Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Death's Not Particularly Fair ❯ The First Day Back At School ( Chapter 2 )

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

However, she was having serious doubts when Bakura sailed her through the sky. As sudden huge leathery wings had sprouted out of his back as soon as he'd stepped outside.
Among many other things, Te'a was deathly afraid of heights. And she was now clutching onto poor Bakura with hands that had awfully lethal nails poking out the end of them, "Oh Jesus, I'm gonna die!!"
"Shut it, you baby. How many times have you thought you were gonna die but you didn't? Need I remind you, princess?"
She didn't answer, feeling that if she answered she might just puke all over Yami Bakura's head. And that was definately not what would get her anywhere, especially when it was 7:00 am on a particularly painful Monday morning.
And the worst of it was, that she was freezing. The flimsy pink jacket was hardly enough to keep out Morning Jack Frost. She was almost positive that an icicle was forming on her nose as the two of them went swooping over the forest trees. Trying to get nearer to the City area and back to school.

Bakura looked beautiful. Not even Te'a could deny that, though she hated him. His white hair was windswept, but highlighted in pink and reds and auburns of the sun. So that the colours seemed to move across the hir as he flew, like shimmery sparkly dots of alive light. So very different and welcoming compared with the fearsome shadows she had had to endure last night.
"If I fall, I'll die" she whispered softly, even as she marvelled at how graceful and wondrous Yami Bakura was in the air.
It wasn't just his hair, but his velvet bown eyes seemed to be alive for once. With something other than the slithering, suffocating loneliness that most often occupied his eyes. Today they seemed to twinkle with ... it couldn't be happiness could it? The word "happy" just didn't seem to suit Bakura. Even when the emotion was plainly engraved into his features, making his pale cheeks flush pink, and a true smile adorn his mouth.
She wanted to reach down and grab a swipe of that feeling. So that she could treasure it and keep it when all joy had fled from that face once more.

Te'a hated him. But she hated the gloom that took him over and made him wallow in his own misery.
Sure, he'd never shown how he really felt on the outside. But Te'a was a very perceptive person. Having a very vivid imagination that could be both a gift and a curse. And she could see the real person behind those frigid eyes of steel.
Or maybe she was wrong. That lost and alone person crying for help in there could very well be Ryou. It could be the original boy who'd occupied this body first. But somehow, she didn't think so. She just couldn't believe that the only person Yami Bakura was, was this cruel, callous brute who enjoyed the suffering of others, and remained as mysterious as possible.

But who Bakura was, didn't happen to be the height of her problems right now. The fact that she was soaring through the air 300 metres above the ground was. She squeezed her eyes shut in a fierce attempt to shut out the whirling colour of the landscape underneath her, and tried not to think about what would happen to her if Bakura was to drop her ... all the way, down, down , down.
Splat Bakura said helpfully in her head.
she tightened her grip, practically crushing his windpipe and wrapped her legs around his waist for extra relief. She didn't like this, no not at all. She could just imagine herself all flat and bloody all over the tarmac. Her body oozing blood and other fluids, and her brains all splattered ...
Gruesome
She felt the grin in that thought and wanted to punch him. But figured that it wouldn't be particularly wise to hit someone who was carrying you at dizzying heights above the earth. So she kept her temper in check and thought of Yugi in a fierce attempt to forget the situation she was in right now. With his bat-like wings flapping on either side of her and hitting her hips so often that she wondered vaguely if they'd be ground down to the bone by the time she got to school. That thought wasn't appeasing.

she asked wearily, thinking wistfully of how things would be back home. She probably wouldn't have even left the house yet, because she lived so near the school. At this point she'd have just gotten up, slipped her feet into her pink bunny slippers and be sitting at the kitchen table, sipping hot cocoa and waiting for her mum to make breakfast.
But, in this case, this just could not be so, she had to be living one of her worst fears by sailing through the air like a flipping bird. The height almost making her want to pass out. Since Te'a hated being too high, her fear of this might not be as bad as her fear of the dark, but pretty damn close. Too close to note the difference.
Especially as darkness wasn't impressing her mind at this time, since she happened to be in broad daylight. The only problem was, that ... well, it was obvious. She almost felt that if she stretched out her fingers, she would burn them on the sun.
Impossible fo course, but that was just how she felt.
Of course we are closer to the city, you dumb bitch she heard his mind-voive say, Do you think that I'm flying this way just to go into the opposite direction of your goddamned school?
she said impatiently,
Have patience, it's not far when you're flying. I'm sure you noticed I'm pretty fast


Still, it was another agonising ten minutes, before Te'a's feet hit nice, safe ground. And she glanced around dizzily, just to make sure no one noticed their landing. But, luckily for her and him, there wasn't a mortal in sight. So her shoulders relaxed for the first time since this morning, and she reached into her trusty backpack to bring forth a comb.
"You're not coming anywhere near me with that bloody thing" Bakura told her.
"Yes, I am" she said sternly, taking it through her own hair to make sure tha the windswept look was eliminated. The last thing she wanted, was for her friends to notice any difference about her. And they all knew she was as neat as a crow's armpit.
When her hair was once again fit to be seen by humans, Te'a all but pounced on Bakura and attacked his hair with it, "You want to go through this day unnoticed, don't you?" she said exasperatedly as he tried to fend her off with his hands, "And you won't do it when your hair looks like a rat's nest."
"For heaven's sake, princess!" he stormed, "My hair looks messy every single day that I've lived in that house! You've never had a problem with it before!"
"Well ... now I do" she said simply, quickly straightening the worst of the knots before Bakura pushed her rudely away.

"By the way, princess, one more thing that I have to add to your list of worries ... you're gonna have to pretend that you and I are dating. Because, people migh think it strange if you come home with me for no apparent reason ... and as I said, I don't want to draw too much attention to us."
"Okay" she said, defeatedly, not really caring one way or the other, since she would make sure that she spent a good deal of her time with Yugi, and not with this delusional Vampyre. She would keep out of his way for as long as possible. Until he forced her to once again go home with him, to whatever crazy plan he had in store for her.
"School's around the corner, sweetheart. I suggest you start walking. Else you might just be late. And wouldn't that be a complete disaster?"

Te'a ignored his sarcasm, and haughtily stalked away from him, hoping that she wouldn't feel his long fingered hand touch her shoulder and pull her back. She just wanted to rush to school and hug all her friends all at once. And be grateful that she'd been blessed by having such lovely friends.
"Another thing ... remember what I said would happen to you if you breathed a word about what's going on between you and me, princess"
She gave him a curt nod, but didn't bother to reply. Instead, she walked as fast as her dancer's legs would carry her. Away from this whole mess that she'd somehow gotten her wretched self into. She just hoped that Bakura wouldn't tag along behind her all day, because if he did ... how would she be able to spend these last few days with her friends? It would be impossible ...

Bakura watched her go, and immediately the self-satisfied smirk slid off his face. He looked around him for a few seconds before digging into his pockets and finding a black and white photograph of Cassandra. Her navy blue eyes winked at him, her brown hair hung down over her face with a darker fringe that was so dark compared to her hair it sometimes was mistaken for spiky shadows.
She wore that pink, frilly dress that she looked so charming in (although the colour could not be seen) her parasol held above her head to protect her delicate skin from the sun. Her sunny smile brightened her whole face as she smiled at the camera ... and at the person taking the photo ... namely himself.
He looked back up at the running figure of Te'a, then at Cassandra. His gaze hardened,
He put the photo back into his pocket and before sighing and running back up to the school, his white hair flying behind him like it was gliding through clear water. His sad expression cleared up for the typical Bakura smile that twinkled with naughtiness.

Te'a herself had flung herself into Yugi's arms without restraint as soon as she saw him. She hugged his face up against her bosom, so that his cheeks turned a light shade of magneta. He spluttered as if he didn't know quite what hit him, then looked up into Te'a's shining eyes and her beaming smile. So radiant and relieved that he half forgot his embarrassment and managed to smile back.
"Yugi! It's so good to see you!"
"Hey Te'a." Joey smacked her on the back, as he passed her, Tristan following close behind him, "You have a rough night or something? I mean, how could you mistake Yugi for me? It's my handsome face that makes you smile, not his" he gestured at Yugi with his thumb over his shoulder, making Te'a giggle, and Yugi's pink face began to regain some of it's normal colour.
"Shut up, you doufus." she chortled, ruffling his perfectly arranged dark blonde hair with the palm of her hand, snaking her fingers like spiders through them.
"Nyeah!" he moved away from her and patted his hair nervously, "Teeeee'a ... don't mess up my hair! You don't want me to look like spiky here do you?" once again indicating Yugi, whose three tone hair should be the picture next to the definition of "spiky" in the dictionary. The blonde bangs hanging in his eyes were the only things that didn't stick up into the air, the black and purple part of his hair looked as if it had frozen in place. Something Te'a took as gorgeous, and not as stupid, like some people she could mention, like that complete jerk Se-
"Ahem"

Te'a spun around, a look of panic on her face, expecting Bakura to be standing there behind her. But it wasn't, it was a tall, brown haired, sapphire eyed, handsome boy who was soon going to be finished with school altogether. His tench-coat fluttered about his ankles, his brief case held in his left hand as he looked through the group, but for some reason, especially at Te'a.
"Sorry to to interrupt this little get together" the boy growled, "But I would like to speak to Te'a, if you don't mind." his voice came out sarcastic, and Te'a winced, not at all sure what he wanted.
"What do you want with her?" Yugi's huge dark purple eyes widened in surprise, and she felt him place a tentative but protective hand on her shoulder, frowning.
"Has that got anything to do with you, Yugi?"
"What do you want Kaiba?!" Joey demanded, pushing Te'a behind him and raising a fist, "Keep her out of your schemes unless you want a taste of my knuckles, rich-boy!"
"Hmmph" Seto Kaiba looked down at Joey as if he were an insect, his eyebrows raising, "Te'a can choose for herself, Wheeler. If she doesn't want to come, it'll be her loss."

"Don't go, Te'a." Yugi begged, "I think it's a bad idea." his violet eyes pleaded with her, but Te'a shook her head.
"I won't be long guys, I just want to see what Kaiba has to say" she said, waving and following him when he whirled around with a flurry of his trench-coat. Te'a watched him apprehensively. Why wasn't he in school uniform for a start? He'd get into big trouble!!
Seto didn't say a word as he walked, and Te'a had no choice but to follow meekly, feeling like an idiot. She looked back once at her friends, but they made no move to follow her. Although Yugi was looking after her with those huge, innocent eyes that would make one's heart melt. He brushed one of his big hands through his crazy hair, then waved back at Te'a. Trying to plant a smile on his lips.
But as soon as she turned her head, Yugi sunk into a wave of apprehension and paranoia that he couldn't explain. He had to clamp down on it before it became a full blast attack of panic.

Seto sat down down on one of the school benches, his eyebrows arched down in a thoughtful frown. Te'a sat down with him, feeling uncomfortable because she and Seto had never been best buddies.
Seto was silent for a few seconds, biting softly on the end of his thumb, and when he looked at her, he wore an uncharacteristic look of worry, "Has he made you a nightcrawler yet?"
Navy blue eyes widened at the question, and Te'a was sure that she'd misheard him. For how could he possibly know about her and Bakura? Was Seto a Vampyre himself? If so, how did he survive in the sunlight without a Hikari? It just wasn't possible!
"Wha-?!"
"You heard me." he said impatiently, his frown deepening, crinkling his smooth, pale forehead, "Has Bakura made you a Vampyre yet? Or is he waiting for a few days?"
Her fists clenched, and she looked desperately around for help. And when she saw that no one was around to help her, she open her thin lips to scream. Only she didn't have the chance, because Seto's hand clamped around her mouth and he yanked her roughly off the bench and into the doors of the empty gym that stood right next to the solitary bench they'd been sitting on.

With his thin fingered hand still pressed tightly to her mouth and stifling all her screams, Seto backed up into the sport's equipment room, shutting the door behind him and leaning against it.
"Now, Vampyress. I'm going to let go of your mouth, and if you scream I'll just shoot your brains out all over the wall and then stab you in the heart with a stake. So you'd better cooperate."
His voice was calm, but they had the sound of a person who meant every word he said. And she felt the steel snub-nosed gun pressed up against her back and cringed.
"It's not that strong a gun, Vampyress. It's only a Colt Commander 9mm Parabellum with a nine round magazine and a barrel machined for a silencer. Not incredibly strong when against a creature like you. But it will render you temporarily helpless until I kill you."
He felt her nod and slowly took his fingers away from her mouth, not stopping her when she scrambled away from him with a look of horror on her face, landing in amongst the basketball balls. Her pink skirt flew up, making Seto wince and avert his eyes from her. So different from Bakura, maybe he wasn't a Vampyre after all ...

"What do you want from me? I'm not a Vampyress yet ... he said I can spend some time with my friends first, Kaiba ..." she said very fast, "But he will soon. Maybe you can save me, and if I were a nightcrawler, how would I be able to walk in the sun anyway?!"
He stared at her, his tall body still blocking her escape. And for the first time she was sure she saw pity in his eyes before he looked away from her and at the far wall, "True" he said, "I never thought of that."
"If I were a Vampyress ... would you have killed me ...?"
"Eventually"
Te'a managed to pull herself to her feet, the fear didn't seem as iminent as it should have been. Especially for a girl who was afraid of everything. This situation should have brought her to tears, making her sink down to her knees, to grovel, to plead, to beg for her life. But now, it was like someone froze all of her emotions, making the incident seem rather amusing instead of horrifying.
"Why don't you kill me now, Kaiba? After all, I will be a Vampyre pretty soon. Might as well get rid of a future fledgling don't you think?"
He shook his head and appeared to be in deep thought, and when Te'a tried to speak again he held his hand up to indicate silence. His gun was still pointed straight at her head in case she made a move to defend herself. And she found herself staring into the empty hole where the bullet would fire out of to splatter her brains across the wall.
The hole reminded her of Bakura's eyes. Vacant and seemingly endless.

"Alright" Seto said at last, "Let's put it this way, girl. You do realise that this Bakura happens to be the leader of a very vicious cult, yeah?"
"No"
"Well, let me explain things to you simply, girl. Your precious Vampire is the type of creature to kill humans not only to feed from, but just because he enjoys watching their life force stream out of them. He likes to feel warm skin grow cold, he likes to feel the heart stop beating and the blood stop flowing. So in sorts, he is one of the most dishonourable Vampyres you could meet ...."
"Let me guess ..." Te'a's cold voice surprised even herself, as if it were a different person speaking, "He wants to make me a nightcrawler so that I become the newest member to the clan since whenever ... and you ..." she paused for a second to think about it, "You want me to spy on them because you want them killed, don't you? Oh Great Vampire Hunter."
Seto's smile was bemused, and he slowly lowered his Colt Commander so that it pointed at the floor. But his gaze didn't lower, instead those brilliant sapphire eyes met with hers and seemed to be seeking some great truth that wasn't there. And Te'a, well, she just stared back at him.
"Yes."
"Yes what?"
"You're right of course ..." Seto clenched his hand into a fist, but his expression stayed impassive and direct, "I want you to spy for me, girl. Of course, if you don't ... you'll be of no more use to me ..."

The hand that was holding the gun twitched slightly upward as if to say exactly what happened to those who were of no more use to him. And Te'a's fear returned as quickly as it'd vanished. She didn't want to die, and she hated Bakura anyway. Would it kill her to spy on him? Well, it certainly would kill her if she didn't, so ...
"I'll do as you want, Seto. But call me 'girl' one more time and you'll regret it."
He inclined his head, "If that's what you want, Te'a. Any other requests?" his voice dripped sarcasm.
She didn't answer all at once, but when she did, she was so soft Seto had to lean forward to hear what she said, "Do you know why Bakura chose me out of millions of others?"

That question seemed to throw him, and he holstered his gun, seeming to trust her not to attack him now. And he turned his back to open the door, the sudden breeze making his brown bangs move away from his forehead to expose a thin, pink scar that cut straight across in a horizontal line. Something Te'a was sure no one had ever seen before, except for maybe herself.
"I don't know why he chose you." he said gruffly, staring out at the empty gym with a lost expression as if he didn't know where he was, "It's not up to me to know why. But it is up to me to stop them."
She nodded, only just managing to stop herself from asking him why he hunted Vampires at all.
Wrapping her arms around herself she stepped up behind him, laying one hand on his shoulder in a sudden urge to show affection and sympathy. And it didn't even come as much of a surprise when he raised a shaking hand to put on top of her own, squeezing it gently.
"Take care of yourself Te'a."
"I will."

He took his hand off hers and walked forward with his back rimrod straight, leaving Te'a to stand at the sport's equipment door with one slim hand suspended in mid-air. She settled it back at her side with a funny expression on her face, like that of a puppy who's just been slapped with a newspaper. The thought of becoming a Vampire was frightening, now that Seto had all but shoved that fact in her face.
She remembered that awful horizontal scar going in a straight line across his brow, as if someone had pressed a butcher's knife to his skull.
No wonder he grew his hair over it, and had always carefully made sure that it was covered in some way or other. And a great pity flared down in her heart and made Te'a want to squeeze all that pain away.
But that was useless of course, if Te'a tried that ... Seto would shove her away and tell her not to be such a soppy idiot. So she would just have to control herself.

And with a sudden flash of dread, she remembered what Bakura said about what would happen to her if she told anyone about what was going on between her and him. The thought of it made all the colour in her face drain away till it seemed almost translucent. She held five trembling fingers to her mouth at the memory of it. Knowing that if he knew about this she'd be in big trouble.
And another thought struck her with awful clarity.

"SETO!" she heard herself scream after him as her entire body froze in shock. And when she saw him turn around again with a strange look on his face, she couldn't control herself but went flying across the room and into his arms. Burying her pale face into his chest and not seeing the look of total surprise crossing over his features like a grimace. Not only because she was embracing him as if she were his friend, but because she'd called him by his first name for the first time in her life.
"Get ahold of yourself, Vampire" he hissed, shoving her away from him so that she fell onto her butt on the gym floor, "I spare your life, and I work with you. That doesn't mean I have to think you're any higher than scum. Because you aren't, and if you ever touch me again, I will blast your head off."
"He can read minds" she said almost desperately, not caring that everyone outside the gymnasium door was watching as she gripped the front of his shirt and look wildly into his face, "He'll kill me if he finds out that I'm going to betray him, Seto! I can't spy on him for you, I just can't!"
"That's your problem, Vampire. You can block the thought can't you? At least from the surface part of your mind, as that's all Bakura can read. He can't go into the deeper layers ..."
"Yes, he can ... he can."
"How would you know?" he sneered.
"I just ... know ..."

"Get off me, Vampire. I have no interest in your sob stories."
"I'M NOT SPYING ON HIM FOR YOU! I'D RATHER DIE AT YOUR HAND THAN AT HIS!"
Now everyone was staring at her. For wasn't this the sweet little Te'a who was always so willing to help and be friendly toward everyone? Was this truly her, this wrecked girl who was crumpled at Seto's feet and screaming hysterically about some nonsense or other. And word was immdeiately sent to Yugi and the rest of the group to come see what was wrong with her.
"Te'a? Te'a!" some tried to call to her. Trying in vain to pry her loose from Seto, who was still glaring down at her as if she were an ant.
"You either work for me, or don't come to school tomorrow, witch" he said, grabbing her by the top of her hair and practically ripping her off of him, "Cause if you do ... the walls of the dismal hell hole will have a new decoration to it ... namely your naive and unintelligent brains ...."
With that, he stalked off, leaving Te'a to fall to her knees and bury her face in her arms to sob her eyes out. Rocking back and forth as people crowded around her, her shoulders heaving and trembling grief passing through her for the life she once had and desperately wanted back. She felt all the children trying to get her to pull her hands away from her face, trying to get her to say what was wrong.
"Yuuuugi" she moaned, hiccoughing and looking up at them, with her face pale and her vision blurred by countless tears, "Get Yugi, please."

"What's going on here?" came that awful dreaded voice. And the tension in Te'a's back doubled when a thin hand was at her shoulders, tugging her to her feet and pressing her face to his chest as if he was just a friendly boyfriend trying to spare her the embarrassment of anyone seeing her in tears, "It's okay" he told the concerned-curious people, "It's alright, I'll take care of her."
"She wanted Yugi" one said tentatively, but Bakura waved her off impatiantly with his hand, "I'm her boyfriend, I'll take care of her ... don't worry ..."
Te'a tried to wrench herself out of his grasp, but he kept his hand pressed firmly to the back of her head, making her have to keep her face against his chest like a child.

Shut your face, you idiot twat. I want to know what you did with Seto in the gym? WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM?!

That voice in her head was so loud, Te'a stopped in the middle of her heart wrenching weeping. When she managed to move her eyes upward at Bakura's face, he was looking down at her with the most grim expression she'd ever seen. Making her feel like a little kid with her hand in the cookie jar.

Bakura knew he only had a few seconds to find out if this were true by searching her mind. If he stood lingering too long, people might start to think something was weird.
Pushing into her mind, but staying far away from that feared bit buried deep within the recesses of her memory, he found what he was looking for. And was satisfied that she was indeed telling the truth.
Although, she hadn't mentioned that she only changed her mind when she remembered that he could read what she was up to. She stopped herself out of fear, not loyalty.
Oh well ... better than nothing I suppose ... he said to her, We're just going to have to terminate this Seto guy ... and fast ...

"TE'A!" she heard the voice of the person she most wanted to hear. And before Bakura had much of a chance to react, she was snatched up into Yugi's arms. Which was almost amusing if she hadn't been so desperate to see him, as the top of his head barely brushed her chest. But still, of all the people she wanted to see right now. It was Yugi.
"Are you okay? What's wrong?" he pulled away from her and held a trembling finger to her cheek to catch a tear. As if he couldn't believe that the tear belonged to Te'a, who was usually so strong. Soppy maybe, but never seriously upset like this. She looked like someone had given her the worst fright of her life, and she was still suffering from it.
"N-nothing" she said, and ached at the lie.
The last person she wanted to lie to was Yugi, but she had no choice if she wanted to live.

She saw Bakura fade into Ryou. For the first time since ... since god knows when, Te'a saw Ryou's care-worn, weary face appear through all that evil. Those big brown eyes widening and softening. The dark lines and black circles running under his eyes. The wind blew his hair back in the wind as he watched her. His expression was inscrutable.
But those eyes ...
They were windows to a tortured soul. They looked even older than Bakura's eyes, and that was odd. Since Bakura actually was thousands of years old. But Ryou was only sixteen ... and the look of mourning and grief were deeply scetched into those features. He had the look of a boy who'd seen and done terrible things. That soul-terringly blank look that only partially hid a screaming spirit.
But when their eyes met, Te'a felt much better than she had for hours. Like sharing a particularly painful secret with a friend. The only friend you could trust.
But she had to stop staring at Ryou when Yugi looked up at her with those childlike, huge purple eyes that filled to the brim with total innocence and naivity. For no one was quite like Yugi, not even Te'a herself.
She couldn't explain why. It was as if she'd had some dark past that she couldn't remember. But that was ridiculous.
As far as she knew, she'd led a happy and peaceful life with her parents. Always planning from the day she was four, and saw a proffessional dancer on t.v, to become one herself.

"Te'a?" Yugi's own eyes brimmed with tears. And she had to kneel down and take the sensitive boy in her arms and hug him. To reassure him that she was okay.
But she wasn't okay. And maybe she never would be again. But she didn't have to let Yugi know that, it would torment him for the rest of the time she was miserable.
So she held back the tempting tears and just about managed a smile, "I'm okay Yugi. Everything's okay ... I swear ..."
"It isn't another phobia is it?" he said so softly, making sure no one else could hear.

"No, nothing like that. I'm just tired ... tired ... I really need to sleep ..."
"I'll take her to the sick room, Yugi" Ryou said softly, looking down at the floor instead of directly into Yugi's eyes. And Te'a didn't know if she wanted Yugi to leave her. Seto Kaiba could be lurking around any corner, waiting to shoot her in the head and send loads of blood and sticky pink stuff splattering across the school walls, where they would dry and get hard.
That thought made her twitch involuntarily, but she nodded anyway. If Seto was going to shoot her, she'd make sure that he didn't do the same to Yugi as well.
"I'll be fine, Yugi-kun ..." she said fondly, stroking his cheek with her right hand and having to hold those awful tears in check as she looked into those big, confused eyes that were windows to a gentle soul.
"You sure?"
"Yes."

The curious people began to dissipate, leaving Yugi, Ryou and Te'a all alone in the middle of the front entrance of the school. And before any of them could say anything, the bell for homeroom rang above their heads. Making all three of them wince and clutch their hands over their ears. The awful clanging of everyday life was welcome to Te'a. Though it left a tinge of sadness, knowing she'd never hear that sound again after this full week had ended.
"I'm coming with you, Te'a-chan." Yugi said firmly when the ringing had stopped. And before Ryou could protest, Yugi took her from under the elbow and led her straight to the office, scaring Te'a that she might be sent home on the last few, precious days she had to spend with her friends.
"No! Yugi, all I need is an asprin, I swear. Just go upstairs to homeroom and tell the teacher I'ma gonna be a few minutes late, yeah?"
"Kay" he looked doubtful, staring up at the still drying tears on his best friend's face.

"Go on Yugi ... you'll be late" Te'a urged, but as he turned to reluctantly leave, she grabbed him and hugged him to her chest, feeling his small body go stiff from shock, "Yugi ... I don't know what I'd do without you."
Yugi turned around, so that she had to keep her hands on his shoulders as he looked up at her with a mixture of awe and surprise, "You'll always have me with you, Te'a. You know that ..."
"I know. I just ... just wanted to let you know that you're the best friend I could ever ask for ..."
He still looked stunned, but he managed to smile at her, the sadness leaving his eyes for a brightness that could only be found in the innocent, "You too, Te'a-chan"
"Go now, before I make you late ..."

He went, but not without looking over his shoulder a few times, frowning slightly but not saying any more. She just watched him ascend the stairs up to their homeroom class, placing that small memory of him in her mind to treasure forever. That soft skin, the three-tone hair that refused to lie flat like a normal person's, those incredibly unique eyes, the thin lips that were so easily pulled into a gentle smile, his big hand placed on the banister of the steel stairs.
And when he turned around to meet Te'a's eyes one last time before he went. That moment seemed to last an eternity, but maybe that was only because it was replayed in Te'a's mind for the rest of her life.
"Bye Yugi-kun" she whispered, twirling her fingers as he went out of sight.

She sensed breathing behind her, and knew that at least it wasn't Yami Bakura, for he didn't breathe. And when she turned to look at Ryou, he looked on the verge of tears. But tremendous effort and will power kept them back. Turing his face blank and impassive. The way most people look when they resist the urge to crumple. For it was so goddamned easy to revert to tears. Much harder not to.
"Te'a. I'm sorry."
She brought her hand up to her mouth, but said nothing. What was there to say to a guy who was being controlled by an evil Vampire? What was there to say to calm the depths of despair that consumed someone like an inner fire, that ate them up, burning like black flame. Till they sank to their knees in agony and screamed till they couldn't stop.
Nothing to say. Nothing to say to a boy who'd seen the darkest side of life and could never return from it. Not even if his body was set free. The past would always be there.

But Te'a tried. Te'a always tried, even if failure was imminent. Because that was part of human nature, to care recklessly enough to fail someone. Being safely selfish wasn't always an option.
Yes, human nature did have plently of bad points. Selfishness, cruelty, stubborness etc. But those had been analized to the point where they started to get boring.
Why not try the reckless caring that was also embedded in human nature?
She took Ryou Bakura into her arms and hugged him tight to her as if he were her son, or her little brother. But she said nothing. She just stood and hugged him, pressing him to her in a way that Bakura had done to her, but with far more affection. Far more love involved. So that one could feel it, radiating just like the innocence that she possessed. She thrived on love, without it she would wither and die inside.
If that made her soppy, then so be it.

And suddenly, Ryou was laughing through his tears. A cynical, bitter laugh of a child who's been through so much that he cannot percieve the world as a wonderful thing anymore. But as a dark shadow that hid trap after trap, just waiting to ambush you when you felt safe again. Just waiting to srip you of your pride and your happiness and your spirit.
"Shhhh ... Ryou-san. It's gonna be okay now, I'll be here for you. I'll always be here for you. No matter what."
He made a funny sound, somewhere between a whimper and a sob. And Te'a just hugged him closer, relishing his closeness and feeling as if she were with her one friend who could understand the situation she was in.

Seto Kaiba walked straight into his office, glowering at the desk as if it'd offended him. He sank down into his office chair and sighed, trying to avoid looking into the framed photograph of his little brother that lay on the mahogany surface, staring at him.
Mokuba Kaiba. The boy who never managed to reach the birthday where he'd turn twelve. He'd died the day before, all because Seto hadn't been ready or prepared to defend him against a creature he didn't even know existed. The Vampire that had murdered him had also managed to give Seto a long slash across the forehead with his dagger. Before sinking those awful fangs into tender flesh and drunk down all of the eleven year old's blood.
Seto remembered watching the blood literally drain from the boy's face as another Vampire - a female - had held him back from saving Mokuba. And she'd laughed at his pathetic struggles, laughed at the helpless tears that had fallen down his shocked face as the only person who he was close to got weaker and weaker ...

Seto closed his eyes and made a steeple of his hands, leaning his elbow on the desk. Remembering that awful day when his mission to destroy all vampires had come into play. The worst day of his life, the day that someone had actually managed to make the great Seto Kaiba shed tears like a baby. His cheeks still burned humiliation at that stupid bitch vampiress's laughter.
"I love you" Mokuba had said to his big brother, his eyes fading down to pale blue.
Anguish had pierced Seto's heart when he realised that those short words had also meant goodbye.

"NO! GODDAMNIT NO!" he yelled, suddenly getting to his feet and pacing up and down. Occasionally glancing at the door which had at least three locks that only he, Seto, had the keys to. And was protected with a voice activation system and an impenatrable door. He stared at it, knowing he'd have to into it soon. And relishing it.
He never liked to go in there straight away. He liked to think about it. To torture the person inside just by making them wait, leaving their imagination to wander.

Seto was the only vampire hunter left in this day and age. But he did a good job, and soon ... someday he'd have followers. And with his technology and with all the information he'd manage to get. He'd destroy them all one by one once and for all. Avenging Mokuba's death and making sure that they never killed again.
This time, behind those doors, there was a female vampire bitch. And she'd been real feisty, biting and snarling and struggling against Seto when he finally managed to overpower her with a wooden stake that just missed her heart, but made her temporarily parylised. She'd shrieked in outrage and sworn to kill him before he could kill her.
And when he looked down at her, he imagined that it was that same woman who'd laughed at him, holding him back from saving his little brother. He was going to hurt her, get information out of her.

Seto was getting restless. He could never take the anticipation for more than a few seconds, and now it was eating at him like crazy.

With a moan of longing, Seto finally walked as fast as he could with as much diginity as possible. Unlocking all the bolts with an almost feverish hurry. When he entered the awful steel room. Everything was a bright silver-grey. Except for the vampiress. She looked so bloody young, about thirteen at the most. But looks were decieving ... she wasn't even a fledgling.
But she looked especially pathetic now. She looked even younger now. Hanging suspended with her wrists above her head, bound and helpless.
Faded green eyes stared at him, wavy blonde hair covered half of her thin face. Her wrists were the thinnest things he'd ever seen in his life, so that he'd had trouble cuffing her, and eventually had to do it by restraining her inbetween bars of energy.
Most of the fight seemed to have left her now that she realised that she might die in this gloomy place, "Please, please ... I'm sorry ... just let me go, and I'll never hurt you, I swear ..."

Seto snorted, "Think I'd take the word of a Vampire bitch? I don't think so ..."
Her eyes widened, and she began to struggle against her bonds, those three inch long teeth lengthening, forcing her lower jaw forward and making her look ten times more sinister.
"Don't. I'm too young, look at me! I'm hardly even into my teens yet!"
Laughing softly, Seto picked up a flashlight and twiddled it in his hands, "You telling me that you're nothing but a fledgling?"
She hesitated, then shook her head, staring at him with those eyes that suddenly reminded him of Mokuba. His eye shape had been just like hers ...

"Answer some questions, Vampyre ... then I might just let you free ..."
She nodded, looking wildly about her as if searching for a way to escape. But she found nothing, and had to simply stare at him some more. Knowing that the situation was hopeless.
"Name, rank etc."
"Rebbecca Hawkins, second generation vampire, sire to ..." she paused and gave Seto a pleading look, "My rank is Inner Circle Sire -"
"Sire to ....?"

"I can't, he'll kill me. Please!"
"Well ... Miss Rebbecca Hawkins, I'm afraid that's just too bad. If you won't tell me, I'll just have to persuade you ..."
Rebecca the Vampyre wriggled about, even though she knew she couldn't escape from her bonds. The energy that bound her was stronger than one hundred fledgling vampires. Those faded out eyes seemed to sink back into her skull from stress and the agonising truth of the situation she was in, "I can't tell you! He'll hurt me worse than you ever could."
"I see."

"If you don't let me go, he'll destroy you!"
"Is he a high ranked Vampire?" Seto asked, still ever twirling the supposed flashlight. Watching the Vampyress that looked like a pre-teen bitch as she stared at him. Those green eyes were quite fascinating actually, he could look into them for ages, though that could probably also be because Seto's attention span was brilliant.

"He is." she agreed, "He's very high up. So even if I tell you who he is, he'll just end up killing both of us."
"His name, please."
"Never! You think I'm just going to answer all these stupid questions just because you ask them? Get lost bozo, because the only way you're going to get his name out of me is if you pull it out of my head!"
"That can be arranged"
Rebecca gasped and twinged backward as Seto brought his flashlight up to her forehead. But then she relaxed again and started to laugh. "You think I'm scared of a little flashlight? That's about as effective as holy water, you stupid bastard. I swear, when I get out of here, I'll drain every droplet of blood out of you. Just like your brother ..."
Seto paled, but didn't let her see she'd gotten to him by mentioning his little brother. But switched the flashlight on and watched with grim satisfaction as the skin began to peel away from her forehead. Turning black and changing her laughter to screams of pain. The little girl wriggled and turned her face to the side, so that the rays hit the side of her face, making it shrivel to dust until the bone could be seen.
He then took the flashlight away and watched as her skin healed itself. She was gasping even though she didn't need air. An old breathing habit that fledglings sometimes took awhile to discard.
She wasn't a fledgling, but still ...
"Artificial Sunlight." Seto Kaiba informed her as she glared at him, and noticing that the places where it had burned her didn't fade completely, but stayed there, disfiguring her face with twisty pink scars.

"You ... bastard" she said, seething with anger. She looked about ready to pull her arms sockets out to get to him. And she very well might have had she been a more experienced nightcrawler. But she wasn't, which was why Seto didn't take full precaution with her. It was too long a process and far too tiring for a girl who was bearly past being a young Vampire.
"I can do this all night till you tell me who he is." Seto said harshly.
"No! NO!"
"Very well."

He once again pointed the flashlight, this time at her stomach. Watching with a half smile on his face as a gaping hole appeared in the middle of her t-shirt. The skin that stretched across her thin belly began to peel away from the bones as if the skin itself was offended by being attached to her body and wanted to get off. Of course, only to burst into flames and fall to the ground.
Seto smiled as he pulled the flashlight higher, aiming far away from her heart of course, as he didn't want her dead. But he loved it as her screams grew to a hysterical level. Understandable, as they bones now themselves seemed to melt, and a shrivelled lung began to burn up too underneath her ribs.
he thought, taking it away and waiting till her body healed itself as best it could, leaving behind the familiar twisty scars that were far darker on this part of her body as Seto had burned her far worse this time.
"Uhhhh ..." she groaned, her head lolling forward and her fangs seemed to retreat back into her mouth as if relieved, he waited till the height of her agony was at it's peak. Knowing that she was by now seriously considering telling him who she was a sire to. But at the same time, desperately afraid to do so.

"Ready to tell me?"
She looked up at him with dagger-filled eyes that seemed to burn up from the inside, "I'm going to kill you, Kaiba!" she hissed, "And I'll suffer and keep my silence. I'm not telling you anything!"
Seto shrugged and was about to switch the flashlight back on. But before he could, he caught a movement behind and whirled around. Coming face to face with ...
Nothing. Nothing there.
he thought, <... there's nothing there except my big computer. You're just getting spooked because of this stupid little twat.>
"Don't." he heard Rebecca say, and moved to face her again. The girl was weeping, but he ignored that. He'd dealt with many lower ranked Vampyres before, and nearly all of them either cried, went insane or died.
"Don't what?"
"Don't hurt me anymore. Because I'm not going to tell you anything."
He sneered at her disdainfully, "You think I'm just going to let you go, Vampyress? If you don't tell me, I'll simply torture you for the fun of it."

"Oh? Will you now?" came an entirely different voice from the room, and Seto suddenly found himself facing a white haired, brown eyed Vampyre. Who held himself with such pride it was obvious he was of high ranking, "I have the fleeting feeling that you will do no such thing, Kaiba. This girl may not be my sire, but the Vampire she belongs to would miss her immensely. Especially as finding a loyal sire is so hard to do"
"Bakura" Seto said through gritted teeth, and he switched on his U.V flashlight and aimed it straight at the guy's heart. But Bakura just threw his head back and laughed.
"You do make things amusing you pathetic human. But I'm afraid that weak little thing will only give me a dashing tan."
"How did you get here?"

Yami Bakura smashed his fist through the beams of energy that kept Rebbecca attached to the wall and caught her in his arms, then he turned to look Seto squarely in the face. Feeling Rebbecca pass out in his arms, he spread his bat-like wings and flapped them mockingly, "Does this answer your question, human?"
"Yes" Seto glared, feeling his muscles tense and knowing surely this must be the day that he died. Maybe it wasn't even that much of bad thing ... if he saw his little brother again.
"I'm not going to kill you." Bakura said smoothly, looking almost tenderly into the face of the near teen Vampyress, "You're an interesting opponent, and it'd fascinate me to see how far you could get."
"How did you know to save this fledgling?"
"She's not a fledgling, Seto. She's the sire to my second in command, which automatically makes her higher ranked than normal nightcrawlers."
Seto's face seemed to go white in a nanosecond when he realised that he was talking to the leader of all the Vampyres. Right here under his nose, the whole time.
And to think, all this time. The Vampyre he'd been after was at the very school he left. Wasn't fair! Wasn't fucking fair!

"You are a loser" Yami Bakura informed him.

"Get out of my office." Seto said stiffly, folding his arms.
"If that's what you want ... but I have a feeling we'll meet again, Seto Kaiba. And I warn you. Just because I find you interesting doesn't mean you go attacking anymore fledglings. Rebecca here is only just past that stage, sure. But she's my friend's sire. And I would appreciate it if you didn't burn her to death."
Seto growled, "I will continue to kill nightcrawlers regardless of their rank, Vampire. And if you have to kill me because of this, then so be it."
Bakura inclined his head, looking amused. Then he spread his wings and had disappeared before Seto could blink an eye.

The tall man collapsed against his desk, still holding the U.V torch. And in sudden rage he smacked the thing against the wall, shattering it to pieces and spraying its innards all over his computer room.
How the hell was he supposed to avenge Mokuba now? Seto wasn't the type of person to rush into war, whether death scared him or not. Because to fight a battle you knew you were going to lose was pointless and stupid.
Seto was going to make sure he won this thing. For Mokuba. And everything would undoubtedly have to take time. Still ... that Te'a idiot could be as good a start as any.


Te'a sat tensely on the couch as even more vampires flooded into Bakura's home. She missed Yugi already, for her first day at school had seemed to short!
Still, there was tomorrow. She'd see him again. And hopefully she wouldn't burst into floods of tears while she was at it.
Rebbecca sat next to Te'a, the girl had her hands up to her face, hiding her scars from the nightcrawlers that were streaming in and her shoulders heaving with almost supressed sobs at the thought of what her master was going to say. She'd only been a Vampire for four years, basically she was still young at heart. And confused.
Te'a was scared to put an arm around the little one for comfort. One never knew with these crazy vampyres, most of the time they were likely to snap your head off if you showed too much affection.

Bakura stood at the door with the usual superior smirk on his face, welcoming his guests to sit in the main room of this small place. His chocolate brown eyes twinkled at Te'a mischeviously, and she had a feeling that whatever he had planned for her wasn't good. And she wished she could read his mind so that she could get the gist of what he was up to. And why all the pires of the Inner Circle were here.
Everyone poured in, and most of them were males. Except for the redhead with eyes even browner and darker than Bakura. And the mean looking Vampyress with dyed bright green hair and eyes as crimson as the fire. Te'a didn't like the look of her, she looked skinny and evil.

The redhead however, was laughing and chatting with everyone. Her triangular shaped face and huge eyes made her look like the friendliest person alive. She even came up to Te'a and shook hands with her, "Hi!" she said breathlessly, "Bakura-sama told me you're going to be his sire and join the cult! My name's Cherise by the way, and I'm sire to her ..." she pointed at the sulky looking vampyress.
"Is she sire to anyone?" Te'a asked, mostly out of interest and also out of the need to make conversation with someone who might be her friend.
"No." Cherise grinned happily, and brushed her shocking red hair out of her face, "If that were so, I'd be a third generation vampyre! And then all these guys would be ignoring me." she looked shocked at the very thought.
Te'a rubbed the hand that had shook hers. For Cherise's hand was as ice cold as all of them.

Bakura held out a hand to someone outside the door that none of them could see. And the hand that gripped onto Bakura's was tanned, contrasting with Bakura's pale skin quite alarmingly.
Te'a felt Rebbecca stiffen next to her, her hands gripping more fiercely to the scars over her cheeks and ear. A small moan escaped the child as Yami Marik Ishtar stepped in and smiled at all of them.
"Budge up, human" Bakura told Te'a, and she obeyed without question, because Marik looked a little freaky, as if he wouldn't mind killing someone at the moment. But as soon as he laid eyes on Rebbecca, a cruel smile embraced his features and he grabbed onto her hands, pulling them away from her face.
"They're beautiful" he told Rebbecca, stroking the tortured skin with the edge of his finger, "I'm proud of your loyalty, sire. There's no need to be ashamed."
Rebbecca managed a small smile as Marik sat down next to her, and Te'a just cringed at Bakura sat right down next to her, squishing all four of them on the couch.

Cherise hurriedly sat down too, next to the sulkly looking vampiress. And leant heavily against a Vampire who had a bright bush of red hair just like hers, and the same brown eyes.

Bakura leant forward, smiling at all of them as if to prolong the suspence. Then he grabbed Te'a by the wrist and threw her into the middle of the room, so that she landed on her elbows and knees. Her brown hair falling into her face and her air practically whooshing out of her.
She felt Bakura step onto her back with his foot and press her face down into the carpet so that she had even more difficulty in breathing. He turned his handsome face up to the other Vampires and grinned, "You all know why you're here, even if she doesn't."
A few nightcrawlers sniggered at that.
"I was going to give her the rest of the week till this. But now that Seto tried to dispose of Rebbecca for us and you're all here anyway. We might as well get it over with now."

The bushy redhead male vampire whistled at this, and was soon joined in by the others. Te'a was feeling less and less comfortable by the second. Never having known what social creatures vampires were. In books, they were always portrayed as lonely, wretched beings of existance. But from the way this bad scene was turning out, she'd say those books were wrong.
She coughed once, drawing forth more laughter from them. She moved her pained vision upward to see how many of them there were. More than a dozen. If Te'a should fight, they'd destroy her in a nanosecond.
fear seeped into her, not knowing what was going on and feeling the same terror as she did when she was confronted with dark shadows.

The other vampires caught this stray thought and laughed cruelly at her. Even the sulky vampiress in the corner managed a dim grin. Though it didn't change her face in any way except to make her more formidable than before. But also, Te'a saw jealousy in that face, and shuddered. The girl had nothing to be jealous about in Te'a ... did she?

Don't worry about it, human Bakura said in her head. But it didn't reassure her in any way. She found herself wishing that she'd tried to make a run for it when she was school.
Marik got to his feet and left Rebbecca in her seat. She herself was still sub-conciously holding a hand to her disfigured face. Her eyes were blank as she stared down at Te'a.
Bakura pushed his foot down on her, squishing her into the carpet, his smile growing at her breathless gasps.
"I know everyone has been saying I need a sire for awhile now" Bakura said, "And I never found the perfect one for me until now. This is Te'a Gardner, 16 years old."

Marik looked at the girl on the ground more intensely than before. He'd seen her face already, and her hair and body shape. She looked just like Cassandra before she'd been killed.
Maybe this was why Bakura finally decided to take on a sire ... he'd never shown interest in having one before. And Marik knew Bakura, the guy may pretend to be someone who was amused easily and not such a bad person. But he was a cruel, hard guy, with eyes of stone. Any emotion in him had been shut down the day Cassandra died. Part of why he was such a good leader.
Te'a choked, making everyone in the room stiffen. She could hardly breathe, and her eyes watered from the pain her lungs were enduring.

"Ahhh, forgot you still had to respirate" Bakura said, taking his foot off her back and allowing her to gasp in a huge swallow of precious oxygen.
Marik grinned as he hauled Te'a to her feet from under her arm. His grip was uncomfortably tight but he didn't pay the slightest attention to her. His focus was on Bakura, those pale purple eyes narrowing then widening. As if he had been suspicious and now a realisation had jumped onto his shoulders. But whatever it was he was thinking, he didn't speak of it. Instead he said, "Always thought you should get a sire. They're dead useful ... unless they're disloyal of course. I thought you'd never get one."
"Never bothered" Bakura responded smoothly, also not looking Te'a in the eye but right back at his second in command, "I thought of humans as food, not as servants. But seems I found one."
"Too naive for my taste" Marik said, "I think she's a bit of a fool."

A vampire with dull grey eyes that looked half dead spoke up then, "I don't know why you guys take on females at all. They're a goddamned nuisance"
"Excuse me?" The sulky looking vampyress stared at him in anger. Her crimson eyes seeming to light up as if someone had lit a kiln behind those creepy irises of hers.
"Not you, Ursula my love. You don't act like most girls"
She humphed and glared at the offending pire. And Te'a saw him literally perspire at her gaze.
"Shouldn't we get on with it now?" he asked, and his dead eyes passed onto Te'a. The only person in the room who was looking at her, and she didn't appreciate the gaze at all. Those eyes looked so emotionless, so betrayed and alone and empty. As if the soul of the person inside had withered and died, leaving behind only this violent but wretched creature that had nothing but his own power.
"We should ... but we're missing someone." Bakura checked his watch, "Not that I'm surprised. The sod's always late."
"Oh yes" Marik glowered, turning to the doorway as if expecting the missing vampire to appear in a puff of poof smoke. Though of course that didn't happen, so Bakura just placed his boot back on Te'a back as an afterthought.

The action was so unexpected for her, that Te'a spluttered on her own air and ended up having a coughing fit. Her pale face screwed up in anguish as her chest heaved with the awful convulsions that it didn't really have space for. And she hoped that Bakura would take the hint so that the heavy boot would be taken back off. It wasn't as if she was going to do something as foolish as run.
She could have sent a thought toward him, but she didn't want the other vampires to hear her pathetic plea. They would laugh at her again, and that humiliation was one she didn't want to suffer.
"Should we just start?" came the tentative voice of Cherise after a few minutes had passed, "We may have all night, but we certainly don't have all day."
"No!" said the sulky vampiress called Ursula. She glared at Cherise as if she were an imbecile, "We can't do this without the full inner circle being present."
The vampire with the bushy red hair placed an arm around Cherise, rolling his eyes back in his head. Apparently, he wasn't one one of Ursula's fans. For when she glared at him, he just wiggled his eyebrows back at her and drew his little sister to his side. "She's right" he conceded, nodding in Ursula's general direction.
"Okay. I was just saying ..."
"Don't worry about it. Maybe her hundedth attempt at making edible food went even more wrong than usual. You have to have some sympathy ..."

Since Cherise's big brother didn't have a master, or indeed, even a sire. There was no one to tell him to stop it. Except maybe Marik or Bakura, but they didn't use their authority to settle such trivial arguments.
Te'a tried to stare at Marik to take her mind off whatever was in store for her. She often found that concentrating only on someone's appearance, you could shut down the rest of your thoughts.
Marik was a handsome devil, emphasis on the word 'devil'.
He had blonde hair that was mostly on the darkish side, but it also splayed out around his shoulders and head like the rays of the sun on a child's drawing. How he managed to make that look gorgeous, Te'a didn't know. But it was the most lovely hair she'd ever seen. And just staring at it now, she wanted to reach out and touch it with the ends of her fingers.
He had a sharp nose that slanted gracefully off his face, turned slightly upward and making his thinnish face seem much thinner than it was. But as if to make up for this, he had the largest eyes she'd ever seen. They were beautiful too, slitted with an enoumous iris. The only problem was that the light purple of them was so blank and dead.
They were awfully vacant, empty. No spark of life flittered behind them, not for one second. They were eternally drab and dull. Dim as if someone had switched the light off inside them.
Also, he didn't have a pupil. All he had was a sea of light purple surrouded by white. No little black dot centred itself, making it look even more eternally vacant.
His chin was just as sharp as his nose. He had features similar to Bakura, all sharp. No roundness, softness, no gentler edges. His features all look wicked.

He wore a weird kind of bliush black top, a Guru Cloak was placed casually around his shoulders, hanging down from it was a chain that didn't look as if it had any use but for style.
Boots, tan pants, weird markings under his eyes, golden pointy earrings, two gold arm bands. These things all made up Marik. Making him the most interesting person to look at in the room.
Well, until the door flew open at least. Revealing an even more interesting looking person.

Te'a stared at him with her mouth hanging open. This man was not just gorgeous ... he was ... ethereal, dark, mystical, clouded in shadow even though there shouldn't have been any shadows in the doorway.
Blue eyes stared down at the lot of them, instilling a strange uncomfortable silence in the room as everyone stared at him. He had on black, round shades but they were lowered slightly, revealing ice cold eyes worse than Marik's. Not empty as Marik's were ... just ... emotionless. Yet still with the full capacity for having emotion at all.
This new stranger had an aura of dignity and strength around him. A strange fire seemed to burn around his long, triangular face. And even when you'd taken in his whole appearance, you realised that it wasn't his physical looks that made him so mysterious. But it was the darkness that seemed to float around him in the air that he moved through.
Thin lips, a high forehead, dark hair that came down past his ears. Te'a couldn't stop herself from staring at him, even when he lowered his gaze down at her, removing his shades and placing them in his trench-coat pocket. His nose was also slightly tilted upward, not so much so as Marik's however.
He didn't move after his black boots crunched just into the passageway of Bakura's dimly lit house. He just stared back down at Te'a. His expression unfathomable.
He smiled then, an amused smile that left two dimples on his cheeks that didn't make him look any softer at all.
"Nice clothes" she heard Urusla mutter.

Yes, he did wear "nice" clothes (though Te'a found that word an understatement). Even though Te'a didn't usually go for black, she couldn't imagine this man in any other colour.
His simple black t-shirt was covered by his trench-coat. He wore black jeans and black boots and a black belt. Everything black, black, black. He didn't look like any mother Terisa, that was certain.
A celtic cross hung down from his throat, another silver ring found itself on his middle finger.

Stop gazing at him like that, Te'a Bakura's sharp voice said in her mind. And if the vampire had caught the thought, he gave no indication of it.
"Dan" Marik said, rolling his eyes, "Would you stop just standing there and sit down. You're fucking late!"
Dan took his eyes off of Te'a's to look directly at Marik. His expression was still impassive, yet Marik looked like he dearly wanted to back away. As if the Vampyre was threatening him directly.
But the new Vampyre didn't threaten or even open his mouth to speak. He just strode past Bakura and sat down in the only empty chair in the room, then steepled his fingers, leaning his arms on the armrests.
Marik looked furious, Bakura looked amused. And Ursula was suddenly not looking so sulky anymore. She was gazing at Dan as if he were the most interesting and alluring thing she'd ever seen.
"Now that everyone's here" said Marik through clenched teeth, "We can start"
"He does have better things to do you know, Marik-sama"said Ursula defensively, "He has that damned brother of his to take care of because of ..."
"QUIET!" Marik shouted, "Shut up you fool! Stand in my way again and I will fry you where you sit!"
"I dare you." she retorted with a hiss, her hands clenching, looking as if the only thing in the world she wanted to do right now was to hit the blonde, tanned vampire standing next to their leader.

Te'a didn't even hear the argument, her navy blue eyes were glued to Dan, though he apparently seemed unaware of her gaze and was examining the blood under his fingernails with hungry interest.
Bakura was still smirking at Marik and Ursula, "I see the two of you are going to get into another bitch fight ... what is it with the two of you?"
She's a goddamned bitch!"
"And he's a fucking monkey!"
Cherise pressed the palm of her hand to her mouth to stifle a giggle. Then she placed a hand on Ursula's arm and tried to compose herself enough to speak, "Ursie-chan ... I don't think Bakura-sama will appreciate it if you carry on delaying him ... and you know there's no way you can challenge his strength, yeah? So take this outside ... later ..."
Ursula grunted, tugging her arm away from her sire and proudly flicking her dyed green hair over her shoulder.

Before Te'a could even realise what was happening, she had been roughly seized by the hair and yanked up onto her knees. The searing pain went through her scalp and throbbed like a live thing. She didn't even find the time to scream at the agony of it, but instead a short cut-off squeak escaped her and made most of the Vampires snigger at her. Except for Bakura and Dan. For Dan was now getting the blood out from underneath his fingernails with the end of his fangs, and Bakura was concentrating with a grimness that was completely out of character.
Cherise didn't laugh because she was just too nice, and Ursula only laughed because she was feeling bitter. Marik was seething and even if George Bush had run past in his scivvies, the tanned boy's lips wouldn't have become the slightest bit less white and pressed.
"This time, Te'a, it's not going to be the thigh ..."
She twitched when she realised what he meant, and fight suddenly coursed through her. Making her buzz with fear and something that was almost anger. With the back of her hand, she lashed out at Bakura, hitting him on the side of his face and making him stagger backward at the unexpected attack.
Her thigh still burned from the night before, she wasn't about to let it happen again. Not without at least trying to get away. She didn't want to be a vampire, she didn't want this at all!

Bakura clutched onto the back of her collar and shoved her face down into the stone floor, making her nose practically explode with blood. Splattering it all over the place, incluing Marik's shoes.
"Ugh" she spluttered, not even feeling the pain yet but knowing that when it did come, it was going to cripple her senses.
"Feel good?" Bakura challenged, "I suggest that if it doesn't, you don't do that again."
The first tingling that showed pain was on it's way flared up through the middle of her face, but Te'a refused to let the anguish show on her face. She hated those creeps laughing at her, and she hated Bakura most of all. The last person she wanted to see her like this was Bakura, who was the one who'd managed to destroy her life in only over two days. And now he'd said she wouldn't even be able to go back to school to be with Yugi. And she'd loved him so bad. The best friend she could ask for.
Hate you>
"Good. It's about time you learnt to hate, human"

Her nose was now quickly starting to burn and throb. It didn't feel broken, but blood still streamed down her mouth, chin and throat, making the other Vampyres stir restlessly.
She felt Bakura's fangs brush against the side of her neck a second before he sank them in. And her whole body went stiff as she opened her mouth to scream. But Bakura was having none of that, so he smothered her mouth with his hand, catching the screams before they could voice themselves.
Shut up, wench
She bit down hard on his hand, sinking her blunt, square teeth into his flesh as much she could. But besides from a slight quiver from him, he gave no indication the pain, not even when blood was pouring into Te'a's mouth, leaving a cold, coppery taste on her tongue and almost gagging her. She got so wild at this time to get away that both Marik and Cherise's brother had to step up to hold onto her wrists, trying to restrain her.

Te'a hated being hurt anywhere near the throat and would do almost anything to stop it. She wrenched her arms forward so violently that she almost pulled them out of their sockets. Marik and Cherise's brother had to strain their own muscles to stop her struggles, and yet Te'a was still difficult for them. She stopped caring about Bakura's blood and just swallowed it, biting down even harder. She kicked her legs out in an attempt to dislodge herself out of the vampires' grip, she twisted her neck to the side, only to be pulled back by Bakura, who held her even more firmly than before.
She put up a good fight for a human, but she was no match for them. Not even fear's boost of energy could keep all the Vampires back. And soon she was limp, sagging and strengthless. Even her navy eyes seemed to pale to a crystal blue of defeat.
And even at long last, when Bakura dislodged his hand from her mouth and took his teeth out of her. She didn't even have the energy to continue screaming.
"You've already had some of my blood" Bakura said dryly, examining his wounded hand as it began to heal, "But you need a whole lot more than that princess ... so, drink" he offered her his wrist.
"Huh uh ... no"
Marik, who was already feeling grumpy from Ursula's cheek didn't feel like taking anymore shit from a human, even if it wasn't him who was taking it. He grabbed Te'a's arm and twisted it behind her back so far that the snap of bone was heard by everyone, and when Te'a opened her mouth to scream, she couldn't do it. No sound escaped her at all, not even a squeak.
Marik didn't let go of the back of her arm, but kept it behind her. Then he leant down on one knee and tucked his chin comfortably between her shoulderblade and neck so that his mouth was near her ear.
"Now, little one" he whispered, "Unless you want me to break your other arm as well, I suggest you do as your master says."

Te'a couldn't answer him. Her voice had completely faded out and her mind knew nothing but pain.
Dan sighed softly, and everyone turned to look at him, even Marik looked up, "What's your problem?"
Lighting a cigarette before he answered, Dan took a drag, then surveyed Marik with intensely powerful blue eyes, "You're not going to get her to do anything if she can't think straight. Listen to her mind, Marik. And see if that's the mind of someone rational right now."
"She's a weak little runt"
Dan shrugged, "I was just giving you advice, Marik. If you want to look like a fool, then don't listen. Doesn't make a difference to me."
Marik looked down at Te'a, who was staring at the floor with the most horrified expression on her face. Her mind was an explosion of overlapping thoughts, and she was shivering so bad Marik could feel the shudders more than her warmth. And goosebumps had rose over her arms and neck as if a cool breeze had touched her.
"Hmmph" he conceded grumpily.

"She'll do it." Bakura placed his wrist by her lips and urged her to bite. When she didn't, he delved into her mind to find even the smallest most rational part of the child.
Te'a

I know it hurts Te'a, but if you drink my blood, you will become immortal. The pain will stop.

Yes he lied.

He felt her teeth on his wrist, reluctantly biting down on him. Blunt teeth were far more painful than sharp ones, and it made Bakura wince. But otherwise he kept composed. And as Te'a dazedly began to suck his blood, her mind wondered distantly about how all the other sires didn't look as if they'd been forced into this as she was. And it would be a typical Bakura style move to make someone his own sire.
Marik still had a firm clutch on her broken arm as if to warn her what would happen if she dared to let go of Bakura's wrist until told to do so.
She snapped her eyes shut, trying to ignore the pain, trying to discard her awful thoughts. So many many thoughts that she felt she would go insane if carried on thinking them. But they forced their way in, no matter how much she tried to rid herself of them. Panicky and sore, she hardly had the strength to drink anything. Let alone something that disgusted and frightened her.
Dan himself looked tense, even though he was trying as hard as he could to look impassive, for he wasn't the type to enjoy being in a group, especially of Vampires who feared him not because of his strength, but because of what he was.
He didn't believe in forcing someone to join the cursed life of a nightcrawler, but it was Bakura's decision. And Bakura, although he didn't look it, was stronger than him.

As it was, Dan knew that Te'a was in for allot of pain, since becoming a Vampire was no picnic. But there was nothing he could do, Te'a was doomed when it came to human existance. And the road ahead of her was going to be a difficult one. Especially for a human who was ... not the most murderous being you'd ever meet. It might be difficult to accept the fact that she'd have to kill other humans to satisfy the all-consuming hunger that would plague her. A Vampire's curse or gift, depending on the Vampire.
Cherise sank back into the couch as she watched the frail human female drink their leader's blood. Te'a's face was so badly contorted by pain that Cherise wondered how on earth the child would cope with becoming a nightcrawler. Since, although Dan's had been the most painful, Cherise had to admit that when she was becoming what she was today, she couldn't stop weeping even after the pain had all gone.
Because physical pain had come at such a blow that all concious thought had been wiped clean out of her head. White hot pain. That was all that'd been felt, and she'd never forget it.
So how the hell was Te'a going to take when a broken arm was so painful to her that she couldn't even yell out in agony. And her mind was already mixed into a turmoil that made it no welcoming mat for anyone to invade it.

Bakura was now having difficulty standing up. He staggered at the loss of blood but managed to stay upright. Soon, he knew that Marik would have to help keep him on his feet, but for now, for now at least, Bakura was going to show his will power by staying up even though his legs seemed to want to crumple beneath him, and the arm he was holding out to her was starting to feel like lead.
Ursula watched for only a few seconds, but soon her attention was back to Dan, who was ignoring her completely. Instead he was blowing puffs of smoke out of his mouth and watching with detatchment as they floated above his head. With a loud groan of satisfaction, he brought his boots up onto the footstool, crossing his hands over his belly and closing his eyes.
Cherise giggled, "Dan!"
"Mmmph?"
"Rough night?"

Whether Dan had had a rough night or not was not discernable, for at that moment, Te'a threw herself away from a Bakura who'd collapsed to his knees and was clutching at his chest. Her navy eyes went so wide that they seemed to take up half her face. She looked like an insect that someone had half squished with their shoe. For, the pain that coursed through her now was so bad she had to crawl around in aimless circles just as insects did when they'd had half their body squashed.
Te'a didn't seem to know what to do with herself, she couldn't even find space in her mind to start screaming. Her broken arm was forgotten in a red haze of fire that seemed to eat into her body. The look on her face was that of pure and utter agony which contorted it. Making the eyes big and the face pale, the hands tremble and the brow sweat. Never before had Te'a felt anything like this.
It felt as if someone were slowly crushing her insides, squeezing them with a pair of pliers. Twisting her fingers off, burning her flesh, ripping out her innards.

She writhed on the stone floor of the room once she'd landed on her back. Also very insect-like in it's way. As if she thought that the very mention of keeping still would throw her into hysterics. She had to move. Like pins-n-needles were never soothed by keeping still either, one simply had to move to stop it from twizzling over your nerves.
But this was no pins-n-needles, this was PAIN! White, fiery hot pain that sizzled and twisted. Throbbing throughout the body of a girl who'd never been hurt more than falling off her skateboard and skinning her knee.
The other vampires in the room watched her, and none of them could supress a shiver when they remembered becoming nightcrawlers. They knew it wiped all logical thought out of you, feeling like someone was slowly riding over you with a steamroller, sticking hot pokers into your eyes. And it must hurt ten times more for a female who had a particularly low pain threshold.
Bakura knelt down beside her as she almost went into some sort of fit. Blood bubbled out of her lips, spashing over her chin. Her eyes rolled back in her head, displaying only whites and her body twitched non-stop as if she were being electricuted. One almost expected to see plumes of smoke rising from her shuddering body.

Bakura took her hand in his, a gesture of affection that was unknown to him, but he felt the vistages of memory pressing on him when he thought back to when he became a vampire.
Te'a's mind went into rewind as her hand clutched down onto Bakura's. Squeezing the life out of it as images of when she was little and as she grew flew past her vision. But there was also that one particular vision that had been totally forgotten before now. And in a way, that memory was worse than the pain.

Te'a was being being held back with strong arms, she was only a little girl and she had no idea what was going on. All she knew was that she could hardly breathe and she was still in her little white flannel nightie.
She wriggled puny weak little arms as air seemed to come short for her. She didn't understand, not at all. The last thing she remembered was mummy kissing her goodnight and smoothing the duvet over her.
Whatever was holding her hissed in her ear, "If you scream, little girl ... you'll find yourself hanging from the ceiling by your intestines ..."
Little Te'a didn't have screaming in mind, all she wanted to do was run away from this nightmare. From whatever was holding her ...
The thing switched off the light as it dragged the girl by her shoulders, the one hand clamped tightly around her mouth still. And as soon as the light puttered, the little girl named Te'a felt a fear plunge at her. She'd never been afraid of the dark before. But this awful thing was going to eat her all up. And then she'd be dead and she'd never see mummy and daddy again. Nor would she see granpappy either.
She was too scared to cry, too scared too move. She always knew that there were bad things in the corners of the room, but mummy always said there wasn't anything there. Daddy said so too. But they were wrong because of this awful thing in the room now. It'd been hiding in the dark ... in the dark ... the black ...

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" all the vampires jumped as the 16 year old Te'a suddenly started to scream. Her eyes rolled back into place and she shot up into a sitting position, scrabbling for the door. Away from everything, but especially away from that dark dark memory that she didn't want to recall. She wanted it to stay trapped forever where she'd never find it again.
Yugi's voice settled in her head, but only managed to soothe away some of the pain,

Hands grabbed onto her ankle as she tried to run into the night, because the horrible pain was still going through her. Like being stuck with electric blades that whirred all your bones away. Her thoughts were only slightly more ordered since Yugi's voice paid her a visit, but the pain hadn't lessened in any way. She still could hardly do anything with herself since this.
Bakura clutched her hand, trying to keep his face emotionless. But this bitch looked so much like Cassandra, and to see Cassandra's face contorted in pain and anguish was just too much. His features crumpled and he had to bite down on his own hand to keep a wrenching sob from wracking through him. If the others noticed his temporary loss of control, they wouldn't respect him anymore.
Te'a didn't seem to know what to do with herself anymore. She pulled away from Bakura, half crawling across the room with one hand clutched to her stomach. She huddled in the corner of the room, buried her face into her knees and screamed so that it all came out muffled.
"Te'a" Bakura made to get up, but Marik got there first. He hauled her to her feet, even though she fought bitterly against him as if he were the Pain. The excruciating agony seemed to intensify with every second that passed, and she was almost sure it'd never end, that she'd have to go through the rest of her life in this awful fire.

Marik had dealt with many borne fledglings and took no nonsense. He grabbed her wrists so that she could stop hitting out at him, then pressed her solidly to his hard chest and refused to let her wriggle free.
He knew that the next part was going to be the most scary for her. Not because the pain level made a terrible difference however.
Te'a no longer seemed to care if some lout was holding onto her. The pain was like giving birth to ten babies at once while having someone chop away at you with a blunt axe. Believe it or not, this type of pain was so bad it made you not care about who was embracing you, and made any thoughts about how weird it was drift away. No, more than drift, it plonked out of mind faster than Micheal Jackson could go without boys.
She only fought against Marik because she had to struggle against something. The Pain couldn't be fought, so she might as well try second best by trying to maul Marik's handsome face.

"Don't be scared Te'a" Marik whispered, just as he'd done to Rebbecca when she first became his sire. And he thought that at least Bakura's vampiress had a higher pain threshold that Rebbecca had at that time. The thirteen year old had practically broken everything in the room, even though Bakura himself had tried to restrain her. So in the end Marik had to try and comfort her just as he was doing for Te'a.
"The next part will be frightening. But you'll get through it just like all of us did ... and soon the memory won't be that vivid ... like a blurry dream."
He flinched as Te'a lowered her head and bit his shoulder with her still blunt teeth. Not because it'd been painful as much as unexpected. Marik felt crimson blood trickle slowly down his chest as Te'a screamed at the same time she sunk her teeth deeper. As if she wanted to fight and muffle the sound at the same time.
"Shhhhh" Marik crooned, shooting a bemused look across the room at Bakura, who shot up both eyebrows and wiggled them. Dan was half-asleep, and yawning all the time. His mouth would open wide and a kind of growly moan would escape him, like a tired bear. He caught Bakura and Marik smirking at each other through mid-yawn and raised his own left one.
The blonde tanned vampire turned to look at Dan, Te'a still clutched to him as if she were his long lost daughter, "Rough night?"
"As Cherise said" Dan agreed.
Cherise laughed.

Te'a suddenly twitched and gasped, bringing everyone's attention back to her. Her shoulders shook with half-sobs, though she didn't really have the energy needed to cry. She extracted her teeth from Marik's shoulder and just clutched onto his shirt, creasing it with her fingers with a scared desperation. The pain dimmed slightly, just enough for her to stop her endless howling to look up into Marik's purple eyes pleadingly.
She tried to say something, but just croaked. Her breath hitched and she eventually had to stop crying when her breath started to constrict.
Marik pressed his hand to her chest, and felt her heart fluttering uncertainly underneath his fingertips as if unsure if it should carry on. The second in command knew how terrifying it was when you first couldn't brreathe, it was like drowning without the choice of blanking out when you were dead.
Her breath was shuddery, and suddenly Te'a just didn't have the energy to stand, but fell down hard. Her knees hit the stone floor hard and she fell down on her face which was already sore from the nose.
"Not long now" Dan said lazilly, stretching out his arms casually so that the muscles underneath the skin wriggled all the way down, "She's dead, yeah?"
"Dying" Marik responded.
Ursula leant forward in her seat slightly, her eyes trained on the funny girl who was as big a sap as Cherise was. Ursula always loved the part where the humans died before becoming vampires. It was so intense it made her shudder for days afterward at the very thought of it, for the breathing part she didn't remember. Ursula had passed out during that period of time so she didn't recall it.

Te'a rolled onto her back. She struggled to take in a breath, and then she let it out with a bubbly sigh.
She did not take another.

Running ... running. Te'a's bare feet skidded across the wet pavement as she crash landed into a streetlamp. Slipping, she landed hard on her butt, getting the back of her jeans all soggy.
Bakura and Marik. She knew they were coming after her. They'd let her run, she knew, just because they felt like a game of cat and mouse. She hadn't learnt to fly yet and they had, she was so very much slower than they were. If she didn't get up off her behind right now, they were going to drag her back to that dreadful house full of those ... those ... creatures.

Seto's stern voice spoke in her mind,




Te'a grabbed an awkward hold of the streetlamp and pushed herself onto her feet. Her whole body ached, but at least she could say she wasn't out of breath.
"Oh Jesus, oh Jesus Christ!" she moaned when she almost went sailing face first into the ashpalt once more. She flailed her arms, draping them haphazardly around a pole, practically doing the splits.

The wind whistled around her, and she looked up, expecting to see those nightcrawlers landing smoothly in front of her. But mercifully she was still alone ... or was she? When she looked closer, she saw a small figure moving about in the darkness. Walking toward her, but with no particular hurry. But still that shadow moving about felt so sinister to her, as if that person was carrying an axe over their shoulder.
And yet she couldn't find the mental energy needed to persuade herself to run for her life. She just clung stupidly to the pole as if it were her lover, staring grimly into the shadowy road in front of her. The trees were so thick over there goddamnit! How was she supposed to see who was slinking about over there?


Te'a straightened up, planting both feet firmly to the ground to make sure she didn't slip again. She placed her hands on her hips and stared suspiciously into the shadows. She herself was under the streetlamp so she felt protected from the clutches of darkness. Partly the reason why she didn't want to run. Being in the light was like being in her own little safe haven away from shadows, but the truth was exactly opposite.
In the light she would be easily spotted, and even though her mind knew this. She still didn't want to move. For the prospect of entering the pitch dark alone was devastating.
Instead she watched with a sort of paralyzed fear as whomever it was walked ever nearer. Just a few more steps and the person would be out in the light, she'd have a chance to see if that person was safe or not. If the person wasn't, then she'd have to brave the blackness that suffocated her so cruelly.

The person walking didn't seem to be looking up, but rather at his feet. She could tell that he was male now, the shape was not that of a female. Even though he was short enough. And ...
That shape seemed familiar, but Te'a's dulled mind didn't grab in his full silhouette till the light began to reveal him.

She gasped in a breath. Since even though she was dead breathing had become something of a habit. Only when she was thinking about it did she stop it. But whether or not she was supposed to breathe was besides the point. The point was that her gasp was loud enough for the boy to hear. He lifted his face up to look at her. Mournful dark purple eyes, a slightly chubby, cute face, a load of spiky hair in three different colours - blonde, black and purple - big hands, and an angel smile.
"Te'a!" he looked shocked, "What are you doing out so late?"
"Oh my God, Yugi!" she almost fell to her knees but ran over to him instead. Even though her legs felt so much like water than she was sure they'd go slithering into the pavement cracks. "What are you doing here, Yugi?! You live way away from here ... and it's almost midnight!"
Yugi stared at her aghast, "I ... I was visiting a friend ..." he said, lowering his eyes away from hers, "I didn't know you were allowed out so late ... and Te'a ... your parents are freaking out about you, and I couldn't tell them you'd gone to Bakura's ... Te'a, he hasn't done anything to you, has he?"
Wisdom sparkled behind that face, and suddenly Te'a saw him as she never had before. Before she could even think another thought, her mind froze and memory was forcing itself out after so long. Only fragments though, she couldn't remember everything.

A little girl again. Huddled up in the corner with her arms tied behind her back with rope, watching as a figure moved around her. When he crouched down next to her, his face was covered by a black balaclava. And in his left hand he held one of the kitchen knives that mummy used to chop up raw meat. And it was covered in blood and bits of ... of ... stuff. Clinging to it like little tendrils of sinew.
"The little girl cowered as he raised it, but when she opened her eyes again she saw he'd just scratched his forehead with the blunt side of it. Two eyes stared out at her, but in the awful dark it was hard to see what colour they were. Perhaps the same colour blue as her own, she didn't know.
"Nice to see you again, little girl ... been awhile hasn't it? The last time I saw you, you were being birthed by your darling mother. Your mom and I go way back."
Terror flinched her silent as she saw his smile. He had teeth like a vampire! So he really was a monster.
"Why is there blood?" she said at last, tears rolling down her chubby, toddler cheeks. She squinted up at the stranger and his dark eyes. Watching as those lips spread apart and upward, revealing teeth. Sharp fangs that made little Te'a squeal and try to push herself back from him with the heels of her feet. Every time she saw them, they looked more lethal.

The stranger pointed behind him, picking Te'a up by the bound arm and showing her exactly why there was so much blood. Her eyes widened and she fell to her knees as the gory sight of her only pet; a hamster.
And the worst thing was, it was still alive. Her navy blue eyes went slightly hysterical but she didn't move yet. Her gaze was fixated on the pathetic creature.
She watched its side heave in desperate breaths, its black eyes peered up at her. Her face drained of blood so quickly, and when she reached out a finger to touch its matted, bloody fur. She felt tears of mournful sorrow fall down. Fat tears to seal the memory of the dying pet she'd loved. The first death in her life.

It had a long carpet needle jammed into its side, and as it moved sluggishly, it made the hole bleed even more. And it was the sight of so much blood that Te'a could not bear. She'd always hated to see things in pain.
"Miko" she whispered, feeling her shoulders heave as she stared at her only pet. The lazy old hamster she'd gotten for her last birthday.
The stranger placed a hand on her shoulder, and Te'a was suddenly siezed by panic. She thrust herself away from him and lost her balance, as her arms were tied and couldn't keep her standing.
"Hurts, doesn't it?" the stranger said, " .... so will this ...."

The little girl let out a scream as he grabbed her around the neck and pulled her close to his chest. She felt his cold fangs sink into her neck and wriggled about like mad. Certain she was going to die.
The Shadows twisted around her eyes as he fed off of her young blood, twisted and danced and spiraled.
Her last thought before she blanked out was that those Shadows wanted to eat her all up just like the stranger was.

"Te'a? Te'a!" hands were at her shoulders, shaking her, "Te'a! What's wrong? You've gone all white!"
"Yugi" she breathed, stumbling back and away from him. She felt a huge bubble of grief well up in her chest. It wanted to burst from her lips in the anguish she felt. But she knew she mustn't. The kind, caring boy in front of her was all that mattered right now. If the others found her with him, they might just end his life. And she could not bear that thought.
"Yugi ... you must get out of here ..." she mumbled, the words wouldn't exit her mouth properly. They came out blurred and thick, as if she were sleeping.
"You're not making any sense, Te'a-chan! Just take a deep breath, okay? And tell me what's wrong." his great, dark purple eyes looked so concerned and wanting to help. Te'a didn't want him to go.
She felt those awful fangs she now possessed bite into her lower lip with nervousness. The others could be here at any second ... she had to get Yugi Moto out of here... right now!

"Yugi, listen to me ... if you don't get out of here now .. you'll die!"
He stood there and stared at her in disbelief, his mouth hung slack and he seemed completely shocked. Te'a took advantage of this, taking him by the arm and casting one last nervous look around her, she began to run down the road. If she allowed Yami Bakura to get little Yugi Moto, she'd never forgive herself. He was the best friend she could ever have asked for.
"Where's Yami Yugi?" she panted, trying to turn around the corner. The vision she'd had before Yugi'd shaken her out of it was still stuck in her mind. That little hamster, struggling to breathe. And she did remember losing her pet when she was young. Her parents said it must've escaped, and she'd never seen it again.
Could that vision have been true? And if so, who was behind the mask?
Te'a didn't want to think about that. Because she was sure that the person behind that mask was the root of her fears. That face would drive her to forget everything that ever happened. She didn't know why though ... what could possibly be so frightening about a face? Was the person behind the mask so hideously ugly that her brain went ito shock and forced the gruesome image from her mind?
All these questions, not a single answer. Not that it mattered right now anyway. What mattered now was Yugi. For if she let the other vampires get their hands on him ...

"Come on Yugi!" she pulled on his bare arm even harder, but froze when she looked up into a nearby lampost. Her fingernails must have hurt Yugi's arm, but he voiced no protest.
Instead he said, "Te'a .... your hand is ice cold ... and clammy ..." his pale face looked so confused and lost that Te'a wanted to spread her arms and protect him with her body, only that was impossible. Hiding him wasn't the answer. She had to stand up and fight. Better to die than to lose him. She wouldn't be able to bear it if she had to watch her Yugi die, and have to live on without him.
Already the figure of Bakura on the lampost was starting to move forward, his grin was wide and knowing, as if saying, "It doesn't matter where you run, Te'a. I'll always find you."

Who said I wanted him, sweetheart?

Crouching in the corner of an alley, Te'a shoved Yugi behind her and faced Bakura as he flew down, landing softly on the dirt and folding his wings behind him. She could hear Yugi's breathing, which seemed almost eggagerated to her, as if he was trying to seem scared when he wasn't. But when she looked into his poor, pale face, she could help but draw him into her arms. Even though she knew her frail strength could do nothing to protect him.
"Where are the others?" she asked sharply, pressing Yugi's face down so that he wouldn't have to see anything, clutching him fiercely as if he were her son.
"They went home of course, you surely don't think that they're going to help me chase my sire all over the country, do you?"
"Even Cherise ... Marik ... Ursula ........... Dan?"
"Yes, yes. Every single one of them."

Te'a's arms relaxed slightly, but she turned her attention away from Bakura and got down on one knee, looking into Yugi's frightened white face and meeting his mournful purple eyes with her own.
"Yugi, Bakura won't hurt you, I promise. We're going to take you home, you understand me?"
"Te'a ... I don't ... I don't understand what's going on ..."
Te'a surveyed him with cautious eyes, regarding him carefully before bowing her head in defeat. Sighing, she brought her face back up to his and opened her mouth, letting her fangs slide free. She knew his reaction was going to hurt her, but she also knew that if she was never going to see him again, then he had a right to know why.
But still, anguish pierced her when he flinched and stumbled back from her, disgust filling his face as he looked at her.
Yugi may have every right to hate and fear her, but it didn't lessen the pain at all. For even though she knew what he would do when he saw what she now was, a small part of her had been fervently hoping that he'd just smile and hug her, telling her that it was alright, that he still loved her.
But no, Yugi backed up from her with his horror impressing on Te'a's mind and making her want to crumple and hide her face in the corner till the sun came up and she disintergrated.

Yugi Moto walked up, straight into Bakura's legs. He ricochetted right off the white-haired vampyre as if he'd been shocked. Sweat began to bead his brow as he pressed his back up against the wall.
"Cold" he said despairingly, "You're all cold, Te'a."
"It's alright, Yugi honey"
She pasted a rather sick smile on her face and tried to take Yugis hand in her own. But he flapped it at her as he thought she would poison him. His features alight with fear as he turned and tried to run past Bakura, only to be snatched up by the back of his collar and shoved forward.
Grinning, Bakura picked Yugi up by his front and looked directly into those dark purple eyes, "Why don't you tell your precious Te'a your dreaded secret, Yugi?"
Yugi twitched, his cute little face contorting in sorrow, "That was a long time ago! You know full well that I've tried to make up for that!"

Bakura tossed back shining white hair, still with that fiendish smile stuck on his face. Surveying little Yugi with slitted brown eyes, that smile grew wider, "I know that, Yugi-san. But why pretend that what she is now disgusts you?"
"Because I never wanted... how could you do that to her? You know that she's not yours, Bakura! She's-"
Yugi broke off suddenly, his face going a pale pink. He pulled himself out of Bakura's grip, looking horrified. Turning to Te'a just once. But Te'a didn't understand at all.

She let out a shuddery sob that was so soft that only vampiric ears could hear it. And Bakura did hear it, and turned his face over to the girl huddled in the corner with her knees brought up to her chin.
"You can't keep grieving over your loss forever, Te'a." he muttered grumpily, leaning back over his desk. His silver-white hair fell clumsily into his face, tied loosely into a pony tail but with little tufts still sticking out. He grabbed his pen and scribbled a few words into his diary, but Te'a's next smothered sob made him throw it down in disgust again.
"It's not like I killed him! Your precious Yugi's alright, he may be one friend short but he's getting on with his life. So stop your pathetic weeping so I can work!"
She looked up. Red rimmed navy eyes stared reproachfully out at him. The cheeks pink from crying, her lips as dry as sand. She didn't say a word, but stared at him as if he were insane.
"I'm dead." she croaked, "I'll never see another sunset again, I'll never hit Joey over the head again, never hug Yugi, never cheer them on in duels. My life is over."
Bakura snapped his diary shut and got to his feet. Grabbing her by the arm, he made her look at him, their noses inches apart, "Don't be an idiot. Of course those things are over, my life also ended in the same way yours did, you stupid girl! But I survived didn't I? I carried on in defiance of death and God. And you, as my sire, must do the same. I will teach you how to cope."
Licking her lips, her eyes shimmered them overfilled with tears, "I don't want to kill anyone to feed."
"It's either them or you. Besides, there are so few vampires that our killing hardly makes a difference."
"I thought there were lots."
"No, most perish whilst still in fledgling-hood, and the ones that live still have to battle continuously to stay alive. Besides, we don't want many vampires... it means less food and more competition."
"I don't want to fight to stay alive."
"I know that. That's why you're only my sire. When you do accept that you have to fight, you will be free of me as a master, for then I have taught you well."

She shifted herself in her white silk gown, (Te'a had a growing fondness for white that no one could discourage) to stare into those deep brown eyes of an angel and a monster. She didn't know what she wanted to find, but she didn't find it. She saw plenty of cunning and intelligence, she saw stubbornness and rebellion. She saw a well hidden despair and a will to dominate.
But what she didn't know she wanted to find was not there.
Bakura looked at her small, innocent face for a few moments, then said: "Rebbecca was made into one of us not that long ago. And she is fast leaving fledgling-hood behind. Marik made a wise choice."
"Do you think you made a wise choice?"
"I think I made the only choice there was for me. It was either you or no one."
"Oh." she let her breath come out in a sigh, and looked away from those tortured eyes. She didn't want to hear any more. She knew enough for now. Any more information and she'd explode into a massive splattering of insanity and screaming. She would claw at herself, bang her head on the wall and shriek like a banshee. She would attack that beautiful face of Bakura until it was a bloody mess.
And that scared her so much that she pulled her chin out of his grip and scrambled away from him, her eyes widening. Her tears were drying on her face.
You know she's not yours Bakura! She's-


Cold, you're all cold, Te'a.

Bakura's voice cut sharply into her mind, sounding firm and maybe even slightly frightened, Don't worry about what he said, Te'a. He was just babbling nonsense to get me to release you. To kill you.

A mental image came to her mind just then, (Yugi hugging me, Yugi telling me that it was okay to be scared of the dark, smiling, looking at me. Holding me, being there. His great big purple eyes of innocence looking into mine as if he would like to eat my soul out and leave me breathless. My back getting sore from lying under the bed all night from fear of what was in the closet. And Yugi being there, smiling, always smiling, always there.)
Te'a, I know how precious he was to you. But you must never think about him again. We'll sort out your fear of things, but you have to leave your past behind you.

Te'a grabbed ahold of Bakura's hand as he reached for the lightswitch, her face going from pink to stark white in a few seconds, "Don't, don't turn it off."
"We have to teach you some way."
"NO!"
"I'll be right here with you, Te'a. Do you really think that any boogeymen can get you when I'm here?"
She grabbed him by the front of his shirt, her eyes wild and absolutely terrified, "They'll eat me! They're shadows, you can't stop them Bakura! They'll eat me alive."
"Te'a, this is madness. Shadows don't eat you. I'm going to turn off the light, like it or not. And you're going to see that nothing is going to jump out and grab you."

But when Bakura tried to get to his feet, she grabbed his arm and yanked him back down. Those stark eyes were like two bright sapphires of fear and desperation. "You don't understand." she whispered, "You don't understand. The shadows are coming after me, Bakura. They're coming, and if you give them too much time to get me, they'll eat me. And you can't fight off shadows."
Yami Bakura didn't try to get up again, but his forehead lined with confusion and maybe even a slight apprehension. She looked so small, like a little girl. She wasn't like Cassandra at all, despite how much they were similar in looks. She needed his protection and sympathy though, like he'd given Cassandra.
"There are no shadows" he said, as calmly as he could.
She shook her head, her hair falling in wild seperate strands of untidiness. She refused to let go of his arm, not even when he tried to pull away.
"Please don't. Please. Yugi understood. Please, don't let them gobble me up. Yugi... he knew what I was talking about. He comprehended and he did everything he could to keep them away."
"Well, he would."
"What?"
"I said, he would understand." Bakura looked searchingly at her, "But the shadows won't come now. Not now. Just let me turn out the light."
"Don't."
"Let go of me now, Te'a"
"No, not if you're going to turn out the light."
She's not yours Bakura! She's-
"I'm giving you one last chance to let go of me."
That last part came out as a growl. He meant what he said. But she could not bring herself to let go of him, to allow him to bring the shadows. She didn't remember the shadows all that well. She just knew that they were there. That they'd get her if she wasn't careful. They were a distant memory, a lost threat that still lingered. She knew the threat was there... she just couldn't quite remember!
But the danger was there. They were the shadows. And it had something to do with that man with the knife, she knew it.

But she didn't have a chance to think anymore, for Bakura had apparently lost patience and drew his small silver dagger, stabbing her feebly weak hand with it. She looked with an almost blank expression as the flash of steel flickered through the overhead globes, spreading threads of light across the handsome face of her tormentor. She watched as it made contact with her skin, as it sank in, as it burst through with a violent spray of blood on the other side, the palm.
The pain came a second later. The shock of it didn't even allow her to cry out, but she drew her arm back from him so fast that she hit the wound against the wall, digging the dagger in a few inches more and causing tears of pain to enter the corners of her eyes. She only had one disjointed thought as her blood ran down the underside of her arm before dripping off.
<... going to mess up the carpet...>
Bringing her throbbing palm up before her wince-contorted face, she stared at the blood as it pumped out at a slow pace. She wanted to pull it out, but she was deathly scared. Te'a hated physical pain more than anything. It was an inevitable, foul thing that terrorized her far worse than anything else.
"The Shadows" she murmured, her eyes filling up as she stared at the knife still embedded in her hand, she looked back up at Bakura. And as he reached his finger for the switch, he turned to look into her face, and was sickened by what he saw. In that nanosecond was an eternity. He saw real insanity in that face. Something that he should have noticed way before. Te'a was absolutely raving mad. How could he have missed it?
She was not Cassandra. She was not the woman he had once loved. How could he keep fooling himself this way?
In that that endless time before he switched off the light, he knew that things would be better off if he killed her right here and right now. Because this could esculate into something undescribably horrific.

But in that eternal second before the light faded to dark, he saw himself tying her up outside - to die when the sun rose above the far away mountains. He could see her in his mind's eye, shrivelling up. Her internal organs withering and dying, burning up in the awesome power of the sun. He could almost hear her screaming for mercy, screaming that this just wasn't fair. All she had wanted was to live in peace, with her friends and her dream to become a dancer.
Oh, and it wasn't fair. She was absolutely right. And horror filled him at the thought of her Cassandra-like form twisting and screaming as she melted. As her hair burnt away from her very scalp, her skin turning grey, eventually to ash that the ruthless wind would scatter about the world as if it were any ordinary day.
No. He had made Te'a his sire. And must now face the consequinces for bringing her to this power. He would teach her, he would twist her into the ways of a vampire. Madness of not, she would be taught. He would make her learn, he would drive the insanity from her. He would never give up. She was his sire, his fledgling, and his responsability.

He switched off the light. The brightly lit study was doused in darkness.
"Uh!"
"Shut up, Te'a!"
He moved forward and grabbed her blindly in the darkness. He could smell her. Could smell the terrible horror behind her eyes, her mind. And now that it'd drawn his attention to it, he could smell her lunacy.
She was shaking, and so scared that she couldn't move. Her mind was fixed on the Shadows, knowing that they were coming for her. They would rip her apart like a mincing machine.
"Nothing's coming, Te'a."
"They're coming."
"Nothing's coming" he repeated.
"They're coming!" Hysteria, hitting out at him.
He had to ward her blows by grabbing the hilt of his dagger and yanking it out. The pain was enough to temporarily paralize her, so that he could take hold of her wrists.
"Now, you listen to me." he said shakily, bringing his face so close to hers that her nose touched his, "I'm going to tell you something very true. And you'd better believe every word of it, little one. The best way to rid someone of their fear is to make them face it. Once one faces the unknown for so long, they will realise that there's nothing to fear at all."
"It's not the unknown I fear." she said softly. And though her fright was not any less, he seemed to sense an acceptance within her, as if she was going to let these Shadows get her. As if she was preparing herself.
"Has anything attacked you yet?"
"They will kill me. They will eat me. It will hurt."
"They won't."
"It will hurt."
She's not yours Bakura! She's-