Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ From within the Flames ❯ Losses and Alliances ( Chapter 8 )

A/N: We've returned with the next installment of FwtF!

JC: We know we said we'd update one story a week, but we got hurt and then got hurt again and then had vacation where we spent most of our time cleaning.

Kathrine: But now we're trying to catch up before we go back to school next Monday.

JC: We're really trying to get the next chapter of 'Broken' out but it's just not being very cooperative.

Kathrine: Now this chapter starts out rather mean for one of our favorite demons. I actually loved it.

JC: Only because you got to kill someone.

Kathrine: Yes, character death indeed.

JC: And you get two new characters that I know a few of you have been waiting for.

Kathrine: And we pray that Anzu isn't too annoying in this chapter, we tried.

Disclaimer: See CH 1.

Warnings: Dark themes, character death, Angst and LOTS of it, Hopefully tolerable Anzu, and Character introductions

From within the Flames

By Kathrine and JC

Chapter 8 - Losses and Alliances

He felt so drained. It was like the energy he normally had was being taken from him by something else. He sat beside his mother's bed and watched her sleep. It wasn't very late, only about three in the afternoon actually. Usually he left around noon or one, but after their dispute, his mother had seemed weaker than was customary for after one of their 'disagreements'. It wasn't really an argument because he would always leave before it reached that level. He knew her weak heart couldn't take much more.

Then why do I continue to push her? He wondered. She only wants what she believes is best for me and yet I continue to defy her. He almost felt guilt at that, but refused to acknowledge it. No, she is weak and believes in weak things in hopes they will help both her and me. She's too naïve to realize that everything is not the way that she pictures it to be. Why does she have to be so weak? Father was weak and look where it led him to, look where it has taken her. I will not be weak, I REFUSE to depend on others and allow them to rule my life. Only I can control myself.

" Kura?" he heard the faint, fatigued whisper of his name being called. Looking up, he met the deep hazel eyes that always seemed more green than brown. They were nothing like his own dark eyes that were closer to the color black than their actual chocolate brown at times. Her long hair that was usually so well cared for was limp on her shoulders, no longer shiny and silky to the touch, and bags were present beneath her eyes. He could tell that her time was indeed running out.

" Yes Mother?" he leaned forward and placed a hand on her arm. " What do you need?"

She gave him a small smile. She loved her son so much. It had been hard for them after his father had been killed and the deep hate and anger had been instilled within her child. He had always had a temper, but it was like he suddenly just lashed out at everyone, including herself at times. Only Marik and Malik were exceptions. Bakura had been so close to his father, idolized like any child would their paternal figure. Then he came home Marik's one day to find out that his loving parent was gone and there was no way of getting him back.

And now here she was, slowly losing her own battle for life. How could she soothe him and make him see that everything was going to be all right when it so obviously wasn't? She knew she was dying and that her end was soon approaching, maybe sooner than even she realized. Who would be there for him then? Her husband's family had disowned him for taking her as his wife, her own mother had died giving birth to her late younger brother when she was but a child herself. And it had been with her father's death just three years ago that Bakura had lost his last primary male figure in his life and had truly given up on everything.

" Oh Kura…" she murmured.

" What is wrong?" he asked her.

She reached over with her other hand and patted his that lay on her arm. Times when the person her son truly was showed himself were times she treasured. Her little Kura was still in there, just too afraid to come out. " Ai shiteru," she told him in her quiet tone, taking in a breath before she continued. " I love you very much. Even though I know that you are angry with me…and think me weak at times…I still love you. You are my son…and the son of your father…Kytsune Kage…never forget that."

" Why are you saying this?" he was trying to hide how worried he was, but she could see it. She felt very tired again, as if she was about to fall asleep within moments. Why did she feel this way?

" Just…never forget," she repeated. Suddenly she was assaulted by pain, as if her entire chest was on fire and she couldn't breathe. She sat up forcefully and clenched her hand in her gown. She needed to breathe, to get air into her lungs, but it was as if she couldn't even open her throat. Gasps were all she could manage.

" Mother!" Bakura jumped from his seat instantly. " Gods, no, not now!" He immediately pushed the button that was next to the bed and the heart monitor started to beep loudly. " No!" He turned his eyes back to her and watched her struggle to get air into her body. " Breathe! You're going to be fine!"

The door opened and two doctor rushed in with three nurses at their heels. One pushed his mother into a laying position while two of the nurses forcefully pulled him away. " NO!" he growled at them. " Get away from me!"

"They need the room to work," his mother's nurse, Shin, reasoned with him.

" Does it even matter?!" he shouted. " She has a 'Do Not Resuscitate' order and you know it!"

" But right now she's still alive," he replied. " Now stay back." He stood in the back of the room as the two doctors tried to keep his mother alive, unable to do anything to prevent it.

" We're need to do something!" the female doctor cried out. " We're losing her fast!"

" She stopped breathing!"

" CPR!"

" But we can't!"

Silence fell than, the beeping from the heart monitor turned into one long consistent shrill. No one said anything and the doctors moved away from the bed. The male doctor down at the woman. " Call it," he said. " Kytsune Shinzoo dead at 3:21 PM."

Bakura was in shock. It was as if everything has just stopped for him. No, he told himself. This isn't happening, she's not dead. But he couldn't deny it when Shin placed a hand on his shoulder that he could barely feel. He just stared at the limp, unfeeling body that was once the vessel of his mother. Hazel eyes were still open and seemed to be gazing right at him.

" We're sorry," the woman doctor (Hino Maika from what her tag read) gave him a saddened look. " We just couldn't save her."

" Get out," he ordered in a very low tone. " All of you. Get out."

" But…" she seemed reluctant to leave. Shin shook his head to disagreed with her. He knew better than to push it with the young Kytsune, especially right now. Slowly all five of them left the room, leaving him alone with his mother.

Steadily, he stalked towards the bed, almost afraid to do so, but at the same time compelled to it. He stood over it, looking down at his mother's prone form. Hesitantly, he reached out and touched her cheek. " You're still warm," he told her, mind not fully comprehending that she couldn't hear him. Everything was swirling around him, his entire mind in turmoil. He knew the truth and yet his heart wouldn't accept the realization.

" You were always weak," he suddenly stated. " Always trying to 'help' me, even though you knew of your condition. It took you four years to tell me and then it was too late. See what your weakness has done?" His mother's glazed eyes continued to simply stare at him. " Weak woman. Get up."

Still the figure on the bed did not move. "I said get up!" he commanded even louder. " Get up damn you! GET UP!" He kicked the bed, the wheels on it, causing it to slide across the room and hit the wall. The IVs that had still been in his mother's arms were pulled out and the drips knocked over. The body simply rolled from the forced of his assault and hit the wall with its back, the eyes still open and staring at him.

With that everything seemed to come to a halt once again. Bakura's eyes were wide at what he'd done. " Mother," he whispered. " I'm sorry." He backed up slightly, hitting the opposite wall within seconds and sliding down it to the floor. He continued to stare straight into the dead hazel eyes that were now so unfamiliar to him. The white-haired boy could do nothing else.

" Get up," he whispered barely audibly, even though it sounded so loud to his own ears. " Please…Mom…get up…" Outside a sudden storm raged on, covering the area and drenching it with rain and lightning, yet it went unnoticed by the white-haired boy within the room.

*****

" I take it you know one another?" Seto stared into the red eyes of his so-called 'partner'.

" I just met him yesterday!" Jou exclaimed. " And you're working with Kaiba?!" He sent a hand in the direction of the brunette. " Man I thought you were one of the good guys!"

Yami's brow raised in a curious fashion. " And by what do you mean 'the good guys'?" the tri-color-haired boy inquired.

Jou stared at him incredulously. " If ya working with him then ya can't be all that law-abidin'," he stated bluntly.

The shorter boy merely gave a dry chuckle at his words. " It all deals with what your perception of 'law-abiding' is," he explained. " I prefer to look at it as 'revenge long awaited'."

The blonde stared at him for a moment. " So you're just in it to get at Pegs too?" he spoke. " Why am I not surprised? But still, ya working with a Kaiba?"

" I'd hold your tongue Mutt," the brunette warned him. " I can still change our little 'arrangement' if you so see fit."

Jounouchi's eyes widened at the realization that he would indeed do so at his own whim. Kaiba still had him caught in his web and he could either hold him there for protection or cut him loose and let him plummet to his death. He really didn't like the sound of the latter. " Fine, I get the message," he growled under his breath. Then he turned back to Yami. " How did you get into this anyway? Are you one of the CORX babies, too?"

" Core X?" Yami repeated.

" No he's not," Seto answered for him.

" What are you talking about?" the smaller teen inquired. " You mean the Experiment that Kaiba Corporation performed?"

Jou nodded, " Children Of the Revolution Experiment; CORE of ya take out 'the', but also known as CORX."

Seto only gave the blonde a cold stare. " You must have been the one to come up with that name," he stated. " And as I said, no he's not. Had he been, mutations and evolution stages would have already physically and visibly occurred."

" Or he could just be one of the normal ones," Jou pointed out. " Not every test group had visible results, practically none of them had positive ones."

" I assure you I'm not part of the 'CORX' experiment from what I know of it," Yami replied. " My attachment to this 'counterattack' or sorts is merely for my own benefit."

" His assistance here is help not wanted nor needed," Seto frowned.

Jounouchi looked between the two and could see the tension there. It was obvious that neither teen had any affection for each other, no matter what type of affection it could be. From Kaiba's words he could figure out that he didn't want the tri-color-haired boy around at all. But then why are they putting up with each other? He wondered. They just…don't seem like two people who could stand to be in the same room with each other for very long.

" Why do you stay around each other if you don't want to?" Jou didn't understand.

" Because we both have a common goal and I'd rather have him as part of my operations than as a rogue anomaly that could very well screw up everything I've worked for."

" I wanted revenge and he was a way to further my plans of getting it," Yami explained. " Pegasus had my parents killed and I want to know for what reasons and I want to kill him."

" Gods, you really need to wait your turn," Jou told him. " Do you know how many people have it out for him? Man, do you know how hard it is to GET to him? He's got the guard Croquet that could turn you into a human pretzel! And if you ain't got anything up your sleeves to throw at 'em than you might as well not even try!"

" I treasure your optimism," the other boy spoke sardonically. " And it's just the two of ya? What are ya going to do? Dye his hair and make him wear leather?"

Seto took this moment to grab the blonde by his throat and slam him into the nearest wall. " Your talk has become irritating," he warned. " I advise you to either shut up or you'll be thrown in with the waste disposal." Jou sneered at him before throwing a punch that would have connected with Kaiba's face had he not relinquished his hold a moment later. The blonde dropped to the ground and rubbed his offended throat soothingly.

" Look asshole," he started. " You brought me against my will and then expect me to actually look 'forward' to working with you on a scheme to get back at one of the most powerful men in the world. Wait, he probably IS the most powerful. Well GOMEN, if I don't like the odds. Especially when you two obviously don't like each other, and I sure as hell can't stand your cold-hearted, bipolar ass!"

Yami broke into a deep chuckle instantly. " Oh I like you," he laughed. " I think you and I will get along quite well."

" Keep it up Mutt and I can easily have you left somewhere for Them to find you," the brunette had about had enough.

" And I can just as easily spill about you and your little revenge gig you got going on," the blonde retorted.

Seto just gave him an amused expression. " Try it," he goaded. " They probably wouldn't believe you and I would love to see what those bumbling fools could actually do to me when I hold their very careers and lifestyles in the palm of my hand."

" What?" Jou couldn't hide his confused stare. "If you control so much why don't you just fire them and ruin their lives that way?"

The look the Kaiba heir gave him was almost one of pity. " You truly are like a naïve puppy, aren't you?" he remarked, earning himself a glare. " To simply fire them would let them open to the fact that I have something against them. Then I wouldn't be able to exact the full extent of my means for them. No, I want to keep them nice and ignorant to the point that when everything comes to a head they will be unable to do anything, save suffer my wrath."

With that he turned around and left the room with one final note. " Yami can show you around the complex and review protocol with you. I have far more important things to do."

" Geez, isn't he a bottle of sunshine," Jou mumbled. " More like a summer frost."

Yami gave another chuckle and shook his head. " Please, that was merely for show. You should see him when he's actually angry."

*****

Ryou was very bored. Even though he was used to being alone on the weekend when he had nothing else to do, he was still very bored. Usually he was quite adjusted with his solitude, but for some reason today he felt completely the opposite. It was as if he was alone when he didn't have to be that way, as if someone was waiting for him and he had decided to remain home instead. The fact that the day looked quite cheery outside, with the sun shining and very few clouds in the sky, didn't help the situation.

It seemed then that the Gods decided to take pity on him for the phone that sat on the bedside table rang shrilly. He almost jumped at the unexpected noise and had to grab the headboard of his bed lest he fall of it to the floor. The phone continued to ring and he picked it up before whoever had decided to call could hang up. " Moshi Moshi, Bukaru residence?" he asked into it.

{ " Ryou, it's Anzu." } he smiled at the sound of is friend's voice.

" Ohayoo Anzu," he greeted. " What do you need?"

{ " Well I was wondering if you wanted to do something tonight," she explained. " You know, all of us get together?" }

" But we have school tomorrow," he reminded her.

{ " I know, so I worked with that in mind," she assured him. " We can all go out to get an early dinner at Burger World and then we can get in some extra studying so we d0on't fail the tests this week." }

Ryou could tell that something was wrong because of the earnest sound of the girl's voice. It was like she was trying to find a distraction, anything to occupy her mind. " What's wrong Anzu?" he asked her bluntly. " Is something troubling you? This couldn't have been the true reason that you called me."

A soft sigh was released on the other side of the line. { " You're right," she admitted. "It's about Mai." }

" What about Mai?" he asked, concern obvious. " Is she all right? How did Serenity's surgery go?"

{ " That's just it!" the girl exclaimed. " She hasn't called me for three days since they went to Kuhako for Serenity's operation! I'm worried that something could have happened, or gone wrong with the surgery, or that she just doesn't want to talk to me! And I knew you would be the best person to talk to about this, but I didn't know how to ask you…" }

The white-haired boy could have laughed if his friend had seemed so worried. Ever since Anzu had met Mai there had been something between them. She had always tried to act a little tougher, or dress a little less plain whenever she knew the blonde would be near. When Mai had been in the tenth grade and Anzu in the eighth the brunette had actually skipped school (her only time ever doing so) so she could watched the auditions for the high school play Mai was going out for. The only reason she hadn't gotten into serious trouble was because Mai had covered for her and took the blame.

But they had only been 'seeing' each other for about nine months and Anzu was always worried that Mai would either find some other more exciting and interesting girl or even some handsome, rich Romeo to sweep her off her feet. Two days without contact from Mai could easily leave her on the ropes. And Ryou knew that there was nothing behind it, just that Mai probably spent all of her time in the hospital with his sister and hadn't realized how long it had been since she'd last spoken to Anzu.

" Why don't you call the hospital?" he suggested. " Or you could even go to Kuhako tomorrow after school. That way you could check up on both Mai and Serenity. It's only thirty minutes away by bus. And you could catch the nine-thirty to be home in time to sleep for school."

There was silence on the other line for a moment. { " Maybe I could go see her," the brunette thought. " But what if she doesn't want me there? Or if something DID go wrong and Serenity's eyesight couldn't be saved. Poor Sere!" }

" Anzu, please calm down," Ryou told her. It was obvious that all of the fear had built up over the last few days. His friend had been worried from the beginning about how the outcome of the eye surgery would effect the young girl that she had looked at as a younger sister for so many years. Of course, she put on a brave face when Serenity was around and told her everything would be fine, but that could rid her of the fear of the possibility that something could go wrong.

{ " But what if…" }

Ryou halted her before she could get any further. " You have to go see her or you're going to get sick from worrying so much," he reasoned. " Everything could be fine and you'd end up in the hospital for emotional meltdown for absolutely no reason at all."

{ " You're right," she agreed, although not as convinced as he would like. " Who knows? She could call in the next five minutes and everything could be perfect." }

" Exactly," he smiled, though he knew she couldn't see. " Now please, promise me you won't worry so much. Just try to call her and if you can't, go to Kuhako."

{ " All right," she said. " Thank you so much Ryou, I knew I could count on you to make me feel better. I was acting like an idiot." }

" No, you're just worried and I understand that," he disagreed. " Now try to stay calm."

{ " I will," she told him. " Domo Arigato again! You're such a great friend." }

" My pleasure," he replied. " Anything I could do-" He words were cut off by a sudden pain in his chest. It felt as if something was cutting off his air supply and his entire body was frozen. It hurt, but not much of a physical pain, more like it was in his mind and manifesting in different physical ways. He could even feel strange emotions wavering within all the pain. Anger. Sorrow.

{ " Ryou? Ryou are you all right? Ryou?!" Anzu's worried voice continued to shout from the phone. { " Oh Ryou, please talk to me!" }

And then the pain was gone, vanished as if it had never been. He took in deep gasps of air, trying to steady himself and not get nauseous at the same time. He picked back up the phone from where he had dropped it and took in another deep breath. " I'm…all right," he reassured her. " I'm perfectly…fine."

The voice on the other side of the line was not convinced. { " What happened?!" she demanded. " Are you hurt?!" }

" Please Anzu, I'm fine," he repeated. " It's just so silent in this house lately. I wasn't really expecting my cat to knock over something. Tien's usually well behaved."

{ " That's all it was?" she asked. " Tien just knocked over and startled you?" }

Ryou nodded out of habit, " Yes, that's all. Now I better go and see what he broke so I can clean it up."

The brunette on the phone gave a small sigh of relief. { " You had me scared to death for a minute there," she seemed rather shaken. " Don't you EVER do that to me again, Bukaru Ryou!" }

" I won't," he replied. " Now I really need to go. But you remember what we talk about, right?"

{ "Of course," she agreed. " Ja ne, Ryou." }

" Ja ne," he repeated before hanging up the phone. He let out a deep sigh and leaned back onto his bed. His heart was still beating a little faster than normal and he could feel the first tremors of a massive migraine. He also felt drained, tired. He just wanted to crawl under his blankets and fall asleep.

What he didn't expect was the sound a deep thunder booming from the opposite side of his window and catching him off guard. He jumped and looked out noticed the dark clouds and flashes of lightning. But how? He wondered. It was just sunny outside. He felt a warmth flow over him, but didn't really think of where it could have come from. His fatigue returned full force and he lowered himself to the bed, quickly succumbing to a dreamless rest. He never noticed the faint glow emitting from the golden trinket dangling from his neck.

*****

Shin walked down the hall with brisk movements. They'd left Bakura alone with his mother to grieve for twenty minutes, unsure if that would be ample time for the white-haired boy to calm down. He'd hoped it would allow him to come to terms with it, but he also knew that such things took time to heal. Oh the poor boy, he thought. Now he had no one left. Child Services would have to be called, even though Bakura was almost seventeen he would not be allowed to live on his own.

He stopped at the door that still had the name Kytsune written on it. He slowly pushed open the door and looked inside. " Bakura?" he called out. He gazed about but didn't see anyone. He eyes finally landed on the sight of the IV drips on the floor and the bed against the wall, Mrs. Kytsune's body still lying on it, but not as she was left. It was obvious that Bakura had gone into a rage.

" Bakura," he called out again. Thunder was his only answer. A cold wind caught his attention and he looked over to the window. He stared in shock at the sight of the few shards shattered glass that lay inside on the floor and large gap now taking the glass' place. He knew he had to call someone about the broken window, but his mind was more towards the boy that had once been in the room. Bakura was gone.

*****

He stared out at the storm, marveling in its beauty. " Oh yes, the enchantment of the surreal," he murmured. " They're all going to realize the truth about themselves soon. And then they'll have nowhere to go except to me. And my little Jou-pup, you're just speeding it along."

There was a knock on the door to his office. " Enter Croquet," he called out.

The door opened and the rather broad form of his personal servant and bodyguard stepped into the room. " Your guests have arrived, Master Pegasus," he told him.

" Oh I knew that," he shrugged. " Send them in."

" As you wish sir," he pushed open the door farther and motioned the two figures behind him inside. The two tall forms entered the room, the air about barely moving as they went.

" Ah yes, welcome boys," the silver-haired man greeted them. " Why don't you take a seat?"

" We prefer to stand," the one stated. The other gave him a light slap on the arm.

" Ignore my partner," he stated. " He prefers that we don't try to mingle with our clients. I believe that getting to know you're clients helps you to better perform whatever assignment you're given."

" Both are sound beliefs, depending on the way you wish to handle your dealings," Pegasus nodded. " But let us get straight to the point."

" Yes, lets," the other gave him a quick smirk, sitting himself gracefully into the leather chair in front of him. " Now you ask for the best in tracking and quite a few others areas. That is why we are here. Our statistics of success are well near 100% and we offer a 50% refund for failure, which if you've checked, has never actually occurred."

" So what may I call you?" Pegasus inquired, raising a silver brow at the elegant man (truly a boy) that sat before him. " Which of you is which I truly do not know." That was a lie, but he was quite intrigued by these two.

" Panther," he replied, green eyes smirking as he twirled a raven lock around one of his long and manicured fingers. " He is Hawk." He motioned the tall, muscular brunette that stood behind him. While Panther was tall, lithe, and looked quite feminine, Hawk was tall, broad, and very male with his spiked locks the color of a hawk's feathers. But he could tell that their difference made one no less dangerous than the other. And even though their ages would leave others questionable he thought it to be a commodity. Another reason why he had chose these two besides the known efficiency of their work.

" Who's the target and what are the restrictions?" hazel eyes showed no use for dancing around the subject.

" Here," Pegasus lifted a manila-colored folder off of his desk and handed it to panther. " All of the information is right there. And I trust that the utmost precision will be taken. He is very precious to me and I want him back alive."

" We ALWAYS use the utmost precision," Panther gave a small wink. " But don't worry, we'll keep him as intact as possible. Although a few hairs on his head could be out of place."

" Acceptable," he agreed. " Believe me, complete this and I'll provide an extra bonus at the end besides the final pay."

" Well," Panther seemed very pleased. " I guess we better put this as our top priority." He stood and gave one last smile to Pegasus. " I bet we'll enjoy working together." With that he placed a hand on his partner's shoulder. They both walked to the door and exited the room.

" Oh I think we will indeed," Pegasus gave one smirk of his own. " Indeed."

*****

" Why do you have to act like that?" Hawk frowned as they exited the building through a back garage.

" Because it always works to our advantage," Panther replied with a smirk. " Don't worry, he's way too old for me." He then ran a hand down the brunette's cheek. " Is that what you're worried about?"

" No, I don't like him," Hawk reasoned. " There's something up with him. The only reason why I agreed to this is because he's coughing out quite a bit to make sure it gets done."

Panther lifted a picture out of the envelope and looked at it. " I can tell why," he licked his lips. " This one's a real sexy one. We usually don't get targets that are this good-looking."

" Don't get any ideas," Hawk warned as they reached their two-seater motorcycle. " Seduction isn't part of this job."

" Oh don't worry," he assured him. Hawk climbed onto the bike and Panther slid on right behind him after placing the envelope in a saddlebag. " I've got everything I want right here." He ran a hand down the brunette's chest to land right at the juncture between his thighs.

" Not while on the bike, Otogi," Hawk warned as he revved up the machine. " At least not in the middle of a storm anyway."

The raven-haired teen pouted slightly before he smirked. " Then we better get back to the hotel," he purred into the other's ear. " I wouldn't want us to get into an accident, eh Honda?" He licked the outside of his partner's ear.

" Why do you get like this every time we get a new job?" the brunette questioned him. " It doesn't turn you on that much, does it?"

" Well just wait and see," he whispered. The panther smirked at his prey as the other boy pulled the bike out of the garage and they sped down the street into the storm with thunder and lightning flashing around them.

A/N: See? We were really mean to Bakura.

JC: And you loved it.

Kathrine: Well, I had to drive him insane somehow.

JC: The part with Shin the male nurse was very last minute.

Kathrine: I thought it would add a bitter touch to it.

JC: So please tell us what ya think.

Kathrine: We'll try to update more stories by the end of the week.

JC: Ja!