Untitled Yu-Gi-Oh! Fanfic: Page 2

Chapter 3

"What fools! If they only knew what I was planning. That useless, pathetic boy. He was too pure, so I couldn't fully control him. But now, with him out of the picture, the world is mine for the taking."
"Don't get ahead of yourself. The child is out of our way, but Yami must be destroyed."
The ghostly spirit turned to face the throne, where Malik sat, Millennium Rod in hand. "Malik, listen to me. I have this under control."
With a fierce voice, Malik snapped, "That's what you said last time, Bakura! I trust you, you know that, but I can only take so much."
"I understand that. You just focus on that pest, Seto Kaiba." Bakura moved closer, but Malik raised his staff to him.
"Bakura, not another step. Go find the child's body, take it over, and destroy Yami. I'll take care of the Kaiba brothers…"
"Yes, Malik. Right away." He drifted off, in search of the corpse of Ryo Bakura. With a body all his own, he would be able to maneuver without any disruptions. Sharing a body with Ryo was fine, until the ability to control him was challenged by Ryo's own purity, and this angered Bakura, so he threatened the life of Yugi, which caused Yami to kill off Ryo, but this only helped Bakura. With the soul of Ryo banished into the afterlife, Bakura would be free to take over the vacant body and claim it as his own, and that's exactly what Bakura intended to do.

With Bakura gone, Malik went into deep thought. His mind, full of unanswered questions and unachieved dreams, flowed freely. He kept his emotions to himself. He only let anger emerge. He would never let anyone see his inner most desires, because those kinds of feelings would show weakness. Gripping the Millennium Rod, his only friend, tightly, he let a single tear hit the floor. He despised that tear, he loathed it. Tears were for the weak, for those who have flaws. I am perfect, he told himself, and he actually believed it.

Bakura, on the other hand, knew this was useless. After 6 months, finding a dead body would be hopeless. Being only but a spirit, he drifted over Domino City, looking for some kind of clue. Suddenly, something inside him drew him to the Game Shop. This curiosity ate him up inside, so he peered into a window, to see Yugi, alone, sitting on his bed, sobbing to himself.
"Hmmm…" Bakura felt some kind of sadness within him, but it was quickly shaken off. He looked back into the window, eyes fixed on Yugi.
Yugi sat, a piece of the Millennium Puzzle lay in the palm of his hand. He hadn't looked at it or touched in what seemed like forever. He could still hear Yami's reassuring voice, whispering in his ear.
"It's not fair." He threw the piece across the room and sobbed into his awaiting pillow. And all Bakura did was smirk.
"Fool…" He continued his search for the body.

Chapter 4

"How could he have gone bad?" At least she was thinking about him. She hadn't forgotten the times they had, and even if she tried, she never could forget.
"Tea?" Someone knocked on her door. The voice was familiar, so she allowed entry. The door slowly swung open, and Tristan stood in the doorway.
"Hey." His voice sounded weak.
"Hi." Tea replied.
He walked closer to her, his eyes wandered around the room. She had taken down most of the pictures she had on her walls. Now bare, the walls were dull, lacking the Tea touch.
"What's new?" Tristan tried to strike up conversation, but to no avail.
"I can't take this anymore, Tristan…I just can't." Tea collapsed into Tristan's arms.
"Tea? What's wrong?"
"I need to talk to him. I need to talk to Yugi."
Tristan was enraged. Hearing his name made his blood run cold. Ever since that night when Yugi brutally killed Bakura, Tristan had this never-ending hatred for him.
"Tea, no. You don't need him. He killed one of our best friends. He's a murderer!" Tristan clenched Tea's arm tightly, like a vice.
"Tristan, what's gotten into you?" She yanked her arm back, but his hand was still firmly wrapped around it.
"Dammit, Tea. Can't you see?"
Tea looked dumbfounded, her eyes locked on Tristan. He couldn't look straight at her, in fear of losing it and crying.
"Tea, I'm trying to tell you that I really…I really…"
"TEA! PHONE! IT'S JOEY!" Tea's mother called up the stairs.
"Be right back, Tristan." Tea made her way down the stairs as Tristan beat himself up for not telling her sooner.
"You're such a dumb ass. She's not going to like you. She likes that brat, Yugi. Finally, I get that punk out of the way, and still he's a pain in my ass." He paced back and forth, trying to put the words together in his head to finally tell Tea that he loved her with all his heart.
Tea re-entered her room, her coat in hand. "Joey was thinking the same thing I was."
"Which was?" Tristan sounded irritable.
"We should talk to Yugi…"
Are you serious? Him? Tristan thought to himself. But, to keep Tea's friendship, he smiled. "Sure. Let's go."
"Go downstairs and wait for me. I'll be down in a few. I just have to fix my hair."
Tristan smiled, nodded, and exited the room. Tea looked into the mirror. Her reflection seemed blurred.
"Well…this is it, Tea. 6 months, and you're finally going to talk to Yugi again. He's still the same person, except he killed somebody. No. What am I thinking? He's a completely different person. He's not the kind, gentle boy I knew. Why am I getting myself into?" Tears began to well up in her eyes. This was what she wanted. Or was it? There was an emptiness inside Tea's heart, where Yugi's smile once was. She grabbed her purse and headed downstairs to face her fear and reunite with Yugi.

Chapter 5

Breathing heavily, she knocked on the door. She was never this nervous. About now, she needed someone to hold her hand and walk her through this.
"Tea? Tristan? Joey? Do my eyes deceive me?" Grandpa couldn't help but smile.
"Hey, gramps. Is Yugi here?" Joey looked surprisingly mellow, which was a word less used to describe the eccentric Joey Wheeler. Always armed with a wise crack, always bickering with Tristan. All in all, always there when he was needed. But ever since the incident with Yugi, he hadn't been the same. He smiled less and less and he became disgustingly normal, which worried Tristan, Tea, and everyone else around him.
In his mind, he knew what was wrong, but his heart wouldn't allow the thoughts to pass. He knew he needed Yugi , but his heart disrupted these thoughts.
"Yes, he's upstairs." Grandpa became serious. "If I may ask, what are you three doing here?"
"We have to talk to him." Tea looked at Grandpa with pleading eyes. A small, crystalline tear slid down her cheek. Grandpa nods in understanding and hands her a tissue.
"All right. But one at a time, please. Yugi seems to have grown immune to too much happiness."
All three nodded and they deliberated. Who would be the first to see Yugi? Tristan declined quickly, in fear that he would do something he would regret. Tea declined as well, knowing she would cry. So, Joey was the one elected to venture into Yugi's room after the 6 month absence.
"I guess I'll go, gramps." Joey stepped forward, pushing his hay like hair out of his face. His eyes glimmered with a small trace of fear, but the question was, fear of what?
Joey slowly made his way to Yugi's room. Like marching on Death Row, his expression was blank. He finally arrived at Yugi's door and he lifted his hand to knock, but he couldn't. He just couldn't. So many words were unsaid. He couldn't face his best friend. He place his hand on the door and tried to knock again, but it seemed that fear wouldn't permit him to knock.
"Come on, Joey. You're cool, just knock." And he did. He finally knocked. He stood there, dumbfounded, and waited.
"Come in." The voice was weak and full of sadness. Joey slowly turned the doorknob and walked into the abandoned room with nothing more then the bed and some newly placed black curtains.
"Step forward and tell me who you are." That voice again, more forward this time.
"Yug, it's Joey." And he stepped forward a little too far and Yugi whipped around and glared at him.
"Not another step…" But when his eyes met Joey's, everything inside broke down. Tears formed in his eyes, so he quickly turned around again, facing the window, where he had spent most of his days.
"How ya been, Yug?"
"Fine." This time, the voice was scratchy and undetectable. Joey moved a little closer.
"Tristan and Tea are here, too."
"Great. What do you want, Joey?"
"I want to talk."
"YOU DIDN'T WANT TO TALK 6 MONTHS AGO, DID YOU???" Yugi looked up at him sobbing.
"Yug, I'm sorry I didn't stop by sooner. I was just…."
"Scared?" Yugi got up and made his way over to Joey.
"Yeah…"
When Yugi was face to face with Joey, he wrapped his arms around him.
"Joey, I was so scared without you. No one believed me when I told them I didn't kill Bakura. But, I knew you believed me. No one could look at me straight anymore. Joey, I needed you 6 months ago and I still need you now. You're still my best friend." And this hug seemed to last for eternity. Joey fought back tears, but one slowly slid down his face.
"Yug, I'm sorry." And Joey returned the hug. 6 months of hanging out, talking, dueling, and having fun were all hidden in that hug.
And for the first time in months, Yugi smiled. Joey wiped his eyes and looked at Yugi.
"Missed ya, buddy."
"I missed you too, Joey."

Back downstairs, Tristan still couldn't spit out the words to tell Tea how he felt about her. Every times words surfaced, they would be overthrown by fears of rejections.
"That's it…Tea, I have to come straight out and tell you this. I love you, I really do. You've always been the light in my life, and I want to know if I can have the honor of being your boyfriend." He was staring at nothing but an empty reflection, in the bathroom. Splashing cold water on his face, he, again, looked into his own eyes.
"Tristan? Are you okay?" Tea slowly opened the door.
"Yea, um…I'm fine, Tea."
"I heard you talking to yourself, and I just thought I'd see if you were alright." She smiled pleasantly as Tristan blushed a bit.
"Tea?"
"Hmm?"
"I need to tell you something important."
"Sure, Tristan. What?"
He started to stutter and stammer, forgetting what he wanted to say. "Tea, I…um, we've known each other for a long time, right? And, well, what I'm trying to say is…" He took a deep breathe as Tea looked on cluelessly.
"Calm down, and say it." She put her hand on his shoulder. Her touch made Tristan's blood run cold. Her skin, so smooth.
"Tea, I love you…" There! I said it! Tristan took a deep breath and signed in relief. Tea, on the other hand, was quite speechless.
Still a bit confused, Tea looked over to him, stepped forward to him, and kissed his cheek gently with a growing smile upon her love stricken face. Not needing words, she nodded.
With a bit of shock in his eyes, Tristan hesitated, but grabbed Tea's hand. "You…really…mean it?"
Again, she nodded.

He now embraced her, holding her tightly. In the back of his mind, this was perfection, but, now lingering thoughts told him otherwise…