Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Forgotten Love ❯ Dreams of the Forgotten ( Chapter 1 )

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the series of Yu-Gi-Oh!

 

 

Dreams of the Forgotten

 

Fire. The walls falling everywhere, from every side. There was no escape. There was no comfort, except for the golden ring with Ra's eye that she held close to her chest. There was no one to save her now. It was too late to try and escape. All she could do was fill out her final task, to protect the magical Ring her master had held so sacred and ordered her to protect.

 

Her blood eyes turned upward, past the roof and towards the sky. Her eyes, rimmed in tears, brought about a blurry image of a silver-haired man with dark purple eyes, smiling down at her. Her face formed into a small smile. “I did all I could to protect your treasure. I hope my sacrifice is not for nothing.”

 

Then, darkness and the splinter of wood across her body. She felt the Ring under her midsection, still safe and out of harm's way from the scorching heat and growing flames. She could still feel the smile on her face as the fire ate at her clothes, her hair, and her eyelids.

 

“May Ra grant me a peaceful death for all my good works. May I be remembered for my good, not for my bad.” Another splinter of wood and then, peace.

 

* * * *

He saw the flames, consuming his home. He saw the men on horseback, working to get closer to the flames. He was hidden under his dark red robe, watching as his house was eaten by the flames they had set upon his home. They were searching all around for him, thinking he had been in his home, but he had not. His heart told him to go forward, find her, but his mind said no, that he had to get away before the soldiers started searching around the area. He held the parcel close to himself, then whipped the reins, causing his black horse to turn and sprint out into the darkness, moving farther and farther away from the flames.

 

For a moment, he felt tears touch his dark face. He was never accustomed to crying. That was something he could never do, lest he become a weak novice thief. No, he was the King of Thieves, and loss could not be something he took time to cry and be weak over. He had to move on, go on with his plan to get all the Millennium Items and take over Egypt.

 

But still, he could not keep the tears of his great loss from coming down slowly as he darted farther and farther from it.

 

* * * *

Bakura awoke that morning with tears running down his face. In 5,000 years since that dark night, Bakura had never once let tears flow. He had become a stoic man, one who would take revenge against Egypt for taking from him the one person in that lifetime he considered his eternal companion and lover. The one person who could understand him as a human man and that was taken away from him in an instant. He sat up and rubbed away the tears, gazing down at the wet substance covering his palm. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to relive his dream, but it now just stood as a blur, like so many other memories of his past that he only recaptured in his dreams, forgetting them when the sun touched his eyelids.

 

He turned his eyes over to the other side of the bed, looking for something that was not there. Then, perking his ears, he heard the unmistakable sound of pans touching the hot stovetops in the kitchen and feet gently pressing on the wooden floor as his love went to work with making them breakfast before they would take their usual morning walk to his university.

 

Yes, his new love. The only love he could always remember and know in this lifetime. The one who had been there with him during his dark times when he was first released from the Millennium Ring, full of rage, spite, and the need to take revenge on the one who had placed him in that damned piece of jewelry 5,000 years ago. Also, the same person who had brought about the death of his first and only love in his past lifetime as a killer and stealer. And yet, why could he not fully remember that love if she had been the driving force behind his wanting to take revenge all those years ago? It puzzled him, and yet he could never seem to recall her, any memory of her at all. Was that another punishment from Ra for his sins? He didn't care to think about it much more, and he heard Ryou cracking eggs on one of the pan's edges, which woke him up to his present situation.

 

Lurching his body forward off the bed and into an upright position and then proceeding to drag his feet across the wooden surface, he made his way towards the sterile, marble white bathroom adjacent to their bed. Inside, he went to work, peeling off his sweat-soaked pajamas and stepping into the already wet shower. He turned to the knob, causing hot water to push out from the sprayer and cover his body in it. The water numbed him so that for a while he just stood there, feeling it wash all over him and destroy his senses. Then, as the fog began to become deeper from the heat of the liquid, Bakura turned the other knob to mix in the cold water, causing the water to lower in temperature to a much more suitable degree. He reached for the shampoo and lathered it into his white hair, causing for bubbles to appear on the surface. Then, he rinsed it out thoroughly so he wouldn't have to worry about it later.

 

After fully washing himself, he wrapped himself in a clean, sky blue towel. Of course, if it had been his choice, he would've wanted to be drying himself with something much darker, but since Ryou was the one who had all the money, he got to make the choices. So he dried himself with the light towel and then went to work with his long, white hair. Taking the brush containing wisps of white hair, he brushed his hair out to look like it normally did, with little spikes here and there on the side. Then, he worked his bangs out to be a bit straighter and moved them away from his face using the brush. Finally, when his hair looked suitable for the events of the day, he set down the brush and picked up his toothbrush, putting toothpaste on it that would take care of his teeth. Setting down the opened toothpaste container, Bakura attacked his teeth with the toothbrush, making each as white as his hair almost. He leaned over the sink and spat down, and when his eyes returned to the mirror, his hand hit the top of the sink, causing the toothpaste to shoot out at the mirror.

 

There, behind the smear of toothpaste, Bakura swore he saw someone looking back at him. She had red hair, long and in a braid, and also blood eyes looking back at him. And she had burn marks, across her neck and face. Bakura shot his head behind his back, finding no one to be there. He slowly turned his head back to the paste-covered mirror and found the reflection to no longer exist. He blinked hard a few times to make sure and still found no reflection of a red-haired woman. Then, sighing and taking his used light blue towel, he moved the paste away from the mirror. He rinsed his mouth out and then went back into the room, shaking off the scare from the ghost-looking reflection. Could that have been the same person in his dream? `Couldn't be.' He thought to himself, shaking his head fiercely like a wet dog. `Must have been an illusion.'

 

“Bakura, breakfast is ready! Hurry up or we're going to be late for the bell!” Ryou's voice rang out from behind the bedroom door. Bakura shook his head a little again, and then quickly pulled out a pair of black jeans accompanied by a long-sleeved, dark blue, buttoned up shirt that he slipped on quickly and buttoned up until two were left undone. He zipped his jeans up and pulled on some shoes after quickly putting some black socks to cover his feet. Then, grabbing the Millennium Ring off the side table on his side of the bed, he put it on and hid it under his shirt, turning and almost half-running out the door to eat breakfast with Ryou before they had to make a quick exit from the apartment to Ryou's university.

 

* * * *

“Hey Bakura, did you have a nightmare or something last night? You were tossing and turning in bed so much that I almost thought you'd push me out.” Ryou chuckled as they walked along towards the university gates.

 

“It was nothing. I've just been having dreams lately, dreams that seem almost too real to be just a dream.” He replied nonchalantly, keeping his eyes focused ahead in a dead stare.

 

“Oh, well maybe you're recalling your memories of your past life then. Yugi tells me that sometimes Yami has dreams like that, too. Maybe you should jot them down or something after you wake up.”

 

“I would do that, hikari, if I could remember what I dreamt after I woke up.” He said angrily. Ryou piped down quite quickly. Usually when Bakura was like this, it was a bad idea to press the point.

 

“Sorry Bakura, I was just trying to help. It seems to bother you a lot.”

 

“Well, maybe it does. Just let me handle my own dreams.” He said. Ryou nodded and turned his head towards the gates. There, standing across from each other, were their four friends-Yami and Yugi on the left, and Marik and Malik on the right. Ryou went forward into a sprint to reach them faster while Bakura kept walking at his usual pace.

 

“Good morning guys!” Ryou said happily as he came to a stop right before them. The others turned towards them, Yugi putting on a large grin and coming forward, wrapping his arms around Ryou in a hug.

 

He pulled back and smiled, looking up at Ryou. He had only grown a few inches over the summer, so he still had to look up at people. “Morning Ryou! Did you get all the answers on last night's Math homework? I got stumped on #7 and since Yami wasn't taught a lot of Math when he was a prince in Egypt, he couldn't help me with it.” His purple eyes turned to Yami momentarily, who chuckled and gave him an apologetic smile.

 

“Why didn't you call me last night? I could've come over and helped you with it.” Ryou replied.

 

“Well, I went to call you, but then Malik and Marik showed up at our house, Malik dragging drunken Marik in, asking for our help. So since it took us so long to get him home and everything, it was really late when Yami and I got home. Plus, I was really worn out from helping to carry him home. He's really heavy.” Yugi chuckled, glancing over at Marik, who turned his head away. Malik smiled and jabbed him playfully with his right elbow, causing Marik's face to break out into an evil grin.

 

Ryou chuckled, too, casting an amused glance over at Marik. “Sure, I'll help you with #7 at lunch, since you don't have that class until after me.”

 

“Thanks, Ryou.” Yugi smiled, turning his head to look at the clock stuck in the middle of the school's tower. “Oh, it's almost time for class. We'd better get going.”

 

“Yeah, you're right. My history teacher has been on me lately for being late all the time. If Marik hadn't broken my alarm clock, then I wouldn't be so late.” Malik said, sighing.

 

“Don't blame me. That alarm clock of yours was such an annoying nuisance, ringing so shrilly, that I had to smash it with the Millennium Rod to try and save my ears from bleeding.” Marik retorted, patting his hand on the Rod. Malik sighed and turned away from him, walking towards the university gates.

 

“See you later, Yami!” Yugi said, leaning up on his tip-toes and kissing Yami's cheek. He grabbed his bag off the ground, throwing it over his shoulder, and then ran off to catch up with Malik.

 

Ryou turned to Bakura, who had stood behind him once he had caught up. He kissed Bakura on the cheek, “See you after school, Bakura.” He walked towards the gates and disappeared behind the wall. Bakura waved his hand a little, and then dropped it after he disappeared from view.

 

Turning away to return to the apartment, Marik touched his right shoulder, causing him to stop and turned his head back. Marik was half-leaning against him, giving him what seemed to be an evil grin. “Bakura, how about you and I go paint the town red?”

 

“Isn't it a bit early in the day to be doing something like that? Usually something like that would require darkness.” Bakura replied, giving him a glare.

 

“Well, I could change that.” Marik replied, patting the Rod. “So what do you say?”

“I say I'll have to pass on this one. I need to get back to the apartment and clean up the mess Ryou and I left on the table since we were in a hurry to get here on time this morning.” Bakura began to move away but Marik's grip on his shoulder would not loosen.

 

“What's the deal with you lately, Bakura? Usually you're up in arms when it comes to doing something so mean and enjoyable.” Marik gave him a curious look, “What's eating at you?”

 

His comment started to bring up tension in Bakura's mind. Using his right hand to pry Marik's left off his shoulder, he turned and glared, “It's none of your business, Ishtar, and I intend to keep it that way.” He turned and then walked away, leaving Marik and Yami to stand there, pondering his unusual behavior.

 

“Wonder what his problem is lately. Seems like he has something rammed up his ass.” Marik said, curious.

 

“With that tombrobber, he may just be annoyed because he hasn't figured out the way to get the Millennium Items without failing like he did last time.” Yami said, shrugging it off. Then, he turned away and headed back in the direction of the Game Shop. Marik watched him go and then glanced back in the direction Bakura went.

 

Sighing, he turned in the direction Bakura had headed, “Guess that means I'm on my own. And why one is alone, the only thing they can do is make mischief.” A smile leapt across Marik's face as he darted away to the nearest bar.

 

* * * *

Ryou's glazed eyes fell outside the window, out towards the closed gates of the university. He could see that Bakura was not there, waiting for him. He knew it was too early for him to be there, but he still wished he could see him there. Ryou wanted to talk to Bakura so much about whatever was bothering him. But Bakura only got angry with him and usually attacked him to get him to stop asking about it. Still, he hoped that maybe Bakura would open up soon. He wanted to know what was going on with his dark half and try to help him.

 

“Mr. Itemri, can you give us the answer to number 12?” the professor banged on his desk with his metal ruler, causing Ryou to jump a few feet and stare up into the face of his annoyed American History professor. “Well, Mr. Itemri?” He asked, giving him a cold stare.

 

“Oh, right.” Ryou mumbled, gathering his sheets together and finding number 12 circled on his paper, “The American Revolution occurred because Britain wished to stop the United States from becoming an independent nation.”

 

“That's part of the answer. Anything else to add?” His professor grumbled, tapping his ruler lightly against his right arm.

 

“Not that I know of, sir.” Ryou replied, giving him the same cold stare that had been given to him.

 

His teacher grunted and turned away from him, addressing the entire classroom, “Mr. Itemri's answer is correct, if you just want the general answer. But in this class, we go through every single part, dissecting each part of the American History so nothing is left out. Now, as you know, the Declaration of Independence was the United States's official document to show their independence. Britain, not liking to lose power over their country, went on to…” The professor droned on and on, and Ryou's eyes began to glaze over as he turned his eyes towards the gate again.

 

`Bakura…' He thought to himself. Then, he turned his head and pretended to listen to the professor as he droned on for the next half hour.

 

* * * *

After school, Ryou met Malik and Yugi outside the main university building in front of the water fountain. When he arrived, Yugi and Malik were moving to some music playing in Malik's Ipod, Malik's left earphone in his ear and the right in Yugi's. When Ryou got close enough to see what they were swaying to, both turned and smiled. Malik turned off the Ipod and Yugi handed back the right earphone. “This music is really good. You should listen to it sometime, Ryou.” Yugi smiled.

 

“Well, depends on what it is. If it's some sort of blues music, I'll definitely have to pass. It's way too depressing.” Ryou chuckled.

 

“Of course not. It's sort of a chanting song. I found it on the internet last night and downloaded it. I really like it.” Malik said, stuffing his Ipod into his left pocket, earphones and all. “Wonder if Marik's even here.” He sighed. “Might still be at a bar, drunk as a dog.”

 

“Why does he like to drink so much?” Yugi asked, perplexed as they began treading towards the open front gates.

 

“Well, we went to a party a while back, and he found one of the alcoholic drinks. It was love at first taste.” Malik said, sighing heavily, “And since then, he's taken every opportunity to find a drink whenever he gets the chance.”

 

“Maybe if he finds another interest, he would back off the alcohol love he has.” Ryou offered.

 

“Well, I would love to think so, but he's told me that alcohol helps him to drown out bad memories of his past. So he intends to keep doing it until the memory pangs stop. I just hope it's soon.” Malik replied.

 

Ryou looked down at the ground, saddened by that last comment. `So Marik's remembering stuff, too.' “Hey Malik, does he ever tell you about his memories?” Ryou asked, looking at him.

 

“Well, sort of. He tells me he remembers a dark tomb, some old inscriptions, and a lot of time that he spent protecting it. It's nothing important I suppose. He just doesn't want to think about it.”

 

“Oh.” Ryou became silent again. `So Malik knows what his other half did in the past. I wish Bakura would tell me…'

 

“Yami!” Yugi called, startling Ryou from his daze. Yugi pranced forward out the gates and into his taller half's arms. They hugged and exchanged a quick kiss before Yami let him down. Then, Yugi looked around for the other two. Confused, he turned back to Yami, “Where are Marik and Bakura?”

 

“I have no idea. When I last saw them, Marik looked like he was going to go get a drink, and Bakura was just heading back in the direction of Ryou and he's apartment.” Yami replied.

 

“So neither of them are here.” Yugi said, turning sadly to Malik and Ryou who looked around for Marik and Bakura. “Yami said he hasn't seen them since this morning.”

 

“I'm pretty sure I have a good idea where Marik is.” Malik said, emitting a small moan. “Guess I'll have to drag him out of the local bar again.” He turned to go and then turned around, waving to the others, “See you tomorrow guys.” Then he turned and walked away, muttering profanities about Marik under his breath.

 

“Poor Malik. Marik shouldn't be causing him so much trouble, getting drunk all the time.” Yugi said, sighing.

 

Ryou nodded in agreement and then turned to look at Yami. `I wonder if he tells Yugi about his memories.' “Hey Yami, I have a question.” Yami turned to him, listening, “Do you have memories coming back to you lately?”

 

Yami nodded, “All the time. I had quite a few this afternoon while I was cleaning up the shop. Most of them were memories of the palace and being raised learning how to play Shadow Games were they ever needed. Nothing bad though.”

 

“So they don't give you a problem or anything?” Ryou asked. Yami shook his head, “Oh, well that's a good thing.”

 

“Ryou's right. Marik is trying to block his out by getting drunk, and Bakura…” Yugi trailed off, turning to Ryou, “How is Bakura handling it? He must be remembering things, too.”

 

Ryou shook his head, “I really have no idea. He refuses to talk about it, as if there's some deep dark secret he doesn't want me to know about or something.” He sighed, “I just wish he would talk to me. I want to help.”

 

“Well, that tomb robber has a hard time accepting kindness. He is a thief and ruffian after all.” Yami said, huffing. “If he ever gives you trouble, just let me know. I wouldn't mind beating up on him for the way he acts. It's as if he's the same ruffian he was in ancient Egypt.”

 

Ryou turned and gave him a sort of cold glare, and Yami shook his head. Yugi pulled at his sleeve, “Let's get going, Yami. See you later, Ryou.” Yugi said quietly, waving.

 

“Sure, see you tomorrow Yugi. Bye Yami.” Ryou said, turning away to walk towards his apartment complex. He heard Yugi and Yami shuffle away, chuckling about their day. Ryou sighed and made his way around the corner. He stopped short to see Bakura running forward, trying to get there to meet him. Ryou stood there, in mute silence as he stopped right in front of him, panting for air.

 

“I'm sorry, Ryou. I fell asleep and lost track of time. Were you waiting long?” Bakura said, trying to be caring and kind. Ryou shook his head, keep a straight face with a touch of sorrow and disappointment.

 

He turned past Bakura and started walking back towards the apartment complex, “Let's go home Bakura. I'll get dinner started.”

 

Bakura stood there, obviously getting the message that he had caused Ryou a lot of grief and disappointment. He walked and caught up with Ryou, standing in front of him and stopping him in his tracks again. “How about this? We go out to dinner tonight, my treat.”

 

“How are you going to pay for it? You don't work.” Ryou said, doubtful.

 

“Just trust me, Ryou. Come on, just you and me.” Bakura said, almost pleading.

 

Ryou sighed and nodded his head, “Fine, we'll go out to dinner tonight. But first I need to get some homework done. We'll go after, okay?” He said, a tinge of doubt still apparent in his voice.

 

“All right then. Let's go home then so you can finish it quickly and then we can get something to eat.” Bakura said, smiling. Ryou managed a smile and took Bakura's hand in his, walking with him. Bakura smiled and held his hand tight as they walked. Inside though, he felt remorse and loneliness. `I'm sorry, Ryou. I wish I could tell you about my memories, but I need to figure them out first. That way, I'll be able to tell you the actual truth instead of false lies from a lack of memories.'

 

“Bakura?” Bakura was jolted by Ryou. “Are you okay? You look paler than usual.” Bakura shook his head and smiled.

 

“No, just still waking up from my nap. After I cleaned up the kitchen and cleared off the table, I was just so tired that I fell asleep on the couch. I really am sorry for being late though.”

 

“It's okay, I understand.” Ryou smiled, leaning over and kissing his cheek, “I still love you, Bakura.”

 

He smiled and kissed Ryou on his cheek, “I love you, too, hikari.” Ryou smiled and leaned his head on Bakura's shoulder as they walked along, `I only wish I could share it all with you, if only I knew what it all was.'