Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Children of Shadow ❯ Connection ( Chapter 12 )

Me: I'm finally off my butt and working on this! Well- technically I'm still on my butt, seeing as I'm sitting down…. heh heh.

Isis: *rolls eyes*

Me: What? At least I'm working, right?

Marik: And that's supposed to be a good thing?

Me: *bashes him with my heavy metal frying pan of ultimate doom, which is copyrighted by moi* Oh shut up. No one asked you anyway.

Marik: So?

Me: *bashes him again*

Marik: *_*

Me: Ha ha. Kai-baaaaa!

Kaiba: Grrr- WHAT!

Me: Disclaimer!

Kaiba: No! I'm sick of you making me do them! I want some Skittles!

Me: Do the disclaimer and I'll give you Skittles.

Kaiba: Oh no. I'm not falling for that again!

Me: No, really! See, they're right here! *holds up Skittles*

Kaiba: *drools* AMK does most definitely not own Yugioh.

Me: Good boy. *gives him Skittles while concealing evil grin*

Isis: *looks confused*

Me: You'll see later. *snickers menacingly*

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"Cassie! Please, you've gotta be in there! Open the door!"

Suddenly everything bounced back into place. Cassie blinked. She was suddenly aware of the fact that she was lying on a couch with soda stains on her shirt, and she hadn't joined reality in over a week. What the hell was wrong with her?

More pounding. Wonderful. Now the little popcorn girl wanted to make friends? Cassie stood up and shook her head as if to clear it. Screw that! She was going to bed. Maybe a decent night's sleep would help her get over this- teenage crisis or whatever she had been going through. She was halfway to the stairs, when-

"Cassie!"

"ALL RIGHT!" Cassie shouted, so loud she almost expected the windows to shatter. Ra! If this was the only way to shut that girl up, fine!

Cassie stomped over to the door, unlocked it, and yanked it open. " What the hell do you-"

She froze. It was Chrissy on the doorstep, all right. But this was a very different Chrissy from the one who had shown up in school. She was soaking wet, her mascara was a mess, and even through the rain, Cassie could clearly see the tear stains on her cheeks.

"What-" Cassie numbly scanned her mind for words. First the duel, then her little breakdown, now this. It was too much.

Chrissy looked like she was about to collapse. "Can I come in?" she said, tripping over the words.

Cassie stood aside, her mind still drawing a blank. Chrissy stumbled inside, over to the stairs, and sat down hard on the bottom step, taking deep, shuddering breaths. Cassie watched her for a few seconds, then found her voice.

"What happened to you?"

Chrissy looked up. "I-" She swallowed hard. "I really don't want to talk about it."

Cassie snorted and folded her arms across her chest. "Well too bad for you, because if that's the case, I don't see any reason why I shouldn't kick you out right now." She wasn't about to take any crap from this Barbie wannabe. The faster she got this over with, the faster she could throw Prissy Chrissy out of her house and get some sleep.

"I was…" Chrissy took a deep breath and began.

"I was at Mai's apartment. We- I mean, the others- were having a party to celebrate my first full week here." How stupid. Cassie rolled her eyes openly. The only time she was going to celebrate was when Chrissy was back in America where she belonged. "So we had some music going, and we were dancing and all, and then Otogi-" Chrissy broke off for a moment, biting her lip, then continued. "He sort of pulled me over to the corner where no one could see us, and he said… well, he said that he really liked me- you know-" Cassie clenched her teeth. Yes, Otogi liked Chrissy, just like every other boy in the freaking school, get to the point! "And we wound up…. well…. kissing."

Chrissy stopped as if to check Cassie's reaction. Cassie raised an eyebrow. When Chrissy didn't start talking again, she said, "And you ran out into the rain because…?"

"He-" Chrissy gulped. "Otogi- I swear, I don't know how it happened- he just- he passed out."

Cassie froze. Chrissy kept talking, tears welling up visibly in her eyes. "That's when everyone noticed, and I was so scared… I just panicked and ran. I didn't know where to go, I didn't know anyone else, and I didn't want to go home, so I just- came here." Chrissy sniffled and started crying, tears making her mascara even more of a gooey mess. She wiped her face on her sleeve, leaving a thick black stain there. "I'm sorry. I know you don't like me, but-" She hiccuped. "I didn't know what else to do…"

"Why-" Cassie's throat was dry. "Why did he pass out?"

"I don't know!" Chrissy sobbed. "Nothing like this has ever happened to me!"

A chill crept over Cassie. Old memories came swirling up, threatening to surface. Suddenly Cassie felt more afraid than ever. Because, not too long ago- something like this had happened to her.

Chrissy's brow furrowed in thought. When she spoke again, her voice was slow, as if she was thinking and talking at the same time.

"When- when it happened- when I was kissing him…." She trailed off. "I got this weird feeling…"

"Like a- tingling in your head?" Cassie's voice was so shaky, she could hardly believe it was her talking.

"No- well, I guess something like that. But there was something else, too. I can't describe it, but it was somewhere around my neck…" Her fingers drifted up to the said area. "Maybe," she said, almost to herself, "maybe it was because I was wearing my-"

Chrissy stopped talking abruptly. Her fingers felt around her throat. "It's gone!"

"What's go-" Chrissy leapt up and sped past Cassie, out the open door. She seemed to be searching for something.

Fear gave way to confusion. "Now what are you doing?" Cassie questioned, walking over to the doorway.

"It must have fallen off while I was running!" Chrissy shouted through the rain. She was frantically looking around the lamplit street. Something gleamed in a gutter. "Got it!"

Chrissy snatched the item up and clutched it to her chest. She walked back into the house, dripping wet. "I thought I'd lost it," she said, spotting Cassie's bewildered look. "It's special to me. Look-" She held out her hand. Cassie looked. And gasped.

She couldn't believe her eyes. It was a necklace. But not just any necklace.

It was exactly identical to hers.

Chrissy fastened the chain around her neck, still talking. "Isn't it pretty? I got it when I was really little. It's supposed to be one of a kind."

Cassie was barely listening. She turned and sprinted up the stairs as fast as possible, her mind in shock. This wasn't happening. How could it be happening? It couldn't!

She burst into her room, heart pounding. Rushing over to her bed, Cassie tossed the pillow aside and gazed down at her necklace. There was no mistaking it, the two were exactly alike.

"Cassie?" Chrissy poked her head through the doorway. "What's going on?"

Cassie lifted up her necklace with shaking hands. She swallowed hard. "Chrissy, did you say that that necklace was one of a kind?"

Chrissy paused, apparently amazed that Cassie had finally called her by her name, then said, "Uh-huh."

"Well look…" Cassie turned and dangled her own necklace. Chrissy's jaw dropped.

"No way-" She walked slowly over to Cassie and took the necklace, examining it. "No way…"

"Way," Cassie said dryly. She immediately could have kicked herself for saying something so Valley Girl.

"No way," Chrissy breathed for the third time. She lifted the necklace herself. "They're-"

"Identical," Cassie finished for her.

"But why? How?" Cassie shook her head.

"No clue."

Chrissy stared at Cassie's necklace, lost in thought. "Put yours on."

Cassie took an involuntary step backwards. "Hell no." The words shot out of her automatically.

"Why not?"

Cassie hesitated, remembering all too well what had happened last time she put that necklace on. Why did a picture of those eyes instantly jump into her mind? Unfortunately, Chrissy mistook her hesitation for surrender. She stepped towards Cassie. Before the other girl could realize it, Chrissy's hands were at Cassie's neck.

"Don't-"

Too late. Chrissy fastened the clasp and lowered her hands. The girls stared at each other for a few seconds.

Then everything burst into black.

Black, all around, pressing in on Cassie, threatening to consume her, suffocate her-

Cassie heard a shriek and realized with a jolt that Chrissy too was trapped in the darkness. "Stop it!" Chrissy screamed.

Then the blackness was lit. Horrified, Cassie stared into two piercing golden eyes, with slits for pupils, as a voice echoed through the fog. A voice that came from all around, a voice that was velvety and harsh all at once.

All three are here. She who seeks so hard to destroy has arrived. The Protectors must join, before it is too late…

All was silent. Cassie was falling, falling. The eyes were fading away rapidly. Somewhere in the distance, a door slammed.

Then Cassie collided with something solid and the darkness swallowed her.

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Me: Boy, am I feeling good!

Isis: ….. THAT made you feel GOOD?

Me: Yeah! I was on a roll there! I think that this is my favorite chapter so far!

Marik: You're the authoress. You're not allowed to have a favorite chapter.

Me: *about to whack Marik, when suddenly-*

Kaiba: GAHHHH!

Me, Marik, and Isis: *turn to look*

Kaiba: *rolling on the floor in agony* POISON! POISON, I TELL YOU!

Marik: What the-

Isis: Hold on! *picks up a small green bag lying next to Kaiba* AMK- you didn't!

Me: Yep! ^^ Sour Skittles! *cackles insanely*

Kaiba: EVIL WENCH!

Me: Shuttup. You had it coming to you.

Marik: …. you know, that's a good point….

Me: Review! I know I liked this chapter! And it only gets more interesting from here….