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A Game of Masques	By : Silvershadowfire Category: Yu-Gi-Oh > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 6202 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh!, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
Chapter 8 � Plans and Rituals

Yugi looked down at his sleeping lover, a loving
smile on his lips. Yami had collapsed
after their final ecstasy together. Yugi had to admit, the teen had
stamina. Quietly he rose, grabbing a cloth
and towel from the bathroom to clean them both up. Yami didn�t stir � not that Yugi expected him
to. The nip on his ankle �and a tiny
dose of Yugi�s demonic venom - had suppressed any pain from the first time
being loved, but the side-effects would keep him asleep for at least six hours,
and could be dangerous over the long term.
Which is why Yugi only used it on lovers who were virgin�and rarely more
than the once.
Clean-up finished, he tucked them both into bed,
carefully arranging his sprained wing.
He settled behind Yami and pulled the teenager into his arms � Yami
sighed in his sleep, cuddling closer.
Yugi smiled. {At least Yami should
have no bad dreams tonight.}
{Now
I know Ryou was right � even afterwards, I still want to be with him. I want to see that smile again�I want to be
with him forever. But�it�s not safe,
with Malik and Marik on my tail.}
Yugi brushed a kiss across Yami�s tousled hair. {I
could leave now, tonight�but that would not be fair to him, or to us. He would think I only wanted his body and his
virginity.} Yugi blinked away a tear at the thought of Yami�s reaction if
he woke alone. {After all that he�s been through � that would be so wrong. We�ll have to talk about this � in the
morning. He�s nearly a man by human standards�I
owe him an explanation. I love him too
much to not tell him the truth.}
-----
----- ----- ----- ------- ----- ------- --- -
Seto Kaiba wiped away the sleep from
his eyes, trying to make the symbols on his laptop screen stand still. The bright red numbers of the clock on his
desk burned 1:30 am�way past the time when was supposed to be here. He wouldn�t be here himself � except for the
burning, aching compulsion that pounded through his skull.
Find Yami Motou.
He didn�t know � couldn�t remember �
who had done this to him, but the compulsion was far too strong for him to
fight. He had to find the teenager �
using all the resources of Kaiba Corp if necessary � or he was certain he would
lose what little was left of his sanity.
Seto snarled to himself. He didn�t want to do this � from what he knew
of Kyoshiro Motou, he was from the same school as his own stepfather,
Gozoboro�who with any luck was frying in the deepest pit of Hell right now. Yami probably had a good reason to get lost
and stay that way; pity was foreign to Seto�s nature, but he could sympathize.
Mokuba snored gently on the couch,
having fallen asleep there after a failed attempt to get his older brother to
quit for the night, or even stop long enough to eat. Seto sighed as he rubbed his eyes again � he
still had reports to go through, and he couldn�t explain to Mokuba what was
going on�not when he didn�t understand it himself.
He punched the next report up, and
stared in shock at what it said. Some of
his agents had found Yami Motou in Tokyo�they
had lost the teenager, but still�
Like the snap of a rubber band, the compulsion
over Seto�s mind broke. He sighed at the
blessed relief. The teenager was
found�now what should he do?

A
tired, evil little smirk crossed his features.
Whoever had done this wanted Yami found�they didn�t say a damned thing
about doing anything about it afterwards.
So he was in Tokyo. Good enough.
Quick fingers flew over the laptop as he sent out
orders to stand down from the hunt�and altered the report containing the
information. He gave a low laugh. They
would get nothing from using Seto Kaiba�he would deny them the
satisfaction. And when they came to
claim their report�this time he would be ready.

-- --- -- --- -- --- -- ---
--- -- -- --
Malik howled his frustration to the sky, no doubt scaring
the mortals who could hear, but not see, the source of the sounds. �HE TRICKED US!�
Marik winced at his brother�s tone. They both hovered in the sky over Okinawa, having searched the island nation high and low
for any sign of their prey to no avail.
Which put them back at square one.
�I am going to rip his wings off, the little shit.� Malik growled. The elder of the twins swung around in
midair. �Well? You�re the brains of this outfit�what the
hell are we supposed to do now?�
�Take up the trail where we know it left off.� Marik answered coldly, acting unimpressed by
his twin�s temper. Malik had always been
the more impetuous of the two, acting before he thought, while Marik was the
planner. He paused to think, his wings
flapping idly to keep him hovering. �We
know he was in Domino�and if I�m right he kidnapped the boy, probably to play
with. But let�s look at this calmly and
logically.� He paused, martialling his
thoughts. �Okay, let�s presume that Yami
went with Yugi willingly � we didn�t find any signs of a struggle in the boy�s
bedroom. Let�s also presume also that
Yugi would not have wanted to stay in Domino � not where Yami could be
recognized. So�he took him to another
city. Probably by normal means �
wouldn�t want to freak his little mortal plaything out. So, no portal � which is consistant with what
we found in the bedroom.
�Which means he could be anywhere.� Malik snarled. �It�s been four days, Marik�he could have
literally gone anywhere in the world in that time.�
�I don�t think so.�
Marik shook his head. �I doubt if
they even left Japan
� after all, Yugi wouldn�t want to take the mortal all that far away from his
family. What surprises me is that the
boy isn�t home yet.�
�We know that he ran away�and I don�t think think he was
happy with his father.� Malik stated in
a calm, rational voice. Marik looked up
at his brother and carefully didn�t smile.
When angry enough, Malik flipped over into the coldness at the far side
of rage, his brain actually working for a change. This was also when the elder twin was at his
most dangerous. �Maybe� he decided that
life with Yugi would be better than at home.
And that means��
��He�s burdened down with a mortal�who probably doesn�t
even know he�s a demon.� Marik finished,
smirking. �Yugi�ll likely abandon him at
the first opportunity, thinking to keep him �safe�. And while Yugi can lose us in the air, Yami
can�t��
��so we can use the mortal to track Yugi��
�...to act as bait��
��or betray his faithless lover��
The twins smirked at each other, then stretched their
wings and flew to the mainland.

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Yugi felt Yami stir slightly and jolted out of his own
uneasy sleep, hissing in pain as the sprained wing protested. He opened his eyes to see Yami smiling
sleepily at him � sometime during the night they had shifted until they were
facing each other, Yami curled in Yugi�s arms.
�Morning.� Yami
murmured sleepily. Yugi just stared at
that sated, happy little smile and tried to remember how to breathe.
{Pull yourself
together, idiot. You and he have to
talk�later.} Before that smile could
fade, Yugi pressed their lips together in a delicate kiss. �Morning, love. Sleep well?�
�Mmm.� Yami sighed
as his eyes drifted closed again. �You?�
�Yeah.� Yugi gave
him a squeeze, then shifted out from under the covers. Sleepy crimson-violet eyes opened, watching
him in confusion.
�Where are you going?�
�Bathroom, lover�and one of us needs to make
breakfast. Go back to sleep, sweet one.�
�M�kay.� Yami�s eyes slid shut, his breathing evening
out. Yugi gave him a loving smile before going to relieve himself.
He didn�t bathe, mainly because all of his and Yami�s
clothes were already packed up. Moving
to the counter, he took out a jar of salve to soothe his sprained wing. He hissed as he tried to reach the area.
�Here.� Yugi
jumped in shock as Yami took the jar from over his shoulder and took a
fingerful, rubbing it on the wing. The
sprained joint was obvious; swollen and discoloured.
�What happened?�
Yami asked softly as he spread the tangy-smelling substance with gentle
fingers.
�Sprain.� Yugi
hissed despite Yami�s care � it was damned painful, more so than it should have
been. In fact, it should have healed on
its own by now.
�Hang on.� Yami
turned on all the bathroom lights, peering at the night-black wing. �Yugi, there�s something in here.�
�What?�
�Do you have a pair of tweezers?�
�In there.� Yugi
indicated the correct drawer; Yami grabbed the small metal tongs and returned
to his study of the injury. Delicately
he picked out a sliver of some whitish substance, showing it to Yugi. �Here.
This was in there.�
Yugi studied it. {Damn.
Looks like Marik managed to nick me after all. Good thing it wasn�t anything more, or the
venom would have paralyzed me.} The demon shuddered mentally at the thought
of what would have happened. Hunter
demons had venom in their claws and teeth that could cause pain, paralysis and
even necrotic rot. �Can you please clean that out? I don�t want to get any infection.� Yugi reached for a bottle filled with a
clear, thin liquid. �Just don�t get any
of this on your skin. It won�t take much
� maybe a tablespoon full.� He warned,
and braced himself. This was going to
hurt�a lot.
Yami poured the liquid, and Yugi tried manfully not to
scream. Demon poison was a bitch to
purge � he couldn�t take any chances.
Since the venom was both powerful and basic[1],
the best cure was an acid.
Hydrochloric, in this case.
His heartbeat pounded in his ears as the acid ate away
skin and flesh, leaving white bone and trails of thick black blood. Calling his magic, Yugi used some of it to
scab over the wound. It hurt like a
bitch, but it would heal within a day.
Too bad he didn�t have a day. �Thanks.�
�You�re�welcome.�
Yami stammered. �What happened?�
Yugi sighed. �We
have to talk. Come on.�
In the living room, Yugi grabbed his pants and pulled
them on, handing Yami his. �Here. This will be difficult enough � I don�t need
any�� Yugi swallowed as he glanced at
the perfection of Yami�s form.
�Distractions.� Even with the
pain, the teen was hot enough to turn him on with a glance.
Yami pulled the garment on, his eyes showing hurt and a
little confusion. �Yugi, what�s wrong?�
�Listen, Yami��
Yugi took a deep breath. �What
you pulled out of my wing was a sliver of demon talon. There are a pair of hunter-demons after
me�their master seems to think I did something that I in fact didn�t do. I think I threw them off my trail, but it
won�t last long. I�don�t want you in
danger.�
To his shock, Yami actually started to laugh. The teenager laughed until tears ran down his
face, laughed until he couldn�t breathe.
Yugi just stared in shock.
Finally, Yami managed to calm himself down. �When I came home yesterday.� He explained, �I was going to tell you the
same thing�Seto Kaiba�s men found Jou, Honda and myself in the way home from
the arcade. We lost them but I figured
it wouldn�t take long before they discovered where I�m staying�I was going to
go back to Father so that you wouldn�t get into trouble.�
Yugi blinked again, then giggled, then burst out laughing
at the pure irony. �So�we were both
going to do the noble thing and give up the other for their own safety. Well, since we both have to run for it�� he paused, holding out his hand to the
other. �Care to join me, Yami Motou?�
Yami laughed and nodded.
�Might as well run for it in company.�
He grew a little more serious then.
�Honestly, Yugi, you don�t have to do this. I can go back to Father and��
�No.� Yugi shook
his head. �You�re almost an adult,
Yami. I won�t have you going back to
that thing who calls himself your father.�
He reached into the back pocket of his pants, pulling out a debit
card. �This is attached to my account. If something happens to me and we get
separated, I want you to pull out as much money as you can and disappear�go to
Europe or America
and vanish.�
�But I couldn�t leave you.� Yami whispered.
�Yami�� Yugi
swallowed, but he knew that he owed his lover the truth. �If that happens, there is a good chance I
will already be dead.�
Silence fell on the conversation. Finally Yami scooted over to the demon and
slipped an arm around his waist. �Yugi�I
love you. No matter what happens. I promise�I promise that if
something�happens�to you, I won�t ever go back to Father. Alright?�
Yugi smiled at his love.
�Thank you. I just wish��
�Wish what?� Yami
asked.
The demon blushed.
He hadn�t meant to continue that thought aloud. �I wish that I could�never mind, it�s too
much to ask.�
�What?�
Yugi shook his head; Yami poked him. �If you don�t tell me, I�ll cook
tonight. And I�ll burn your part. And I�ll blow up your kitchen.�
�Nasty aren�t you?
What happened to the shrinking violet I saw at Domino High School?�
Yami shrugged, a shy smile gracing his face. �I think he got lost somewhere last
night. But that isn�t answering my
question. What did you want to ask of
me?� His tone lost all trace of fun. �Yugi, I swear�if it�s in my power, I will
give you anything. I don�t have much �
but what I have is yours. I love you so much.�
�Alright�but I want you to think about this before you
answer.� Yugi took Yami�s hand in
his. �I wanted to ask you to be my
mate. I know I love you, and I�m sure
you love me...�
Yami opened his mouth, but Yugi put his fingers over the
opening, stopping him. �Let me
finish. This would let me find and
protect you no matter where you went; but you are mortal, and I don�t know of
any cases where a demon mating ritual has been done on a human�so there might
be side-effects. It is magic; but in some
respects magic is like science � if one variable changes, the result becomes
unknown.� The demon took a breath. �I want to be with you, Yami�but you must be
sure. Absolutely willing, or else the
bond won�t work properly. If there is
any doubt in your heart��
Yami hugged him tighter, then peeked around and caught
his gaze. �Yugi�if I wasn�t absolutely
certain, then I wouldn�t have slept with you last night. I wanted�I thought I wouldn�t be able to ever
see you again, and I know I will never fall in love with anyone the way I have
fallen for you. I wanted you to be my
first�and I want you to be my only.�
He grinned. �But I
don�t think this is the time, is it? We
should go to�where were you planning on going, anyway?�
Yugi nodded in silent agreement. �I have an apartment in Kyoto.
The only problem being that if we take any mortal or magical means of
travel, Marik and Malik will be able to track it�and I can�t fly with my wing
in this shape.�
�Is there someone else who might be willing to fly us
there?�
Yugi thought for a moment, and grinned. �There just might be��

----- ------ ------ -----
--- --- ---- --- ---- ---
An hour and a couple phone calls later, Bakura and Ryou
appeared at Yugi�s window. Yami � who
had been working on the puzzle he�d gotten from Yugi, and surprisingly almost
had it done - let them in while the incubus dealt with the man from the
shipping company, who would be taking their clothes to the new place in Kyoto.
�Hello, Yami.�
Ryou murmured politely; Bakura just grunted. �Yugi said it was an emergency. Is everything alright?�
�Well�� Yami
started, when suddenly Bakura sniffed and barked a laugh. He blinked at the white-haired demon in
surprise. �What?�
�So you two finally got together. About time.�
The gaki grinned wolfishly. �So
what�s it like to bang the best incubus in Hell?�
Yami turned bright red while Ryou hit his mate over the
head, hard. �Bakura!�
The gaki just kept laughing. Ryou pointedly turned his back on Bakura and
walked Yami over to the other side of the room.
�Ignore him. If you and Yugi have
gotten together, I couldn�t be happier.
Now, what did Yugi call us about?�
�It might be better if he told you.� Yami muttered, still trying to control his
blushing. A quiet filled the room, offset
only by Bakura�s snickering and the murmuring of Yugi and the delivery man at
the door. Yami put another couple pieces
in the puzzle before turning to the storm demon. �Ryou�do you know anything about�demon
mating?� Yami�s felt his blush come back
full force; he played nervously with the three-quarter-done puzzle in his
hands.
�Why did you want to know?� Ryou replied after a moment�s thought. �Did Yugi�ask you to be his mate?�
�Yes.� Yami
answered. He had no idea why he was
talking about this to someone he barely knew�but he felt comfortable enough
around the gentle demon to ask.
�Well�� Ryou
murmured softly. �It�s interesting�the
ritual has different effects on everyone.
Take me and Bakura�I�m a storm demon and he was a mortal thief who dabbled
in the occult when we met. We took
longer to decide that we were meant for each other�but when we mated, he became
a type of vampire who feeds on human pain; soon after my hair came in the same
colour as his.
Yami blinked. �Is
that why he can stand sunlight, even though he�s a gaki?�
�Yes.� Bakura, who
had finally recovered, joined them on the couch, answering for his mate. �Sorry, Yami.
Sometimes my sense of humor gets the better of me. I guess it�s really not any of my business�I
was just curious what it�s like.�
�I take it I�m not good enough for you?� Ryou asked archly. Bakura smirked.
�Don�t be ridiculous, love, Yugi�s flexible � I�m sure he could take both
of us.�
Yami buried his flaming face in his hands. �Too much information, Bakura.�
Ryou fought back a chuckle while Bakura laughed out
loud. �Come on, Yami; I�m sure you could
join us if you wanted to.�
�Bakura, what
do you think you�re doing?� Yugi�s
normally chipper voice was cool. Yami tried
to hide in the couch cushions while Yugi gave the gaki a piece of his mind.
�I�ll thank you to keep a handle on that sense of humour
of yours before I shove it somewhere that I guarantee you won�t find pleasant.
�You okay, Yami?�
Yugi�s hands massaged his shoulders.
�I�m fine.� Yami
smiled sheepishly. �They were just
fooling around.�
�What did you call us over for, Yugi?� Ryou asked quickly, throwing a dirty look at
his mate, who had opened his mouth as though to speak.
�This is a little odd, guys, but Yami and I have to go to
Kyoto, and I
was hoping you could give us a ride.�
�Malik and Marik that close behind you?� Bakura asked, suddenly dead serious.
�And Yami�s father.
I threw off the hunter-demons for a while, but Kaiba will be telling
Yami�s father where he is; we both need to get somewhere else. I would just take the bus or something, but��
�But Marik and Malik could smell out your trail if you
did.� Ryou finished. �Alright�but we should wait until
twilight. Less chance of anyone seeing
us.�
�We could just use magic to hide�� Yugi started, but Ryou
shook his head.
�It leaves a trail.
Hunter-demons can pick that up�even in the air.�
Yugi went white and started to shake. Yami grabbed him and pulled him down onto the
couch, between himself and Ryou.
�Yugi�what�s wrong?�
�Hells�what happened to your wing?� Ryou choked, noticing the injury for the
first time.
�I didn�t know.�
The incubus whispered. �I swear I
didn�t know�I flew here from the store with my cloak up. They�ll be able to follow that...�
�How long ago?�
Ryou asked.
�Yesterday afternoon.�
Yugi murmured. Yami curled his
arms around his lover, trying to comfort him.
�That should be long enough for it to fade.� Bakura shook his head. �I think that if they were in Tokyo before then, you
would have had them at your doorstep by now.�
He ruffled Yugi�s spiked hair.
�You need to calm down, Yugi.
Panicking won�t help anything.�
The doorbell rang.
Four heads shot up in unison, staring at the portal.
�You expecting anyone?�
Ryou asked.
�No.� Yugi shook
his head.
�Oh, don�t be ridiculous.� Bakura growled. �Malik and Marik wouldn�t ring the fucking
doorbell!� Yugi shared an abashed smile
with Ryou and rose to answer the door.
While Yugi was
at the door, Bakura leaned over and whispered in Yami�s ear. �You might want to say yes to mating with
him. He will be able to find you, and
protect you�you might even get some gifts that will allow you to protect
yourself.�
�But�� Yami
glanced at the gaki. �What if I turn
into demon or a vampire or something else?�
�Well, it�s impossible to say�just ask yourself if the
chance of staying with Yugi forever is worth the risk.�
----- ----- ----- -----
----- -----
Idly playing with the pieces of his puzzle, Yami gnawed
on his lip and considered Bakura�s words.
He knew he was in love with the demon� but did he really love him enough
to take that kind of chance? To perhaps
be no longer human�but at the same time, to be joined to him forever.
{At least it would
be my choice�not something forced on
me by Father or Mother. And it would be
for forever�} He looked over at
Yugi, who was laughing. The doorbell had
proved to be the mailman, needing a signature; Bakura had been needling the
smaller demon ever since. {He asked
me. He could have anyone he
wanted�Bakura even called him the best incubus in Hell. And he picked me.} Yami shivered a little, not noticing as his
hands placed the last few pieces in their place. {My
choice�} He glanced down at his
hands in shock to see the last piece of the puzzle, the Eye, slide into
place. For a moment he thought he saw a
glimmer of rainbow light shimmer from the Eye, only to vanish a moment later. Yami blinked.
{It must have been a trick of the
light�but it�s done.} Smiling with a
bit of pride, he slipped the rope over his neck.
�You finished it!�
Yugi exclaimed � Yami jumped. He
hadn�t heard the demon cross the room.
�Way to go Yami!�
�Thanks.� Yami
fingered the golden pendant � it felt right there, as though he had been
wearing it all his life. �Yugi�I�ve been thinking. I�want to be your mate.�
Yugi stared at him.
�Are you sure?� he asked. �This is awfully fast, Yami. Are you absolutely sure?�
�Would it make you happy?� Yami asked seriously, staring
into those deep amethyst eyes.
�It would make me the happiest person on Earth.� Yugi answered just as seriously. �But would it make you happy?�
�Yes.� Yami
grinned a little. �I have been happier
in these past days than I have at anytime before � and that includes when I
lived with Jii-chan.� He reached up and
caressed Yugi�s cheek. �I love you. I want to be with you forever and ever.�
Yugi leaned down and kissed him softly. �Me too.�
�Come on.� Yugi
pulled him to his feet and brought him over to the couch. He grinned at Bakura and Ryou.
�Yami�s agreed to be my mate!� he announced to them. Bakura smirked and winked at Yami while Ryou
congratulated them both. �Will you two witness?�
�Of course.� Ryou
nodded. Yami blinked a little,
surprised, then shrugged to himself. No
point in waiting, right? Ryou grabbed
cushions from the bed and tucked them behind Yami, who looked at him in silent
question.
�Bakura passed out when we did this.� Ryou winked, hearing an embarrassed growl
from the gaki. Yugi had scampered off
to the kitchen and returned a moment later with a paring knife.
�We have to exchange a drop of blood.� The demon explained. �Then there�s a short incantation, and that�s
it.�
�It seems really simple.�
Yami noted.
�It�s a human trait to complicate things.� Ryou smiled.
�We demons like things simple.�
�Oh.�
Yugi�s hiss of pain caught Yami�s attention. The demon had poked his finger, and a single
drop of black blood welled up. Silently
he handed the knife to Yami, who braced himself and did the same. As his human blood came to the surface, Yugi
leaned over and licked it delicately from his finger. Yami swallowed a surge of nerves and leaned
over, doing the same � the demon blood was bitter and thick, like nothing he
had ever tasted before.
�Now we are one.�
Yugi intoned, magic swirling around his hands. �We have tasted the essence of the
other. Let it be as we will.�
The magic swirled around Yami and he gasped as it entered
him in a rush of incredible heat. For a
long moment he couldn�t breath, then suddenly something in his mind broke free;
a darkness, a despair that he had forgotten for so long, buried deep within his
heart.
{Flashback}
�That�s
not fair, Father!� Yami snarled. �I didn�t know about that stupid rule � you
can't punish me for that!�
�I
can and I will.� Father answered
coldly. �I am your father � defying me
carries consequences. Go to the
basement.�
�NO!� Yami stomped his foot, defiance in every inch
of his 12 year old body. �I won�t! I�ll run away � I�ll go back to Grandfather!�
�No,
you won�t.� Rising, Father grabbed his
shirt collar, literally dragging him down the stairs to the basement. Yami screamed blue murder, fighting against
the iron grip. Suddenly he was forced
forward, into a blank, metal-walled room, stumbling with the sudden
momentum. He heard the door behind him
close and the click of a lock.
The
room was lit by thin fluorescents, their pale light amplified by metal
reflectors. There were no windows, just
the steady hum of an air-pump, a small slot in the door and a hole in the
centre of the floor. No seats or
anything else � Yami panicked, charging back to the door and pounding on it
until his fists were raw and bleeding, screaming and cursing in language no
twelve year old should know the meaning of.
Eventually
his energy ran out and he slid down the door, ignoring the bloody streaks
adorning the metal. He cried until he
couldn�t breathe, until he dropped into an exhausted sleep.
He
didn�t know how much time passed; the light in the room never changed, the hum
of the air pump grated on his nerves, and he wanted out of there. His bladder was full to bursting; he was
hungry, thirsty and still exhausted, having gotten little rest on the cold
metal floor.
�Father!� he screamed.
�Please! Let me out of
here!� He paced impatiently, thumping
the door out of sheer frustration, until finally the slot in the door opened.
A
bit of food and a cup of water appeared on a tray, along with a note. In his father�s neat handwriting, he read:

Yami
You will stay in there until you realize the error
of your opinions.
Father.

Time passed. Yami shivered as the room slowly got colder �
never enough to be dangerous, just enough that he couldn�t get
comfortable. The hum of the air pump
just accentuated the silence; the absence of any sensation, of any human
contact ate away at his nerves. He slept
when he was tired: the light never changed in here. He had time only to think, and to ponder the
note that Father had left him.
How
often had Father told him he was worthless, of less import than the dogs and
the cats? At least they served a useful
function. Darkness, useless, nothing. The words ran around his head, refusing to
leave him be. He screamed, but the walls
only echoed back the sound. He cried,
but the tears brought no help or solace.
He was alone. Father�was
right? Maybe � if he admitted Father was
right, he could leave?
But
if Father was right about that � he must be right about everything else
too. Yami shivered, curled in the middle
of the floor, bowed under the weight of despair. Nothing, worthless, pathetic useless�he
drifted into troubled dreams, dreams of blessed darkness that spoke in soft
voices, begging him to let them help him.
Shadows that wrapped him tight, cradling him, calming him. That passed through his mind and heart and
soul, taking something from deep within and carefully tucking it away. He whimpered a little at the loss, but the
voices soothed him, promising that when the time was right, they would return
what they had taken. He tried to ask
what it was, what they had done to him, but his strength was gone. In the darkness he forgot, forgot the need to
fight, the desire to strike back. His
will vanished into the endless shadows, leaving him numb.
When
the door opened again, Yami no longer had the strength to stand, nor the will
left to try. He lay in a boneless pile,
not really knowing or caring where he was anymore.
Father
walked over. �Kneel.� He commanded.
Yami
mindlessly obeyed.
�Do
you have anything to say to me?�
�I�� Yami coughed, then tried again. �I�m sorry, Father. Please, forgive me.� Every word deepened the numbness in his
heart.
�I
forgive you, stupid child.�
�Thank
you, Father.�
------ ----- ----- -----
----- -----
Yugi gasped as Yami�s eyes rolled back and he dropped
onto the cushions in a dead faint, twitching.
A long moan emerged from his throat, followed by a whimper. Yugi looked at Ryou, who shook his head in
confusion.
Grasping his new mate�s arms, Yugi cradled his body
close. �Hold on, love. It�s okay, I�m here.�
As though the words were a catalyst, the very shadows in
the corners of the room suddenly thickened, deepened, wrapped around Yami and
Yugi in an impenetrable cloud. Yugi could hear Ryou and Bakura�s cries of shock
for a moment before they faded, cut off from him and his lover.
Inside the cloud, Yugi held Yami tighter, readying his
powers against whatever magic this was.
The Puzzle around Yami�s neck glowed slightly and the shadows moved
faster. They passed through them both,
giving Yugi glimpses of what had happened to Yami.
�Beloved of Darkness.�
A voice echoed out of the gloom.
�Hear us. We have returned that
which we took � help him to discover it.
We ask this of you�if you do not, he will die.�
�I don�t know what you mean�but I will help him.� Yugi promised. For a moment he thought he saw two figures in
the darkness, one male, one female, but they vanished too quickly for him to be
sure. Then the shadows swirled like
water, pouring into Yami. The teen
gasped and jerked, his eyes flying open � Yugi had the disconcerting image of
his lover�s eyes turning blood-red for a moment before returning to their
normal colour and drifting shut, his body going limp.

[1] Basic as
opposed to acidic � the two cancel each other out.
- 8
- 9
- 10
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A Game of Masques