Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Crazy for you ❯ Where it hurts ( Chapter 2 )

 

 

 

 

Finally having couth up on his sleep, Ryou was able to study with full force again, that satisfied the teachers as well. He had decided to go to the mental hospital that weekend and visit Jounouchi in the hospital at the same time. The Domino's House for the Mentally Unstable was in a walking distance from the hospital so he could just drive or take a bus to the hospital, go see Jou and then head for the mental hospital.

He had yet to see what did the file Akishima had given him have to say about the person he was supposed to do the assignment on but he could look on it today after school. It wouldn't hurt to be prepared for what or whoever Mr. Akishima had thrown at him.

Ryou was currently located in the cafeteria for it was lunch brake. He was sitting with the people he knew from the same building, listening the discussion with half an ear while reading his textbook. The next class would be held by who else but Mr. Akishima and he would most likely lecture them about the diseases of the mind so that they could be well prepared to start on their assignment as soon as possible, preferably on the next weekend. Trust Mr. Akishima to give them the assignment that would drain all of the little free time they still had…

Ryou was brought out of the interesting world of the human mind when one of the people, Toshiro, included him in the conversation that was apparently about the much talked assignment.

“So Ryou, what kind of problems does yours' have?”

“Actually, I don't know yet.” Answered Ryou, raisin his eyes from his book to look at his fellow student. “I haven't looked inside the file.”

“Oh… Well, mine has schizophrenia and some phobia…” He stopped to look at the sealing as he thought. “I think he's afraid of water or something.”

“Oh that's… nice…” Ryou felt like he should have some kind of comment on that but he really didn't know what to say. He just hoped he didn't have some raving lunatic but then again, he probably had. Mr. Akishima had said that he'd rather not give this one to a student and yet, he had given him/her to Ryou and it was just his luck if he'd have to spent time with someone who wanted to kill him or something.

“Have you visited him yet?” Ryou wanted to know. He had never been to the mental hospital before and he just had this mental image that it would be this scary looking large building with bars on it's windows and would be located so that it always rained and thundered there.

“Not yet, but hey, we have the whole year to do the assignment so there's no rush.” Toshiro was the kind of student who always did everything in the last minute and Ryou suspected that he wouldn't even think about visiting the patient until the last day of the school year. Ryou wanted to get started early so that maybe he would have a weekend off by the end of the year.

It was almost the time for the next lesson to start so Ryou packed his bag and threw the trash in the trashcan. He headed to the classroom with his fellow students. They got to their seats and soon their teacher arrived.

“Afternoon, class. We'll continue from where we left last time so shut up and take out your books on page 37.”

At first it had been weird for the students to have their teacher tell them to shut up at the beginning of the class but they had gotten used to it by now. Mr. Akishima's class was the one where you didn't speak unless given permission, did what you were told to, did your homework and handed them back in time. And of course, were on time. A knock was heard from the door as some unlucky student came in late. Akishima opened the door and glared down on the poor soul who quickly scrambled on his seat.

“You should already be able to be on time. That means you arrive before me and when I come into the classroom you're already here, on your assigned seat and ready to study your puny butt off.”

The language he used was also a bit uncommon for a teacher and some of his peers weren't ok with that. The classes were always interesting though and most students found them enjoyable.

“Now, who can tell me what's a dissociative identity disorder?”

 

 

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After school ended, Ryou got to his apartment, got something to eat and started on his homework. He had some catching up to do because he didn't really pay attention in class yesterday.

When he was finally done with the homework he had some time to look at the file. He opened the first page of the official looking file and was immediately assaulted by vast amounts of little text about the person's condition. He quickly skimmed through the file eyes widening by the second. Words like violent, psychopathic tendencies and dangerous, handle with caution jumped on his eyes. He also found numerous occasions when this person had attacked a nurse with an otherwise harmless object, like a belt, or bitten someone. He skimmed back on the first page and found a picture of a young man and a name: Mariku Ishtar. Ryou stopped to marvel the color of the person's pupil-less eyes for a second before violently shaking his head to gather his thoughts, coming to a conclusion.

“I am so going to die.” He mumbled to himself and wondered if Mr. Akishima really wanted to get rid of him this bad. And he had stood up for the guy when Yuugi called him a bastard!

Ryou settled to read through the file, maybe he would find something that would help him to survive through the year, anything. He did find out that this Mariku person had Egyptian origin and had some relatives but none of them had visited him in years. He had been moved to the criminally insane ward once he had turned eighteen and had been there ever since. He wasn't allowed to get utensils because he had apparently stabbed a nurse with a fork at one point. Mariku was older than him by a year and apparently much taller, which wouldn't help Ryou much either.

The image of the mental hospital with thunder around it appeared in Ryou's mind once again but this time it had the laughing young man in it too. He laughed insanely while the thunder struck behind him and held a bloody fork in hand. Ryou tried to make the imagination Mariku choke on his own saliva while cackling maniacally but found that he couldn't for some reason.

 

 

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Behind the door and up the stairs. Nothing was chasing him now but he could sense that some was there, somewhere, waiting and lurking. The stairs were endless and went up and down without any noticeable logic. The doors were large and wooden with metal door handles shaped like a scull or a head of a devil.

When he went through a particularly large wooden door, he found him self in a huge room. In the middle of the room was a dark figure. It stood tall and when he/it noticed him he was unable to move from his spot. The figure spoke to him but he couldn't understand the words it spoke. It came closer as it spoke and he went to panic but couldn't move, just before the dark being reached him it disappeared through the floor. He ran for it, the invisible force was chasing him again but he couldn't find the way out from the maze like building. He ran up endless stairs and peaked inside every room he found but to no avail. Then he finally found the door. It was even bigger then the others had been and he instantly knew that this was The Door. It was this door his chaser lied behind. He thought that he should open the door and face his chaser head on but ended up running up and down the stairs again. But no mater how much he ran he would always end up back in front of the large door and feel the same impending presence behind it.

After running around in panic he collapsed on the floor and wept, curled up in a ball. He was just so tired of running away that he couldn't any more and gave up. He felt something touch his hair and shoulder. He looked up and found those eyes gazing back at him.

 

 

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Ryou woke up with a start and instantly sat up on his bed. That had been just a dream… A glance on his alarm clock told him that it was 8 am. It was Saturday and today was the day he would go see Jounouchi and this Mariku Ishtar. A feeling of thread swelled in the pit of his stomach when he thought of it. The file was securely tucked under his arm. He had read it again last night and had apparently fallen asleep with it.

Ryou got up and headed for the bathroom before going to the kitchen to get some breakfast. He just nibbled on some bread and drank some orange juice, not feeling like eating much. Normally Ryou enjoyed eating but not this particular morning when he felt like he was heading towards his doom; Domino's House for the Mentally Unstable.

“Oh, you're just being over dramatic!” Ryou said to himself firmly. “It's going to go well and you'll live to see the next day.” He nodded a determinate expression on his face.

He decided to relax before he left and it was still too early to go anywhere on a Saturday. Ryou turned on his stereo system and picked a good book from the shelf. He let his mind be absorbed into the music and into the book, forgetting all about Mariku Ishtar.

His mind was now much calmer and he thought that maybe he was worried for nothing. They had to have some kind of security system in the mental hospital, they wouldn't let anything bad happen to him and everything would go just fine. Absolutely nothing to worry about, nope, nothing at all…

 

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Ryou arrived at the hospital and entered the large white building. The receptionist told him the number of the right room and he took the elevator to the next floor and found the room quite easily.

“Hi Jounouchi.” He said from the door with a smile. “How are you feeling?”

“Hi Ryou! They'll let me out tomorrow.”

“Wonderful.” He entered the room and sat on a chair next to the bed. The engaged in a conversation about bad hospital food and how the whole place needed some more color. Ryou didn't mention the growing threat he felt when the time to go neared. The visiting hours of the mental hospital started at two pm and he was going to be there at two so that he could get that over with, at least for now.

The conversation went on and Jou mentioned that all his other friends had already been there earlier and Ryou explained that he had been busy with school and couldn't make it until now.

All too soon the clock came quarter to two and Ryou had to get going. He was a bit reluctant to go but he forced himself out of the hospital and made his way towards his destination.

As he came closer the image of the scary looking building with thunder around it came to his mind again. He was really starting to be sure that the building would really look like that. A dark building with bars on it's windows and wines growing all over it. And the nurses would have black cloaks and vampire teeth! Okay, so maybe his imagination was on an over drive…

In reality the building was large and white. The weather was normal around it. Some windows had bars on them but no wines could be seen. Part of the yard was surrounded by a metal fence and people could be seen inside the area. All in all, the building looked perfectly normal and no nurses with black cloaks, or vampire teeth were in sight.

Ryou entered the lobby and went to the counter. Behind the counter sat a round woman looking bored and not very friendly.

“Um, hello. I was wondering if you could help me.” Ryou said politely to the woman who looked at him dully.

“With what?” She asked and eyed Ryou suspiciously from behind her glasses.

“I'm looking for a patient-.”

“Name and ward.” She interrupted and typed something on her computer.

“Ishtar Mariku. I believe he's in the criminally insane ward.”

The woman turned to look at him. “Ishtar? Are you absolutely sure?”

“Yes… I'm sure.” Ryou was feeling more uncertain by the second. “Is there a problem?”

The woman turned back to her computer. “No, no problem. I'll call a nurse to escort you there.”

“Thank you.”

“What's your business with Ishtar if you don't mind me asking?”

“We got an assignment from school and I'm supposed to make it on him.” Ryou explained shortly still feeling uneasy. The woman laughed a bit dryly. “There's the nurse. Good luck with Ishtar, you'll need it kid.” The woman pointed a male nurse who had appeared behind Ryou and started to lead him to the right direction. Ryou followed the nurse through the white halls and past the many locked doors. Some time a yell or a scream could be heard behind one door and Ryou always jumped in surprise but the nurse didn't react in any way.

“Relax kiddo. So why do you want to see Ishtar? A relative of yours'?” The nurse suddenly spoke and Ryou was grateful that something else than a scream broke the silence.

“No, we're not related. I was assigned by my teacher to do a project on him.”

“Oh, I see. Where do you study?” The nurse made conversation.

“In Domino Central College, psychology as my main subject.”

The turned in a corner and went through a class door that said CIW with white letters. “Just be careful with Ishtar, okay? I'll be there in case something happens but the guy is dangerous and will try to screw with your head if given the change.”

“Okay, thanks. I'll keep that in mind.”

They stopped in front of a white door with a small shutter on it where you could peek inside. The nurse opened the shutter and peeked in. “Ishtar! You have a visitor, come out where I can see you.” Then he shut the shutter and turned to Ryou. “Scared?” Ryou nodded truthfully, his stomach twisted in a knot. “Just don't show it and you'll be just fine. Do you have a pen on you? Or a belt? Anything that could be used as a weapon?”

“I have a pen, I was supposed to take notes.” Ryou reached in his pocket and handed his pen to the nurse.

“That's it?” Ryou nodded again. “Good, it wouldn't be the first time someone got stabbed with a pen. Ready?”

After some hesitation Ryou answered. “Yeah…”

The nurse peeked in again and said something to the patient before opening the door, letting Ryou in. “I'll be right behind the door, if something happens or you want out just scream. You'll be just fine.” Then he turned to speak to Mariku who was sitting on his white bed. “No funny busyness Ishtar.” He said warningly and shut the door, leaving the two alone.

Ryou turned from the door to look at Mariku. His tanned skin stood out in the otherwise white room and he wore white pajama looking clothing. In the room were the bed and a toilet but nothing else.

Mariku looked Ryou from head to toe and back up again with his pupil-less eyes, making Ryou feel terribly self-conscious and he vaguely wondered if he should have wore his white sweater instead of the light blue button-up he was now wearing.

“So what is a sweet thing like yourself doing in a place like this?” Mariku questioned in a deadly purr and a shiver ran up Ryou's spine.

“I-I was…” He remembered what the nurse had said about not showing his fear and took a deep, calming breath before continuing. “My teacher gave me an assignment to study and spend time with a… mental patient and you were assigned to me…” When Mariku just cocked his head to a side Ryou decided to continue. “I'm studying psychology in Domino Central College, Mr. Akishima gave me this assignment and… um… I'm Bakura Ryou by the way.” The silence really made Ryou nervous and he hoped he had a stress toy with him or something and changed his weight from one leg to the other under the other's studying gaze.

“Mr. Akishima you say…”

“You know him?” Ryou questioned and Mariku smirked at him.

“Oh we go way back.”

The shiver that had previously gone up went down. What was with this guy? “Okay… Was he your psychiatrist?”

“Yes… Along with his colleague whose name I can't remember.”

The ring of his cell phone almost made Ryou jump out his socks and he took it from his pocket and according to the caller ID it was his father. Ryou glanced at Mariku who made an absent gesture with his hand. “Excuse me…” Ryou said, with an awkward smile and answered. “Hi dad!”

/“Hello Ryou. How are you?”/

“I'm fine and you?”

/”Good, good.”/

“Uh, dad? Could you call some other time? It's kind of bad time…”

/”Oh? Where are you?”/

“I'm doing a school project… Speaking of school; they seem to have cut off my college funds…”

/”Uh-hu… Do you need money? I'll give them a call, I'm sure there's an explanation to this.”/

“Yes, actually… Thanks.”

/”No problem, you're my son after all.”/

“Aw… Isn't your daddy nice.” Spoke a third voice near Ryou's left ear and the breath tickled his ear lope. The scare got Ryou to drop his cell phone but before he could make a sound a hand closed around his throat and he was pushed against the wall. He tried to call for help but the only sound he managed to make was a quiet whimper. He stared wide-eyed at Mariku who had probably sneaked up on him while he was talking to his father.

“Now don't make a sound, little angel, or I'll brake your neck.” Mariku whispered in Ryou's ear and slowly licked up the lope making the boy whimper again. He couldn't breath!

Ryou had been in a self-defense course last year and there was a one part he remembered right now. He bent his leg and kicked where it hurts. Mariku let go of his throat and bended down in pain. Ryou did as he had been told if something happened and yelled. “HEEELP!” The door opened instantly and Ryou was pulled to the hall by the nurse. He closed the door behind him and looked Ryou through for injuries. “Are you ok kid?”

Ryou was holding his throat gasping for breath, heart pounding painfully hard in his chest. In his shock he wasn't able to answer aloud but he nodded anyway.

“Good.” The nurse peeked inside the room. “He'll be fine soon enough too. Everyone should be able to take care of them selves like you did. You sure you don't want to come work for us?” The nurse asked kidding-ly, Ryou turned to look at him eyes still wide and breathing heavily.

“I-I'm not going back there!”

“Don't you have a project to do?”

“I don't care. My-my cell phone is still there.”

“I'll get it for you later but now you need to be taken to see the shrink.” The nurse lifted Ryou up and began to walk down the hall with him. Ryou lifted his hand feebly on his ear, it was still wet and he wiped his hand on his shirt.

“The shrink” was a nice older man and he assured Ryou that he would be just fine and that he wasn't the only person who had been attacked. He asked Ryou what had happened and Ryou told him. He frowned a bit and told that Mariku rarely licked people any more and Ryou felt the urge to spit that that made him feel so much better but bit his tongue. The nurse got him his cell but it was in pieces. They eventually let him go and told that he could send a petition to the hospital to get compensation from the phone.

 

 

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Once Ryou got home he collapsed on his couch and turned his stereo on. That had went so well, he thought sarcastically, he was still alive, wasn't he? He decided that first thing on Monday he would ask Mr. Akishima to have someone else to do the assignment on. He remembered that his teacher had said that Mariku was the last one left and groaned. He was stuck with a homicidal lunatic! This was just great! At least he wouldn't be bored in a long time… He wanted to call Yuugi who was his best friend but then he remembered that his cell phone was broken.

“Damn you Mariku…” He mumbled and punched a pillow. This was just his luck… What had Akishima been thinking? Did he seriously want him dead?

A determined look took over his features. He wouldn't let that Mariku freak him out. He wouldn't win. Ryou would show him what kind of stuff he was made of! He would make his project on him and he would get the best grade ever! No Mariku Ishtar could stop him from achieving his goal and Mr. Akishima would have to admit that he was an excellent student!

Ryou's stomach grumbled and he realized that he hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. He needed food now so he headed for the kitchen to make him self a huge meal with lots of dessert.

 

 

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A/N: They had a bit rough start, didn't they? The dream Ryou had was a bit modified version of a dream I had, that was a seriously scary dream… I used to have lots of dreams where someone chased me but then in one dream I turned around and kicked some serious chaser butt and I haven't had that kind of dream ever since :)

Please review!! Tell me how I managed to write Mariku while you're at it.