Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Like a Shadow ❯ Inferior ( Chapter 1 )

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Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue, dead broke, get nothing.

Warnings: Beware the author (and story)

Ryou's thoughts: \blah\

Bakura's thoughts: \\blah\\

Yami's thoughts: //blah//

Yuugi's and everyone elses' thoughts: /blah/

Kapeesh? Good.

Reveiws are the very food I eat. Feed me. YDM

Like a Shadow

Chapter One-Inferior

Ryou sobbed. No-one had tried to help him. No-one had come to his aid, no-one attempted to save him.

He was alone.

He was all the defence he had against his Yami. It wasn't enough.

Why was he alone? Where were his friends? why weren't they helping him?

They had seen his bruises, the cuts and the bumps from previous times.

If only they would help him and give him the strength he needed to beat his Yami, he wouldn't be crying now.

It shouldn't be like this.

Where were his friends???

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It was evening, and at the arcade Yami was showing off his skills as he had been doing all day, once again proving that he was the King of Games. The most recent victim of Yami's rampage dropped his hands from the wheel of the car racing game in defeat and Yuugi's group cheered, not that Yami winning was a rare thing...

Yami looked around at the other spectators and challanged them with his eyes. Everyone started slowly backing away, and Yami sweatdropped.

"Ah...this isn't fun anymore. No-one will challange me." Yami turned to Yuugi and his friends. "You guys havn't played much today, why don't one of you play a game against me?"

Joey was among the first to back off, having minimal chance of even hoping to beat Yami at a game. "Sorry Yami, but uh...I'm saving my money for uhh...a skateboard or...something."

Yami turned to Tristan and Tea, who both pulled a face and then shrugged sheepishly. Yami then turned to Yuugi. "Aibou?"

Yuugi sweatdropped. "Uhh..Yami, hehe, it's...getting late. Shouldn't we all be going home?"

Yami stood in thought for a moment.

Meanwhile in the same room another figure held his breath in anticipation, not wanting to hear the answer that-

"Sure Aibou. We'll walk everyone off to their plac-"

"NO!" Everyone quickly turned around to follow the voice, Yami's ever quick eyes landing questioningly on Joey.

Yuugi also looked at Joey with a questioning look and concern in his eyes, waiting for Joey to continue.

"I...I have some money...Yami why don't we play some games?" Yami's eyes lit up straight away but Yuugi still remained gazing intently on the blond.

"Joey, weren't you saving for a skateboard?"

"No I wa....ohh yeah, I was, but....Oh I just said that 'cuz I was 'fraid ta face Yami before, you know? Now I'm not afraid anymore..."

Joey trailed off, not wanting to talk any more, and running after Yami who was standing impaitently in front of the Motal Kombat III game.

"Hey no fair Yami!!! Let me chose the game!"

"Fine. Chose."

"Basketball Hoops!"

"You would pick a game that tall people would excell at, and that short people would be disadvantaged at, wouldn't you?

"What's the matter Yami? Scared that you're going to be beaten by someone superior to your gaming skills?"

"What!?!?!? Bring it on!"

Yuugi looked on at Joey who was pulling faces as he inevitably began to lose. Yuugi was concerned about the tall blond, because he had been acting like this for a while now, a month or two. Joey would suddenly become hesitant of moving somewhere else, and that bothered Yuugi.

Surely there had to be some kind of reason, a pattern or a clue...

That was it! Joey was hesitant whenever going home was mentioned.

But that caused Yuugi even more concern. For what could be happening at home?

//What's wrong, aibou?//

/Huh?/ Yuugi snapped out of his thoughts and pulled his vision back into focus. The game was over. Yami was standing in front of him and in the background he could see Joey flopping about on the floor. The scoreboard in the background showed 102 to 23. It was obvious who the victor was. Yuugi smiled at the thought and answered Yami.

/Yami, you know how Joey's been acting jumpy lately?/

//What about it?//

/I think it has something to do about his home life, becuase it always happens when that is mentioned./

//Maybe//

Yami turned around to the group. "Shall we be going home now?" He kept an eye of Joey's reaction.

Expectantly to Yami and Yuugi, Joey spoke up. "Why? Why...don't we play some more games? We have plenty of time..."

Yami pulled his pockets inside out. A mountian of flint tumbled out, but not a coin to be seen. "I can't, I've got no more money"

Joey pulled out his wallet.

/Act natural.../

"I have some that I can give you..." Joey searched through and pulled out a $20 note. "Why don't we use this? I don't mind..."

Yuugi interveened. "Joey, no! That was the money you were going to use for Serenity's birthday gift!" Joey cringed and gripped the note, looking at it in consideration. He sighed. "...It doesn't matter..."

Another cringe.

"...I'll just tell her I lost it..." He stared at the ground, guilt already taking a firm hold of him, but not enough to change his mind.

/I'm sorry, Serenity.../

Yuugi was about to object, but Yami beat him to it. "Joey, that is disgraceful. To take money put aside for your sister and throw it away for your own enjoyment is selfish. Let's take everyone home."

Joey growled inside with frustration. /It wasn't for my enjoyment, didn't really want to do it either. But I can't tell you that, can I? Becuase then you'll want to know the real reason I hate going home./

He turned to Yami in a final plea. "Are you sure you don't want to go for a walk in the park first or something? It's really nice out this time of evening."

Yami's face was set in stone. "No. It's getting late, and we don't want to worry Grandpa. We have just enough time to see you all home and then we will go home as well."

Joey clenched his teeth, then dropped his shoulders in defeat. "Fine." He couldn't take much more of this 'crap'. Why couldn't things ever go his way? The pressure was building and every little thing that happened just added itself on. Soon, he was going to burst.

Since Tea lived the closest, the group dropped her off first. Joey was next. They walked him up to the driveway when Joey ran ahead up to the house, quickly thanking everyone for the day and saying goodbye. Yuugi, Tristan and Yami stared after him oddly. They watched Joey enter the house, then slowly walked away to Tristan's house.

Joey looked through a curtained window at the trio and waited until they were out of sight. He silently cursed them under his breath for being so...painfully considerate. Joey didn't blame them for it, he blamed himself. They didn't suspect a thing. They didn't know what happened whenever Dad and his mates where drunk and Joey was near.

Joey carefully took note of his surroundings. The room was dark, dank and dusty, and thankfully, empty. Empty except for him. Joey thought of that as a blessing. He could hear heavy laughter and shouting coming from the other room. Joey shuddered. That would be his dad and his beer-drinking friends. Maybe they hadn't heard him come in. If that was the case, then Joey could sneak back out and not be missed. That was the plan.

Joey waited for his friends to disappear around the corner. Didn't they get the hints that he didn't want to go home? He would've done anything not to be here now. Even if he had to be alone. But no, they insisted on making sure he got home safely.

He smiled at the irony. Home was one of the least safe places he knew.

He looked out the window again. They were out of sight. Good. Joey walked silently towards the door.

Meanwhile another door opened at the same time.

Joey turned. Unruly greasy blond hair, hazel eyes, unfortunatly big build.

Dad.

Joey closed his eyes momentarily to stop his nervousness from freezing him to the spot. When his eyes opened again Joey noticed that a few other men had joined his father in the doorway. Joey noticed the beers in their hands and the way they were stumbling. He looked at the drunken men with growing aprehension. They all stared at Joey. And smiled.

So Dad and his friends had heard him come in. Crap. Joey looked at the door. Just becuase they knew he was here didn't mean that he still couldn't escape. The front door hadn't been locked, had it? The blond rushed to the door and tested it to see if it was still unlocked. The knob turned. Good. Joey grabbed the door and flung it open...

...only to run right into another big boned man.

Laughter.

The man lunged at Joey trying to grab him but somehow through sheer sub-consious reaction Joey managed to jump out of the way. The room echoed with loud heavy laughter as the men laughed at the trick they had played, and even more at the concept of a hunt. What fun! The men knew that with Joey as the target, this would be a good chase...with an even better prize if they won.

Joey meanwhile turned around wildly and back again. His breathing had quikened as he realised the immediate danger of the situation he was in, again. The men stepped into the room forcing Joey to move back.

Joey was being circled.

Meanwhile his dad stepped toward Joey, resulting in Joey taking a big step back.

"So, Joey, my boy. MY boy. Having fun, are we?" He laughed, stumbling a bit to the side and when he recovered he signalled to his mates to surround the boy. "You try to run away boy, but you gotta be a man." He smiled a bit. "You can't keep your innocence forever, you know!"

Joey took another step back, half stumbling over the carpet, but recovering twice as quickly. /I don't think you're taking anything that belongs to me./ Joey retorted.

"You think you can catch me? You're drunk! You fucking piss-head baka! You're off your face! How do you think you're going to catch me, let alone take my innocence??"

Joey paused for a moment, thinking back to the days where he used to be a bully at school. "You know, I used to tell people that they had to 'be a man'... but I was wrong. Being a man is nothing more than insecurity about your other qualities. That is, if you have any!" He turned to his dad. "You couldn't catch me if your life depended on it!"

Joey's dad saw red. So the boy thought the hunter couldn't get him? That was it. The hunt was going to end, tonight.

"Get him NOW!!!!"

The blond twisted around as the men who had encircled him slowly moved in closer. He gritted his teeth and cursed as he saw the circle becoming smaller, and smaller...

There were so many men... if they got him... oh gods...

Joey started to panic. He was trembling... his mind had gone blank... he was going to cry soon out of sheer helplessness. He didn't know what to do. He started to shake under the intense pressure, almost wanting to collapse, as he watched the circle around him get smaller and smaller. Joey was shocked when he felt a tear run down his cheek in his frustration.

He didn't know how he was going to escape.

Soon he was going to be trapped...here...

...and there would be no mercy.

~tbc~

YDM's Notes

Well that's the first chappie, chappie! The second chapter is well on it's way so, rest assured, no threatening required! Only seven reveiws and flames are okay! Threatening will be needed for the chapter after that though....^_^;;

I'm sorry to all Joey and Ryou fans becuase I'm so nasty to them! >:D

Wanna see what happens to Ryou and Joey? Will Joey escape? Am I nasty to you?

Yami_Dragonmaster