Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Closer I am to Fine ❯ Listen ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: No own Yu-Gi-Oh! or the lyrics to 'Listen to your Heart.'

Notes: Jou makes an appearance in this chapter, yup. I like writing about Jou, he's fun. But be warned, you won't see much of him in the future. This is his only spotlight moment.

Closer I am to Fine

Ch.3: Listen

“Bakura? Bakura!”

The man’s voice echoed throughout the house. Bakura covered his head with a couch pillow.

“What?!” he yelled back, irritably. “What the hell do you want, old man?!”

“Don’t curse in this house!” Mr. Bakura scolded, coming into the living room, buttoning his jacket. “I’m going out to the store to pick up a few things. Have you had a shower today?”

Bakura narrowed his eyes. “No...”

“Get one while I’m gone then,” the man replied. “And brush your hair it’s a mess.” He picked his car keys up off the small table near the door. “I’ll be back in about an hour, try to stay out of trouble.”

Bakura rolled his eyes as the man left. He had no intentions of following the orders. He curled back up on the couch and relaxed, taking a much needed nap.

I know there’s something in the wake of your smile.
I get a notion from the look in your eyes, yea.

You’ve built a love but that love falls apart.
Your little piece of heaven turns too dark.

Kenta Bakura tapped his fingers nervously against the shopping cart handle as he pushed the cart through the store. His thoughts, though largely varied, all seemed to come back to the strange boy his no deceased son had convinced him to take in. With Ryou, and, by default, his last chance of redeeming himself as a father, gone, he felt obligated to the thief. He could never make up to Ryou all the time his son had spent on his own. And taking care of Bakura would not make up for his mistakes as a father. But he could tell the boy needed someone right now. Bakura had threatened to leave and go off on his own many times since Ryou’s death, declaring that he was perfectly capable of taking care of himself. The fact that he stayed with Kenta, despite those threats, proved to the man that even Bakura knew where he was better off. He was a very intelligent boy, and, according to Ryou, had used this to his advantage in his past life as a thief, becoming one of the most renown thieves in Egypt. Bakura still had a tendency to pocket items he fancied when walking through a store.

Listen to your heart
When he’s calling for you.
Listen to your heart
There’s nothing else you can do.
I don’t know where you’re going
And I don’t know why,
But listen to your heart
Before you tell him goodbye.

Kenta wasn’t really sure why he believed the stories his son had told him about Yami Mutoh, Seto Kaiba, and Bakura. He was an adult, he no longer believed in magic. Perhaps it was because Ryou had shown him the scars. The one on his hand, where Bakura had impaled it on the top of a poly resin castle. The one on his upper arm where Bakura had stabbed him. The sight of those scars had made him angry, ready to strangle the thief for doing such things to his son. But Ryou had stopped him from confronting Bakura and continued his story by telling of the times when he would get himself caught by bullies in an ally way and how Bakura would take control and curse them for touching his ‘host’. Regretfully, Ryou also told his father how those certain people were never heard from again.

Sometimes you wonder if this fight is worthwhile.
The precious moments are all lost in the tide, yea.
They’re swept away and nothing is what is seems,
The feeling of belonging to your dreams.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost ran over the boy standing in the isle he was moving through. He halted just in time to prevent a disaster and bright violet eyes snapped to look at him.

“Ah, so sorry,” Kenta apologized, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. The boy smiled.

“Not to worry,” he replied in a calm voice. “You’re Ryou’s father, aren’t you?”

“Hmm, um, yes, I am...or was,” Kenta was not sure how to reply to the question. But he recognized the boy as one of Ryou’s old friends now. The spiky, multi-colored hair was a give-away he should have recognized from the start.

“Yes, I recognize you now,” the boy continued, his voice strangely deep and not very befitting of his short stature. “I am sorry for asking that question.” He picked up a jar of pickles from the shelf. “How is Bakura doing?”

“Bakura? Oh, right, you mean the kid,” he always got slightly flustered when asked that, for the person asking could have meant any person in his family, usually his deceased son. “Well, to tell you the truth, not so well.”

“He is still staying with you then?” the boy asked, raising an eye brow.

“Yes, actually, I adopted him,” Kenta said, trying to remember who this boy was exactly. The name was on the tip of his tongue but he couldn’t quite grasp it.
Shock crossed the boy’s face.
“You did? I hope you are aware of what you have gotten yourself into. The tomb-robber can be very difficult to deal with.”

It hit Kenta then. “Oh, you’re Yami Mutoh,” he exclaimed, slapping his forehead. “Oh, and you don’t have to tell me how difficult he can be.”

Yami chuckled. “Yes, that is me, though my real name is Atemu. To be honest I’m surprised Bakura has stayed with you. If he so chose, he could have left at any time.”

Kenta sighed. “He has threatened to do so, yes. But he hasn’t taken off yet. And to be honest as well, if he did I would file a missing child report immediately and find him again.”

“You wouldn’t find him if he didn’t want you to,” Yami said, shaking his head. “But I am glad to know that you would try. I do hope you are aware of mine and Bakura’s past. Surely Ryou told you at some point, though you may not have believed it.”

“Yes, I am...aware of the millennium items and such,” Kenta replied, still wondering why he believed the stories.

“And you believe it?” Yami asked carefully.

“...Yes,” Kenta said after a moment’s hesitation. “It does explain a lot of things.”

“I trust that you will tell no one else that cannot be trusted with our secret?”

Kenta laughed a little. “Not that anyone would believe me, but I will not. Your secret is safe with me.”

Yami relaxed a little. “Thank you, it is appreciated. And thank you for taking the thief in. He needs someone to keep him out of trouble. Ryou was that person for awhile but since he has been gone I have worried about Bakura. He has lost a lot of people in his long life and he does not handle tragedy well.”

Kenta smiled sadly. “I have been told that his life was hard in Egypt. Yet it seems to be one of the only things he enjoys talking about.”

“Oh, he enjoys talking about many things,” Yami assured Kenta. “In fact, talking is one of his favorite things. You just have to figure out what he wants to talk about. Duel Monster cards are usually somewhere on the top of the list, along with anything shiny and valuable.”

It was Kenta’s turn to chuckle. “Yes, I’ve had experience with the shiny valuables obsession,” he replied. “Duel Monsters, you say? I didn’t know he played cards.”

“One of the best duelists I have fought,” Yami said with a grin. “And as I’m sure you know, Yugi and I have fought with the best.”

“Oh yes, that’s right. Ryou said Yugi has the official title of King of Games.”

“Yes, but Yugi and I truly share the title,” Yami said. “You see, we dueled together before I gained a body of my own.”

“Yami!” a childish voice called through the store. “Have you found the pickles yet?”

“That’s my cue,” Yami said with a grin. “Coming Yugi!” He turned back to Kenta, his expression now serious. “I trust you to take good care of Bakura. Remember, he is the last of my people, and I feel it my obligation to keep him safe. So, if any harm comes to him while under your care then you will have too answer to me.” His eyes glinted a warning.

“I’ll keep him safe,” Kenta promised, nodding his head.

Yami grinned again. “Thank you once again. I’ll be on my way now.” And with that the former pharaoh hurried off with his jar of pickles tucked under his arm.

And there are voices
That want to be heard.
So much to mention
But you can’t find the words.

The lights were all off in the house when Kenta arrived home. “Bakura!” he called, flipping the lights on and looking around for the thief. “Come help me with the groceries, please!” No response. “Bakura?” he tried again. “Bakura, where are you?” Slightly panicked, Kenta began to search the house over for the boy but to no avail. The result was the same in the front yard and back and none of the neighbors had seen him leave. By now it had started to rain.

The scent of magic,
The beauty that’s been
When love was wilder than the wind.

In a completely different part of Domino, the ‘rougher’ side, to be exact, Bakura had been enjoying a walk alone, with no one to bother him and fresh air to help him think. He was completely unaware of the panic he was causing for his self-appointed guardian and wouldn’t have cared if he had known. But his lovely walk was ruined when the sky seemed to decide that this was the perfect time for a storm. With a groan, he halted in front of a beat up looking house that might have been painted blue at one point, and looked around for shelter.

With a bang, the door to the house swung open and he heard a familiar accent call, “Hey, Yami B, watcha’ doin’ out in ‘da rain?”
Bakura turned to the house and blinked. What was Jonouchi Katsuya doing at that house.

“Hey, ya’ just gonna’ sit there starin’, or are ya’ gonna’ come in?” Jou asked, raising an eye brow.

Bakura shrugged and walked over to the house. “You live in this dump?” he asked.

“Hey, watch what ya’ call ‘da home place,” Jou objected, but he grinned. “Yep, home sweet home. Come on in, you’re soaked. Just don’t steal my soul or anythin’ while you’re here.” He held the door open and motioned for the tomb robber to step inside. Bakura did so, growling slightly at the last comment. Jou knew he no longer possessed such powers. He glanced around the humble domain, the front door having led directly into the living room. A tall man lay snoring on the couch. The air around him stank of alcohol.

“Don’t mind the old man, he had to much ta’ drink an’ now he’s sleepin’ it off,” Jou explained, leading the way to the kitchen. “C’mon, I’ll get you a cup of coffee.”

“That’s your father, correct?” Bakura asked with disapproval as he took a seat at the messy kitchen table. He looked around in disgust at the mess that surrounded him.

“Yeah,” Jou said, pouring to cups of coffee and handing one to Bakura, keeping the other for himself. “I keep tryin’ to get him to lay off the booze but I guess it isn’t an easy thing ta’ quit.”
Bakura narrowed his eyes when he saw a small bruise on the right side of Jou’s face.

“Fall down the stairs?” he asked sarcastically. Jou smiled a little.

“How’d ya’ know?” he asked with a grin. “Yeah, he slaps sometimes when he’s drunk but for the most part he’s pretty easy-going. He’s gonna’ freak when he sobers up and sees this.” He pointed at the bruise. “Don’ bother me though, I’ve had much worse.”

“I’m sure,” Bakura replied. He took a sip of the coffee, carefully. He’d all ready had a run-in with hot coffee before and wasn’t very eager to repeat it.

“So, whatcha’ doin’ ‘round these parts?” Jou asked, taking a drink of his own coffee.

“Just walking.”

“Just walking?” Jou gave him a skeptical look. “Bakura, you live quite a ways away from here. That’s a long way to come for ‘just walking’.”

Bakura sighed. “Yes, well, if I had taken a walk in my neighborhood then not have had the privacy I wanted. I needed to think.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Yes.” They were silent for awhile, sipping the coffee thoughtfully. Bakura broke the silence. “Do you still care for your father, Katsuya?”

Jou looked confused. “Ya’ mean do I still love him?”

“Yes. Do you still love him even after all of the trouble he has caused you?”

“Of course I do, he’s my old man,” Jou replied. “He could be on the most wanted list, (which he might be), but I’d still love him. That’s just how family is. Somethin’ on your mind?”

“Perhaps,” Bakura muttered, turning the coffee cup in his hands.

“You miss Ryou, huh?” Jou asked, smiling grimly.

“Yes,” Bakura admitted, not really sure why. “I suppose that is part of what is on my mind.”

“Hey, look,” Jou started. “I know you must be really confused with all that’s happened lately. I know I would be if I was in your place. If this is about Ryou’s father, he seems to be a nice guy and you shouldn’t push him away.”

Bakura blinked. “How did you-never mind. Thank you, Jou.”

Jou grinned. “No problem, Bakura. You wanna’ call your house? I don’t figure you wanna’ walk home in ‘da rain.”

Bakura shook his head. “I’m not good with phones.”

“I’ll call for you, then,” Jou offered, standing and going for the cordless phone. Bakura smiled a little to himself. At least the mutt was good for something.


Listen to your heart
When he’s calling for you.
Listen to your heart
There’s nothing else you can do.
I don’t know where you’re going
And I don’t know why,
But listen to your heart
Before you tell him goodbye.

TBC

The end of yet another chapter. Hope you guys like.^^ No flames, constructive criticism welcomed.