Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ I'll Be Home for Christmas ❯ Eleven Pipers Piping ( Chapter 11 )

JG-chan: w00t w000000t!! Another chapter said, and done! This is probably not gonna be the second-to-last, either (hence the 12 days of Christmas thing) so just bear with me. I'm gonna need some ideas for the chapters 13 and onwards, if it gets that long XD Enjoy-eth, fellow readers! (BTW: The title of this chapter cracked me up XD)

 

Lori: It's been a long time in the making, but this fic is nearly completed, much to your (and others, I hope) delight! Ok, so you can't review. Your computer offends me. Have fun with this one! ^0^

 

Nomalaz: Hey! You are my one and only reviewer so far XD but that's alright. I appreciate thee! Thanks so much for your encouragement ^___^ Enjoy this one!

DISCLAIMER: I own nada.

 

Warning(s): YAOI, Shounen-ai and a little angst.

 

 

Eleven Pipers Piping

 

**~***~**

 

Malik pulled his coat collar up higher as he walked out of the elevator onto the fifteenth floor. Instinctively he stopped outside door 801 and knocked, reeling in surprise as the door opened almost immediately. He frowned at Ryou - exhausted, puffy-eyed and haggard.

 

“Oh… hey, Malik. Come on in.” he muttered.

 

Malik raised an eyebrow. “Uhh… I heard about what happened with Jounouchi.”

 

Ryou turned around. “You did? How…? Oh, where is he?!”

 

He sounds desperate, Malik thought. He must be really worried about him… “He's at my place at the moment. I just thought I'd come around and get some of his things.”

 

Ryou looked perfectly miserable. “Oh, Malik…” He was sobbing now. “Why won't he come home? Tell him I'm sorry! I hate Bakura for what he did to him… How am I any better than Jou's father now after what's happened?”

 

Malik sat Ryou down on the sofa and embraced him softly. “Ry… what Bakura did isn't your fault. He overreacted and gave Jou what he thought he deserved after he blew up in your face.”

 

“I know… but that's not what I mean, Malik.” Ryou said, wiping his drenched eyes with his palms. “The main reason Jou moved in with us is because his father was abusing him… and then this happens. It's like he can't get away from it. I really feel like I've let him down…again.”

 

Malik sighed. “I know what you're saying. Jou will be staying with me though, until you and Bakura decide what you want to do. He's so confused and mixed up right now… He needs some time alone to clear his head.”

 

“Yeah… I know. I'm really sorry, Malik. I never meant for it to turn out this way.”

 

“Of course you didn't, Ryou.” Malik reassured. “But I need to get going, Ry. Which is Jou's room?”

 

Ryou showed Malik to Jou's room and found an overnight bag in one of his cardboard boxes that still hadn't been unpacked since he moved in. He pulled out Jou's draws and chucked in some clothes, shoes and his toiletries before zipping it up.

 

“I'm sure this will only be for a couple of days, Ry-chan.” Malik said as he made his way back to the front door. “All you need to do is talk things through with Bakura and decide what's best for the three of you. If you decide to go your separate ways with Jou, he'll survive, okay? He's tough - you know what he's like.”

 

“I know, I know…” Ryou replied quietly. “Go on, now. I'd better go and talk to Bakura.”

 

“Alright, I'll call you tomorrow.”

 

“Thanks for coming over, Malik. At least I know he's in safe hands, now.”

 

“No problem,” the Egyptian replied, nodding. “Ja ne, Ry.”

 

**~***~**

 

Jou sat up hurriedly in Malik's bed. Realizing he was wearing nothing except a plain white t-shirt and boxers, he understood he was probably in the worst imaginable situation with Marik standing in the doorway. Shit… Jou thought. I forgot he would be here. Now what the hell am I gonna do?

 

“Well, well, well.” Marik said in a harsh, almost mocking tone. “Look who we have here. Jounouchi Katsuya, eh? This is a surprise…”

 

“Uhh…hey, Marik. How's it going?” Jou mumbled nervously.

 

“Fine… What the hell are you doing here? And what the hell happened to your face?” He asked, unashamed of his discourteous manner.

 

“Eh… it's a long story,” Jou replied. “Basically, Bakura decided he wanted to break my face because I had another argument with Ryou.”

 

“Is that right?” Marik murmured, making his way to the bed and bouncing down on it. He lay down on his back and stacked his arms behind his head. “You know, I always thought you and the Bakuras were a hot couple… err…trio.”

 

Jou flushed. “Well it all came quite unexpectedly, actually…”

 

“So I heard,” Marik replied, gazing up at him. “You must have been pretty naïve to think that your friends were all fuckin' straight.”

 

“Well nobody bothered to tell me so how the hell was I supposed to know?” Jou retaliated.

 

Marik grinned devilishly. “Guess you were a little slow on the uptake. A `late bloomer', if you will.”

 

Jou rolled his eyes heartily. “Don't get me started on that. My head's so messed up at the moment I don't even know what's right and wrong anymore.”

 

Marik smiled to himself, as if remembering some fond recollection. “Everybody has those times of their lives.”

 

“Did you?”

 

“Yeah, `course.”

 

Jou studied the rippled muscles of Marik's arms. “With Malik, I'm guessing.”

 

“Yeah… in a way I feel sorry for the kid. Well, I used to, back when we were…you know, sorting out our feelings for each other.”

 

“How long ago was that?” Jou asked, curious.

 

“About a year, I suppose, now.” Marik replied. “After the Battle City Tournament, Malik hated me… Even though I was banished to the Shadow Realm, I got Bakura to get me back out again. I only came back because I wanted to give Malik another chance to get to know me… the real me.”

 

Jou looked puzzled. “I didn't think it could have gotten any realer than that.” He said, remembering the time he was rendered unconscious from his duel with the dark spirit to save Mai Kujaku's life.

 

“Not every dark spirit is completely sinister,” Marik replied. “Think of a yami and a hikari as the Ying-Yang sign: the white half with the small black dot represents the hikari - i.e. Ryou, Yuugi or Malik - and the dark half with the small white dot represents the yami - Bakura, the Pharaoh, or me.”

 

“I guess that's a good way of putting it…” Jou mumbled. “You were still fucking insane, trying to destroy the world and all. What made you change?”

 

“Malik,” he said simply. “He's my world. I realized this when I was exiled to the Shadows. Not only did I depend on him to be my host, but we are a part of each other…and I didn't know it at the time, but I guess it was love, in the end.”

 

Jou smiled. “I should be so lucky.” He muttered.

 

“The right person is probably right under your nose, you just haven't realized it yet.”

 

“Marik?! You better not be seducing Jounouchi up there!”

 

Jou and Marik laughed in unison as Malik came upstairs and entered the room. “Of course I am, what reason not to?” Marik teased, giving Jou a sly wink.

 

Malik laughed as he noticed Jou blush to the hairline. “Here, I hope you like teriyaki chicken, Jou; beef wasabi for super-saiyan over there and vegetarian for moi.” He said, chucking boxes of sushi to each of the boys.

 

“Thanks…So… how did it go?” Jou asked before tucking into his lunch.

 

“Oh,” Malik said, sitting cross-legged at the end of the bed. “Fine, although Ryou's a mess. You know how sensitive he can be.”

 

Jou felt an immediate stab of guilt. “That's to be expected I guess… What of Bakura?”

 

“He wasn't there, or if he was, I didn't see him.” Malik replied. “Probably gone to the bar or something stupid.”

 

“That's the sad thing about him,” Marik said with his mouth full. “If he gets upset about something he usually just goes and gets drunk - or high.”

 

“High?” Jou asked in disbelief. “On what?”

 

Marik shrugged. “Depends how ticked off he is. If he's just depressed he usually goes for weed, but I've know him to snort cocaine if he's mightily pissed. He's done it before.”

 

“You're joking,” Jou said, throwing his head against the headboard in defeat. “I can't believe this. Ryou's basically having a nervous breakdown and Bakura's turning into a druggie, all because of me.”

 

“That's not true, Jou.” Malik protested. “Ryou's always had psychological problems. I don't know if he told you about his Mum and sister, but -”

 

“Yeah, he did.” Jou said. “I guess that's why he's so scared of losing the people he feels close to.”

 

“Yeah, he said he's really worried about you, and sorry on Bakura's part.”

 

“I think I need to stay away from them for a couple of days.” Jou said. “Just so Bakura can cool off. There ain't no way I'm going back in that house unless invited.”

 

“Well, that's what I said to Ryou,” Malik said. “He's gonna have a talk with Bakura tonight.”

 

“I guess I can only hope for the best, then.” Jou sighed.

 

Malik finished his lunch and looked at his watch. “Fuck! I gotta get to work. Damn it! Why am I always late?”

 

Jou chuckled. “You're always there before I am.”

 

“Good point… I'll just tell Akiro that you've got a strep throat or something, will that work?” Malik asked, jumping up off the bed.

 

“I've already had my tonsils out, though…”

 

“Well he doesn't know that. Besides, would you rather that or me tell him that you were beaten the shit out of?”

 

“Doesn't fuckin' matter to me.”

 

Malik grimaced at him. “No need to get your nose out of joint.”

 

Jou deadpanned.

 

Malik winced. “Ugh, bad pun. Sorry, man. But I gotta go. I'll be back at around ten-thirty tonight, all good?”

 

“Yeah, cool. Where should I put my stuff?”

 

“Just leave it here.”

 

“I thought you had a spare bedroom?” Jou asked. Malik's house of all places should have one. One could easily get lost in it.

 

“We do, but Isis is redecorating. It reeks of paint and shit. You'd be better off in here.” Malik said. “Whatever, it doesn't matter to me. I gotta go! Bye yami!”

 

Jou watched mutely as Marik pulled Malik's head to his, their lips lingering a little longer than necessary. Marik gave Malik's taut butt a little slap before the hikari disappeared down the stairwell. Jou sighed heavily and jumped out of the bed he had been quite comfortable in. He needed a cigarette desperately. Making his way down the stairs, Jou went outside and sat down on a garden bench, underneath a sheltering sakura tree. Rolling up his cigarette, he spotted about five or six cats sitting around the garden. He knew the Ishtars essentially worshipped cats, due to the amount of feline ornamentals in their house, but he didn't know they actually had any. A sleek, fawn-coloured tom with dark brown spots on his coat came up to him and started rubbing against his legs.

 

Jou smiled and stroked the cat's fur, realising for the first time in a long while that it was the small things in life that should be appreciated. If it can't get much worse than this, then it has to get better from here, right? Jou thought, grimly. That's what Taro always said, anyway… Sighing and shaking his head, Jou cupped his hands around the end of his cigarette and lit it.

 

**~***~**

 

“Kaiba… I know this is the last thing on your mind, and believe me it couldn't get any more desperate than this.” Isis Ishtar was currently sitting in an overly large recliner opposite Kaiba Seto's desk.

 

Icy-eyed and quick tempered tonight, Kaiba rubbed his temples. “Isis, I know how bad you need this. It's going to cost me a lot to go ahead with this advertising campaign. You must remember Rome wasn't built in a day.”

 

Isis sighed mutely to herself. “The future of the museum depends on you, Kaiba…”

 

The CEO leaned back in his chair. “Yes, Isis, I know. Listen, I've already contacted Japan on Air about broadcasting an advertisement on TV and on the radio. They're calling me back tomorrow with a suitable time for us to meet up.”

 

A faint smile of hope lit up Isis' face. “Who do you mean when you say “they”?”

 

“Takenouchi Kariudo. He's the manager of Domino City's branch of Japan on Air.” Kaiba replied. “He'll be bringing a few colleagues with him, as I expect you will. He wants to hear your ideas; if I were you I'd make them good. He's hard to come by and dislikes time-wasters.”

 

Much like yourself, Isis barely refrained from saying. “You have no idea how much I appreciate this, Kaiba… If the museum closes then the employees will be made redundant and the exhibitions will be shipped off somewhere like the British Museum or even to the Cairo Museum… The ancient Egyptian stone tablets depicting the times of the first duel monsters belong here, in Domino, the heart of Duel Monsters.”

 

Kaiba was very quiet, studying her. “I see the crisis here, Isis. It will all come out in the wash eventually.”

 

Isis nodded. “Well, thank you again for your time, Kaiba.”

 

“Consider it a reimbursement for letting me use Obelisk the Tormentor.”

 

“And refusing to return it.” Isis finished, resisting the temptation to roll her eyes. “I hope to hear from you soon, Kaiba-san. Oyasuminasai.”

 

Kaiba nodded respectfully and got up to let her out. “Goodnight, Isis.”

 

**~***~**

 

It was a little later than Malik had expected when he got home that night. Turning off his motorbike on the street so as not to make any noise, Malik pushed the vehicle up his uphill driveway and into the garage. He knew how Isis hated to be disturbed while she was asleep. Rishid on the other hand worked the graveyard shift at his job and so slept during the day, and Marik, well… that psycho was up at all hours of the night. Vaguely he wondered if Isis knew that Jou was here or not.

 

Malik slipped out of his shoes and into his slippers as he entered the house through the garage. All the lights of the house were out downstairs, and everything was utterly silent. Straining though, Malik could hear a faint muffled sound coming from upstairs. The Egyptian boy padded up the stairs and saw light coming from underneath Marik's door at the end of the hall. (Yes, Marik has a separate room, for Isis and Rishid are forbidden to know of his and Malik's “secret” relationship. Sneaking into each other's rooms after lights-out seems to have worked so far, anyway…)

 

“Hey,”

 

Marik looked up to see his hikari standing over him. Right now he was sitting cross-legged on the floor, half naked, playing Final Fantasy X. “You're home late. You get laid after work or something?”

 

“Not likely,” Malik replied as he seized Marik's lap and kissed him fervently.

 

Marik's sculpted arms snaked around his other's torso and pulled him closer. “Good,” he replied. “Now I can have you all to myself.”

 

“Where's Jou?” Malik asked suddenly, remembering - aside Isis - they were not home alone.

 

“Sleeping like a baby.” Marik said, placing delicate kisses on Malik's neck. “In your room.” He added.

 

“Looks like I'll be in here for the night, then…” Malik replied playfully.

 

“What a shame…” Marik growled, flipping Malik onto his back and pinning his wrists.

 

“A terrible, terrible shame…” Malik grinned, gazing up at his sexy spouse in the light of the TV.

 

Marik - now with an obvious hard-on - jumped up off of Malik and saved his game quickly before shutting off the TV. He flicked on two dim lamps at either side of his bed before stripping down to the bare essentials and slipping under the covers. Malik followed suit and lay on Marik's chest, curling his soft chest hairs around his fingers, his legs entangled with Marik's. He sighed a little.

 

“Marik… what am I gonna do about Jou and Bakura? They're like, two of my best friends…”

 

“It's not up to you to decide, koi,” Marik replied, turning on his side, hitching Malik's leg up higher onto his hip. “What matters right now, is us…”

 

Malik moaned quietly as his yami's hands roamed his boxers and slyly slid them off down his hips. Kissing passionately now, the boys engaged into the nightly routine that had become so welcomingly familiar to them. What made it that little bit more thrilling was the fact that Isis was only a few doors down, and although the result might be horrifying if they were caught, it was well worth it.

 

Malik moaned as Marik ravished his body with hungry kisses and licks, nips and bites. Slowly the wild-haired yami made his way down to Malik's throbbing member and teased it softly with his tongue. Malik moaned with pleasure and jumped every time Marik hit a sensitive spot, burying his fingers in the mass of blonde hair. The warm wetness engulfing him was becoming more and more desperate as Marik started to finger him, slowly at first, and then becoming more vigorous.

 

“Marik…” Malik whispered, his voice choked with lust. “I… I need…you… now…”

 

Marik came back up from under the covers and settled between Malik's legs. “How bad do you need me…?” he whispered into Malik's ear, putting as much sexiness into one gesture as he could.

 

“So bad,” Malik whined. “Please…”

 

Marik coated himself in lube and slowly entered himself, kissing and stroking Malik all the while to distract him. Feeling the tight cavern constrict around him drove him wild every time, and he was sure Malik knew it. When he was sure Malik wasn't in pain, Marik began thrusting into a rhythm with Malik that threatened to send him over the edge. Malik's lavender eyes rolled in elated pleasure as Marik fondled his erection and groaned hoarsely with his thrusting.

 

“Marik… Ra, I'm gonna come…” Malik murmured in Arabic, writhing wildly beneath his other half.

 

In hearing these erotic words flow out of his hikari's mouth in his native language, Marik nearly did go over the edge. “Oh, Gods…! You aren't the only one…” he replied, taking Malik's legs in the crook of his elbow and getting up on his knees, pounding harder and faster to bring on his release.

 

Malik struggled to stay quiet as his yami rammed mercilessly into him, hitting harder every time. “Oh, Gods… Oh, Gods…” he cried, biting his bottom lip as his orgasm finally sprang forth. “Oh! Aaaah!”

 

Marik was not far behind. “Oh… yeah… uuuhh… that's it…”

 

“Aaahh… Mmm… fuck yeah.” Malik muttered as Marik lay wilted on top of him, both boys breathing heavily, a thin film of sweat covering them both. The general feeling of being close to each other made them feel safe and secure, loved.

 

Reluctantly they came back to life and cleaned up before resuming the spoon position and cuddling down under the blankets.

 

“I love you, yami…” Malik mumbled, almost asleep.

 

“You too, Malik. Aishiteru, tenshi…”

 

Jou lay in bed, wide awake, having heard the whole escapade down the hall. Unnoticed tears slid down his cheeks. He remembered having made love with Ryou and Bakura like that, and he wondered if he ever would again… He missed them sorely, Ryou especially. Silently he cried himself into a troubled sleep, feeling more alone now than he ever had before in his life.

 

*~***~*

+|+|+|+|+|+|+|+|+|+|+ ~TBC

 

JG-chan: YAAAAY it's nearly done!! ^___^ review pleeeeease! Ja!