood to answer it after saving their progress.

A man stood on the other side of the door with an apologetic smile on his face. Bakura returned the smile and beckoned for him to enter. "Amami-chan, your father is here to pick you up."

"Awwww!" He heard a dual cry come from the other room and could not help but snicker.

"Daddy, do I have to?" Amami said, poking her head from around the corner, "I was just about to rescue the wandering traveler's treasure!"

The man chuckled. "It will still be there when you visit again," he said, and turned to Bakura, "thank you for watching her, we appreciate it."

"It is no problem at all," Bakura replied, smiling, "I know D kun appreciates it as well."

"If you ever need us to look after him for you, we'll be more than willing to," the older man added, "A young man like you should be thinking about his own future as well as the boy he cares for."

Bakura's face felt as if it were burning. He was almost tempted to touch it to see if it was. "What?"

"Come on now, at this age only a few years ago, most boys were looking for the woman they'd be spending the rest of their life with, making their way through college, and here you are acting as a father already," the man looked out of the sliding door window and sighed, "It's a shame what happened. For everyone. Those who were old and could finally relax, those who were young and just starting their lives, and the children…they'll never really know what it was like, that freedom, that safety, even if it was fragile."

Bakura shrugged. "I believe that they will be able to grow up as children now," he started, "Even though there is still school, they don't have to worry about cram school. And our lives went from the hectic day to day pace to this slow, in a strange sense, peaceful existence. We may still be using electricity, and some of the other things, but now we can work for ourselves, be proud of what we've done when our family smiles at us, and they can relax. We're a tighter knit community now than we ever were back then, so in a strange way, the children are a little bit safer. Yes, people die, but it's a part of life."

The man looked into his eyes for a few moments and then slowly nodded. "I suppose you're right," he said, "but it still is sad. All of that loss."

"It is," Bakura replied, his heart feeling strangely heavy, as if it knew something he did not.

"But I suppose that's not important now, we should look toward the future," The man said, shrugging. Bakura nodded and smiled. The man grinned and elbowed him. "Which means anytime you need a babysitter, just ask. You have a future to look toward too."

The young man chuckled and shook his head while Amami came into the room, scuffing her slippered feet on the carpet, her lips pursed in displeasure with her lower one jutting out further than the top. D followed close behind, his face not showing his disappointment, but Bakura could see it in his eyes. 'He's just a normal little boy,' he thought, and covered his mouth to hide a secretive, pleased smile.

"Can I come back tomorrowww?" Amami half asked, half begged.

"We'll see. If you continue to act like that, it may not be so. Now come on, say good bye. It's not like it's the last time you are going to see them."

Amami turned to D and pulled him into a tight hug. D's mouth opened in shock and the girl giggled when she saw his reaction. "Bye, D-kun," she said, and her good humor left almost as quickly as it had appeared, "You'll have to play the hero later."

"See you soon," D replied, clearing his throat. "And you can count on it."

Amami nodded and with that she and her father left. D wandered over to the balcony as Bakura made sure the game was completely saved and cleaned up any messes. Watching them leave the building, D tugged on one of his long sleeves, lost in thought. The sun shone brightly, making the city look almost alive once again. In the distance, if the boy were to look to the north, he would have been able to see a small congregation wandering down the empty road, enjoying their day off. It would have been a perfect day for a festival. It was a balmy seventy degrees and not a cloud in the sky, one of the first for this particular September. D tugged again on his sleeve and then rubbed his eyes. It was a difficult transition to be so exposed to the sunlight, but so far he was handling it well. He just remained in a long sleeved T-shirt and pants for most of the day, unless it was swimming, and then he was pretty much out of luck.

"Bakura-sama?" D called, turning away from the bright scene, "Is it true that we are going to go camping with Yugi san and his family tonight?"

"Yes, and Jounochi-kun as well. How much real camping that goes on will be debatable, but we figured it would be fun for you and Etsu-chan to experience something similar."

"Even though Etsu-chan is only two years old?" D replied, amused.

Bakura came from around the hallway corner. "Yes," he said with a knowing smile, "Even though she is only two. Now come on, I know you didn't finish packing," he paused, "It was a good thing Wanatabe-san came earlier, we are going to have to leave soon if we want to go anywhere, otherwise we'll have to postpone it until next weekend."

"No," D said, almost with a begging tone. "We'll get there in time, I promise. I just need to…pack pants and stuff…"

Bakura raised an eyebrow, "Only pants and stuff? What about what I have behind my back?"

"What do…," D's eyes lit up with expectation and he hurried over to the man, "what do you have behind your back?"

The young man laughed. "It's nothing too special, and if it were any other kid your age I don't think they'd like it, but I believe that you will enjoy this." From behind him he procured a large leather bound journal. D took it and felt its weight. It was a deep brown, and even after all of the years that had passed since it had been made it still had the strong scent of leather. All around the cover was a small embroidered line of gold thread. Inside, the pages were a delicate cream color that finished the look. The pages were of decent thickness, and D estimated there to be over three hundred. On the front page, in small and elegant characters Bakura had written:

May this bring you comfort when you cannot speak, and I am nowhere to be found.

From ~ Bakura Ryou

To the one who gave me meaning ~ D

D looked up at the man who was smiling nervously, and had to swallow hard to keep his voice from cracking.

"It's beautiful," he finally managed to say, "I…used to have a journal, I can't remember what happened to it. It was actually a spiral notebook, I had broken it so I could…I could see who was inside your room." He stopped, feeling a strange mixture of horror, love, and nostalgia. "I can really write in this?"

Bakura chuckled, pulling the boy into a firm, but still ever gentle, hug. "Yes," he started, "what would be the point in giving you this huge thing and tell you to not write in it? So you can just stare at it and think it's pretty?"

The boy hugged the man tightly, but jerked away in horror when he heard something pop. The young man blinked and stood up straight, bending his back, and smiled a little to himself. "Thanks," he said, looking down at the boy, "I didn't realize my back was so stiff."

They both laughed at that.

A little after four in the afternoon they arrived at Yugi's house. The lower half had remained as his grandfather's game shop, even if there were no more customers, and that his grandfather had died two years prior ("It was sad," Yugi had told Bakura once in private after a conference between parties, "But he died happy. The night before…he had told me that he felt he had lived a life full of more excitement than most countries.") Above this, Yugi, Anzu, their little girl Etsu, and his mother had made do with what they had been left with after the war. It was a comfortable little arrangement of rooms, and while D kept Etsu occupied with a game of rolling big dice around the room to see who could get the most sixes in a minute, Bakura could talk to Yugi, Anzu, and Jounochi without having to worry about where the boy was.

"The plan is to trek up to Kanagawa. It will be a ways, but since Kaiba was nice enough to give us and the kiddos Monday off, we'll be able to get there, fully enjoy the experience, and get back before Tuesday," Jounochi said, pointing their way out on the map that was spread out before them.

"Well, that's fine if we actually can move at your pace," Anzu interjected, "But what about Etsu-chan? She can't exactly go for two hours walking."

"Well, I figure you'd carry her."

"All the way?"

"Well expecting her to walk very far period would be a stupid idea, she's just a baby."

Yugi sighed. "We'll trade off carrying her when she's tired. I personally think she's going to love looking around a place other than our backyard. Our tree is only interesting for so long."

"And our tree bark less so," Yugi's mother quipped, bringing the circle of friends tea. "Remember that you can always leave her here with me. It's no bother."

"Mom, this is as much relaxation for you as it is an adventure for us," Yugi said, helping her distribute the cups. "Take a break; hang out with your friends."

"Sounds like something I should be telling you."

"I already am."

The group of adults laughed. Bakura raised his cup into the air. "To an experience we'll never forget."

"Hear hear!"

"I'll toast my tea to that."

"I'll miss the commotion."

"No you won't, you'll cry when we get back and ruin your perfectly clean house!"

There was another burst of laughter, and Etsu came toddling in, a big grin on her face. D walked in behind her with a strange expression on his face.

"I won, I won!" Etsu shrieked, and latched onto her father's leg.

Yugi beamed down at her. "You did!" he asked, and picked her up for a small victory dance around the room. Bakura looked at D who seemed confused. He tapped the boy on his shoulder and the child jumped in surprise.

"Did she win?" Bakura asked.

"Yeah," D replied, "I have no idea how she did it either. We played the game seven times, and every time she won. Every time."

"Get used to it," Bakura replied, chuckling, "She's Yugi's kid."

D looked more puzzled than ever and Bakura could not help but laugh harder. This was the beginning of a perfect holiday.

Twenty minutes later they were all ready to go. Yugi had Etsu by the hand and she carried a small backpack in which its insides consisted of little more than two of her favorite dolls and a box of stale animal crackers. She would not eat them any other way. Both Anzu and Bakura carried their tents and some of the cooking supplies, while Jounochi and D carried the food. D was supposed to make sure Jounochi did not eat the food, while Jounochi was supposed to make sure D did not try to steal into the pastries. They waved to Yugi's mother and began their way to the campground, Etsu setting the pace at thirty toddles a minute.

However after fifteen minutes the little girl had decided it was much more fun, as well as less strenuous on her part, to be carried by her father and his companions. D watched with amazement as the girl napped on her father's shoulder, untroubled by the persistent bouncing up Yugi had to do to keep her there. He did not think he would ever be able to sleep in that way, completely forgetting he had slept in far less comfortable positions before.

They checked out with the guard who wished them a safe trip, and the group marveled at the sight of the ocean to the east as they trekked north (Etsu had even bothered to raise her head for a second before placing it back on her father's shoulder). Bakura looked down at D who was continuously staring into the darkening waters as they walked, and nudged him a little to get his attention.

"What's on your mind?" the young man asked, but they boy only shrugged. Bakura faced forward again, a little surprised. He knew that they were in a relatively large group in D's mind, but it was unlike him to not say anything. The young man also did not like the look that was on D's face. Something was troubling him, but even though the boy's eyes were trained on the ocean, he did not think it was about the water. He had learned how to swim (although Bakura never had fully found out how), and aside from getting out of the water feeling like an ice cube every time, he seemed to like it. Bakura had also noticed he was keeping his left hand full with his backpack strap, his knuckles almost white with the pressure. He was sure that the boy would speak about it later however.

It turned out that that was not needed. At approximately five thirty, when the western sky became an ever deepening purple, Jounochi, who was at the back of the line, stopped, his head craned back and over his shoulder to see over his pack. D had heard the halt of his footsteps first and tapped Bakura's hand once with his left hand before returning it to its place over the black strap. The man stopped and glanced down at the boy, who motioned over to Jounochi. Bakura followed the boy's gaze and raised an eyebrow. "Guys," he said, raising his voice so the two in front would stop. Both Yugi and Anzu turned in confusion and the whole group looked to the southern distance at the square shadow that approached them. Straining his ears, Yugi blinked. "Is that a car motor?" he asked, the sound was almost foreign to his ears now.

"It looks like a van," D added, forgetting that they could not see as far as he could. Jounochi saved him from Anzu's questioning glance however.

"It is blocky," he stated, "Well, what do you know. I didn't think someone would actually still use a van to travel around…kind of a waste of gas."

"Funny to hear you say something like that," Yugi said, holding Etsu a little closer. "It'd be funny to hear anyone say that…do you think we should get out of the way?"

"Yes," Anzu said, nodding, "what if they're you know…"

"Nah," Jounochi replied, "I think if they were a raiding group there would be more. But it's not really their M.O. to be so indiscreet until they are right on a group. Right, Bakura?"

D looked up at the man as he nodded. "It's definitely not something a raiding party would do, but I really don't like the idea of being in their way. And if they are coming toward us with a purpose, it might be too late. If we see them, they may be able to see us. A group of people in the middle of nowhere isn't exactly normal now a days."

"Then what do we do?" Anzu asked, her voice frustrated, but D could hear the tint of fear in it. "Just wait until they pass us? Let them take our stuff if they so want it?"

Jounochi shrugged. "I dunno, I wasn't expecting this."

"What if it's someone from Domino, and there's something wrong?" Bakura inquired, rubbing his chin in thought. "It wouldn't surprise me if Kaiba had something set up like this for emergency occasions."

"We were just there about an hour ago, what could have gone so wrong that he'd do that?" Jounochi snapped, and then sighed, apologizing to the others. "I just don't see it happening."

"Not to mention most gasoline would probably have gone bad by now," D added.

"Maybe we're just blowing it out of proportion," Yugi interjected, handing his daughter over to Anzu so he could rest his arm. "It could be nothing."

"I'd like to think that," Bakura said, "But in this world, who knows. We should probably keep moving, but we should get our guns out, for precaution."

"I think the gun thing might be a good idea," Anzu said, "I mean, I don't want Etsu or D to see anything like that, but I think it's better than being unprepared and dying." She looked at the boy apologetically, and he could think of nothing else to do but shrug.

As they all began to ready their guns and rifles for a possible fight, D tugged on Bakura's hand with an unusual force. The young man's eyes snapped down to see the boy's anxious face looking back the way they came. Making it look like something was stuck on his bag Bakura kneeled to hear the boy better.

"I don't think it matters if we move or not," the child whispered into his ear. Bakura glanced up at the others who seemed too preoccupied to be bothered.

"Why do you think that?" he whispered back. Something in his heart was sinking. If D had this mentality as well as such a nervous demeanor, it may not bode well for any of them. When D was worried there was usually a good reason.

"I think they might have seen us already. I don't know," the child shook his head, "I might just be freaking myself out, but I have a really bad feeling right now."

"That is called intuition…or a gut feeling," Bakura replied.

"I know that," D sighed, "I also know it can be wrong. I hope it's wrong. If it isn't I don't want to think about it…"

Bakura knew that the boy was withholding some vital information, some reason for this feeling, but he let it pass, hoping that his own intuition would substitute and that his questions would be answered soon enough.

"So you don't think we should move?"

"I think that we shouldn't have our backs to something that we don't recognize. We don't know what it is capable of."

Bakura nodded and then stood. "Guys?" he reiterated, "I don't think we should keep going."

Yugi looked up at him in confusion. "Why not?"

Bakura glanced down at the boy, looking for an okay to borrow his idea. D gave him the slightest of nods. "We have no idea what that thing is, or who is driving it, right?" Jounochi grunted in agreement as he lifted his pack back on his shoulders. "It wouldn't be such a good idea, if they meant us any harm, to just be…sitting ducks, and that's what we'd be if we had our backs turned."

"You got a point there," Jounochi said, agreeing again, "Maybe we should wait and get a good look at these guys before we go anywhere."

"But it's dark," Anzu interrupted, "and what if they are after us for something, what then? We have the children to think about."

"We will be far better off seeing it coming than having one of us shot in the back, I see your guy's point; we should stay." Yugi glanced at Anzu and she sighed, nodding dejectedly.

It took less than five minutes for the military vehicle to reach them. They all stood in awe of the machine, surprised by its girth, and the suggestion of power it let off. The driver's side opened with careful precision, and a man stepped out, looking exhausted. He eyed the group warily for a moment and then his gaze stopped dead a little below Bakura's waistline. D felt all hair that was still short enough stand up on end and he shuffled behind Bakura further. The young man who was playing as his shield also felt a fear so gripping he wished he could have done the same.

"You're…alive…" the man said hoarsely, and made a move to reach for D. Bakura stepped completely in front of the boy while Jounochi aimed his rifle at the man.

"Step away from the kid," he said, no feeling audible in his voice.

"He knew," the man marveled, ignoring the two barrels pointing in his direction. "And here you stand, healthy, safe…"

"What is this guy going on about?" Yugi whispered quickly in Bakura's direction. The taller of the two wanted to reply, however his throat felt as if it had been closed off completely, the most he could do was purse his lips and then open his mouth once, before closing it shut again. He recognized that uniform from anywhere.

"I said stand away from the kid, you moron!" Jounochi shouted, faking forward so the man would stumble away, which he did with as much clumsiness as Bakura felt at that same moment.

"Now, now…" another voice, smoother said from inside of the vehicle. Both Bakura's and D's eyes lifted to the sky in frightened realization. It was dark. "There is no need for such violence." Out of the shadows of the passenger side a man covered with a cloak walked into the beam of the headlights, now the only real light around. D's fingers grasped the back of Bakura's bag and he hid his face, shivering. He wished over and over again that he would wake up and that this would have all been a dream, even the good parts. Bakura, on the other hand, cocked his gun and his lips became a thin line of determination.

"While I'm surprised to have met you out here, in these wastes," the figure motioned to the grass and rubble filled craters, "I'm not so much surprised that He was right in saying you'd still be alive—"

"Who are you people and who the hell are you talking to?" Yugi snapped, finally anxious enough about the situation to want it to be over with. Anzu held Etsu closer, unintentionally waking the child up. She gurgled incoherently before falling back into a deep slumber.

"Tis none of your concern, human, I am here for something…someone that was stolen from us." He motioned for the other man to rise and the other did so, quickly. "Now while I do not agree in the method in what brought you on this earth, child, I will stand by His decision and return you back to Him at once. Do not dawdle; we have wasted enough time with these silly creatures."

Instead of D coming forth, as the new strangers predicted, Bakura stepped forward, his gun pointing straight at the heart of the cloaked figure. His group looked at him with confusion and awe. What he felt was hatred and trepidation. "You tell 'him' that I don't give a rat's ass in what 'he' wants, D-kun stays with me," he said, his mouth feeling like putty and his mind clouded, but it rang out clear and with a tone that made Yugi back away from his friend, remembering the first day that he had let him into Domino again. It was like a different man stood before them.

"What does this have to do with D-kun?" Anzu asked, unintentionally voicing her thoughts.

The cloaked figure sighed and used its gloved hand to rub its hidden temples. "It has everything to do with the boy you all call D. I am surprised that you are alive," he added, pointing at Bakura, who lowered his gun a fraction of an inch as he lost some of his concentration, "You I figured would have died soon after your escape. I recall you were one of His little projects, just as much as this boy was, however, you were an utter failure if I remember correctly."

All eyes were on him now, and Bakura swallowed hard, trying to keep his arm from shaking. This was not the way he had wanted things to go. He had an urge to lunge at the man and tear him limb from limb for ruining what he had fought for, but his reason, his ever faithful reason, saved him from this mistake. Yet he could still feel the confusion coming his way, the flame of distrust gaining oxygen to burn as the cap was lifted.

"Projects?" Yugi inquired, "What do you mean he was a project?"

"Oh?" the man said, chuckling, "he did not tell you? He is, in every sense, exactly the same as those creatures you call monsters and shoot without a moment's thought."

"That's bullshit!" Bakura shrieked; half of his mind fretting over the idea as the other half somehow remained calm enough to continue the discussion, "I'm not a monster, I'm human!"

"You were an experiment, you fool," the man replied slowly, as if talking to a child, "A failure that somehow managed to escape and steal His son away before it was deemed safe enough for the child to go outside!"

"He didn't steal anything," D said finally, pushing his way past Bakura so he was in front of the group. "I…wanted to go with him."

The man who had fallen gasped, and as the remnants of the light from the sun finally sank below the waves, the other one pulled off his hood revealing dark tresses of brown hair, blood red eyes, and a pair of fangs that protruded from his mouth. He was as handsome man, colorless aside from the reddish tint of his lips, which at the moment were turned downward in an annoyed frown.

"Foolishness. He has tricked you onto their dying side."

"What the hell is going on here?" Jounochi asked, finally lowering his rifle and looking at Bakura who had begun to look unsure. "Did you steal someone's kid? And what does he mean you are an experiment, and our 'dying side'."

"I'll explain it latter Jounochi kun," the young man said, realigning his arm.

"No, why don't you explain it to them now?" the vampire said, cutting in. "Tell them of the tale, that just a few months ago, you, a failed product of an experiment attempted on a human, broke out of your holding pen and spirited away the boy of the man who will give rise to the newest evolutionary threshold. That you, a pathetic weakling, took what He held so dear—"

"SHUT UP!" Bakura shouted, "I'm not an experiment, I'm not a weakling. I'm human! And I SAVED D from that 'man'. You can't win them over with pity when his very father cut him open and played scientist for his own sick reasons! He's just a kid!"

"He is not like you," the vampire spat, "He is far greater than your pathetic kind—"

"And he's not like you!" Bakura responded vehemently, ignoring the gasps that had been produced by his friends by his previous accusations. D watched in silence as Bakura advanced on the man, his heart filled with sorrow, and yet still had every bit of warmth when he thought of the tall man in front of him who had protected him from the world he was about to face. "He's better than you blood sucking PARASITES. He deserves a better life, and I'm going to give it to him."

His finger pulled the trigger and the booming of the two guns going off woke Etsu, and she wailed in confusion.