Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Psyche ❯ Dreams ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

 

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read Chrysalis and Emergence first. You will get lost!

 

Psyche

Chapter Four: Dreams

~*~*~*

Kaiba

~*~*~*

The sun woke him the next day as it slanted through the blinds, one finger of it poking at his eyes. He groggily shifted position and buried his head into the pillows. He reached down and tried to tug the blanket up farther around his shoulders, but something was holding it down. His arm joints ached in a dull distant throb at the movement.

 

“Ain't you going to get up?”

 

Kaiba moaned and shook his head, refusing to look at the ghost. His body felt dead, clumsy. It would take too much energy to move and escape. He only hoped the latest bout with his conscience would be over soon.

 

“Mind if I join you then?”

 

A feather soft touch trailed along his side, causing him to jerk convulsively away from it. He rolled back over and stared at his personal ghost, who was perched on the edge of the bed, smiling happily at him. His…it's soft gold hair softly rumpled, as if it'd just woken up. It's tawny eyes laughing at him.

 

“You aren't here.” Kaiba rolled farther away, putting distance between him…it and himself. He felt as if his limbs were three times their normal weight, reacting in clumsy slow motion to is frantic demand for movement.

 

“I'm not?” Jo…it looked questioningly at Kaiba, then looked around the room. “Then, if I'm not here, where am I?”

 

Kaiba managed to finally reach the other side of the bed tumbled into an uncoordinated heap onto the floor. His head felt thick, heavy. His mind blanketed in a suffocating cocoon. He shook his head trying to clear it, but the world tilted dizzily at the action. “I don't know.”

 

Jo…it -damn it, it is an it!- sighed and lifted one hand to rake its hair back from his face.

 

Kaiba shivered a bit as he noticed that it was now missing one finger and a trail of blood wound down it's arm in delicate red threads. He staggered to his feet, wrenching his eyes away, looking at the carpet beneath his feet. He forced his leaden feet to take him to the door.

 

“Kaiba, I'm right here” It's voice wrapped around him almost physically dragging him to the floor. “You can't pretend I'm not.”

 

Soft footfalls approached him. He grabbed wildly at the door knob, fumbling, trying to open it as the feet stopped just behind him. “You aren't here. You aren't here.” He tugged at the door feeling as if he was being torn into pieces. His arms and legs ached with fatigue; his eyes desperately wanted to turn and face the one that stood behind him, just to be able to see that face; his mind was shrieking in panic, racing around in blurred, confused circles, as a light touch brushed across his shoulder.

 

“It's your fault you know.” The voice was gentle, sad. “Sure, I got a few people ticked at me, but no one that wanted to rip off my fingers and mail them to anyone.”

 

Kaiba shivered, pressing his forehead against the door, closing his eyes. “I know. Please Jo, I know.”

 

“Please?” The voice sounded irritated. “I get my fingers chopped off and all you can say is please? THAT DOESN'T FUCKING MEAN SHIT!” The voice raised to a all encompassing roar that seemed to shake the house. “YOU ARE KILLING ME! YOUR FAULT! MURDERER!”

 

Kaiba slid to the floor, his head throbbing in pain, curling into a protective ball, shielding his ears. He hated when the ghost got angry. There was no place to hide. No place that his heart didn't hear the words that were thrown at it like daggers. He could only listen, feeling the pain, the loss, the anger. He deserved them. Didn't he?

 

“I loved you.” The voice was soft again. “Did you know that?”

 

“Yes. I'm sorry.”

 

“Sorry can't fix this. You just can't kill people and say, oops sorry.” Fingers brushed through his hair. Something warm dripped onto his face and slowly trailed downward.

 

“I know.”

 

“It's your fault, koi.”

 

He wiped the warm trail away and looked at the blood smearing his fingers. “My fault.”

 

~*~*~*

Jame

~*~*~*

“…only if the first party was willing, and knowledgeable of the intentions of the second party, would the first party, that would be me…” The voice droned meaninglessly on, and on.

 

Jame leaned back in her chair, with a small smiled plastered to her face. It had taken the man fifteen minutes to answer the question. Jame was impressed, usually when asked “Would you like some coffee?” It took less then five seconds to give a adequate response. The only problem was where to put him.

 

She had no doubt that Kado would cheerfully murder her if she hired him in the position of Security Liaison. Tanaka and the rest of the staff would have a lynching party if she put the man in the personnel position, but where to put him? She had already filled the other vacancies.

 

“…the party of the second part, being under no obligation to the party of the first part, would then…”

 

Could she create a new position just for this man? Assistant in charge of… legalese? Contracts? Extraneous paperwork? Tediousness? She could picture the uses this man would have. When unwanted and unscheduled executives came to talk to a overstressed, nearly-dead-on-his-feet Kaiba, and mess up her carefully crafted schedule, they could just sic this man on them. He could stall people for hours, not committing to anything or giving away any form of information, freeing Kaiba to deal with more important matters, like contract negotiations with Ms. Shrill. She grinned. How sweet it is.

 

“…if both parties agreed to this arrangement, with full understanding of all the ramifications of their own actions…”

 

Jame purred to herself and, with the man's voice continuing its dull droning in the background, drifted off into a land where she was happily fired by a disgruntled, irritable Kaiba and was now free to bound lightly along sandy beaches, with delicate sea winds caressing her scantily clad body. Cabo San Lucus? She always enjoyed the water sports there. A bit touristy, true, but lots of fun.

 

“…whereupon, the party of the second part would then provide, keeping within the boundaries of the obligations put forth by the part of the first part, to…”

 

~*~*~*

Yami

~*~*~*

 

Egypt again. This time he was sitting in his throne room. He had forgotten how beautiful it had been, with it's painted carvings of the gods, the glitter of gold and jewels, the rich scent of perfume wafting through the sultry currents of air that meandered around the assembly. However, the wonders of it paled fast when one was forced to sit and look at it for hours as some pointless court function dragged on at the foot of his throne.

 

Yami lolled bored on his grand seat, swirling his wine around in it's gold chalice and wondering why he didn't just banish the whole lot of them to the Shadow Realm and go swim in the Nile. The day was sweltering, both extremely hot and, thanks to the nearby Nile, extremely humid. Even under the massive stone walls of the palace, all he could think of was to go throw himself in cool water or lay flat on the floor and melt. He tossed down the rest of his wine with a grimace and set the cup at his elbow.

 

Shimon, as always was lurking at his elbow, ready to pounce with a well timed piece of stale wisdom, picked it up and signaled for the attendant. “More wine my pharaoh?”

 

Yami shuddered, the last wine had tasted like a science project gone terribly wrong. He wondered if Seth, calmly sitting sipping wine over in the shadows, had found a different kind of wine, or if his taste buds had corroded off. He shook his head. “No. Not now.”

 

Somehow, the heat wasn't affecting the group of diplomats that crowded around his throne, chittering like a pack of well dressed mice. They cooed smooth insults at each other, preening and strutting, waving their little fans in front of faces that gleamed with sweat. Their attendants drifted through them offering cool damp cloths, ale and wine mixed with fruit. Occasionally, one diplomat or another would turn to him with a false smile and offer a bit of flattery.

 

He could, if he searched long enough spot his priests amongst them. Isis was chatting to a large man portly man with a shaved head that looked vaguely like scary cross between Orson Wells and a sumo wrestler. Shada was surrounded by a cluster of sighing women, who playfully fanned themselves and batted long, kholed eyelashes at him as he looked desperately around for a rescue. His uncle, Akhenaden, was standing in a cluster of senior diplomats, smiling a bored, weary smile. Mahado was desperately trying to separate himself from a overly plush woman that had latched onto his arm with the tenacity of a starving leech. Seth still lounging in a shadowy recess, lifting a mocking goblet of wine in salute as he noticed Yami's eyes pass over him. Karim leaned close to a young man, smiling mischievously while signaling a nearby attendant to bring more wine.

 

A silk and jewel swathed man, mopping his head with a piece of silk, turned from a conversation he was having with another diplomat, smiled and bowed ingratiatingly in his direction.

 

Just go back to ignoring me already, would you? Yami snarked to himself and, plastering a equally false smile on his face, waved noncommittally to the pompous idiot and returned to his bored slouch, wondering if he could slip over and see what Seth was sipping with such relish in the corner and what he'd have to do to get it.

 

A guard, that looked like he would gladly drop dead, if someone would just kick a bit of dirt over him, dragged his sweating, ceremonially overdressed self into the room, "Your majesty, your queen has returned. She asks if....”

 

As had happened in every dream, that whispered through his mind when he closed his eyes, a tiny figure scampered around the guard and raced on small chubby legs toward him. A wide happy smile of unshakable love and happiness glowing on the little round face that look only at him. Tiny fingers stretched toward him as if each little digit wanted to be the first to touch him and wrap him in a hug.

 

"Papa home!"

 

Yami got up and descended down the steps, scooping the flying tot up and swinging him up into his arms. "Yes, Papa home."

 

The toddler's ruby eyes crinkled into laugher, as he stroked the hair from the child's face and kissed the sweaty little forehead. Such soft hair, like finest silk threads brushing across his fingers. It was thick and black, with a single, startling lock of gold, that fell in a soft streak down the side of the little boy's face.

 

His son's face.

 

He was holding his son.

 

~*~*~*

Jame

~*~*~*

The blond bunny, isn't that what he called his last secretary? Jame watched as the latest applicant grinned idiotically across the desk from her. The woman really wasn't an idiot, but she did a terrific impression. The large blue eyes didn't seem to hold even a trace of brain power. The expensive, though amazingly tight business suit, did more to show off her ample cleavage and tiny waist then project a business image. The soft golden hair that tumbled in a soft cascade down around her slender shoulders nearly yelled dumb blond. The impressive résumé of top notch clientele and the sharp mind, seemed belied by the soft, breathy voice and the little girl pout. However, it was her laugh that was winning her the coveted position of assistant. The laugh could make people brains want to melt out their ears at twenty paces. The laugh that sounded like some mutated donkey/hyena on helium.

 

“Oh, thank you so much.” Immense blue eyes teared up. “I have been looking for work for months.” The soft, pouty lips quivered dramatically. “I just don't know why I couldn't find any work.”

 

I have a clue. Jame thought, then slapped herself for the catty comment. “I guess you were meant to work for us, Miss Usagi. I'm sure you are just who we need for this position.”

 

“I love working with people.” She breathed, oozing sex appeal.

 

Jame had to hurriedly evacuate her mind from all dirty thoughts that the innocent, in anyone else's mouth, comment caused to run wildly through her head.

 

“You'll do great. Mr. Kaiba will be thrilled to work with you.” Jame stood and shooed her out of her office. “Mr. Tanaka will be contacting you in a few days. He's the head of personnel for the main office.”

 

A smile of vapid pleasure flitted over the blonde's face. “Mr. Tanaka, he sounds nice. I'll look forward to meeting with him.”

 

More thoughts, this time featuring Mr. Tanaka's middle aged, somewhat scandalized face floated through her head as she watched the new blond bunny wiggle seductively down the hall. “I wonder if I should start packing now?”

 

~*~*~*

Yugi

~*~*~*

 

The Millennium Necklace hit with a thunk in the center of the table. “How about I bet this?”

 

Bakura, holding a full house, nearly yelled his thanks to the gods. This was undoubtedly the best poker game he'd ever been in. Ryou, dancing around the Kaiba's living room trying to keep busy by doing aerobics with Anzu, was nearly flattened by the wave of sheer euphoria from his darker half.

 

“No betting Millennium Items.” Yugi mumbled absently around a mouthful of popcorn.

 

“Why not?!” Bakura and Yuai said at the same time, with matching miffed looks on their faces.

 

Yugi, sucking the end of his thumb distractedly, while looking at his cards, shook his head. “Chaos, havoc, end of the world kind of stuff. Two cards.” He set his discarded cards down on the table.

 

“Stupid rule.” Bakura eyed the golden necklace greedily.

 

“I agree. It's mine, I should be able to bet it if I want.” Yuai glared at the thing.

 

“That's right, it's hers. She should bet it if she wants.” Bakura nodded to Yuai showing his firm support of her decision.

 

Malik, passing with another tub of popcorn to join his yami's continuing MST blitz, shook his head. “No. Yugi's right. No destroying the world over poker games.”

 

“It'll hardly destroy the world.” Yuai refused to pick the thing up. “All it does is catch your hair in it's clasp and smack you in the face if you lean over too quickly.” And give you screaming nightmares about being crushed into a wall by a speeding car. Gotta love those!

 

Yami ambling by with a computer print out of the day's stock market report, reached over, picked up the necklace and dropped it back in Yuai's lap. “You're supposed to keep it.”

 

Bakura snarled and grumpily returned to his cards. Yuai snarled at the golden thing and grumpily returned to her cards. Yugi picked up two cards and sighed.

 

Mokuba set three of his cards down and looked up the stairs. “Should we check on big brother?”

 

Honda trying to wrestle the DVD out of it's case nodded. “It's been… what nearly a day. That medicine's got to have worn off by now.”

 

“He has been overworking himself for weeks now. The rest is probably good for him.” Yuai sulkily nudged one card across the table.

 

“I'll go look in on him.” Yami pulled a pencil out from behind his ear and jotted something down on the papers, while ambling towards the stairs.

 

Yuai watched him walk away, wondering if she could slip the necklace to Bakura under the table. She really didn't want to repeat that dream again. Last night she had dreamed the same stupid dream four times.

 

It started the same way every time. She was walking down the road reading a shopping list. She couldn't remember what had been on the list, but she'd been checking them off as she walked. A small cluster of plastic shopping bags had been hanging from her wrist, cutting the circulation off to her fingers with their thin plastic straps that masqueraded as handles. She even could feel a light coating of sweat stick to the back of her neck.

 

As she walked, people whisked by her, darting here and there as they went about their errands. It had been like a hundred other days. Nothing strange, nothing new. Just the same old, same old.

 

Then it would happen, the sound of brakes shrieking. Her head turning to look over at the street as people gasped and scattered, but she couldn't. She alone of the crowd was frozen on the sidewalk as a large green car with a gleaming chrome grill swerved to avoid another car, ran up over the curb and slammed her back into the wall. It all would happen so quickly, so very quickly.

 

The sick sensation of looking down at herself and seeing nothing below her chest but the crumpled fender. The absence of feeling in her legs. The bright splash of blood that forced it's thickness out of her mouth as she tried to scream, to beg, to cry. The sudden blaze of pain that sprang out from her broken body as she desperately tried to lift her hands, only to find that they too were pinned to the wall. After, the even more terrifying swoop of darkness, that left her all alone with nothing but the pain for company, knowing that all there was left for her was that pain. That she'd never be able to escape it.

 

It had been early morning, before the sun had even begun it's rise, that she had wrenched herself out of her unwanted dreams and hurtled the necklace across the room. Four times had been enough, more than enough, and if in the early morning Yami's words crept back to her head and cuddled down with her like a hissing cobra, then she'd just make sure she didn't go shopping like that anymore.

 

“It lets the person see the future.”

 

~*~*~*

Jonouchi

~*~*~*

“Breakfast!” Mokuba's voice rang cheerfully down the hall.

 

Jonouchi quickly spat his mouthful of toothpaste into the sink and dashed for the door. The kid was already hopping down the stairs, passing Kaiba, who was trying to tie his tie and read the paper at the same time. Yuai was flitting down below, gathering her books into her book bag.

 

“Morning.” He pecked a quick kiss on Kaiba's cheek and bolted down the stairs, following the smell of pancakes and bacon into the dinning room. Mokuba was already sitting in front of a huge stack of soft fluffy cakes and pouring syrup on them.

 

“Hey, leave some for me!” Jo sat down and almost instantly a plate of identical pancakes was placed in front of him by the cook.

 

Mokuba laughed, “There's plenty. The cook made extra today because it's a holiday.” The kid took a huge forkful and crammed it into his mouth, making his cheeks puff out like a squirrels.

 

“Today's a holiday?” Jo slathered butter on his cakes. “Didn't know that.”

 

“All Souls Day.” Kaiba walked in and sat down. He was dressed all in black, black suit, black tie, even his silk shirt was a dusky black.

 

“No school? Cool.” Jo poured syrup on his breakfast, watching the sweet, thick liquid coat down the sides of his stack and pool onto the plate.

 

“No, no school.” Kaiba sounded sad.

 

Jo looked up. Kaiba was looking off into space. His blue eyes watching the shadows that seemed to loom up around the room. As he watched, the shadows slid around Kaiba's chair. “Ah, maybe you should move.” Jo watched the shadows send little tendrils of darkness out, catching at Kaiba's pant legs.

 

“No point.” Kaiba sighed tiredly, his black clothing shifting across his body like a living being. “It's All Souls Day, Jo. No point trying to get away from them.

”

Mokuba, gulping down another mouthful, nodded. “Yeah, but you better eat up. The cook's not going to be here for the rest of the day.”

 

Jo, still mesmerized by the shifting shadows, nodded. “Why don't I have any shadows then? Don't I get shadows?”

 

“No, you don't have any shadows.” Kaiba picked up his cup of coffee and sipped it as the shadows creaped up his legs. “You only have shadows if you killed someone.”

 

“Oh, Gozaburo.” Jo watched as a shadow slid down Kaiba's arm, twining itself around his wrist.

 

“No, love.” Kaiba looked up at him. “You.”

 

A blow to his side and searing pain drove him back into the real world. The man standing above him smiled almost pleasantly as he unsnapped the button of his worn dirty jeans. “Time to earn your keep, whore.”

 

~*~*~*

Review and let your voice be heard!

 

Dragonlady222: Yes, the mystery is thickening and it still has a ways to go. Go ahead and give a guess if you want. I was really being evil when I plotted this out, and twisted, and probably convinced myself I should go for therapy. Still, you'll love it.

 

Sakiyama: Yep, another confusing one, and you'll have to watch close. I'm sprinkling the story with red herrings, solid clues and other assorted mischief. You know me, I love to entertain!

 

Daebird: Okay, so I'm not quite done pushing Kaiba around yet. I really had problems giving Yuai that item. I hate the OCs that suddenly spring up with an item and go waving it around the story, but Yuai really needed to have it. She won't be keeping it long though ^-^ Hmmm. Considered that threesome, but you'll have to wait and see. As you noticed, Seth is at least lurking around the edges of the story. Will he have a bigger part? Hmmm. You'll have to wait and see.