Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Return To Paradise ❯ You Can't Kill the Dead ( Chapter 19 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

WARNING: EXTREME VIOLENCE IN THE BEGINNING OF THIS CHAPTER.

//……//=Bakura to Ryou through mindlink

/…….//=Ryou to Bakura through mindlink.

[……..]=phone conversations

You Can't Kill The Dead

The tip of Tony's knife touched Bakura's throat when the other man grabbed his arm. “Don't do it now! The boss said he wanted him to suffer, right? If you kill him now, we won't be able to have our fun.”

Tony looked down at Bakura and threw his head down, making it collide with force onto the bottom of the truck bed.

“I can't wait to use him at target practice. I think we'll begin our fun when we get out of town. We don't want the cops coming after us.”

“Let's see what he has on him. You check him, Pat.”

Pat kneeled on the truck bed and reached into Bakura's pocket. “That stuff will keep his ass out, right?”

Tony nodded. “Yeah, that chloroform stuff will keep him out for at least a few hours.”

“Hey, he has a cell phone!” Pat said, removing it from Bakura's pocket. “Let's see who this punk knows. It might have Seto's number on it.”

Tony laughed. “Do it! Check it out! If Seto can hear his painful death, then think of how cool that would be!”

Pat chuckled. “Yeah, he can hear this little punk suffer! Great idea! This punk does know Seto Kaiba! Here's his phone number. Let's see……there's a Yugi Motou, an Aria chick, an Aten dude, and here's the Home phone number. What the---? Charlie's Chicken Coop?”

“That last one is a chicken restaurant near KaibaCorp. They have good Chicken Wings. Hey! We should call his home….and let those that live with him know that he'll be pushing up the daisies.”

“We'll call his home when we get to Seto's place. This one is going to be fun to torture.”

Pat and Tony watched as the truck crossed the city limits. The cityscape had been replaced by fields and wooded areas. Civilization was far behind them as they approached the Kaiba Summer Residence.

The driver stopped the car at the Kaiba home and reached into the door to grab an axe. He chopped at the chains binding the doors of the gate. With several strikes the chains broke. He picked the chains up off of the ground and tossed them into the back of the truck.

“We can use these chains to keep this little bastard in line.”

“He's still out cold,” Tony said.

Pat chuckled. “He won't be out for too much longer, though,” he said, cocking his gun.

Bakura's lip twitched and his eyelids began to flutter.

“I think he's coming around.”

“I think it's time we call his home. Let's have a little fun.”

Tony dialed the number, grinning. Bakura began to moan as his breathing began to return to normal.

The truck pulled into the driveway and curved around towards the mausoleum beside the summer mansion.

Tony and Pat grabbed Bakura's ankles and pulled him off of the truck bed. Bakura's head and body fell onto the gravel, cutting his forehead and cheek.

[Ishtar-Itemri Residence.]

“Yeah, hello! Who is this?”

[Malik.Who is this?]

“Who we are is not important. We have Seto's little white-haired fairy here.”

Bakura opened a weary eye and winced as pain radiated through his back.

[Who is this?! What do you want?]

//Ryou….//

[What do you want?! Please don't hurt him!]

“Say goodbye to Kaiba's little fuck toy! Pat!”

Pat's gun discharged and Bakura let out a howl of pain as his left foot burned.

“HOLY FUCK!” Bakura screamed, tugging at the ropes that bound his wrists together.

[`KURA! NO!]

/Yami?! BAKURA?!/

//RYOU……SHIT!//

[Please stop! Don't hurt him!]

“Say goodbye to him!”

The driver of the car grabbed the chains and struck Bakura's face, cutting his face again. Tony hung up and quick-dialed Seto's phone number.

Bakura blinked and rolled over on his side, his face and leg covered in blood. He struggled with the bonds on his arms and legs. The chains hit him again on the head, painting his white hair with crimson blood.

“What's wrong? Most people would have died already! His skull should be cracked open!”

/Yami! Talk to me! Where are you?/

//Can't see…..blood in my face.//

/Bakura, are you okay?/

//I think I've been shot in my leg….This bastard keeps hitting me with chains!//

Tony held up his hand. “Hold on, Rick! Let's leave a little for Seto Kaiba.”

[Seto Kaiba.]

“Greetings, Kaiba.”

[Ryou?]

“I'm afraid not. I have your little play toy here. Pat!”

Pat's gun discharged again hitting Bakura in the hip. Bakura let out a growl and another scream.

“KAIBA! RYOU'S SAFE!”

[BAKURA?!]

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Bakura? You mean this isn't the kid?!”

[Let him go or you will suffer the consequences!]

“I don't think so, Kaiba! This is what you get for biting off more than you can chew!”

Tony leaned down beside Bakura's bloody body and placed the knife at Bakura's throat.

“In speaking of biting---“

Bakura turned his head and bit into Tony's hand as Tony raked the knife half-way across Bakura's neck. He dropped the cell phone onto the grass.

Tony let out a scream and Pat fired his gun at Bakura, hitting the yami in the chest multiple times.

Bakura curled up in a ball and with his fury, pulled his arms and legs apart, breaking the ropes binding him. He favored his right leg as he stood up, facing his assailants.

[Bakura! What's happening?]

Bakura's hair spiked and his eyes darkened as blood dripped off of his hair, face, neck, leg, and chest.

A thick, purple mist surrounded them and the men were frozen with fear.

The barrel of Pat's gun twisted and Pat dropped it.

Rick grabbed his neck and his face begun to turn purple.

Bakura grabbed the chains from the ground and swing them around in the air.

“Rick! Get out of the way!” Pat yelled.

/Yami! What's going on?!/

“I can't…..move…”

//One good strike on the head deserves another! Goodbye….head!//

Bakura cracked the chains across Rick's skull, sending blood and brains onto the grass. Rick collapsed and Bakura turned to Tony.

Bakura reached out and gripped Tony's neck. He squeezed tightly and took the knife from the ground.

/Bakura! Where are you?/

//Seto's summer home……Ryou….I need Ishtar.//

/Malik and I can be---./

//NO! I NEED ISHTAR!//

/Okay. I'll tell him./

Bakura stabbed Tony in the chest and raked the knife down, splitting Tony open. Tony's eyes rolled into the back of his head as his intestines and organs fell onto the ground.

He dropped Tony's corpse and turned to Pat with the knife in his hand.

Pat tried to move, but was paralyzed by the mist surrounding him.

[Bakura!]

Bakura limped up to the man and grabbed the man's open mouth. He pulled down with a hard tug and the jaw was ripped from its socket. Blood poured from the man. Bakura's canines sharpened. He grabbed Pat's head and used the knife to decapitate the victim.

The body fell and Bakura fell on top of it.

Bakura gripped his throat as blood trickled from his cut throat. His body began to shake.

[Bakura!]

//Ryou…call Seto……..need…..help.//

/Okay, baby, I'll call Seto!/

//I'll hang up on him so it frees up his line.//

Bakura went limp on the corpse below him. His eyes blinked slowly as the smell of blood saturated his senses. He reached over for the phone, but missed.

//Can't reach…..//

/Hold on, Bakura. We'll be there soon./

Bakura's nails dug into the ground and pulled him towards the phone. Pain radiated through his shoulder. He reached the phone and turned it off.

The yami's hand went to his throat.

/Yami, talk to me. Keep talking to me./

//Ry….if you come….you might not like…..what you see.//

/……….What did they do to you?/

//I've been shot in the hip, left foot, and the chest, beaten with chains, and….my…..---.//

/Yami? Bakura, stay awake!/

//Ry….can't breathe……my throat….//

/Bakura, please stay awake! I have Seto on the line now! Keep talking to me!/

//Ryou…..can't breathe…..black.//

/Black? What's black, baby?/

//………………….//

Ryou clutched the phone in his hand. /Bakura?!/

//……………….//

Ryou felt a pain in his chest. “Seto, something bad has happened to Bakura and he needs help!”

“Where is he?”

“He's at your summer home! He's been shot and he will need medical attention!”

Malik put a hand on Ryou's shoulder. “Ry, calm down. Bakura's already dead. He can't die again…………………….can he?”

“I don't care! All I know is that my husband needs help!”

“Okay, Ry. I'll call Dr. Zira and get him. I'll bring Marik with me.”

Ryou took a deep breath. “I really want to come.”

“Ry, we're going to need every second we can. Let's see if Zira can treat him first.”

“But he needs to get into my Millennium Ring to heal!”

“Ryou, Zira will handle it. We'll call you with an update. Stay put at home.”

Ryou nodded. “Okay, Seto. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Ry.”

Ryou sat down on the couch and hung up the phone. Malik sat beside him and took his hand.

Maxine stepped in front of Ryou, concern written all over her face. “Bakura is a strong fighter. He has honor in his heart.”

“Bakura will be okay, Ryou,” Malik said, consolingly.

Ryou closed his eyes, trying to connect with Bakura again. Bakura didn't respond.

“My Bakura….he's hurt badly.”

*****************************

Marik crossed his arms and legs and tapped his fingers nervously on his arm. “Are we there yet??”

“For the sixteenth time, no!” Donny replied from the driver's seat.

Seto put his hand on Marik's arm. “Chill out.”

“Easy for you to say, Kaiba! I'm going to string up whoever did this by their intestines!”

Seto shrugged. “From what I heard over the phone, that might have been done already.”

Marik shook his head. “Why did that shithead go off on his own?!”

“Marik, before you go interrogating Bakura, let me attend to his wounds,” Zira said.

Marik nodded and growled as he looked at the woods. Sweat began glistening on Marik's forehead.

“Is it too hot in here?” Zira asked him.

“No………blood. Lots of it. I smell it,” Marik replied with a growl.

Seto looked at the sweating yami. “We're at least a mile from the house! How can you smell it?”

“I have a very good sense of smell. Blood I can smell from a long ways away.”

Seto looked out the front window and saw the gate's chain had been broken. “Over there!”

Donny raced towards the mausoleum where Bakura was laying on top of another body.

Marik jumped out of the car and ran towards his partner. “'Kura!”

“WAIT,MARIK! DON'T MOVE HIM!” Kaiba called to him. “Ryou told me about his injuries!”

Zira ran out of the car and kneeled beside Bakura's twitching, gasping body. “Roll him over gently, Marik. Very gingerly.”

Marik helped move Bakura onto his back. Blood was everywhere. Bakura's body, his clothes, and his hair were drenched with blood. Marik covered his nose and mouth with one hand and took Bakura's hand with the other.

Zira shook his head. “This is bad,” he said as he opened his medical bag.

Seto and Donny looked at the dead bodies surrounding Bakura. The grass was covered in blood. Organs and intestines were scattered among the grass.

“These guys didn't have a chance.”

Seto reached into one of the men's wallets. “Rocher's men. These guys were Rocher's goons!”

“Why did they go after Bakura?”

“They thought they had Ryou. They were going to do this to Ry!”

Donny shook his head. “Considering Bakura's injuries, there's no way Ryou would have survived the attack.”

Seto stood at Bakura's feet and watched the yami struggle for breath. Bakura's body twitched as he struggled to bring air into his body.

“Marik, take his hand. I need him to stop holding his neck,” Zira said.

Marik took Bakura's other hand and leaned down to Bakura's face. “I'm sorry, Itemri….I'm so sorry.”

Bakura's eyes looked into Marik's. Their gazes locked. Even though Bakura could not say a word, Marik could tell exactly what Bakura was saying.

Marik released one of Bakura's hands and reached to pet Bakura's hair. “Shhh….it's okay.”

Zira shook his head. “This is going to be a tough one to fix.”

“At least patch up his wounds so he's not bleeding all over my limo! We'll take him home.”

Zira shook his head. “No. Ryou must come here.”

Marik shook his head. “Ryou can't be allowed to see this!”

“I can't guarantee that we can move him at all!”

Donny nodded. “Marik, if we bring Bakura home, think about all the gossip those papers will publish! You have to bring Ryou here so he can put Bakura in his Item.”

Marik looked down at Bakura's eyes, the white-haired yami clearly in discomfort. “Fine. Donny, come with me.” Marik looked down at Bakura and leaned down to him. “I want you to relax. Stay with us, Itemri. I….I don't want to lose you.” Marik kissed Bakura's cheek, lapping up a mixture of Bakura's blood and his victim's blood. “Love you, `Kura.”

Marik stood up and returned to the limo with Donny.

Seto and Zira watched the limo pull away. Seto grit his teeth and kneeled beside Bakura, taking the yami's hand. “Rocher….he'll pay for this.”

“Ryou would definitely be dead if these men picked him up. I have to admit, I'm surprised to see Bakura still conscious.”

Seto looked down at the weakening yami. “Bakura, thank you. I'm sorry this had to happen.”

Bakura's eyes began to close as they peered up into the sky.

“No, no, Bakura. Stay with us,” Seto said, tapping Bakura on the cheek. “You can't go to sleep.”

Zira removed Bakura's shoe and found a large bullet wound in Bakura's ankle. He took a pair of tweezers and tried to dislodge the bullet.

Seto watched as Bakura arched his back up in pain, struggling for breath. “Relax, Bakura. Zira knows what he is doing.”

Zira removed the bullet from Bakura's ankle and wrapped the wound in gauze.

“Hey, Zira, why not try to sew his throat back together or something? Then he could breathe!”

Zira shook his head. “The windpipe has been severed…so have his vocal chords. I can't sew them back together. He needs the healing of that necklace thing he lives in to heal those wounds.”

Seto looked down at Bakura again. “Stay with us, Bakura.”

Zira went to Bakura's hip and tried to remove the jeans from Bakura's hip, but the blood had dried, making it fuse with the wound. “Mr. Kaiba, Bakura needs his Millennium Item. A lot of these wounds, I can't tend to without better equipment.”

“How so?”

“I can't get to his hip without ripping his wound open. The blood has dried around the wound.”

Seto rubbed Bakura's arm. “Still there?”

Bakura blinked, but his eyelids started to flutter.

“Will he bleed to death?”

Zira shrugged. “He's already dead to my knowledge. I don't know if the dead can die again.”

“Bakura always joked that the dead can only die once.”

Zira handed Seto another compress. “Hold that to his neck. I'm surprised he's still conscious.”

“It takes a lot to take him down.” Seto looked around at the dead men nearby. “If the media knew about this, they'd be blowing all of this out of proportion.”

Zira removed another bullet from Bakura's body. “I think it would give you the edge over whomever has done this.”

Seto narrowed his eyes. “It wasn't supposed to be this way.”

Tony's cellphone began to ring and Seto raised his head. He left Bakura and walked over to the corpse. He reached into Tony's suit jacket and removed the cell phone. He turned on the phone.

[Is the job done?]

“Not quite, Rocher.”

[Kaiba?! What are you doing there?]

“Your men caught the wrong person.”

[Where are my men?]

“It was a case of mistaken identity, Rocher. Your men bit off more than they could chew, I'm afraid.”

[Kaiba, you son of a bitch! I'll get you for this!]

“This story won't fare well in the papers, Rocher! I think you had better think twice about messing with me and my family.”

[This isn't over yet, Kaiba!]

Seto heard the call being disconnected. “Rocher's not a happy camper to say the least.”

Seto returned to Bakura's side and lightly shook the yami awake. “Ryou won't be too much longer, Bakura.”

Soon after, the limo pulled through the gates. The car had barely come to a stop by the time Ryou ran to Bakura's side.

Ryou's eyes filled with tears and caressed Bakura's cheek. “Poor baby….”

Marik ran beside Ryou and watched Bakura's blood trickle onto the grass.

Ryou closed his eyes and the Millennium Ring glowed. Zira and Seto shielded their eyes as the bright light came from the Ring. When they looked at the grass, only blood stains remained.

Ryou reached up and touched the Ring. “His injuries were serious.”

Seto nodded. “I'm surprised he was still conscious.”

“As Bakura is fond to say, you can't kill the dead. It will take him a while to heal.”

Marik looked at the three corpses on the ground. He walked over to one of them and growled at him. “Too bad I can't resurrect this asshole….I would have killed him slower.” His lip curled angrily. “This whole place smells like death.”

“Rocher knows about his men meeting an unfortunate end.”

Marik lifted his head and returned to the crowd. “This place reeks of the Shadow Realm.”

Ryou shuddered. “This place does feel chilly.”

“What shall I do with the bodies, sir?” Donny asked.

“Get rid of them.”

Marik grinned. “I'm sure Rocher will appreciate the bodies of his men back.”

“No. The media will point the finger at me for their deaths. They will make up some kind of crap like we executed them in cold blood.”

Marik grabbed one ankle of two men and began to drag them towards the woods. “The beats of the forest will enjoy a little snack.”

“Marik, I don't think----.”

“Don't think! Drag!” Marik screamed at Donny furiously.

Ryou stepped by Donny. “Don't blame him, Donny. I'm sure all of this blood around here is sparking his bloodlust.”

Donny grabbed the other man's ankle and dragged him behind Marik.

Zira wrapped his tools up in a towel and zipped them up in his medical bag. “I wish I could have done more for Bakura, Ryou, but there's nothing really that I could do except remove the bullets.”

“If he was human, he'd be dead, Ry. I don't know how he remained conscious through all that.”

Ryou sighed. “He'll be in his soulroom sleeping for a while.”

Seto looked at the mausoleum beside them. “Rocher's goons thought you were Bakura, Ry.” He looked down at Ryou and stepped up to him. “If Rocher's goons would have gotten their hands on you…….”

Ryou shook his head. “I'm very grateful to Bakura for saving me.”

Seto reached up and cupped Ryou's cheek in his hand. “I thanked Bakura for doing what he did. I know it's of little consolation, but I had to say something to him.”

“He'll be okay.”

Seto wrapped his arms around Ryou and hugged him tightly. “I would have felt responsible for your death…I don't want that on my conscience.”

Ryou returned the embrace and sighed. “I wish Bakura didn't have to be hurt because of me.”

“Bakura is tough, Ry. I know he'll make it,” Seto said, touching Ryou's cheek lightly.

Marik and Donny returned. “Rocher will think twice about fucking with us now,” Marik said with a grin.

“Mr. Kaiba, I have other appointments I have to attend to.”

“Very well.”

Donny returned to the driver's seat of the limo. Ryou walked to the car with Seto's arm around him.

Ryou held Seto's hand in the car as the group returned to Domino. Seto looked at Ryou periodically as he sat beside him.

“How's he doin', Ry?”

Ryou shook his head. “Not too good.”

Marik crossed his arms and angrily tapped his fingers against his arm. “If Rocher was right here now, I'd rip out his esophagus and play in his blood.”

“Maxine is still at your place, right, Marik?”

Marik nodded. “Yeah, she's still around keeping an eye on the place.”

“I might ask Kendall to come over for extra security.”

“I can handle it, Kaiba,” Marik said with a sneer. “I will care for my family until `Kura can get back on his feet.”

Seto raised an eyebrow. “You could be waiting a while.”

“I'll wait as long as I have to.”

“But, Marik, you're gone from work all day,” Ryou interjected.

Marik continued to tap his fingers on his arm as the scent of blood continued wafting through his nasal passages. “I will handle it.”

Ryou gave Seto's hand a slight squeeze when the CEO wanted to argue his case. “Rocher might be quiet now that he knows I'm a threat to him,” Seto said. “He'll think twice before he goes to any media.”

“I'm inclined to agree,” Ryou said.

Seto looked down at Ryou. “Ry, tomorrow night I want to invite you and your family to a dinner at KaibaCorp. Will you come?”

Ryou nodded. “I don't think that would be a problem.”

“Good. I invited Aten, Robbie, Aria and her kids. I even invited Yugi and Glenn. I figured that they would like to come see Joey.”

“What about your brother?”

Seto nodded. “I invited everyone. It'd be nice to get to see the family again, despite the difficult situation at hand.”

“I agree. I'll tell Malik about it when we get home.”

“Very well. I'm looking forward to having everyone back at KaibaCorp again.”

Ryou looked out of the limo's window as he checked on Bakura's condition in his soul room.

Ryou laid his head on Seto's shoulder and retreated into the soulroom. He knocked softly on Bakura's door and opened it slowly.

Bakura was laying on his bed face-down. Ryou saw his sides rising and falling rapidly.

“Bakura?”

Bakura continued to breathe heavy. Ryou slowly approached and sat beside Bakura.

“I'm here, `Kura.”

Bakura reached back and took Ryou's hand. He squeezed Ryou's hand, keeping himself turned away from Ryou's eyesight.

“I'm so glad you're still with us, baby,” Ryou said, rubbed Bakura's arm.

Ryou watched as Bakura's breathing slowly became more calm. Bakura's grip had weakened and the yami began to snore.

The hikari ran to his room and grabbed a soft blanket. He returned to Bakura's room and covered his yami in the blanket.

Ryou ran his fingers through his yami's white hair. He crept out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

“He knew I was in there. He's not in good shape, but at least he can still sense me.”

****************************

Miranda went into the baby's room and placed the baby's laundry into the dirty laundry basket. The baby was sleeping quietly in the crib. Her tiny fingers twitched in her sleep.

She walked past Robbie's room and found her son laying on the bed with his back towards the door.

“Robbie, are you awake?”

“Yes.”

“Tired?”

“No.”

“Your father says that there's a show on World War Two submarines tonight.”

“Whoopie.”

Miranda leaned against the door. “He wants to know if you would watch it with him tonight.”

“Nah.”

“Are you sick?”

“No.”

“I thought you loved military history shows. Did you see that one already?”

“Maybe.”

Miranda put down the laundry basket. “Robbie, you're not yourself. Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure?”

“Go away, mom.”

Miranda stood in the doorway, shocked at her son's request. Never did she hear him say to go away.

“Robbie, do you need to---?”

“No. Go away.”

Miranda picked up her laundry basket and walked down the stairs. She saw Daniel sitting on the couch, watching “Tora! Tora! Tora!”

“Is something wrong with Robbie?”

Daniel shrugged. “Not that I know of. Why, did he say something?”

“He just told me to go away. He wouldn't even look at me!”

“He just came home from work and went upstairs. That's all I know. I can try to talk to him.”

Miranda sighed. “He's not been himself. I told him about that show on tonight and he didn't even show any interest. That's not our Robbie up there, Daniel.”

“I'll talk to him. I know he's worried about Aten.”

“Good luck.” Miranda walked to the kitchen and saw the basement door open.

She looked downstairs into the dark basement. “Anyone there?”

…………………..Silence.

She turned on the light and took a few steps into the basement. She looked downstairs and didn't see anyone. She took a few more steps and saw that a blanket had been placed on the floor.

“Hello?”

……………….Silence.

Miranda walked down the stairs and placed the laundry basket on the floor. She opened the washer door and heard a sniffle behind her. She turned and saw Aten curled up in a fetal position under the stairs.
”Aten? What are you doing here?” she asked, approaching him slowly.

“Mother is upstairs. I'm waiting for him to come downstairs.”

Miranda looked side to side. “Aten, your mother isn't here. Your mother lives in another house.”

Aten sat on a blanket under the steps, looking at her. “My mother is here. She's with my grandfather.”

Miranda nodded. “Aten, you should go upstairs.”

“But what if I see my grandfather?”

“Your grandfather……..moved out. He's not here anymore. He won't be coming around here ever again.”

Aten looked at her with glassy eyes. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Aten. I am sure.”

Miranda thought for a moment. “Are you sure you don't want to go upstairs?”

“I'm waiting for my mother.”

“Okay, Aten. When you want to come upstairs, you can. Are you cold?”

Aten shook his head. “No.”

“Okay, Aten. Feel free to come upstairs when you feel ready.”

Miranda turned and filled the washer with the dirty clothes. She put the detergent in and walked up the stairs. She went to Daniel. “Aten is in the basement.”

“He is?! I thought he was terrified of the basement.”

“He is! I have no idea he'd actually go down there. Can you go downstairs and get him? If he is stuck in a flashback and comes out of it down there, he'll be difficult to deal with. Did you speak to Robbie?”

“I'll get Aten up here first, then I'll go speak to him,” Daniel said, standing up.

Daniel walked down the basement steps and saw Aten looking out the basement window. “Aten, it's time to go upstairs.”

“I'm looking for mommy.”

Daniel took a deep breath. “Ryou isn't here, Aten. Come upstairs.”

Aten turned and looked at Daniel. “I'm hungry.”

“Well, come upstairs and we'll reheat some dinner for you.”

Aten followed Daniel upstairs and sat at the kitchen table.

“Why did you go downstairs, Aten?” Daniel asked as he took out Aten's plate from the fridge.

“I heard a voice downstairs. It was a woman's voice. It told me to come downstairs.”

Daniel put the plate in the microwave. “Nobody was downstairs, Aten.”

“I thought I heard someone…..a woman? A child? Something was downstairs.”

“When this microwave beeps, take it out, okay? Be careful. It might be hot. I have to check on the Rob-ster.”

Aten nodded and Daniel walked into the living room.

“I'm heating up some dinner for him. He said he was hungry. I'm going to check on Robbie.”

Miranda rubbed her temples. “Thanks, dear.”

Daniel went upstairs and knocked on Robbie's door. “Little Soldier? You awake?”

Robbie nodded as he continued to lay in bed. “Yeah.”

“What's wrong?”

“Nothing.”

Daniel leaned against the doorway. “May I come in?”

Robbie shrugged. “If you want to.”

Daniel walked in and shut the door. He took Robbie's desk chair and sat on it. “So what's on your mind?”

Robbie was silent. He bit his lip as he looked at the floor. “Nothing.”

“Now you can't fool your mother and I, Robert Allen. We know something's wrong.”

Robbie rubbed his eye. “I don't know what I can do about anything anymore, dad. I can't make Aten not die on me. I can't help that Miracle is the way she is. I can't make either of them better.”

“Robbie, you can't save them all.”

Robbie's cheeks suddenly became covered in streaming tears. “I don't want him to die, dad! Sometimes he seems like he is okay, but the next minute, he is a completely different person. He won't eat, he can't sleep, he's getting weaker every day! Mira's getting better on the drug withdrawal, but still…..I know it's not her fault that her mom was on all those drugs, but it's hard when she cries for such a long time!”

Daniel nodded. “I know, Robbie. If you think Miracle is too much for you to handle by yourself, maybe you should put her in an orphanage.”

“No, I can't do that. An orphanage is no place for her. She needs special attention that they can't give her.”

“Then you have a decision to make Robert: Is this something that you are willing to tolerate or is it in the baby's best interest that you hand her over to the authorities?”

Robbie sniffled and wiped his eyes dry. “I want to make it better, but I can't control any of it.”

Daniel leaned back in his chair. “There are many things in this life we can't control. When I was with my crew in the Pacific, we came under enemy fire. We had to abandon ship. I knew there were people still on my boat. I had to make a decision at that moment. I couldn't control the ship sinking. I couldn't control the water that was pouring into the ship, but I had a duty to my men. My crew needed me.”

“What ended up happening?”

Daniel crossed his arms. “I lost two men that day. I couldn't get to them in time. It wasn't easy. I couldn't control the situation, Robert, but I could control how I let it affect me. I had the rest of my crew to be concerned about.”

“I think I see what you are saying.”

“You're going through rough times, Robbie. Just remember that it's how you react to the situation that determines the severity of the crisis. I'm not going to down-play the fact that Aten is dying. I know you're upset about what is happening. Your mother and I are concerned about him and you.”

A little sigh escaped Robbie. “I'm trying to keep myself up during this time, but I know I've been depressed. I have to talk to Dr. Chapman. I made an appointment to see him today for one session. I just need to get some things off my chest.”

“Well, it won't hurt. If you want some dinner, we have your plate in the fridge.”

“Thanks, dad,” Robbie said, sitting up. “That sounds like a good idea.”

***************************

Malik stood up quickly when he heard the raucous outside. He reached for the door as Marik pushed it open forcefully.

Ryou closed the door behind himself and heaved an exhausted sigh.

“How's Bakura? Is he okay?” Malik asked nervously.

Marik shot his hikari a nasty glance and rushed upstairs, taking two steps at a time.

Ryou ran his fingers through his hair. “Don't mind him, Malik. Bakura was bleeding pretty bad, so he's probably locking himself away for good reason.:

“THAT SON OF A BITCH! I'M GOING TO FUCKING CASTRATE HIM WITH MY MILLENNIUM ROD AND SERVE HIS DICK TO HIM ON A SILVER PLATTER!” the furious yami roared from behind his now-locked bedroom door. “I'M GOING TO STRING HIM UP BY HIS INTESTINES AND USE HIS BODY AS A FUCKING PINATA!”

Ryou moved to a seat and fell into it, exhausted. “Bakura's going to take some time to heal. His injuries were bad.”

Malik sat near Ryou and took his hand. “Will he make it?”

“Sure. You know Bakura's favorite saying: `You can't kill what is already dead.'”

Malik shrugged. “I guess so. He looked upstairs to hear the sound of a pounding mattress. “Marik is either punching the bed so hard it is squeaking, or he is going to town on himself because he is bloodlusted.”

“Knowing Marik, it's a little of both. If he breaks the bed, you can stay in my room tonight.”

Malik rolled his eyes. “Who can possibly sleep with that noise?”

“Well, Seto invited us all to a dinner at his place tomorrow night. If we can't sleep here, I'm sure he'd let us bunk there for a night.”

“Who did this to Bakura?”

Ryou winced and rubbed his forehead. “Seto's rival, Rocher. I was the intended target, but Rocher's men mistook him for me.”

Malik gave Ryou's hand a reassuring squeeze. “He'll be okay, Ry.”

“I know.” Ryou winced again. “I have to go lay down for a little while.”

Ryou walked up the stairs slowly, rubbing his forehead.

//Ry….where are you?// a weak voice whimpered from the soulroom.

/I'll be in there in a few minutes, `Kura. I have to lay down./

Ryou walked into the bedroom and looked on the dresser. He stopped short.

“I thought that plant died. I was going to throw it out today.”

//What?//

/Remember that plant on our bureau?/

//Yes// the yami struggled to say through the mindlink.

/Well, it's alive!/

//Yay.//

Ryou walked to the bed and laid down. “Plants don't go from being brown and dead to bright and blossoming in a matter of a few hours.”

Ryou closed his eyes and appeared in his own soulroom. He rubbed his head, the migraine throbbing in his brain.

He walked into Bakura's soulroom and found the yami laying on his bed, weak and paler than usual. Ryou walked to Bakura's bed and sat down, running his fingers through Bakura's hair.

“How is your throat?”

//Hurting.// a voice responded from nowhere.

“What about your chest?”

//Now I know how Aten feels.// the voice responded again as the yami laid motionless on the bed.

“My poor yami,” Ryou said

//I'll be fine soon, Ry. Don't worry about me.//

“I'm amazed you weren't dead.”

A small smile crossed Bakura's face. //I already suffered one death. The gods would be cruel to allow a person to suffer many deaths. One death is painful enough.//

Bakura closed his eyes. //I'm tired, Ry. I'm going to sleep now.//

Ryou rubbed Bakura's back. “Okay. Pleasant dreams.” Ryou leaned down and planted a kiss on Bakura's cheek. He stood up and left the room. Ryou sat beside the crackling fireplace in his own soulroom. Bakura was in bad shape, but he was going to make it.

Ryou covered himself in a blanket and watched the fire burn. He yawned and closed his eyes, falling asleep.

****************************

Aten opened his eyes quickly in the middle of the night, his body covered in sweat from the nightmare.

He felt a body pressed up against him from behind. He turned his head and saw…..the familiar face.

His eyes widened in horror.

It was his grandfather.

Aten's heart quickened and his bottom lip trembled in horror.

He slowly picked up the arm of his grandfather, careful not to wake him. The person behind him snored, ignoring the fact that his arm was being moved.

Once the arm was off of him, he slowly, cautiously, slipped from under the covers and out of bed.

Aten looked at the figure laying in bed, his grandfather's curly black hair was visible in the moonlight. `I have to get out of here before he wakes up! I have to find mother!'

Aten opened up the bedroom door without waking up the figure in the bed. He crept down the stairs and looked around. `Where is mother? Father?'

Aten opened up the front door and stepped out into the woods outside. He wandered down the road, the night air hitting his skin. `Get out of the woods…..find mother and father. Father will help mother defeat my grandfather.'

All around, Aten saw large trees. He heard car horns beeping around him, but he saw no cars. He walked quicker down the path and saw a tall building in the distance.

`Is that-----? It's got to be!'

Aten ran towards the building in the middle of the woods. As he ran, the rain began to fall from the sky. His hair dripped as the rain poured down harder.

He approached the tall building and looked up at it. `The Palace…..the High Priest will help me…….'

Updates: 12/27