Carved in Stone

Picking up the Pieces

            Isis bowed her head as Duke gained his composure. It had been a long time since they’d
had any sort of contact with each other. Duke had only slept with Isis on a few drunken nights,
and considering he was with her ex-boyfriend now, things felt a bit strange. Yami felt somewhat
responsible for the awkward moment between Duke and Isis, so he quickly started a
conversation.

“Hello Duke, nice place you have here. I heard the food is excellent, so um......can I order?”

Duke picked his pen up off the floor and laughed nervously, avoiding eye contact with the raven
haired woman and the tri-haired former pharaoh.

“Uh, yeah....go ahead.”

Isis reached into her purse as Yami ordered himself something to eat.

“Duke......I’m sorry for treating you and Tristan so badly.” she said in a serious tone.

Duke shifted his weight nervously from one foot to the other. He glanced at Isis and noticed she
was handing him a ring.

“What’s this for?” Duke ask curiously.

Isis bit down on her bottom lip and sighed.

“Tristan had given me this ring when we were together. He paid a lot of money for it, and I don’t
deserve it. You’re the one that deserves it Duke, so please, keep it.”

Duke took the ring from Isis and held it up to the light. It was gold and had a multi-faceted blue
diamond surrounded by smaller clear diamonds.

“Wow” Duke gasp as he looked over the extravagant piece of jewelry.

Yami looked at Isis andled,led, assuring her that she was doing the right thing.

“Isis?” Duke ask as he slipped the ring into his pants pocket.

“Yes Duke?” Isis replied.

Duke hesitated for a moment, and than looked at the pen in his hand.

“Uh......ready to order?”

Isis chuckled lightly as she looked at her menu.

“Yes, I am.....I’ll have the breaded mozzarella sticks.”

Duke quickly jotted down her order.

“Great, thanks.” he said quickly as he rushed the order to the kitchen.

Yami smiled at Isis as he pulled out his wallet.

“Need a drink?” he ask.

Isis nodded her head.

“Yes please, make it a double.”

“As you wish” Yami laughed as he walked out to the bar to order them both a mixed drink.

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

            Rran ran his fingers through Malik’s damp hair. Dark circles had formed under the
Egyptian’s eyes. Ever since they’d found the ancient stone tablet, Malik hadn’t slept peacefully a
single night. His dreams were filled with strange images that haunted him while he was awake. It
tore Ryou up to see his companion suffering. He dabbed Malik’s forehead lightly with a cool
washcloth and ran his fingers over Malik’s lips.

“Malik.....why won’t you tell me what’s going on?” the white haired hikari sighed.

Malik opened his eyes slightly and tried to speak, but his throat was dry.

“Wa.....wat......” he croaked.

Ryou cocked his head.

“Water? Would you like a drink of water, Malik?”

Malik nodded his head.

Ryou rushed out of their tent and into his father’s tent where they kept the bottled water.

David and Ramose were still up studying the ancient tablet.

“Hello father” Ryou mused as he sifted through the cooler for a bottle of water.

“Hi son, how’s your friend Malik?” David ask, not taking his eyes off his work.

Ryou walked over by his father and looked over his shoulder.

“Could be better, could be worse I s. Hs. He’s still having nightmares.”

David lifted his reading glasses off of his face and set them down on the table. He looked up RyouRyou and rubbed the bridge of his nose where his glasses had been.

“Do you have a minute? I’d like for you to look at something.”

Ryou held up his finger.

“Let me get this to Malik first.”

Ryou rushed back to Malik, who was still sweating and breathing very heavily. He brushed the
blond’s hair out of his eyes and dabbed the sweat off his forehead with a towel.

“Malik, here’s some water. My father needs me for a minute, but I promise I’ll be back, okay?”

Malik managed to open one eye and look up at Ryou.

“Thank......y-you. Hurry.....b-back Ryou.” he whispered in a fading voice.

“Of course” Ryou smiled, kissing the tip of Malik’s nose.

Ryou helped Malik sit up enough so that he could drink his water and than went back to join his
father. He walked into the tent his father and Ramose were working in and sat down at the small
table with them.

“I’m back, what is it you wanted to show me?” Ryou ask curiously.

David pointed to a line of cuneiform on the stone tablet and handed Ryou his notebook.

“I want you to transcribe this line, I think you’ll find it most interesting.

Ryou quickly went to work. Meanwhile, David and Ramose stepped out for some fresh air.

“Is it just me, or is there something very strange going on?” David ask Ramose as they walked
around.

Ramose wrapped his arms around himself as the cold night winds picked up.

“I don’t think it’s just you, I feel it too. I’ve never been one to believe in the supernatural, but I
think I’m starting to.”

“I wonder what Ryou will think when he transcribes the words I ask him to.” David mused as he
tooppedpped his arms around himself.

Ramose chuckled lightly.

“I think he will respond like anybody else who discovers their name on an ancient stone tablet.
He’ll walk out of the tent looking like he’s seen a ghost and be completely speechless.”

“That’s what I’m thinking too.” David nodded. He heard a strange noise and looked over his
shoulder. It came from Malik and Ryou’s tent. “Say, did you hear that, Ramose?”

Ramose nodded his head.

“Let’s go see what it was.”

The two men walked over to the tent and peeked inside. It was dark and quiet.

“Malik? Is everything alright?” David ask in a hushed voice.

They received no reply.

David reached into his pocket for his flashlight and turned it on.

“Malik?” he called out again, aiming the small beam of light at the cots.

“I think he’s...gone!” Ramose exclaimed in a almost a whisper.

David waved the light around the empty tent to gasp.

“You’re right.........this can’t be good. We’ll have to go look for him. I dread telling my son
about this.”

Ramose made a sour face.

“The desert is just as dangerous at night as it is during the day, if not more.” He warned Ryou’s
father.

David took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“Not as dangerous as my son when he gets upset.”

Ramose chuckled lightly in the midst of their trouble.

“Ryou? I can’t see him getting violent! He seems like a very well-mannered down to earth kind
of kid.”

David shook his head.

“I’ve seen him acting just the opposite, Ramose. When my son gets angry he’s like a whole other
person.”

“Oh stop David, there you go over-reacting again. I’ll go tell Ryou, you start looking for Malik.
He can’t be far.” Ramose said as he hurried away toward the tent they had been working in.

            As he neared the tent, Ramose listened closely. He swore he had heard voices talking
inside the makeshift shelter. The closer he got, the more positive he became of his inkling. He
stood outside the tent listening.

“I said no, Marik!”

“Awe Bakura, quit being a stick in the mud. What the hell happened to you, huh? Ever since, oh
piss on it. Nevermind.”

“No, tell me! Ever since what, Ishtar?”

“Heh......you know.....since you spent an entire month torturing the pharaoh to no end.”

            Ramose couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Had he mistaken Ryou that much? Was
the mind mannered young man he’d come to know really a sadistic sicko?

“Ryou? Is Malik in there with you?” Ramose ask nervously.

 

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

            Yami set down his drink and reached into his jacket pocket for some cash to pay their
bill. He glanced at the clock on the wall and bit his lip nervously. He handed Isis enough money
to pay their bill and stood up.

“I’m going to go give Yugi a call, I need to know how Solon is doing. I’ll meet you at the car.”

Isis chuckled lightly. “Okay, Pharaoh.”

Yami rushed outside over to the payphone and put a few coins in. The phone rang eight times
before Yugi finally answered.

[*Yawn* Hello?]

“Yugi! Is everything alright? I was starting to get worried when you didn’t pick up the phone!”

[Everything is fine Yami, I was in bed sleeping. It’s like one in the morning.]

“How’s my son?”

[Sleeping]

“Oh....okay. Isis and I will be home soon. I had a couple of drinks with supper and needed to
sober up before I could drive home.”

[Great]

“Yugi? Are you mad at me? You’re not saying much.”

[I’m fucking tired. See you in the morning] *Click*

Yami looked at the phone in his hand and stared at it in shock.

“He hung up on me! My aibou just hung up on me!” he gasp as he hung up the phone.

Yami stuffed his hands in his pockets and started walking toward w Isi Isis’s car was parked.

“Hey, punk!” a male voice taunted from behind. Yami turned around quickly, coming face to
face with a man wearing all black and had a red bandana over his mouth. He wore a black winter
cap to cover up his hair.

“Who are you and what do you want!” Yami said with no fear in his voice.

The man stepped closer. He held up a gun and pointed it at Yami’s head.

“My name doesn’t matter. You’re coming with me.”

Yami bit his lip nervously. He didn’t really have any other choice but to follow his mysterious
assailant.

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

            Tristan laid in bed watching a late night talk show on television. His arm and collarbone
were really starting to ache, but it wasn’t time for him to take the pain killers the doctor had
prescribed for him quite yet. He was wide awake and couldn’t sleep. Figuring that a warm bath
might help him relax, Tristan wiggled his way off the bed and limped out of the bedroom. He
walked into the bathroom and switched on the light. He started the bath water before getting
undressed. The brunette remembered Duke had scented bath oils hidden under the sink, so he
dug them out of their hiding spot and picked out the one called ‘Sea Breezes.’ He dumped a
capful into his bath water and quickly returned the bath oils to their hiding spot. Next he had to
undress. Tristan dreaded the thought of taking off his t-shirt. Taking off his red boxer shorts
wasn’t much of a hassle, but he felt like he needed an extra set of hands when it came to taking
off his shirt. After wrestling with his clothing for a while, he was finally ready to get in the bath
tub. Taking a bath was more of a hassle than he’d anticipated. As he laid back in the warm,
sweet smelling water, he realized he’d taking the simple things in life- like taking a bath- for
granted. Prior to the accident he never through twice about it when he’d take a shower, now he
couldn’t even take one! Baths were nice, but he was having a hard time figuring out how he was
going to wash his hair. Hopefully Duke wouldn’t be drunk after he closed the bar and would help
him out. Tristan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The scent of the perfumed water was
almost intoxicating, no wonder Duke hid his bath oils! He was just about sleeping when he heard
the bathroom door open.

“Duke?” He called out sleepily, not bothering to open his eyes.

No reply.

“Hey man, talk to me!” He said a little louder.

Still no reply.

Tristan opened his eyes and slowly brought himself up to a sitting position.

“Dude?” he ask, looking around the empty bathroom.

Tristan shook his head and groaned.

“Must have been a dream.”

He laid back in the warm water again, this time pulling the curtain closed. He once again closed
his eyes.

“Please come home soon, Duke...” he mumbled as he fell back to sleep.

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

Sorry this chapter is so short! I’ve been working on a story totally unrelated to any of the fics I
have posted here at AFF, and it took more time than I realized, I also have a naughty little
Ryou/Bakura one shot lemon in the works.......hehe.....I know you all will love that one! (Don’t
close your eyes Bakura! *evil grin*)

Ooh, yeah- Nightmare: I don’t plan a part 3 for TBN or DS, but I do plan on going back and
fixing and revising both in the near future:-)

I’ll have another chapter of Hellraisers up tomorrow and maybe even the first chapter to my new
story that’s unrelated to Ygo called “The Darkside of the Spotlight.” I’ll have another chapter to
this fic up next week.

.....and as usual.....I’m lazy and I’ll correct any of my grammatical fuck ups later tonight.