Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Opal ❯ Interrogation ( Chapter 3 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
Notes: I'm terribly sorry if anyone has been a little confused thus far in the story. I keep leaving out details and forgetting to add them in before I post the chapters.
In the last chapter, Ryou led Nibori and his colleagues down to the holding bay. I'm not too sure if I got this across, but the holding bay is WAY below the upper deck of the ship. I guess you could say it's the basement, for lack of anything better to call it.
So, in order to get back up to the labs, you'd have to either climb a ton of stairs (Come on, this is the future. No one climbs stairs anymore) or ride an elevator.
Again, sorry if I didn't make this clear earlier. I really did try. ;_;
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Yu-gi-oh or its characters and I make no profit from this story.
Chapter 3, Hooooooo!
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As the holding bay's door closed shut behind him, Ryou began his journey up to the kitchens.
To think, he had just met and spoken to a living, breathing Kaitsune! Held a relatively civilized conversation with one, no less! He always had wondered if the Kaitsunes were really as feral as described in the stories of humans, and the one he just met certainly seemed to prove they weren't. Well, except for the whole `lunging and clawing' episode, but that had only served the purpose of amusing Bakura.
A blush spread across his nose as Ryou pictured the creature, Bakura, in his mind's eye. He imagined running his hands along the tanned flesh and feeling the roughened scales of the Kaitsune's tail and feet under his fingertips. He shivered.
`Stop it, Ryou!' he berated himself. `You're acting like a love-crazed, sex-starved school girl!' Shaking his head, he continued down the halls, turning right at the end of the corridor and finally reaching the elevators leading to The Opal's upper levels.
The doors opened, and he entered quickly, turning to the control panel and pressing the button labeled `1.' The doors creaked shut after a few seconds of hesitation and he felt the floor beneath him move as the elevator began its ascent.
On the way up, the lift slowed to a stop and the doors opened, allowing a young man in a white t-shirt and brown slacks to enter. He brushed his dark hair from his eyes and sighed as the doors once again shut and they continued up to the first floor.
Ryou eyed him silently, trying to place a name with the face. `I know I've seen this man before, but where?' His brows screwed up in concentration and he didn't notice the man's gaze shift to him.
The other smiled and put out his hand. “You're Ryou Kio, aren't you?” Still unable to recognize him, Ryou shook the offered hand and gave a small smile in return.
“I am.”
His hand returning to his side, the man's grin widened knowingly. “Don't remember me, right?”
Feeling the blush return to his cheeks, Ryou shook his head, embarrassed.
“I'm Shiro Takashi from the packaging team, down on floor 5. We met a few weeks ago, when you came down and asked for supplies. Something about an errand Nibori assigned you.”
Ryou put his finger to his chin thoughtfully and reflected a moment before comprehension dawned on his face, quickly replaced by a frown. Yes, he remembered now. Nibori had practically thrown him bodily from his office, yelling for him to go collect a few boxes and shipping supplies from the lower floors. `Specimens needed delivered and surely life as we know it would have ended if I hadn't dropped what I was doing and run down to fetch those supplies.' he thought, angrily.
Closing his eyes and letting his face soften, he turned back to Shiro and beamed warmly. “Yes, yes. Thank you so much for helping me back then. It would have taken ages to sift through all that junk and find what I needed if you hadn't been there.”
Shiro shrugged good-naturedly and chuckled. “Yeah, I'm not too thrilled with how that place is kept, either. I'm also not thrilled at the idea of cleaning it all up.”
“So, it's going to stay the way it is, huh?”
“Of course, unless you'd like to take a stab at it?”
Ryou backed away, waving his arms dramatically. “No, thank you.”
Both laughing, they glanced at the doors as they felt the elevator slow to a stop. The doors slid open to reveal level 1 before them, its lights reflecting softly along the floor.
Ryou and Shiro stepped into the hall and began walking together. They chatted amicably until Shiro turned left down an adjacent corridor, waving toward Ryou.
The boy returned the gesture, and was about to continue on to the kitchens, when Shiro's voice reached him.
“Remember to tell your father `Hi!' for me!”
Ryou stopped dead in his tracks and his eyes widened considerably. `Father! Dear God, he's probably having kittens by now!'
Deciding Bakura could wait for his meal, Ryou turned down the other hall, following Shiro. Rushing past, he threw a quick “I will!” over his shoulder and ran in the direction of Lab 3. Jeez, was he in for an ear full. Hopefully his father would cool down after he explained the situation.
`Hopefully he won't strangle me before I have a chance to tell him.'
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He felt sweat drip down his neck and into the collar of his lab coat as his boots thumped against the ground. Slowing his erratic pace, Ryou saw the doors of Lab 3 looming nearer. Finding his key card, he was about to slide it through the panel on the wall when the doors suddenly opened and the rather terrifying silhouette of his father stood before him.
“Ryou!” he growled, moving closer to his son. “There you are! I was just about to go looking for you. What happened? I thought I told you I needed your help NOW.”
Shrinking under his father's death glare, Ryou stuttered, “F-father, I'm really sorry I'm so late. I was on my way to help you when I heard a commotion in the port and decided to investigate. Father, you won't believe what I found!”
Katashi crossed his arms and waited expectantly. “Well, what did you find?”
Seeing that his father was giving him a chance to explain himself, Ryou leaned closer and covered his mouth conspiratorially for effect. “I found Mako and his men dragging a Kaitsune in a sack.” he whispered.
His father jerked and stared at him incredulously. His face passed through a superb array of colors, and for an instant Ryou thought his father just might explode.
“How dare you joke about something like that!” His eyes narrowed at his son.
“No, no! It's true!” He cried raising his arms defensively, “The Kaitsune was taken down to the holding bay and Mr. Nibori ordered a few of his researchers to seal off the corridor. I was just on my way to the kitchens to get him something to eat, when I remembered you were waiting for me. I really am sorry, but the excitement earlier made our work completely slip my mind!”
Studying his son closely, Mr. Kio paled as he finally realized Ryou was speaking the truth.
“W-why is Mr. Nibori keeping it alive? Shouldn't it have been killed the moment it was discovered?” His eyes widened. “What if there are more of them? They'll come here to retrieve their lost kin!”
Ryou gently placed a hand on his father's arm, trying to calm him. “I don't think there are anymore, Father. Mako's men only found one ship and one Kaitsune and Bakura said he was only on his way home when he was caught up in battle.”
“Bakura?”
“Oh! I'm sorry. The Kaitsune's name is Bakura. He talked to Mr. Nibori earlier about why he was in this area of the galaxy.”
Katashi looked taken-aback. “Mr. Nibori believed it?”
“Well, of course he believed him. We don't have any evidence saying Bakura's lying.” As an afterthought he added, “Also, he's not an `it.'”
Waving him off, the older man seemed to be in deep thought.
“I need to speak with Mr. Nibori. I want him to know my concerns about leaving such a dangerous creature on this ship.”
“That's probably not a good idea.”
“What do you mean?”
Ryou gave him an irritated look. “Mr. Nibori probably won't give you the time of day, Father. When he left the holding bay, he was on his way to phone The Government of Mars and tell them about his `great capture.' He's more interested in the publicity than safety. Well, our safety. He'll make sure he's well taken care of if any signs of danger are to show themselves.”
“No, I know he'll listen to me. The man isn't as unreasonable as you seem to think, Ryou.”
With that, his father turned his back to his son and began the trip to Mr. Nibori's office.
His eyes on the other man's back, Ryou grunted.
`Pssht. Yeah. You keep thinking that, Father.'
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Ryou balanced the platter in his arms, putting all his effort into getting the meal he had prepared for Bakura to him in one piece.
He was happy to say that being a part of Nibori's Kaitsune project had finally paid off. Fixing food for Bakura was extremely easy, seeing as how he knew what the Kaitsunes liked, disliked, and what they considered delicacies.
Digging through the fridge and ice box, Ryou had found some juicy Nesyrian beast steaks, roasted Fleir thighs, and an assortment of spices and sweets Bakura was sure to enjoy.
Smiling at the superb choices he had made, he leaned forward and took in the scent of the succulent meat. `Mmm, if I've learned anything about Kaitsune diet, I know he'll appreciate what I've brought.'
After a short and uneventful elevator ride back down to level 7, Ryou strode purposefully down the hallways and to the restricted corridor, where he was met by three of the researchers from earlier barring his path.
“What are you doing down here?” One of them asked, gruffly.
“I've come to feed the Kaitsune.” he answered, blinking dumbly. Shouldn't that have been the most obvious answer? Why else would he be carrying food down here? Ryou didn't know about them, but personally, if he wanted to have a picnic of sorts, the lower regions of the ship (especially this one) wouldn't be his first choice.
They glared at the boy skeptically, before finally relenting and allowing him through.
“Thanks, guys.” Ryou bowed his head and continued on.
Upon reaching the door leading into the holding bay's anteroom, he set his burden down carefully, pulled out his key card, and proceeded to unlock the door.
Continuing on to the next, he repeated the procedure and finally faced Bakura for the second time.
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Bakura raised his head and perked his ears as he heard the muffled sounds of a door opening. Sniffing the air quietly, he picked up the scent of the little human, Ryou, from earlier. Along with the boy, he also smelled some other, more delicious, aromas.
Not wanting to seem too eager, he remained sitting, but allowed his tongue to flick across his fangs in anticipation.
As the door slid open, he was greeted with the site of Ryou. The boy seemed quite pleased with himself for some reason and after stealing a glance in Bakura's direction, turned and bent down, picking up a tray laden with some of the most delectable food the Kaitsune had ever seen.
Mouth watering, he forced himself to remain nonchalant. He still had a reputation to live up to, damn it, empty stomach or not.
Ryou stepped closer to Bakura, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was getting dangerously close to the other. Or, more specifically, the other's claws and teeth.
The boy stopped and sat a few yards from him, leaning forward and placing the platter down with a soft clatter, before sitting back up. His doe brown eyes returned to Bakura, and he sat patiently, a small smile on his face.
The human's actions confused him, so the Kaitsune decided to just ignore them for now.
His claws scraping against the floor, he made his way over to the food and sat down ceremoniously. Throwing one final look into Ryou's eyes, (a warning) he dug into the meat.
`He sure does seem to be putting on a grand show for something so trivial as eating.' Ryou thought.
“Bakura?”
The Kaitsune raised his gaze, taking another bite of steak and chewing hungrily. “What is it, human?”
“Well, I just wondered if I could ask you a few questions. You know, about yourself and your home.”
Bakura paused in his chewing, sitting up and considered Ryou. Coming to a decision, he nodded and swallowed. “Go ahead.”
Practically hopping with excitement, Ryou sat on his heels and dug his notepad and pen out of his pockets.
“Alright, first I'd like to ask you about your tail. Can you tell me a little about its anatomy? Is it made of bone, muscle, cartilage, perhaps something else?”
“Muscle.”
Scribbling quickly, Ryou moved on.
“Does its size depend on age, gender, or height?”
His fangs glinting in the light, Bakura grinned down at Ryou.
“I meant your tail.” Ryou clarified.
“I knew what you meant little human. Just teasing you a bit.” Grabbing a mouthful of fillet, he answered the question. “Our tail's size depends on both age and height. Gender does not play a role, as it does in other species.”
“Interesting.”
So, over the next hour, Ryou grilled Bakura on the life and habits of the Kaitsune. He learned many things, including how a Kaitsune's armor plating was practically indestructible, being able to withstand immense heat, frigid cold, and amazing amounts of pressure. All of this Ryou wrote in his notepad, listening intently to all Bakura had to say.
There were a few questions the Kaitsune refused to answer, however. They tended to include subjects such as family interaction and home life, something Ryou wasn't quite expecting. Perhaps Bakura just wasn't comfortable talking about those he was close to. Maybe he thought of them as his weakness, something he didn't wish to share with a human. Ryou could understand his reluctance to answer, under that respect.
Throughout the interrogation, Bakura continued to eat. After having his fill, he left the empty tray between him and Ryou. He was about to answer yet another question about his people when, to his amusement, the boy hid a delicate yawn behind his hand.
“Seems as though we both could use a rest, little human.” he said softly. Ryou nodded putting away his notes and picking up the discarded tray.
“Thank you for answering all of my questions, Bakura. I appreciate it.”
He stood and left the room, intent on returning the used dishes to the kitchen and returning to his room for a nice long rest.
Ryou was well aware of Bakura's steady gaze burning a hole into his back as the doors closed behind him.
TBC
Whoo! I just keep pulling them alien names right outta my booty, don't I?
Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Not much going on, so I tried to spice up the boring parts a bit with humor. Dunno if it worked. o.o;
I might not be able to update this story too often, seeing as how I have a lot of school work during the weekdays. I'll still try to write a bit, though, don't worry.
