Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Rewind 1 ❯ Home Sweet Home ( Chapter 14 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Nehti 
As they approach Earth, Serenity looks forward to reuniting with her brother. Arriving in Earth, they all realize what life in the Catacombs truly means. And who's this mystery woman?
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 12.06.2005 | Pages: 27 | Words: 30.5K | Visits: 241 | Status: Completed
As they approach Earth, Serenity looks forward to reuniting with her brother. Arriving in Earth, they all realize what life in the Catacombs truly means. And who's this mystery woman?
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 12.06.2005 | Pages: 27 | Words: 30.5K | Visits: 241 | Status: Completed
Guys, I can't tell you how grateful I am that you've actually stood by me for so long. I'm very sorry for the slow updates, but I have a lot of work to do in school etc,etc…Anyway, I felt like continuing this story for now. I'll finish my other one soon enough (YGO:Nemesis is only 8 chapters).
I wanted to thank you all, and apologize beforehand for this huge chapter. There must be many typos I haven't spotted yet, but I'll recheck it, so don't worry. This chapter is HUGE, but I personally enjoyed writing it a lot.
I guess this chappy will be a real lollipop for Bakura/Marik fans out there, so enjoy!!
Thanks a ton for your reviews! I swear I read them all, I just don't have time to answer any of them!!!!! I'm so sorry!! Once summer vacation comes, I'll be answering reviews all day long.
THANKYOU SO SO SO MUCH!!!!
Serenity tried to keep her heart from beating wildly in her chest, but it was, by all means, a fruitless effort. She felt the spacecraft lower to her mother-planet's surface and heard her heartbeat pounding frantically in her ears.
Soon…soon she'd be standing on solid ground. Earth's ground.
She was back. She couldn't believe it, but she was back.
And maybe…maybe she'd meet Joey…
At that last thought, her heart gave a sudden, painful lunge. Joey…
She watched her friends move around incessantly, gathering around the pilots' seats. They all watched through the huge window of the spaceship bridge in trepidation. They couldn't see very clearly yet, because of the dirt that the ship's landing had caused to flutter around them.
Serenity's heart just couldn't stop pounding. She was so focused on trying to relax, that the sudden jolt of Ryou tightening his grip on her hand shocked her into actual fright. It took her a moment to realize Ryou was seeking support in what was his first visit to Earth ever since his…well, past life.
Serenity made an attempt at a reassuring smile, which came out a bit shaky, but unique nonetheless. She reciprocated the tightening of Ryou's hand, making the albino turn to look at her. Ryou stared at her softly from under his long, silvery eyelashes and grinned at her in exactly the same reassuring-yet-slightly-nervous way.
“Excited?” Ryou asked knowingly, albeit a bit enthusiastically himself.
Serenity smiled wider and nodded vigorously, earning an identical kind smile from the elderly albino.
“Me too…” Ryou said, and turned slowly to look outside the window, where the mist was clearing, slightly.
Serenity's conduct suddenly changed though, as a new jerk of angst shot through her heart.
“Ryou, what if we find Joey and…he hates me? Or what if we don't find him at all? What if we meet my father instead…I don't want to see him again…”
Ryou gently cupped the back of Serenity's head with his wide palm and guided the girl's face to the crook of his neck. He petted her hair in the manner of a grandfather fondling his most favorite grandchild. Unsettling, yet, somehow…so right.
“Don't worry Serena. I'm sure we'll find your brother…as for your father” Ryou's warm brown eyes chilled a bit at the mentioning of the old drunkard “I'll never let him hurt you.” He said with an air of finality.
A cheeky grin appeared out of nowhere at Serenity's features “My hero.” She teasingly said, poking his belly.
Ryou wiggled out of her now tickling gasp and chuckled brightly. Suddenly, he grabbed the girl by her waist and hauled her to the air, ignoring the fact that he narrowly missed beheading Lena in the process. Serenity squealed as he gathered her in his arms.
“Of course” he confidently said, in the same teasing tone Serenity had used. “I shall protect you with my life, my Lady…”
“Oh, for goodness sake, I'm not a baby!!” Serenity lightly bashed the back of Ryou's head, making him grin and set her back to the ground carefully.
The both laughed in their customary childlike manner, each a perfect picture of innocence. It was quite unsettling, how innocent they both looked when laughing.
Serenity suddenly turned more serious “Thank you…for cheering me up.”
And it was true. There was still a sense of trepidation within her, but now her heartbeat flew in a much more relaxed manner in her veins.
“Don't mention it, Serena…anything for you” Ryou said through his sensually long lashes. Both he and the girl approached each other slowly, each one respectively licking their lips. For a moment, it looked as if they were going to kiss, when…
“A'right, break it up you two! Time to get off the ship, remember?!”
The lovebirds groaned at the sound of Taichi's voice, but complied to his request nonetheless. They held hands and tried to be content with just that, for now.
From the side, Lena and Rika were giving a tearful goodbye-hug to Marik, who smiled placatingly and tried to reassure them everything would be all right. But the girls would have none of it- not when their super idol playboy was going to be stranded on Earth, of all places!
“At least try to keep in touch, Marik!” Lena insisted for the umpteenth time that day.
“Who knows what those Earth barbarians will do to you?” Rika suspiciously said while looking at the still fogged up window.
“I'll be fine, girls, I promise! Honestly!” Marik finally started to lose his patience. He gave an exasperated look at Taichi, who just grinned and shrugged.
“Come on, you guys, we don't have all day!” an excited Yugi called from somewhere on the side, revealing how enthusiastic he was about a new adventure, even if it was in a place like Earth. For Yugi, it didn't matter where he would go, as long as it wasn't Yango.
Tea, who clung to the aforementioned spiky-haired boy's shirt, as usual, also gave her trademark smile.
“FRIENDS FOREVER! Right guys!?” she beamed at Taichi and Kenji, as well as all the others that wouldn't come down to Earth with her.
Taichi and Kenji exchanged long-suffering looks and quickly nodded at Tea's excited friendship lecture. They hoped it wouldn't last more than ten minutes this time. They didn't even want to think about the horrors they had endured during their short stay in Yango.
“Sure!” Lena and Rika called in unison. “Even if we never meet again, you guys will always be in our hearts!!”
`Don't egg her on!' the boys wanted to say, but it was too late, for Tea's eyes were positively sparkling with thoughts of everlasting friendship and love.
“GROUP HUG!!!!” Tea excitedly cried, making a tired-looking Yugi groan, and also making Lena and Rika dive for the aforementioned hug, taking Marik, Taichi, Kenji and the lovebirds along with them.
Rishid was the only one left out of the hug, and was currently staring at the big bushy lump that constituted of nine people being squeezed together in one gigantic mass.
Marik seemed a bit dizzy when he was released from the claws of the friendship preachers, only to become even dizzier when he got face to face with an irate-looking, see-through Bakura spirit.
“What the heck was that all about?! I swear, one of these days…” Bakura left the statement hanging as he sent the trademark evil glare towards Tea.
“Chill, Bakura. It's not like you're jealous of our friendship or anything, right?” Marik said in an equally evil tone, being careful to stay quiet, so as no one would see him talking to `thin air'.
Bakura's bloodshot eyes widened to the size of saucers “Oh no! Don't tell me the friendship drabble has altered your mind, too! Brightside being cheesy is one thing- he's always cheesy! But not you too, Marik!”
Marik smirked lop-sidedly and discreetly motioned for Bakura to follow him as he walked away.
“Don't worry Bakura. I'll never become friends with anyone but you. Happy now?” Marik cheekily asked, sending an unseen, amused glance at Bakura's direction.
“Now that's more like it…wait…what?” Bakura confusedly demanded, resisting the urge to bash his forehead with his palm. Ancient dark spirits did not admit to their insecurities.
`Am I…flirting with Bakura?' a thought came completely uncalled for in the tanned boy's mind. `No…No it can't be…but, I just did, didn't I?'
Marik turned his careful eyes towards Bakura, probing for some sign of discomfort or unusual irritation.
Nope. Everything all right. Bakura was as expressionless and regal as ever. He hadn't noticed.
Even if he had, he didn't seem to mind.
Marik tried his best to keep the last thoughts from returning in his mind, and focused on the task at hand: getting off the ship and finding a place to hide. It was the thousandth time that Marik reminded himself that he had no time for silly personal emotions and that he ought to ensure the means of his survival first and think about personal issues later.
…wait? `Personal issues?' When the heck had Bakura become a `personal issue'?
Oh…right. Ever since that night in the cave.
In this case, what did `personal issue' refer to? A relationship between friends, right? A feeling of brotherhood? Maybe even…No! Marik now shoved the thought frantically in the back of his mind. He could not afford to get distracted!!
He chanced an unbidden glance at the back of Bakura's floating head.
He could not afford to get distracted…
“Hey, Marik! Where are you going? The ramp is that way!” Ryou called from somewhere behind, and Marik realized he had been heading for the opposite direction. He tried his best not to look flustered, as his friends gave him a perplexed stare and Bakura barked out a derisive snort.
Marik closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. This was getting ridiculously out of hand.
“Well, this is it.” The tanned boy started saying once the small group reached the top of the ramp that would lead them to Earth once and for all “We'd better get down before people start getting suspicious. Spaceships don't land on plain soil every day on Earth. Nor in any other planet, for that matter.”
“Don't worry…” Serena muttered under her breath `No one will notice…”
“Master…” Rishid walked around, in order to come face to face with Marik, who seemed shaken at the sight of his brother. “Take care of yourself” Rishid said suddenly, as he bowed down to his knees in front of the young man.
The others watched with identical understanding smiles- except for Bakura who seemed to convey his compassion through his eyes- as Marik stretched a palm and laid it over Rishid's bald skull.
“I will, brother. We shall meet again.” He said, and as fast as it came, the moment was gone. Rishid curtly stood and walked back to stand beside Taichi and Lena. Marik's eerie eyes turned towards the young spaceship pilots and narrowed.
“Don't do anything unless you consult Rishido. Try to hide until you hear form either us or Kaiba. If you hear from Kaiba first, we are probably dead.”
At this, everyone except the invisible Bakura gulped dryly. Bakura, to his credit, seemed to take the news as a factual reality, even though, if he thought carefully, he'd remember he himself could not die.
His existence seemed so linked to Marik's these days…If Marik died, he would die too, he thought.
Taichi nodded in comprehension, earning a persistent stare from Marik, as though the tanned boy was attempting to find out through his eyes whether Taichi was up to this task or not.
“Let's go!” Marik suddenly shouted, and with a last glance towards Rishid, turned to walk down the ramp. Bakura lost no time in almost violently floating after him, only barely noticing the surprised and suspicious stare his Brightside sent him. Well, Bakura just wanted to see Earth, that's all. Nothing to do with Marik. Nothing at all.
Marik pulled a black ragged hood over his head, covering his flamboyantly glittering hair. Earth was a place where nothing went unnoticed. Ryou would have to do the same.
Ryou pat Kenji's shoulder in understanding and, after looping his arm around Serenity's waist, took his queue to go down the ramp. Yugi and Tea followed, each one obsessing over their own worries.
“I was so glad to learn all those stuff about spaceships form you! I hope we meet again!” Yugi said hopefully, his eyes sparkling with admiration towards the two pilots.
“I hope so too, kid!” Taichi said, affectionately ruffling Yugi's hair. “You know me! All I need is a carton of beer, and I'll be fine, so don't worry!”
Tea laughed at them with her sparkling sapphire eyes “Don't forget us, okay? We'll never forget what we've been through together!”
The others nodded in agreement and Lena enthusiastically said “We'll be friends always, Tea!”
“Uh-huh!”
And with a final hug between the girls of the company, Yugi and Tea had also descended the final steps that would lead them to the land of deliverance, once and for all.
Kenji pressed the button for the ramp to close behind their friends and thoughtfully turned to the others.
“Well? Any ideas about where we're going to go, before Kaiba discovers our little scheme?”
Rishid rubbed his chin pensively as he followed the others to the cockpit. “Well, I know this secluded planet, somewhere in the Holster galaxy…”
Serenity, Tea, Yugi and Ryou waved for one last time at the spaceship that was slowly becoming a small speck of black above them. In the back of the group, Marik stood and watched the ship's retreat quietly, accompanied by a scowling, cross-armed Bakura.
They were located in the middle of a relatively quiet plain, where the horizon was red and the ground gave the impression of sterile desert mud. Not very far ahead, they could all discern lights of what they presumed was a human camp. The temperature was freezing, and Serenity, Tea and Yugi shivered violently. They all wrapped the black rags they wore tighter around their bodies, and struggled to cope with the biting cold.
“You seem unusually silent.” Bakura idly commented, strategically careful not to take his eyes off the long-gone ship “Not that I'm complaining, but what's eating you?” Bakura finally asked, trying his best not to sound the least bit concerned or curious.
Marik finally let his eyes drop to the ground. He back-stepped a little, in order to avoid being heard by the others, and answered grimly “It's just that up until know, I had everything planned…now, where do we go from here?”
Bakura grinned lightly, turning to look back at the skies “Ah…the eternal question, isn't it?”
Marik huffed and scowled irritably “Quit the philosophies, Bakura…Cut the crap! I have a problem here!”
Bakura indignantly glared at Marik “And what do I look like, a guru?”
Marik just shook his head in resignation and waved his hand “Forget it. What was I even thinking asking you for advice?” he started to walk back towards the group.
“Wait, Mariku!” Bakura called, as he quickly took his floating place beside Marik “If you really need help, why not start by asking the others, hmm? Or is it just you who has to bare the responsibility of fearless, heroic leader?”
Marik sighed and stopped walking, settling on watching the others talk from afar. To the average passerby, it looked like he was staring at his friends alone, when in truth he was actually discussing with the spirit “It's not that simple, Bakura…Things will blow out of all proportion if everyone knows everything. It's better to have people under control.”
“Does that include my Brightside?” Bakura questioned, slightly angered.
“Ryou is very wise and logical” Marik started, unconsciously trying to placate the dark ghost beside him “but he doesn't know about this age, and would thus prove incapable of helping in any way other than what he has already done. As for the others…I don't think Tea, Yugi or the Game king can prove more helpful than I. It seems like I'm stuck with the responsibility, whether I like it or not.”
Bakura didn't speak for a while, just stayed silent and contemplating. Marik turned away from him to examine the bloodstained horizon, which came in such curious contrast with the freezing cold. Marik involuntarily shivered when he felt something remarkably icy sting his back, and hurried to wrap the black hooded cloak tighter around him. This cold really was starting to get to him. Now he felt disgustedly frozen all over.
From behind him, Bakura pulled his invisible hand away from the comforting gesture he had tried to make. He watched as the black-figured boy shivered at his tentative touch and wrapped the cloak around him for warmth. Bakura stared back down at his deathly pale, see-through palm and felt a sudden lump in his throat- a sting at his heart.
No matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't feel. Who was he kidding? He'd never have the chance to live again on his own, outside of Ryou's body. He watched Marik's back, as his companion continued to tremble, and now, more than ever, Bakura felt the lump in his throat threaten to choke him if not released in a silent sob.
“It's awfully cold out here, isn't it?” Marik said a bit shakily.
The reality of Dark Bakura's existence had become even more painful to him ever since he had met Marik. Now that it came down to this, he could perform not even a simple human gesture- the comfort of warmth. Now that Marik stood alone in the cold, trying to heat up his frozen extremities, Bakura had to stand there lifelessly, not feeling cold or hurt. He had to just stand there and watch as Marik's lips paled from rosy pink to bruised purple, being unable to touch and warm the boy with the simple comfort of his presence.
But his touch would not only be useless to Marik, it would actually freeze him further.
“I…can't feel it…remember?”
Why did everything have to be forbidden? Why did even the simplest pleasure of human contact have to be snatched away from him? What did he do in his real life to deserve this? No matter what kind of thug or murderer he may have been, there was absolutely no justice in what had been done to him!
“Oh…sorry…” came the considerably disappointed reply.
Now….now he couldn't even…touch Marik! He couldn't even really breathe. What would Marik do with a see-through ghost whose see-through body chilled even the warmest of hearts? What would Marik do? He would through him away and dump him, just like all the others had done.
And now, more than ever, Bakura felt the suffocating need to prove this was wrong. He knew that Marik was a human who needed human warmth and touch, but he also knew he couldn't be the one to provide it. The overwhelming urge to make Marik his was killing him. He had to prove it to himself and Marik! He had to show that, if only for a moment…he…he could be alive.
“Marik! Let's just get out of here! I don't think I can bare the cold much longer!” a shaking Serenity shouted hoarsely from afar. Marik nodded solemnly and gestured quickly for Bakura to follow him, as he ran towards the others.
Bakura closed his eyes and floated forwards blindly, knowing that even though he couldn't see were he was going, he would never fall down and hurt himself. He would never bleed warm blood.
No. He would never be warm, inside or out.
With that thought, the lump in his thought was soothed by his acceptance, and his unusually anxious heart stilled once again within its infinite, lethargic ice.
Hoping was useless. It was for rookies. And so was dreaming. He was dead and it was a fact. Marik…would never be his. It was too much to ask from a handsome young man, who had all his life laid out in front of him. The dead, ugly, snobbish spirit didn't fit anywhere in this story. If anything, Bakura was the villain, for daring to think he could keep Marik to himself.
“We have to run fast towards the lights. We can't afford it getting dark- we have to leave the cold before nightfall.” Marik instructed “We'll jog to keep warm. Try not to tire yourselves out too severely.”
With that, he started lightly running towards the lights, taking the lead. Bakura floated effortlessly by his side, going slower than usual, just to let Marik keep up with him. The others took off after them, and they were all soon approaching the lights.
“It's a bivouac!” Marik panted, making Bakura nod.
“What does this mean, Serenity?” Ryou asked from the side.
“This is the Earth's surface, that's why it' s so cold!” Serenity panted hoarsely, trying to sprint and talk at the same time “There are such encampments all over the planet's surface. They have electric hovercrafts that take people from the Catacombs to the surface of the Earth, for when they wish to leave the planet!!”
“I can't believe this! The actual cities are underground?” Ryou cried, as he observed the barren, battlefield-like ground of the planet's surface “This is what Earth looks like from outside?!” the heartbreak in his tone rang clear in the friends' ears. Yugi and Tea had nothing to add. The disappointment in their eyes said it all.
“Wait till you see the Catacombs…” Serenity muttered darkly, noticing that the lights of the bivouac were now less than 100 meters away.
Finally, they reached the camp, only to see it was a precarious-looking building made of the black metal they use for making starships. It looked ready to collapse. Yet, it wasn't the building that stole the group's attention, it was what was behind it.
The dusty ground of the desert-like landscape broke roughly and abruptly, to reveal a sharp cliff. A cliff that fell deep into the chasms of Earth, going deeper and deeper in the planet's skin. One could not see the ground looking down from the top of the cliff, only lights and hovercrafts of what clearly was a city from above. A city that stretched further and further down, outrageously near the planet's core. Whatever size this city had must have been vertical, for it was certainly not diagonal.
The cliffs sides were not rocky at all. In fact, they were buildings that had their roots deep into the city and were made from that same, ebony metal that everything in this place seemed to be constructed of.
“What…” Ryou nervously said, as his beautiful eyes closed down on the city “What is this?”
Serenity tried to catch her breath from the previous running before she answered. “This is one of the many Catacombs. From what the Surface-post- which is this building here- says, it is Catacomb number 1056.” Serenity posted at a label on the building which they had not noticed previously. It really did have `1056' written on it. “These catacomb cities are linked to each other through a `wormhole' sort of system. An underground, train-hover thing that links them together.” Serenity finished.
“Isn't it a little dangerous to have a cliff in the middle of the ground, like that? People can die out here!' Yugi said, as the flabbergasted company kept looking at the city.
Serenity gave the boy a dark look that did not become her “But nobody ever comes out to the surface, Yugi. Only convicts and the poor souls that wish to leave this place…”
Yugi and Tea promptly gulped, Ryou looked ready to be sick from the sight of Earth in its obliterated state. As for Marik and Bakura, they first looked at the deep chasm and then at each other, reflecting one-another's perplexed anxiety.
“Come on! We have to get in the Surface-Post!” Serenity urged, and carefully backed away from the cliff. She hurried to the entrance of the building, egging the others to follow her. Marik was the last to walk in the dark arch of the building's entrance, sending a wary glance to the chaos of the underground city before he did.
“What is this place? You've got to be kidding me!” Tea shouted, seeing that apart from the light that was set outside the building, it was completely dark inside “Yugi is that you?” she asked tentatively as she groped around for her best friend.
“Uh…no, actually…” Ryou's embarrassed voice echoed, making Tea squeal and apologize for having practically jumped the boy without knowing who he was.
“It smells disgusting in here!” Ryou commented, after managing to steady himself and grab Serenity's hand.
“It's sulfur. Remnants from the ground” Serenity wisely said. “OUCH! Watch your step, whoever you are!!”
“Sorry…” Tea's embarrassed mewl could be heard.
“Okay, Serenity take my hand. Marik, take Serenity's other hand, and so on!” Ryou shouted “Let's make a chain!”
“You people are pathetic.” Bakura firmly stated, blinking his now glowing red eyes as he observed his surroundings. Naturally, he could see flawlessly in the dark, much like the demonic spirit he was. “We are in a big, empty hall. There are no windows, for obvious reasons of shelter from the cold. Just walk straight and you'll meet the staircase. It leads down.”
Ryou and Marik were glad that Bakura had made things clear for them, since they couldn't afford asking him openly and risk being caught by Serenity. Ryou walked forwards steadily, following Bakura's directions as he went.
“There's a step right in front of you. Watch it.” Bakura instructed, listening to Ryou repeating the phrase for the others to hear. Bakura seized the chance to openly ogle at Marik while the other boy could not see him, until, of course, he remembered that his glowing eyes would betray him, and tried to look away instead.
The group of friends saw a light from the bottom of the long staircase and carefully descended.
“My God, this is prehistoric” Marik complained “I mean, stairs? What's next, a door with a handle?”
Bakura smirked from the side “Go on, pretty boy. Don't worry. The stairs will keep you in good shape.”
Marik dramatically rolled his eyes as Ryou chuckled, earning a suspicious glance from Serenity.
“What's so funny, Ryou?” Serenity inquired, while she cautiously descended another step.
“Oh nothing…I just remembered something” Ryou calmly said, and shook his head to focus on the seriousness of the situation.
Finally, when they reached the bottom of the stairs, they could make out their surroundings, due to an ancient-looking electric light that was hooked on the wall. In the bottom of the stairs there was a corridor, and in the end of that corridor was a card-receptor machine that reached an average-height human's waist. It also clearly resembled a huge hovercraft, which was shaped as a round elevator and contained ten seats. The machine blocked the passage with its metallic bars.
It was understandable, really, since past the machine, the corridor had no floor. The humungous hover was probably the aircraft that would lead them to the catacomb, so the rest of the corridor had been removed in order to let the `ship' move downwards. That Surface-post building was built on the edge of a cliff. Literally.
“I have a pass-card from the last time I was here…Just get on the hover and I'll put the card in.” Serenity instructed, and took the seat that was closest to the card receptor.
“Seat belts? How outdated!” Yugi scornfully noted, as he plucked the seatbelt from within the seat and wrapped it around his torso.
“Well, that's Earth. Get used to it.” Serenity commented. Once she saw that everyone was in place, and sent a quick glance to Ryou, seeking comfort, she pulled out her card and slid it gracefully in the system.
An electronic voice immediately broke out. “System engaged. Please fasten your seatbelts and keep your limbs inside the vehicle at all times. Disengage in 10, 9, 8…”
As the small group fidgeted in their seats, waiting for the ship to start, Marik watched Bakura slip in the seat next to him. Naturally, Bakura didn't fasten his seat belt, since he didn't' really need it.
“Everything all right?” Marik quietly murmured, immediately cursing himself for using such a soft tone with Bakura. He didn't want to sound girlish!
But Bakura didn't seem angry. He looked indifferent as he shrugged.
“You've been really quiet ever since we reached Earth…what's wrong?” asked Marik a bit more boldly than before, encouraged by Bakura's unusual accepting mood.
“I'm fine…” Bakura muttered, crossed his arms slowly and tried to hide his soft state from Marik . He couldn't believe he'd let his stupid feelings show!! “It's just that this place….I don't know. It makes me a bit jumpy, for some reason.”
Marik dramatically widened his eyes and made a discreet choking sound for effect “The big bad Bakura actually admitted to being jumpy!!” Marik grinned lop-sidedly “My god where is this world coming to!?”
“5,4,3…”
“What about you?” Bakura's bloodied eyes suddenly turned predatorily on Marik “You haven't been yourself either…”
“1, engage!”
Suddenly, the pod moved precariously and started going downwards in a marked trail. The travelers relaxed and started talking, which gave Marik more confidence to talk to his demon friend. The blond boy shook off his black hood, releasing his golden hair and letting it slip comfortably over his shoulders and back. The tanned one didn't fail to notice that his actions were closely surveyed by Bakura, and he also was surprised to see Bakura's eyes focus almost immediately on his freshly revealed hair.
Marik fought back the urge to grin. Instead he slipped a bit down in his seat, making himself comfortable and idly watching the flickering lights of the cliff-side-buildings grow taller and taller around him.
“I'm just fine…I guess I'm a little jumpy about this place too…” Marik softly said, closing his eyes and trying to relax a bit, hoping Bakura wouldn't be angry at him for ignoring him or anything. It was just that he was very tired. Being cold, hungry and worked out could do that to a person.
“Do you have any idea about the number of the Catacomb you think you come from?” Bakura asked in an unusually deep, husky voice. Marik was suddenly all too aware of the fact that Bakura's voice had come too close for comfort. He also suddenly realized that the whole right side of his body felt strangely chilly, as though subjected to some kind of frosty current. As though he was standing very near an open refrigerator.
Marik felt his cheeks redden and his body heat up immediately, with the knowledge that Bakura might be touching him. He didn't dare open his eyes, however, for fear that Bakura would scutter away if he did.
“…No…no idea…” Marik said with a sigh, though he didn't really know whether it was a sigh of content or of tiredness. He felt his body chill up even more, goosebumps appearing on his suddenly-scantily-clad skin, and thus knew Bakura was even closer.
“Well, I wouldn't worry if I were you…The girl seems to know her way around here…” Bakura said in a soft tone, a tone Marik had never heard before. In the Surface-post, when Bakura's eyes had started to glow red in the dark, Marik thought he would have a heart attack. It was scary and exciting at the same time, especially since it was directed at him. Overall, Marik didn't want to remember the way Bakura's glowing eyes had looked in the dark, burning lava in the mist of the volcanic crust---preparing to swallow him whole.
“…she…she does, doesn't she?” Marik dryly croaked, remembering the last time Bakura had him backed up like this with an invisible body. Marik's heart was thumping loudly, he could hear it thundering in his ears. He wanted to know what Bakura was doing so badly…
“I think I should give her a chance after all…she may be good to Brightside…who knows?” Bakura testily stated.
Okay. Now something was really wrong. Bakura never approved of Ryou and Serenity's relationship. Never ever. Curious as to what was really going on with Bakura, Marik couldn't suppress the urge any longer. Gingerly, he cracked one eye open and looked around.
Marik bit back a whimper as he saw what exactly Bakura had been doing. For one, the spirit was lying on the seat, very close to Marik. Bakura had his invisible fingers playing lightly with Marik's hair, not managing to really card through it, but touching it in his own way nonetheless. Bakura's other hand had settled on the middle of Marik's chest, drawing dainty patterns on it and the albino's long hair swept over his shoulder and pooled without touch over Marik's belly.
And those eyes….oh, god, those eyes. Marik unconsciously opened both his amethyst jewels to meet with Bakura's blood-colored ones. Briar red smiled at him, from Bakura's customary albino smudgy lips, and the ruby eyes lured him wickedly, almost lecherously, provoking him to do something he didn't know how to do. Bakura drew out his tongue and ran it over his lower lip very slowly, hungrily, with the air of a wolf eyeing its prey. If possible, his eyes darkened even more, as he drew up both his hands and put them on Marik's chest to steady himself in his unknown dimension. Curious, the way Marik couldn't really feel a thing except cold, and yet he felt so much…
The tanned boy realized belatedly that Bakura's black cloak- an identical copy of Ryou's- had sluggishly fallen over one of the spirit's shoulders and now hung loosely around the exposed creamy skin. Creamy, untouchable skin.
Marik was frozen, not only by Bakura's touch, which only served as snow ice, but also from the alien feeling. He didn't know what to do. He was petrified, unmoving, staring at Bakura's eyes and almost drowning in their fiery infernal quality. Nothing mattered anymore. The hovercrafts and smoke and buildings that had heightened around him were nothing compared to the frozen heat of the wine red eyes.
He didn't even realize what he was doing as he raised his hand to hold onto Bakura's naked shoulder- maybe even caress it- only to disappointedly realize he felt nothing but a cold breeze against his fingers. Bakura, however, didn't seem to mind, for once, that there had been someone passing their body through his. On the contrary, with Marik's intended touch, his passion seemed to lit up even more. He raised his feathery, pale hand and cupped Marik's face, sliding his thighs over Marik's torso and lowering himself down slowly.
The tanned boy, frozen both by shock and by Bakura's body, tried to keep his non-existent grip on the spirit's shoulder, gulping nervously at the unfamiliar sensation. Unconsciously, as he realized those eyes were coming closer and closer to him, he fluttered his eyelids in expectation. Blood throbbing in his veins, aching, calling-
“Yami?? What the heck are you doing???!!!” was heard the sudden, incredulous shout from the side of the hover.
Marik and Bakura both violently started, turning to look at Ryou, whose jaw had dropped and was looking at them in disbelief.
“Yami?” Ryou asked again, not caring whether or not the others could hear him. So shocked he was.
Marik's eyes flew frantically from one albino to the other, watching disappointedly as Bakura's eyes widened in the manner of a child who had been caught by his mother with one hand in the cookie jar. Bakura practically pounced off Marik, grabbed his cloak and pulled it over his shoulder and -Marik belatedly realized- his exposed creamy thigh and positively glared daggers at his Brightside. Swirling around -his long ragged clothes swishing behind him- Bakura took a step forward, off the hovercraft. Instead of physically falling, he disappeared to thin air, in a cloud of smoke.
Marik tried to conceal the mixture of puzzlement, disappointment and anger in his features. He felt Ryou's eyes linger on him and turned to eye the boy a bit more fiercely than necessary. He unpleasantly noticed that Yugi's eyes were wide and staring at him too, and so were Tea's and Serenity's, though they seemed more confused than anything else. Suddenly, Marik envied Bakura a lot for being able to simply disappear. Would this unbelievably long hover ride finally come to an end, so he could get away from their curious stares?
Although Ryou did not speak any more words, his wide, dilated eyes said it all. He couldn't believe what he'd just seen. See-through Bakura, lying over a dazed Marik, hands slipping carefully around Marik's neck and head bending torturously slow over Marik's lips. Let's not forget, of course, the naked thighs trying to tighten around Marik's waist. Marik hadn't even felt it!
Ryou took another look at Marik's wild, vehement violet eyes. This was not possible. This could NOT be happening. “Ryou, what are you talking about? Are you okay?” Serenity asked, having a good idea about what was going on, although Ryou didn't really know this. However, Ryou's eyes remained stuck on Marik's anxious ones, searching and probing for answers.
“I'm…fine…” Ryou suspiciously said, all the time watching Marik lower his eyes in undeniable shame- and anger- and cover his head with his black cloak again. “Don't worry yourself, Serena” Ryou said, finally turning towards his girlfriend “Don't worry yourself.”
Yugi suddenly stood up “That's enough, Ryou. Don't you think it's high time you told her what's going on?”
At once, the situation was altered. Marik's eyes looked expectantly at Ryou, who seemed to be a deer trapped in the headlights.
“What are you talking about Yugi?” Serenity questioned calmly. Tea was simply observing all this time.
“I…I don't…know what you're talking about.” Ryou finally said, looking pointedly at Yugi, trying to convey the message that he didn't want his girlfriend to know. . From the side, Marik kept silent, unspeaking under his black hood- no doubt trying to recover from the onslaught of sentiments that had just been disposed on him. His crystal eyes watched his friends from under his lashes, trying to look inconspicuous.
“Oh come ON, Ryou!” Yugi finally said, his eyes more impatient and commanding than they had seen them before. “Just tell her! Tea knows, Marik knows, I know…why shouldn't Serenity know also?”
Ryou widened his eyes and hoarsely looked at the girl beside him. “I…I can't…Serena…I…”
Serenity smiled all of a sudden, and Marik just silently watched, having a feeling he should stay out of the whole situation.
“Yugi.” Serena finally said, lacing her voice with a tone of finality “we are almost in the Catacomb. I'm not sure what you're talking about, but I want you to remain certain Ryou and I have no secrets from each other. Even though he doesn't know it, I already know about his dark spirit of the ring…and I completely believe him. So don't worry about me.”
Her small speech stopped there, leaving everyone flabbergasted and aghast. Marik was not as surprised as the others. After all, he had been the one to tell Serenity, an indefinite time ago.
Ryou didn't know if he should be relieved, terrified or both. He settled for a fairly confused expression of horror “But…But Serena…how?” he asked, earning a gentle peck on the lips form the girl he loved.
“Back in my house in Mercury, when Marik saw your Darkside for the first time and didn't know what it was, he told me. It's as simple as that. He didn't betray your trust, since he hadn't talked to you about it, anyway. So please don't be angry…all right?” Serenity sweetly finished, leaving a slightly grinning Ryou to stare at her.
The relief in the boy's face was evident enough- his beloved had finally said the words he had always longed to hear from her lips- and without an anxious confession from his part nonetheless!!
Ryou hugged the girl warmly, burying her in his safe embrace. Yugi, Tea and Marik smiled as they watched the two.
“I'm…I'm so glad…I'm so sorry I never told you Serena…I swear I wanted to, but…” Ryou fought to explain.
“Shhh….it's all right …I understand.” Serenity said the final magic words she knew would convince her beloved. Ryou seemed ready to continue their discussion, only that was the time the hovercraft chose to jerk suddenly and alert them all of the end of their little ride.
`Finally' Marik thought, as he set foot on the red ground for the first time in at least twenty minutes `solid ground.' He didn't allow his thoughts to linger on Bakura, or he would lose himself yet again. Instead, he hurried to take full account of his surroundings while Yugi helped Tea off the hovercraft. A slightly dizzy Serenity clung to Ryou.
They seemed to be in a small glass cubicle- the landing station of the hover. Through the see-through glass, Marik could clearly distinguish the ominous black buildings towering above him. He was so deep in the Earth that he could not see the sky above- was there any sky anymore? All he could see were the gigantic buildings, towering above him as though trying to suffocate him.
He motioned for the others to follow him out of the glass bubble, and found himself standing it what would qualify for a mayhem. The ground under his feet constituted of red dirt, sulfur and small shavings of a mysterious black metal that seemed to cover the entire city. Around him there were lights everywhere, from stores that were located on the sides of the street to hovercrafts that flew for miles above his head. There seemed to be an incessant cloud of smoke around them, and the temperature had shot up dramatically in comparison to the planet's surface. This city must have been well near the planet's core.
Serenity coughed heavily from behind him, and Marik turned to see Ryou rubbing her back worriedly.
Serenity ironically grinned “I'd forgotten the atmosphere in this place…So wonderful. The dirt is always in the air…See the factories at the sides?” she pointed at the overly tall black buildings “that's where people work to make spaceships…You know that every planet has these catacombs. Above the ground is where we honorable citizens live, under the ground is where the workers live…in these disgusting places.” She finished, and Ryou looked just about ready to cry his eyes out.
“This is…Earth?” he just couldn't believe it…it was too impossible to be true. This could not be the land he knew and loved.
Marik looked around dejectedly, seeing people walk in the streets, into stores, in metallic hut-houses. He noticed how the two thirds of the people had mutant spikes piercing out of their greenish forearms. He saw people moving and walking while trying not to use their hands- like apes.
It was disgusting.
“I don't know which is worse, Yango or this…Although I must admit, I am excited to be at a new place…even though this can qualify more as a boiler than a normal place…” Tea commented lightly, fanning herself.
From her side, Serenity seemed to be observing everything with morbid reminiscence. She didn't seem happy to be here again, even at the prospect of finding her brother.
“What is this hellhole?” a foreign voice was suddenly heard from the side, and Marik, Ryou and Yugi turned to see the semi-visible King of Games, staring with wide eyes at the dim, misty place that was once Earth. `Oh great' Marik sarcastically thought `his majesty is all I needed right now…' Trying not to contemplate further and just cut to the chase, Marik decided to get out of there as quickly as possible.
“Serenity” Marik addressed the girl suddenly “You lived here before, and you told me there might be a brother waiting for you…why don't we go search for him? We must hide from Kaiba either way, and staying in a hotel doesn't qualify for not laying low. Maybe your brother can help us or something…” Marik hopefully said.
A great lump formed in Serenity's throat. She doubted whether Joey would want anything to do with her after having left him like that, much less help her hide from Kaiba. Ryou took her hand in his and squeezed comfortingly, reassuring her in his own way.
At his elegant gesture, Serenity took courage and nodded, managing a small, eager smile. “I hope we'll find him…” she wished.
Ryou smiled brightly, and the fact that he could beam like that amidst such an insane situation was what truly made him precious at a time like this “We surely will.”
Serenity grinned and turned to Marik. The Game King kept watching the interaction in interest, never earning so much as a glance from Serenity, who couldn't see him.
“Marik, as I told you, I didn't use to live in this colony. My house was in the main Catacomb, where the biggest MultiCorp building is. We have to catch the `subway' to get to the other city, so we better get going. This way!” Serenity finished, and turned to walk down the street, trying at all costs to avoid interaction with the pedestrians.
“Oh, and before I forget…” she said “don't stare. People hate it when you stare.” With those words, she strolled faster down the street, leading them towards an especially old-looking department store.
“Don't stare at what?” Tea confusedly asked Yugi, as they walked sullenly behind Serenity and Ryou. Suddenly, the game King who was floating a few feet away, literally dived at unsuspecting Yugi's body. With a flash of his golden pyramid, he had taken over the body and turned to Tea with his narrow magenta eyes.
“Their arms, Tea. Don't stare at their arms.” He consulted.
“Ohhhh….” The girl said, as it finally dawned on her. “Now I get it.”
From behind, Marik's voice was suddenly heard. He seemed a bit irritated “You guys! Cover up your hands and faces with the cloaks- we don't want to attract attention! We're supposed to have hyper-arms too, remember?”
Regal dark Yugi sent an annoyed glance at him and promptly ignored his advice. Tea, however, rushed to cover up the exposed part of her arms. She left her legs uncovered, seeing as the suffocating heat allowed it. What was it with that girl and short skirts, anyway?
Marik huffed at seeing Dark Yugi's defiance to everyone and everything. It wasn't like Bakura's defiance either- it wasn't angry and blind- it was stubborn and proud. Of course, that served to piss Marik off even more. Being in a foul mood already -for having had his little tete-a-tete with Bakura interrupted- Marik didn't take the Game King's pride well right then.
He closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath, ignoring the vein that was throbbing in his temple, signifying his aggravation.
Marik followed from behind, aware of the strange glances their group kept attracting from pedestrians, but also aware of the lack of a familiar cold presence on his side. Now that Bakura was not here to freeze the air around him, Marik felt strangely…alone.
He tried to fight down the upcoming emotions, but, as usual, it was no use. Not when just minutes before, Bakura had come more close to actually…actually…approaching him, than he ever had before! How ironic that Marik had physically felt nothing of it. Bakura, trying with all his might to break his shields and show his emotions, and Marik, feeling nothing of it.
Marik sighed dejectedly as Serenity led them through the doors of an old department store. They quietly descended stairs, walked through big rooms, saw people standing around, descended some more stairs, until finally, the reached what seemed to be a train platform. Serenity nodded, as if trying to say they had reached their destination.
“Now we wait. We want to go to Catacomb number 100…” she pointed at a nearby timetable that had the various `trains' for each colony and the hours they came by. “…So we'll have to wait about half an hour. Just chill, you guys!” she cheerfully said, earning curious glances from the dull passerby.
“Easy for you to say! How can we chill when the air is boiling!?” Tea protested animatedly, making Ryou smile good-naturedly at her childishness and Dark Yugi fold his arms over his chest. As for Marik, he simply sauntered around, refusing to acknowledge he was sulking over the absence of Bakura. He kept this faraway look in his eyes as he stared at the distance, an action which did not go unnoticed by Ryou, who briefly checked in his mind to see if Bakura was in his ring.
Nope. Just as he suspected, Bakura was, for the second time, in hiding.
Now that Ryou had seen that with his own eyes, he reckoned there was no room for further doubt. It was certain. Those two had something going on. Marik's wide eyes had it written loud and clear, and so did Bakura's audaciously sultry grin. Ryou had not been imagining things.
Only now he was even more worried about what Bakura did with his body when he took over. Until now, Ryou only worried that Bakura slaughtered innocent white pigeons when taking over his body. But now, that he had actually seen Bakura and Marik…What if he and Marik…oh, god, what would Serena say!? Oh, but wait…Serena knew about Bakura…Ryou reveled at the new thought. He loved the feeling of it in his heart.
Thirty minutes were quick to pass, and the group of friends quickly got in the worm-like, huge hover vehicle. They tried to stay as far from natives as possible, but that still didn't prevent Marik from having to sit across an elderly woman. She didn't have hyper-arms, though she looked just as sullen and sad as the people around here who did. Marik sighed deeply and turned to look a bit wistfully at the empty seat next to him. Ryou was sitting with Serenity…Yugi with Tea…seems like everyone was with their chosen company except for him…The empty seat is where Bakura would normally sit…
Tired and sulking, Marik raised his grim eyes to look at the blackness out the window. He saw his own eyes reflected through it. `To hell with discretion' he thought, and tossed the cloak away from his head, freeing his golden mane once again `I can't stand this itchy thing on my head any longer. How can women wear this?' he pondered.
Through the window, he saw the reflection of the old lady staring at him with her jaw hanging open. Well, seems he hadn't lost all his charm just yet, even though he had reduced his jewelry to earrings only.
He turned away from the window slowly, only to risk receiving a heart attack, when he saw the familiar pale outline of a see-through spirit sitting next to the old lady. Bakura was smiling at him…the bastard! First he disappears for hours on end, causing mayhem and incessant angst in Marik's heart, only to appear after a while as though nothing had happened.
Marik truly wanted to scream at him, but held his tongue, thinking of the old lady. Bakura, however, being invisible and thus, free to cause riot, had no problem with indulging himself in his favorite sport- that is: talking while others can't respond.
“So, Mariku…” Bakura teasingly started “From the drool hanging form her lip. I'd say she's quite fond of you.” The spirit said, motioning towards the old woman and making her shiver lightly.
Marik raised an eyebrow, fighting the urge to check out if there really was drool on the woman's lip….damn! Bakura was having an effect on him after all. He wondered briefly why Bakura had no reflection in the mirror, but then it made sense: nothing unusual, just another quality of a vampire that Bakura possessed, beside bloodsucking and hating the sunlight.
Marik smirked at his own thoughts.
“Urgh! Just look at that ! Is that lettuce on her tooth?!” Bakura made a disgusted face, pointing rudely at the old lady's mouth. “Man, that's disgusting!” he said, thoroughly amused by Marik's effort to try and not look at what Bakura was referring to. It was, after all, very hard for people not to stare at what others were pointing at.
“Marik! We'll be there in a couple of minutes!” Serenity shouted from a few seats behind. Naturally, since Serenity spoke to Marik, Ryou also turned his glance towards the blonde, only to spot his Darkside grinning lecherously at the aforementioned tanned youth.
/ / What do you think you're doing, Darkside? Disappearing the first moment and reappearing he next?! / / Ryou exasperatedly said in his mind, scowling at Bakura on the outside. / / What's your business with Marik? / / he suspiciously continued.
Marik didn't miss the kind Ryou frowning at Bakura, and felt something heavy weigh his heart down. He turned to Bakura, only to see the playful grin having left the spirit's lips. Now a thin, angry line had replaced the teasing smile. Bakura's narrowed eyes dripped blood at Ryou.
\ \ Don't try to control me, Ryou… \ \ Bakura said, feeling the customary anger swell inside him. Serenity and Marik confusedly watched the interaction.
Ryou scowled deeper than Marik ever thought he could / / What exactly is going on between you two? And why don't you ever enter your ring anymore? / / Ryou inquired telepathically.
Bakura stared harder at his frail mirror image -If I enter the ring, you can read my thoughts…I don't want you to read my thoughts—he answered honestly.
/ / Why not? What are you hiding? / /
Bakura stood up suddenly, making the old lady beside him tremble awkwardly as he passed through her. He glared at Ryou darkly and verbally hissed “None of your business!”
Marik was confused, but couldn't talk to Bakura still. He just looked at Ryou and his Darkside telepathically quarrelling, and felt useless being unable to do a thing about it.
Ryou's expression suddenly changed from angered to concerned. He had never felt his Darkside's anger be aimed directly at him. Why? Why was he so suddenly a target of Bakura's wrath? Ever since Bakura had met Marik, he didn't want anything to do with Ryou, it seemed.
/ / Bakura, are you all right? Why on earth won't you tell me what's wrong with you? / / Ryou now sent his honest worry through their link.
Bakura's anger soothed at realizing he wasn't threatened. Ryou was just worried about him. He knew how to deal with that.
\ \ Don't worry, I'm fine… \ \ he finished.
Ryou looked disbelieving / / You still haven't told me why you don't want me to know your thoughts. We've always known each others thoughts, Yami…We're the same person!! Why don't you trust me anymore? / /
Bakura sighed exasperatedly and waved his hands around as though to accentuate his point. Marik watched everything with hawk-like eyes.
\ \ Would you feel that we were the same person, if I knew your thoughts about the girl, and still didn't share your feelings? \ \
Ryou scowled lightly / / So this is about Serenity, then? Look, Darkside, you don't HAVE to like her! Just accept her! It's not like you have to love the same person I do!! That has nothing to do with… / / he started saying, but then his eyes fell on the blonde boy, and he froze, suddenly remembering the way Bakura's eyes always glazed over when talking to Marik. Bakura's hands climbing up the plain of Marik's chest, caressing without touch, at Marik's gooseflesh skin.
Ryou didn't want Bakura to hear his thoughts about Serena. Bakura didn't want Ryou to hear his thoughts about…
Oh. Ryou suddenly realized.
/ / Oh / /
\ \ Yes, Oh, indeed. \ \ Bakura rolled his eyes and said, not knowing about the revelation Ryou just had and merely supposing his Brightside had left him alone at long last. Not understanding Ryou had found out his biggest secret, even without having to read his thoughts.
The worm-like hover train skidded to a stop, finally, jarring Ryou and Tea, who weren't expecting such a violent halt.
“Well, that's our queue!” Serenity said, as she grabbed Ryou's arms and dragged him outside the doors, followed closely by the Game King and Tea. From behind, a confused Marik walked beside a scowling Bakura, still curious about the fight between Ryou and Bakura from before.
“Okay” Marik finally said as he walked considerably far behind the others. He tried not to look suspicious to pedestrians, who somehow seemed to be even more grim in this city than the other. “What the heck was that all about?”
“What?” Bakura decided to play dumb, as he carelessly observed the tall buildings and the dirty roads, littered with all kinds of disgusting garbage.
“Don't act like you don't know, Bakura! The fight with Ryou! What was it about?!” Marik urged, knowing full well that he was being too nosy for his own good, and was sure to pay dearly in the near-future.
Bakura waved his hand dismissively, as he floated freely out to the city lights “Oh, that! It was nothing! Don't worry yourself…” he said with an air of finality, signifying this dialogue was over. Bakura cursed himself for ever saying that last phrase. That had sounded too cheesy for his own good, proving that he was indeed losing it.
Marik looked ready to talk some more, only he was pulled out of his thoughts by the state of his surroundings. Even worse than the other city, Catacomb 100, which was quite older, looked, to put it bluntly, disgusting.
Trash was laying everywhere: on the ground in stacks, outside stores and houses, everywhere! People were all wearing blue, torn trousers and white tank tops, which were greasy with sweat and dirt. People's arms seemed even worse than before- they were downright mutated: Green and spiky, like a dinosaur's claws.
Dragons. Red eyed, black dragons.
Serenity shook her head. It would be useless to start reminiscing now, even though the sad deja vus that this place brought were a bit too many. Nothing had changed. The same disgusting, hot atmosphere. The same dull people. The same slimy red mud under the soles of her feet.
She had always hated it with a passion, and had once sworn she would get Joey out of there.
How ironic that now she sought refuge here, of all places. IN the land she despised the most.
“This is vulgar. It is truly, utterly disgusting.” Ryou said, as though making it official that this was certainly not the Erath he remembered and had hoped to see. These were not his prestigious family's gardens in Japan. There were no little romantic lakes, no wonderful flower beds, no glittering cherry blossom trees. This was certainly not the soft soil he remembered- this was miles deep in the Earth's flesh, hard and rocky, and unbreakably real. His Earth did not exist any more.
Perhaps with its possible existence had clung the hope that he would maybe one day return to his familiar, old way of life. But no such luck. He could turn young again, but time could not turn back.
His life was with Serenity now. It was based on that simple girl. His world- the world of his father, and mother and cousins no longer existed. And Bakura's world…well, whatever it was, it had ceased to exist as well.
“Oh my God! Is that blood?” Tea cried and cowered back behind Dark Yugi, pointing at a wet red blotch on the ground.
The Game King looked shaken as he saw it, but pat Tea's shoulder nonetheless. “This place reeks of smoke and alcohol. How can an entire city smell like a bar?” he commented dryly, and turned to look around at the metallic huts that served as housing for the locals.
“This is the biggest, central Catacomb. It has the Main MultiCorp building. You know what MultiCorp is, right? It's the oldest and most prestigious company that makes spacecrafts. KaibaCorp itself is just an extension of MultiCorp. In this huge building, the company's council meets once in every three months, I think.” Serenity said while walking forward a bit. At the mentioning of the MultiCorp building, Serenity briskly pointed at it.
She was right. It was huge. It seemed to be even taller and more gigantic than the ones they had seen before, with hovercrafts fleeing in and out of it incessantly.
“What are the hovers for?” The Game King curiously asked.
“The workers use them to carry metal from one factory building to the other. They transfer all kinds of steels and metals…” Serenity informed.
Dark Yugi and Dark Bakura finally had a chance to take a good look at the tall building. They both saw the huge sign flashing `MULTICORP INDUSTRIES' at the middle section of the building. Suddenly, as they watched the colorful sign and the commercials that went with it, the world seemed to become fuzzy, and Dark Yugi visibly collapsed. As for Bakura, he held on a bit longer, stretching a weightless hand on Marik's shoulder for support, before he too lost the battle, and passed out, falling to the ground right through the tanned boy.
Cold sweat trickled down his brow and he gritted his teeth ominously. Clutching the revolver at his chest with both hands, he struggled with keeping his breathing even. He put a hand over his mouth, to keep his panting from being heard.
Anxiously, he adhered his nape to the wall, muttering a mantra he had recently learned in order to calm himself. When he heard the footsteps fade out a bit, he chanced a peek around the corner. Nothing. Just an empty corridor.
Allowing himself a small grin, he felt slightly more optimistic. This was his house, not theirs. They didn't know it half as well as he did. He had to escape now…he had to leave the manor before they could get to him.
He looked in front of him. At the floor. His mother's wide, glassy eyes stared back at him- her mouth contorted to a vulgar scream. That was the way she'd been, when they killed her.
“To Kuru Eruna, brat…they'll teach you some real manners there…”
“Go on then, kill me, you worthless piece of shit! No matter how hard you try, you still can't reach my father, can you?”
“Atemu? What the hell are you doing here? I knew you had something to do with this, you bastard!”
“Listen to me, Nehti, listen well. There is only one person you can trust if ever I should get hurt, do you understand? Only your cousin. Only…”
“Get it off me!! GET IT OFF!!! AHHHHHH!!!!”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk…what's the matter Nehti? Afraid of your own self?”
“After all, there are fates so much worse than death, am I right?”
“I don't know what you're playing at, you sick fuck, but I can promise you this: once I find out, not even they crows will lay their hands on you!”
“See, Ryou? Do you like it? They call it a dreamcatcher, because it blocks out bad dreams…look how soft the feathers are…”
“Freeze him. We'll see what we can do with him later on. Just freeze him for now. Pity, though…he could have been a useful asset to us…If he wasn't his father's son, that is.”
“YUGI! YUGI!!”
“Calm down, Tea…he's waking up, see?”
“Sorry, I just…it's happened twice in the last twelve hours. What on Earth is wrong with him?”
The Game King opened his eyes slowly, expecting to see the familiar cobalt eyes of Tea. He wanted to stand up and tell her not to worry about him, only he wasn't sure if he should or shouldn't worry about himself anymore. This time, the dreams had been more intense than any other time. At some point, they even made sense. Only he had forgotten everything when he woke up…
Could it be that these were visions of his past?
“Bakura! Bakura!!” Marik's familiar deep voice echoed, significantly more scratchy and worried than any other time, Yugi turned to see the invisible Bakura, who was lying right next to him on the dirty Catacomb ground. Marik was on his knees in front of him, obviously flustered that he could not touch him by the shoulders. As for Ryou, he had just settled on anxiously looming over Marik and his Darkside, watching Bakura with an anxious expression.
“What the…what just happened?” Bakura's satanic voice didn't possess half his normal wit when he was as worn out and weak as that.
“We were hoping you could tell us that. Yugi and you just passed out again.” It was Ryou who gave the explanation- Marik obviously was too focused on rejoicing at the recovery of Bakura, that he didn't have time to focus. Serenity and Tea, who could not see Bakura, tended to Yugi and helped him get back up.
“…It happened when I saw that bloody sign.” Bakura pointed towards the huge `MULTICORP ` billboard. “I can't fathom why.”
Marik narrowed his eyes and approached Bakura cryptically “Do you remember anything this time? Any names?”
Bakura looked away at his own inability and shook his head with a scowl. Apparently, it was a closest thing to an apology one could get from Bakura.
“Well, anyway” Serenity started, getting uncomfortable with the notion of people talking to other invisible people who she couldn't see. “Let's just hurry and get to my house, okay?” she looked pointedly at some pedestrians who were openly staring at their little group “It's not very far from here, and I don't know about you, but I must find a place to rest…”
The main reason why she was so hell-bent on visiting her old house was left unsaid, of course. Her heart gave an unbidden jolt at the thought of meeting Joey. Even if he hated her now, at least she'd get to see him…
“Fine! Lead the way, Serenity.” Yugi instructed regally and swept up to his feet. He gathered a giggling Tea's hand in his own and strutted confidently after Serena. Ryou, Marik and a floating Bakura followed closely while sharing an awkward silence.
The question was burning in Marik's lips. Why had Bakura and Ryou fought before? The unusual, somewhat hostile silence between the three of them hinted that whatever was bothering the two albinos had yet not been totally resolved. Or, even if it was resolved, they weren't comfortable with it.
“So…” Ryou started suddenly, nearly making Marik jump out of his skin with the sudden call. Bakura seemed slightly more composed “So, after we find Serenity's brother, what do we do, Marik?”
Marik sighed quietly and shared a hidden glance with Bakura. Should they tell Ryou about Marik's supposed relation to Earth?
“I suggest you wait until we find the girl's brother and then ask questions, Brightside.” Bakura stated, saving the tanned boy from the weight of revealing his problems.
At Bakura's inadvertent irritated tone, Ryou was taken aback. Here he was, trying to be friendly and trying to lighten the mood, only to be warded off without a second thought, by his own Darkside no less.
“I don't remember talking to you, Bakura!” Ryou nastily said, with a tone very unlike his usual placated one. At the offense, Bakura's eyes positively blazed. Marik stared at both of them in alert, not knowing if it was a good idea to speak up at this point. Besides, even if he did speak up, who would he defend? Most probably, his heart would betray him, and he would try to support Bakura, thus ending in a quarrel with Ryou.
“Excuse me??” Bakura whispered in a dangerous sibilant hiss. Ryou scowled at him and huffed.
“Well, fine” Ryou said in an obviously annoyed voice “If you two ever decide to share your secrets with the rest of us puny insignificant mortals, don't hesitate!” Ryou nastily said, his eyes lighting up in a curious flame of ire that Marik had never seen before in his character.
The albino quickened his pace and reached Serenity and the others, who seemed to be talking about the history of the Catacombs by now. From behind, Marik sighed and Bakura glared at the back of his Brightside's head.
“Just forget him” Bakura advised gruffly, more to himself that to anyone else, as he refused to acknowledge the trickle of guilt that seemed to roll around his stomach “He doesn't understand.”
Marik didn't say anything as he followed his friends through the dark alcoves, between slimy ghetto buildings and into dark neighborhoods. Not even the lights of the hovercrafts could shed light to the disgusting alleys any more.
“But he's right” Marik suddenly said, shaking Bakura from his thoughts. The spirit focused on the back of Marik's blonde head, watching the enchanting hair sway as Marik sauntered down the street. “What are we going to do? I told you I might have some family on Earth, but I don't know a thing about where they might be…For all I know, there are hundreds of these Catacomb cities…” Marik suddenly aimed his crystal eyes in Bakura's ruby ones “How do I know where to look?” he asked with a tint of desperation.
“I wouldn't worry if I were you.” A cross-armed Bakura confidently said, turning around and avoiding Marik's sultry gaze, which made him want to take over Ryou's body just by the sight of it. “We'll ask around. It's not that hard to find what you want in a place as conservative as this…It's the same with Yango. If you know how to survive there, you'll be fine here. You'll find what you want, Mariku…I'm sure.”
Bakura was almost disgusted at the involuntary softness of his voice. He really wanted to puke by his own mushiness.
Marik narrowed his eyes skeptically and scowled at the floor. As usual, he didn't seem to notice Bakura's internal peril “How can you be so sure?” he asked, stealing a look at Bakura's ethereal flowing figure.
“Because you know how to live in such a place, and because I know-“ the deep voice started saying, almost causing Marik a heart-attack from trepidation. But it wasn't meant to be, since Serenity's voice broke through Bakura's whispers.
“We're here!!! Marik!!” she called, causing Marik to realize that he was the only one in the group who had been left so far behind.
“Coming!!” Cursing under his breath, Marik ran less than briskly towards the pathetic-looking, metallic, two-story house that Serenity was standing in front of. Bakura, who glided right next to Marik, kept reminding him of interesting ways to eviscerate Kaiba, and maybe Yugi, for all they put them through. Marik tried to keep the grin off his face when he came to a stop beside Tea and Yugi. Ryou avoided all eye contact with either Marik or Bakura, obviously not wanting to deal with another debate, which would undoubtedly unfurl from a conversation with Bakura where Marik was involved.
Serenity turned to face the house with obvious regret and nervousness. She swallowed dryly and looked at the old-fashioned metallic door. She felt her insides melt to putty and blindly reached for the support of Ryou's hand, which came to her aid immediately, of course.
“This is it.” She merely whispered, as she felt a burning whisp of air blow around them, pushing her hood back and revealing her long, auburn hair. The steamy current brought with it shavings of metal and dirt from the ground, so everyone covered their eyes. How could there still be air in this place? Oh wait…it wasn't air- it was the exhalation of all those robotic contraptions around them.
“My house.” Serenity said, as she took a stop forward and separated herself from the rest of the group. In her chest, her heart was beating wildly. Her palms were sweaty as she clenched and unclenched them.
“Relax, Serena” Ryou said with his oceanic, cool voice from beside her “Everything's going to be all right.”
But for once, his voice didn't have the desired effect. Serenity could not relax as she felt the blood drain from her limbs and face. Her cold sweat of nervousness enveloped her as she shakily raised a hand and just held it over the door buzzer for a while.
When the others saw she wasn't about to do anything anytime soon, they started getting impatient. Especially Bakura from beside a tired Marik, said “If she doesn't open that door anytime soon, I might as well do it for her.”
At this, Ryou's glare was intensified tenfold from the last time they'd quarreled, and Bakura thought that if his Brightside tried a lot, he could start looking a bit like him. Only a bit though.
Finally, Serenity seemed to come to terms with something in her mind, and the spark of determination in her eyes grew bright. With Ryou's gentle support, she finally pressed the buzzer. When she realized she'd done it, however, she jumped back, as though startled with her own boldness, and launched herself in Ryou's welcome embrace. Her heart was beating fast- she had difficulty breathing. She couldn't believe she'd actually done it!
“Great…now that she finally rings the bell, nobody answers” Bakura murmured under his breath, causing Marik to look pensively at him.
“Where is everybody?” Tea finally said, when more than a minute had passed with no answer from the door.
“Maybe you should ring again, Serenity?” Dark Yugi suggested, trying to convince Serenity not to let go of her hopes.
Serenity shook her head in a mixture of disappointment and relief “No…No, nobody's here…let's just go…” she stuttered, and started walking away. The others, seeing her resignation, started to follow, only to be interrupted by a sudden foreign voice that came from the intercom of the small house.
“What do you want?” a female voice demanded through the electronic speaker, and Serenity froze at her steps. Slowly, she turned around and stared at the speaker with wide, unblinking eyes.
“I…I…”Serenity started, not knowing how to react. She certainly wasn't expecting a woman, if anyone, to answer. Her mother and she had been the only females in the house and they were both gone. Now it could be either her father or her brother that could answer the intercom, yet…it was a woman.
“It can't be the wrong house!” Serenity muttered to herself, thinking of any possible reason this could be happening.
“Huh? Speak louder will ya? I can't hear you!” the impertinent voice echoed again, and Serenity suddenly had the feeling she'd heard that tone somewhere before…
“Does…does Joey Wheeler live here?” Serenity asked, with a little more confidence than she had before. The rest of the group watched the aural exchange with interest, if not anxiousness.
There was a brief pause in the intercom, indicating that the woman from inside the house was temporarily startled. Then there came her voice again, this time rougher than any other time.
“I don't know what the hell you're taking about, lady!!. Now scram!” she said, and seemed to close the link. Serenity's eyes widened in hurt, just as Marik's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
“The wench is hiding something.” Bakura stated matter-of-factly, though only half of the group could hear him, really.
Marik nodded apprehensively, approached the door without Serenity's consent and reached for the buzzer once more. Everyone watched him curiously, as he rung the bell for a second time, and received a not-so-polite response.
“I said get the hell outa here!” the insolent woman shouted from the other side of the line. Marik shared a glance with an angry-looking Bakura, whose blood-fetish had come to the surface yet again.
“Let's slaughter her slowly and painfully…” Bakura suggested with a glint of his canines, making Marik grin lightly. Ryou, however, didn't find this at all humorous, and shouted towards the house's general direction.
“Let us in!! Joey's sister is here to see him!!” he cried at the top of his lungs. Marik and the others hoped for a response from the intercom, but there came none. Ryou, now moderately angered, rushed to the door-front and lightly pushed Marik out of the way. He proceeded to scream at the door again.
“It's SERENITY!! JOEY'S SISTER!!! HELLOOOO!??!”
“Oh dear” Marik muttered in Bakura's ear in a mock-hurt tone “I believe he's becoming a normal guy again…the horror!” Bakura's red eyes laughed at that, as he kept watching his Brightside pound at the door. Who could have thought? Both Bakura and Marik smiled fondly, watching Ryou release an impressive testosterone level. It seems that when finding a mate to protect, even the meekest of lambs can become wolves,
“OPEN UP!! COME ON!” he shouted. Tea, Serenity and Yugi tried to calm him down, but he wouldn't have it. He continued shouting at the woman to open the door, repeating that Serenity was Joey's sister and she deserved to see him.
“I guess he's really intent on getting Serenity to her brother, huh?” Marik commented idly, watching Yugi try to proclaim there was no chance Joey was in that house, and even he was, he would be scared out of his wits by now.
“A-Ah..” Tea answered Marik from a few feet beside them. Bakura just grinned maniacally from the sidelines, reveling in the rare feeling of anger from Ryou's part.
Finally, Ryou stopped pounding at the door, and there was silence everywhere. No one spoke, waiting for some kind of response. The intercom seemed dead- there was no chance to find Joey now..
“Forget it guys…they're never gonna let us in…” Tea sulked, and Serenity took Ryou's hand in her own, caressing his face and thanking him for all his efforts to help her. They had only started to back away from the house- with Bakura sending suspicious glances to it, as usual- when the voice from the intercom broke out again, all of a sudden.
“Is it…true?” the woman asked, this time seeming more shocked and less brash than before “Is Serenity really there?”
A startled Serenity approached the door yet again, with Ryou's arm wrapped securely around her shoulders. She stared at the speaker motionlessly, as though processing something in her mind. Then, hesitantly, as though afraid to believe what she was about to say, she spoke her thoughts.
“…Mai?” Serenity asked in disbelief.
Silence form the intercom.
A thump was heard from the door in front of them, and before they knew it, the ebony metal had split in two to reveal the person standing behind it.
“Oh my God, it is you!!!” the tall, blonde woman that had just been revealed positively shouted, as she threw herself at Serenity, gathering the girl in her arms.
If one had looked closely, they would have surely seen slim rivers flowing down both womens' cheeks.
“Oh, Mai!!!” Serenity cried, hugging the other woman back. The others, who saw the newcomer for the first time, were quick to notice that the woman- though surely beautiful in a youthful sort of way- had gauges wrapped around both her forearms. She seemed to be extremely careful to avoid touching Serenity with them.
“We missed you so much!” Mai said, as she pushed back to look at Serenity in the eyes. The auburn-haired girl smiled and hugged Mai for a second time. Everyone observed Mai's long, curly platinum hair, her bright amethyst eyes- much like Yugi's ruby ones- and her sweet smile. Was this really the woman that had cursed at them only a minute ago through the intercom?
“Mommy! Mommy! Who are these people!?” a childish voice erupted suddenly from behind Mai, and everyone had a chance to finally notice the short little boy that was hiding behind Mai's knees, looking terrified, frankly.
Serenity's eyes widened as she readily recognized a mop of dirty blonde hair on the boy's head. The familiar brown eyes smiled up at her, and if it wasn't for the slightly softer facial features, she would have sworn Joey was looking at her.
`Wait…'mommy'?' Serenity thought in wonderment, as she felt Mai let go of her and rush to take care of…her son?! Mai with a kid?! Where was this world coming to?!
“Nice…” Bakura muttered appreciatively as his eyes skimmed up and down the expanse of Mai's mini-skirt clad legs -not to mention, of course, his not-so-subtle looking at her rare-- “Very nice…”
“Oh, please!!!” Ryou rolled his eyes from beside Yugi at hearing Bakura's comments. Dark Yugi also rolled his eyes and muttered something about stupid ancient spirits and how he was infinitely better than wannabe villains. As for Marik, he simply snorted.
The fact that Mai didn't seem to hear Bakura was proof that she, like so many others, could not see him. The company of friends saw Mai rush to her little boy and pick him up in her arms. The child looked at them with undoubtedly frightened eyes.
“Shh…don't worry, honey. See?” she pointed at Serenity's radiant smile, which was directed towards them “They `re friends!”
The boy hesitantly nodded but still didn't seem comfortable enough to smile in front of the strangers. Instead, he clung to Mai's neck with both hands, hiding his face in the warm crook of her neck, as a gesture of shyness.
Serenity and Tea squealed at the cuteness of it all, making the poor kid blush and hide even more fervently.
“Oh, puh-lease!!! It's disgusting!!!” Bakura groaned, as he clamped his hands over his ears, endeavoring to block out the squeals of `HOW CUTE!!!!' or `Oh, look! Woochi-woochi-woochie!!'
From Bakura's side, all other males of the company snickered at his discomfort.
Suddenly, though, Mai stopped playing with her son and looked around anxiously. Her purple eyes scanned the seemingly empty road around them and she seemed nervous.
“Come inside…” she told Serenity in a very serious voice, all of a sudden “You and your friends. It's not safe to stay out here for long…”
“Ouch!! Mom, watch the arms!!” the boy protested from her embrace, and Mai quickly released her hold of him. He rubbed his back at the spot where her hyper-arm had accidentally hurt him, and Mai apologized in obvious regret.
“Come on in!” Mai opened the door for them and motioned for them to walk “Hurry!!”
As everyone passed by her, they greeted her and thanked her for her hospitality. Marik, predictably, saluted her with his trademark mysterious grin, and her eyes seemed to glaze over at his charm for a moment, before she shook her head and smiled back.
But when it was Ryou's turn to enter last of all, Mai gave him a special small smile.
“I understand your concern about Serenity” she started saying “but please refrain from breaking my door down next time, okay?” to say Ryou had never been more lethally embarrassed in his entire life would be an understatement. The blushing albino nodded fervently and quickly walked past the amused Mai, who shut the door behind him.
They all walked in the small hall and to the softly-lit living room. It looked as if the interior of the house was as sleazy and pour as the exterior had been. No one commented, however, since they had lived in much worse circumstances than this. Well, that is, nearly no one protested.
“Sheesh…you'd think they'd have a couch, at least. What is that crippled looking piece of junk?” Bakura complained in an irritated voice. From his side, Marik grinned lightly.
“That would be the couch.” He muttered, when everyone was too busy talking to see him speak to the invisible spirit.
Bakura snorted snobbishly at the pathetic state of the house and proceeded to float around, checking things out.
“So, Mai…” Serenity started, when everyone had settled on the shaggy furniture “Not that I'm complaining or anything, but what are you doing in my dad's house?” she asked, observing the way Mai tightened the gauges around her forearms and sat back comfortably, crossing her legs.
Bakura wolf-whistled at the exposed legs, but it was lost by the females of the group, which could only be considered a good thing, taking Mai's notoriously short temper into consideration…
“No…of course I understand, Seren!” Mai started saying, while barbaric shouts were heard from the nearby room, where Mai's son had disappeared into a few minutes before. A violent crash was heard, and Mai rolled her eyes heavenwards “Oh great! Now what have they done!?”
“They?” repeated Serenity and Marik at the same time, looking at each other confusedly.
“All right, come here this instant!!!!!” Mai roared in her not-so-subtle voice. Instantly, two guilty-looking little kids appeared in the doorway- the boy and a little girl.
“There are two!?” Serenity incredulously asked, as she saw the platinum-haired, brown-eyed girl that looked exactly like Mai- apart from the eyes, of course. “You've got to be kidding me!!”
Mai, however, seemed to ignore Serenity for the time being. She focused on glaring at her son and daughter. Bakura snorted as he recognized the familiar look of guilt in the kids' eyes -he himself had been forced to wear it so many times when talking to Ryou in the past…
“Can't I leave you out of my sight for ONE SECOND without having to worry about things breaking? Now go to your room! No treat for tonight!!!” Mai scolded. Bakura and Marik felt almost sorry for the little menaces, who seemed ready to burst into tears as they retreated to their rooms. Mai could be terrifying if she wanted to.
Mai looked at Serenity and chuckled good-heartedly. What was it with mothers and shifting moods?
“I swear I don't know what went wrong with them!” Mai laughed loudly as she took a seat opposite Tea “It's their father's fault!!”
At the mentioning of `their father', Mai's spirits seemed to dampen considerably. In fact, her voice stopped retaining that familiar loud impudence and turned into a soft mutter. Serenity and her friends noticed immediately.
Gingerly, Serenity leaned towards the blonde woman and touched her shoulder “Mai…what happened?”
Mai smiled bitterly and looked away “You mean…what happened ever since you left, or what happened in general?”
Serenity tried to soothen the lump in her throat as a brand new wave of guilt assaulted her.
“I'm so sorry Mai!!” she finally cried, and latched onto a surprised Mai's shoulders “I never meant to go away and leave you guys here!! But you now my mother!! You know how she was….she…she took me away!! I couldn't resist back then!!!” Serenity confessed, finally having the chance to redeem herself at least in the eyes of one of her old friends, if not her brother. Everyone around was obviously not comfortable with such emotional proclamations, and they put up a brave fight keeping quiet for Serenity.
Mai smiled in understanding and patted the girl's shoulder as carefully as she could, because of her spiky arms. “I know, Serenity…” Mai finally said “You shouldn't worry about that. When Joey found out you were gone…” here Mai's eyes filled with tears, and her voice cracked “..he was…he was very happy. He said he wanted a better life for you. You deserved a better life than us scum…he…he said…” At this point, Mai totally broke down, throwing all caution to the wind. She started sobbing in Serenity's arms, and the auburn haired girl didn't protest about the sharp spikes of Mai's hyper-arms cutting in her back.
Ryou, who watched the rivers of blood flow down Serenity's back, wanted to speak and stop his beloved, but a sharp look from Marik warned him not to interrupt. Marik turned to Yugi and Bakura and with a flick of his head, told them they should go to another room.
Yugi nodded mutely and stood up, motioning for Ryou to follow. Marik, Ryou and Dark Yugi walked out of the room, with Bakura flowing closely behind them. And as Bakura floated through the doorway to the kitchen, his red piercing eyes recognized a movement at his left. The last thing he saw, before he followed Marik, was the image of Mai's children, hunched in the staircase and watching their mother cry in Serenity's arms.
Tea scooted close to Mai's other side, when she realized the others where leaving them alone to talk.
“There, there, Miss Mai…don't cry…” Tea tried to comfort “I'm sure that whatever has happened can't be that bad! Whatever it is, you now have your friends here to help!”
But even Tea's optimistic nature couldn't be of help in the dark cavities of Earth's Catacombs. Mai was drowning in a pit of sorrow, and in the mentioning of friends, she seemed to get even worse. Mai started trying to stop sobbing, making valiant efforts to steel her voice and make it sound determined.
“I…I don't need friends. I'll…I can make it on my own…I was foolish to think I…” Mai started saying, a foreign icy determination threatening to build in her eyes.
“No, Mai! Don't say that!” Serenity urged “I'm sorry I haven't been there before, but now that I'm back, I'll help you with all I can!”
At the encouragement of Serenity's voice, Mai couldn't hold back the mute tears that ran down her cheeks.
“Serenity…thank you…you…you don't know what this means to me…” Mai said, as she finally seemed to be calming down.
Serenity soothed Mai's back and urged the woman to continue speaking “Just tell me what happened since I left, all right?” Serenity requested, making Mai nod.
“This probably isn't the best time to be telling you this…” Mai started saying, looking carefully at Serenity from beneath her long eyelashes “…but you must know your father died in a factory accident. There was an explosion…It happened about a year after you left. I'm sorry…”
Serenity gulped at the sudden revelation. She closed her eyes firmly and tried to keep her unshed tears from flowing. He may have been a helpless drunkard, but he was her father…Her father was dead. Somehow, she had already known it would turn out like this…But there was no use mourning now for a man she had despised most of her life. After all, she had to be strong for Mai, now. She couldn't afford losing herself in grief as well. “I'm sorry too…” Serenity finally managed, for lack of anything better to say “If only he'd tried to be more…understanding…” she finished, and Mai nodded.
“Anyway…” Mai continued, brushing the subject aside for later “years went by and…well, Joey and I got to know each other better…and…”
Serenity mustered a smile “Yeeeees?” she egged on, grinning and wiggling her eyebrows at Tea from the side. It was always fun to watch serious Mai make sentimental proclamations!
“Well, you know…even if we hated each other at first…then we kind of…and then there was that time we…so, you know. We…uh, we got married.” Mai finished, refusing the fact that she was still reluctant to admit she had fallen for the thick-headed blond buffoon after all.
“My God!” Serenity chuckled “If they'd told me this five years ago, I would have told them to get a health checkup! Joey and Mai!? No way! You guys were practically at each others throats ever since the first day you met!!”
Mai smiled brightly at the sweet memories “Yeah, well…It wasn't my fault if he was always trying to prove he was better than me in everything!! And you know how I feel about being the best in what I do…” Mai winked cheekily at that.
Serenity shook her head dismissively “Trust me, I know.”
Tea giggled eagerly “You know what they say about there being a thin line between love and hate! Many people express their attraction to each other by fighting at first. Then, they find out they loved each other all along and they bash their heads on the wall for never realizing it before!!”
Mai raised an eyebrow “You know, I couldn't have explained it better. Only in Joey's case, it's not Joey's head which will be hurt, it's the wall!”
All three girls chuckled at that, commenting about male stubbornness and how Joey seemed to have an excessive amount of it in his system. Then, all of a sudden, Mai's expression turned pained again.
“We had Lui first, and then there was Zora” she explained, referring to her two children. Serenity sobered up when she saw Mai's expression. “Joey loved them so much from the first moment…and me…he promised me he'd find a way to get us out of this Catacomb and out to another planet. He said we deserved better than to rot like this in this place…our children deserve better…”
Serenity and Tea both nodded, understanding the love of a parent towards their child, and the will to make life better for their descendants.
“I understood. I told Joey we'd find a way, somehow, but he wanted to get out of here as soon as possible, no matter what…”
Oh no. Serenity thought this story was not going good. And if she knew her brother, she had yet to hear the worst part.
“He started dealing with all kinds of people…dangerous people…I told him to forget it for now- that it was better to live a safe life than do illegal dealings for a chance to leave Earth…But of course, being Joey, he didn't listen. And then, one day, he got a call from one of the top MultiCorp executives- one of the most important people in the Complex. They asked him to meet them in the upper levels that evening, and they said they would give him a way to leave the planet…”
“Oh-Oh.” Serenity said, knowing what was coming.
Main nodded in understanding “Exactly. I told him it was fishy and dangerous. What would the top executives want with a simple worker, all of a sudden, anyway? But he didn't listen, blinded as he was to get us out of the planet…So he left to meet that guy that evening…” Mai's voice trembled “…and he hasn't come back since then. It's been nearly a month!”
Tea covered her mouth with both her palms, and Serenity put a hand over her heart, to steady its frantic beating.
“He couldn't have left you.” Serenity reasoned “Joey would never do that.”
Mai nodded quickly “I know! But…maybe he's hurt…I don't know why they're after us all of a sudden, but I can't trust anyone!” Mai said in a regretful tone “that's why I'm so careful with answering the door! Now that Joey's not home, I can't afford leaving the house or going to work! I have to stay here and look after the kids…Tristan helps, as much as he can, but…”
Serenity bucked-up quickly “Have you asked Tristan if he's heard anything about Joey?”
Mai looked at her in a disbelieving look “Are you crazy? Of course I've asked him! I've asked everyone!! It's been more than a month, I'm telling you!” Mai suddenly let out a long sigh and seemed to be resigned to her fate “It's like the earth opened up an swallowed him whole…he couldn't have just disappeared…so yeah, maybe he did leave me. That's why I'll never trust people again.”
Tea's tearful eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously in denial “You can't say that! That's impossible, Miss Mai!! I never knew your husband, but from what I've heard from both Serenity and you, he sounds like a person who would do anything for his family and the people he loves!!”
Mai's eyes filled with tears all over again “I know!!” she said in frustration “You know how hard it is to have him here one day, telling you he'll never leave you, and then the next morning he's gone!! No sign of him!!! And it's the same for Tristan and Duke too…they've lost a best friend too…and even though they try to be there for me, it's not the same…I need Joey…”
Mai let out a shaky breath and took her face carefully in her mutated, hyper-palms “Curiously, that council member that called Joey in his house has obviously not been heard of for a long time, too…You know how it is, of course, simple workers don't get to see top executives very often, but nobody has seen that guy ever since Joey disappeared…”
A heavy voice was suddenly heard from the kitchen doorway, making all three girls whirl around and stare, as Marik sauntered in the room.
“Well, in that case, I think it's pretty obvious, isn't it? Either that council guy has done something with Joey or something happened to them while they were together in the meeting!” Marik reasoned, breaking in the conversation out of the blue.
“MARIK ISHTAR!” Serenity pointed an accusing finger at him “Have you been eavesdropping?!”
`It's hardly difficult NOT to eavesdrop when one is shouting the way you women do!” Yugi came in, and Serenity noticed his eyes seemed to be wider and more innocent than before. He looked like the habitual Yugi she was used to. She was wondering about Yugi…
“Not to be rude, Serena, but you should be a little more quiet during private conversations…” Ryou added to what the others had said, as he followed Yugi in the room. From beside Ryou, the invisible Bakura huffed at his Brightside's statement.
“I think it would be better if you told her to be PERMENANTLY more quiet, Brightside! Her whimpering is getting on my nerves!” at this implication, Ryou's eyes shot daggers at Bakura, greatly resembling the demonic Bakura himself. The spirit admired the way his glare looked on Ryou's face. Finally! Ryou seemed to be becoming less of a wimp and more of a normal man! Maybe the girl had done him some good, after all…
“Never mind that” Marik told the confused Mai “I think we should go to this `top executive's' place and look for Joey.”
Serenity shook her head in denial “It's not that simple, Marik. Council members like that live on the top of the MultiCorp factories. You need special access cards and authorizations to get up there.”
Marik raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her, showing her he didn't think much of her argument “So? Has that ever stopped us before?”
Tea huffed and looked disapprovingly at him “Don't you think we should lay low for a while?! After all, that's what we came here for, right?”
Mai seemed alerted “You came here to hide? From who?”
Serenity shook her head at her “It's a long story! I'll tell you sometime soon, okay?”
Mai nodded her head warily, and refocused at Marik, who called for her attention. “Listen, Mai” he started with his usual sly demeanor “Is there anyone here who we can trust? Who can help us find our way into MultiCorp and to the higher levels?”
“Well, I can't help you since I have to stay and look after the kids…then, there is always Duke and Tristan, but are you sure…” Mai started, but was yet again interrupted by Marik.
“In that case, they could help us find our way in MultiCorp, and we can take care of the rest, which is getting in the senator's place and finding Joey!” Marik turned to Serenity and Tea. “What do you think?”
Serenity sighed and shook her head “As much as I want to find my brother, Marik, this is just way too risky…I think we can't do this right now.”
Suddenly, a flash came from Ryou's chest, and the boy's white hair seemed to get a little spikier than normal. The Bakura spirit was no longer floating around.
“I say you're all a bunch of wimps!!!” Bakura stated matter-of-factly, sauntering around in Ryou's body. He strategically kept his eyes a mahogany color, but Marik could readily see through the façade. The tanned blond rolled his eyes at Bakura's words. Though honest, Bakura certainly wasn't the ideal orator.
“First you go on and on about how much you miss this guy and how much you want to find him. Then you start bitching and moaning about him. Then you start crying over him!” he said the last phrase in an almost disgusted fashion “And now, when you finally get the chance to actually find him, you say it's too dangerous, and Kaiba is after our asses and blah blah blah…I say we go out there and get this guy!! We'll never find him if we just stand here scratching our heads and talking about him!!” Bakura finished with a shout and put his hand in front of Marik “Who's with me?” he asked.
Almost immediately, Marik's palm slammed down on his.
“I am.” He cooed at Bakura with his deep voice, sending his glistening eyes to tickle Bakura's spine “Coz we'll never get away from Kaiba if we don't start trying to sort things out instead of running from them…”
Bakura's eyes glittered back at him, and the spirit grinned hungrily at him alone.
“I am too.” Kind Yugi said, as he put his hand over the others and looked at Tea apologetically “I don't want to be left out from all the fun, when I can be of some help. Besides, you guys are my friends, and I want to help you.”
And thus, the magic word was said, and Tea shot up from her seat immediately. She ran to the boys and put her hand over their palms “That's right!!” she said “We are friends, and if we don't help each other, no body will!!”
Finally, they all looked at Serenity, who was flabbergasted, looking first at the spirit in Ryou's body, then at Marik, who was watching her expectantly, and then at Mai, who seemed utterly confused, but grateful nonetheless.
The auburn haired girl hesitantly put her hand over the others, looking in wonderment at their joined palms.
“All right!” Yugi grinned at Serenity, who hesitantly smiled back at him.
“Now we'll find Joey for sure!!” Tea excitedly said.
“One…two…three… ALL RIGHT!!” they all shouted, as they threw their joined hands in the air in unison.
“Okay!! Mai, call Tristan and Duke! Tell them to come here and meet us ASAP! Yugi, Tea, Serenity, go prepare anything you can- smoke-chips, communicators, anything!! Bakura…I mean Ryou, come with me!”
Bakura smirked at Marik's customary fall-up. He really saw no reason to hide the fact that he wasn't Ryou- everybody except Mai knew it anyway. As Bakura watched the others do what Marik had instructed them, he saw Mai stand up and walk towards him. He reveled in the fact that he was finally visible to her- what a unique chance to interact with a gorgeous blonde!!
Mai looked at him in a curious, strange way “You're a really loud one, aren't you?” she asked, and Bakura amusedly remembered that Mai had seen Ryou screaming and pounding at the door. Now, the second time she really heard him speak, she'd heard him shouting at the others to get a grip. Ha! If only she knew what a wrong picture she had of `Ryou'.
`She's one to talk…' Bakura amusedly thought, reminiscing Mai's generally screechy, very loud tone of voice.
/ / Oh my GOD! / / Ryou's voice came unbidden from the deep recesses of Bakura's mind //I can't believe you've embarrassed me so much!!!//
Bakura smiled on the outside and telepathically answered Ryou \ \ no need for me to do that, Brightside. You'd done it yourself before I even had a chance to take over your body! \ \
Mai looked at him with a bemused, raised eyebrow and a little grin “Anyway…thanks for wanting to help…”
Bakura gave her what qualified for his sexy, lop-sided smirk. “No prob.” He slyly said “Anything for you…” and as Mai turn around and started to walk up the stairs Bakura added “…doll.”
/ / EWWW!!! Yami I can't BELIEVE you!! Give me my body back, right now! Before Miss Mai hears you say something like that and you embarrass me further!! / /
Bakura rolled his eyes on the outside and walked in the kitchen, where Marik was waiting for him.
\ \ You obviously didn't see her very well, that's why you say that Brightside…and the size of her- \ \
/ / YAMI stop it!! She's a married woman!! / /
Bakura clicked his tongue. Why did Ryou always have to go and spoil it all?
\ \ I know…damnit! Maybe if I can `take care' of her husband… \ \
/ / YAMI!!! / /
Even though Ryou chided Bakura for his behavior, though, he never failed to notice there was no emotion behind Bakura's words, which proved he was only joking. He wasn't being serious when he talked about Mai.
“What's wrong? You seem pissed.” Marik idly commented while sitting on the kitchen counter and biting lightly on a strange red fruit that Bakura didn't remember seeing before.
“It's nothing…” Bakura nonchalantly said, as he signaled for Marik to throw him one of the red fruits too. He never passed on a chance to experience the sense of taste when in Ryou's body. Marik grabbed the sanguine-like thing and threw it at Bakura, who caught it effortlessly.
Bakura leaned back on the nearby wall and bit into the fruit. Interesting. It tasted like a pineapple but looked like a sanguine. Maybe it was a mutated strawberry or something…
“Mai's friends will meet us here soon. I guess we can just chill…” Marik said, flicking his tongue out briefly to lick the stray juice that had slipped on his bottom lip.
When Bakura's started staring at Marik's lips as though mesmerized, the tanned boy froze. If Bakura was always vigilant to not let his emotions slip, Marik realized, it was because when he did let them slip, he lost the ability to control them. The dead give-away of Bakura licking his lips as he stared at Marik was proof enough.
With his heart beating erratically, and feeling strangely encouraged, Marik bent down to take the ripe fruit in his mouth again, this time simply rubbing it against his lips and play-biting it. He tried to ignore the frantic beating of his heart, as he saw Bakura's jaw threaten to drop and the albino take a hesitant step forward. Marik belatedly realized that Bakura was not a see-through spirit any more, so when the albino had moved closer, the heat of an excited body came with him.
It was nothing compared to what Marik had felt in the hovercraft, before. When Bakura was in his spirit form, there was only that underlying heated emotion, but when Bakura was real and tangible…
Marik just couldn't believe this was happening. Wait, it could not be happening!!! Marik was never attracted to other guys! To be specific, Marik had never been attracted to people, in general. Until now, he had seen peoples' hormones as a way to manipulate them. Just lean over a woman and act as if you like her, and she melts to putty at your feet. What was happening with Bakura was nothing like that. It was uncontrollable, wild…meant for pleasure and not manipulation. And Marik hated being left at the mercy of his emotions.
Okay. Yearning to have Bakura's attention and respect was one thing, but actually looking forward to Bakura's touching him was totally different!! What was happening!? This was crazy! Bakura was dead- this couldn't be happening!!!
The fact that he even found it so normal to flirt with Bakura was slowly starting to scare the living daylights out of him. What the heck was he doing, putting on a show? These were things strippers did in clubs!! Marik was neither a female, nor a stripper; therefore, he found it horrifically extraordinary that he was actually trying to seduce somebody, and another guy no less, by sucking into a fruit!
The most terrifying, arousing part of all of this, however, seemed to be the fact that Bakura was freely taking the bait. He didn't even seem to try and hide it any more. He came closer. Closer. Closer!! His scorching breath was burning Marik's open lips. They were inches apart, as Bakura took Marik's hand, which was holding the fruit, and brought it to his own mouth.
/ / Yami, what are you doing? / / Ryou frantically inquired, not really wanting to understand Bakura's emotions, which were raining down on him through their link. It was not like with Mai…no…this time, Bakura didn't say anything, yet Ryou understood it all. Every excruciating detail was there. When had this situation started getting so out of hand?
This was impossible. It could not be happening! Ryou's frantic thoughts rolled around Bakura's mind, disorientating him. With an aggravated flash of his ring, Bakura put Ryou in a mind-coma, rendering him unconscious of what he was doing. Bakura grinned darkly back at Marik's lost, vulnerable, and overall dreadfully alluring expression.
“What `s wrong? You seem nervous…” Bakura remarked lazily, breathing warmly against Marik's wet, juice-coated fingertips.
“I…” Marik started, but never really meant to finish that sentence, as he hoarsely stared down at their hands.
The boy's breaths came in wild, uneven rasps. His lips trembled uncontrollably, and his eyes became half lidded and glazed over. In a horrifying, heart-stopping moment, he felt something warm nudge his thighs apart and gasped freely, looking down. Bakura had successfully adhered himself to the counter, against Marik. The violet eyes were now wide, unblinking, as he felt the unmistakable touch of what was Bakura's lips brush against one of his fingers, while biting into the fruit.
Marik chocked, staring first at Bakura licking the slick red juice, which was sliding down their adjoined hands, and then at Bakura's eyes, which had been turned from deep mahogany to blood red- just like that God-damned fruit. Marik started as he felt Bakura's other hand slide torturously slow up his leg, pulling his thigh further against Bakura's torso, forcing Marik to glue his entire body against Bakura's- pressed up in one
The tanned blonde was frozen in place, disbelieving, yet so painfully, undeniably aroused. He watched the feral, hungry look with which Bakura's eyes approached his. He noticed fleetingly that Bakura had completely abandoned the effort to keep his hair from spiking up- now they were raised in wild spikes, reflecting his excited mood. The muscles in his arms rippled suddenly, as he tugged at Marik's hand- which was still holding the fruit- and forced it around his neck. Automatically, Marik let go of the fruit, which tumbled to the floor with a soft thump and stayed there, completely forgotten.
Marik knew what was coming, as he saw the red eyes he had been dreaming of glaze over and become half-lidded. He actually felt hot air being pushed down his throat, and he knew he was close enough to be breathing the other's breath. Involuntarily, Marik's own eyes responded and slid closed, as he -terrified though he was to admit it- gave himself up totally, allowing his other hand to dig into Bakura's hair as a primal instinct. The heat of Bakura's body nested between his legs, flushing up against his body… Marik threw all caution to the wind, tightening his legs and letting them squeeze Bakura's sides sensually. The gentle pull of Bakura's hand on his forearm, ,making him wrap his arms further around the albino, intensified even more, as Bakura responded in his own way to Marik's surrender.
Marik didn't want to think how his face looked like, for once. He just gave himself completely to that searing heat, that scorching sensation. It was coming. Bakura was so close. The albino licked at his lips and Marik almost felt the motion brush against his mouth. So close.
“Hey guys!!” came a sudden call from outside, and before Marik knew what was happening Mai had opened the kitchen door and stepped in. Bakura froze, his hands having stilled their caresses completely. His wide, red eyes stared at Marik's huge, dilated ones, which were now solely focused on a stunned Mai.
“Uh…” she started with a dry tone that certainly didn't become her “Sorry for the interruption…”
Marik saw Bakura's eyes close more dejectedly than angrily, as he took a step back, leaving the embrace of Marik's legs. To say Marik felt ridiculous, and absolutely dirty, sitting pressed up on the counter the way Bakura had left him, would be an understatement. Mai raised an inquisitive eyebrow as she saw the fallen fruit on the floor, but said nothing. Following the trail of her eyes, Marik's eyes widened and he jumped off the counter, kneeling to grab the fruit.
“Thanks for helping…uh…Ryou…but I could reach it myself.” Marik shakily amended, wanting to crawl in a little hole somewhere and die, having just uttered the most pathetic excuse ever. Bakura obviously seemed to think so too, since he discreetly shook his head at the blond in disappointment.
Marik sighed, looking at the ground.
“I just need Zora's milk.” Mai quickly said, trying to hide her amusement, much to Bakura and Marik's horror. She moved towards a cupboard, opened it and started doing something with a weird white dust- putting it in a bottle and mixing ingredients. “Then I'll go call Tristan and Duke, so I can tell them to come over, okay? They'll be off work in about an hour.” Mai explained, while she perfected the milk recipe for her daughter. She valiantly tried not to catch anyone's eye.
“Uhh…great, Mai! That's great!” Marik urged, for lack of anything better to say or do. He too, was desperately trying to avoid looking at anyone- especially Bakura.
“Okay…” she said, and after exchanging a few hurried glances with each of them, she scurried out of the room. Bakura was now standing more than three feet away from Marik, his red eyes carefully avoiding Marik's violet ones. Marik's heart immediately became heavier in his chest, as he reluctantly glanced at Bakura's disappointed, clearly flustered face.
“Ahem…Let's go, then…” Marik cleared his throat and continued avoiding Bakura's eyes as he walked around the albino and towards the exit. Bakura stood there staring at him for a moment, before he nodded to himself, scowled and turned to follow Marik out of the door.
They had a promise to fulfill after all. They had to find Joey.
OMG!!! OMG!!!! Bakura almost dry-humped Marik!! Whoa!! What was I thinking when I was writing this?? (I bet I was on a serious amount of crack!)
I can't believe it!? What's gonna happen now!?!?!? Will they find Joey? Will the world be saved? Will Kaiba be redeemed in the eyes of the readers? Oh SHIT!! I think my brain' s on overload at five in the morning!! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!! *faints X_X*
See you at the next chappy guys! Please remember to review, ya? I'll give you a cookie! No! Two cookies! No wait, a whole carton of big chocolate-crust cookies!!! Oh, just forget it…I gotta sleep.