Domination

Domination: Chapter 2

Yami didn’t know how it had happened but he thanked every deity that had ever graced the Heavens that Anzu and Honda didn’t so much as glance at him questioningly when he later awoke. Yugi, Ryou and Joey had obviously said something to keep them quiet, what exactly that had been entirely unknown by Yami which left him extremely uncomfortable as a result. He trusted them not to tell them what had happened to lead to him inflicting so much damage unto himself but there was still an irrational niggling doubt in the back of his mind.

He was surprised that he had maintained his resolve to go to the registration office after the events of the day. Joey was the only one actually entering now that Yugi had decided to stay out of the tournament with him, and they had all agreed to go beforehand for moral support before returning to the campsite. It was decided that they would all go their separate ways afterwards now, his near-death experience effectively ruining the mood. That and Honda and Anzu were still highly suspicious about his scars. They didn’t show it but he could sense it, see it in their eyes when they looked at him.

Due to the fact that Honda had nearly inadvertently killed Yami, or so he and Anzu thought because they didn’t know about all the Puzzle’s properties, there had been a universal decision to cut the camping trip short and go home after se the the registrations for the Duelling Tournament tomorrow rather than returning to the site. Joey wanted to ‘check out the competition’ as he had put it, and as they wished to remain together for as long as possible before they all went home they were all going to the registration office.

Greatly unsettled, Yami had only managed a few fitful hours of sleep that night before waking in another cold sweat, murky waters and choked breaths adding to the elements of his nightmares. He had been surprised to find that Bakura was sat with him as well as Yugi when he finally wrenched himself from the dreamscape’s grip, the teen and the spirit leaving him his space to collect himself before Bakura had turned his eyes to Yugi and ed sed slightly.

Flashing his Dark a reassuring smile, Yugi squeezed his hand firmly before standing on cramping legs and moved outside the tent, zipping the door shut behind him. His silhouette against the wall, cast by the flickering fire that had been built outside, signalled his movement towards the fire leaving Yami and Bakura entirely alone.

Frowning a little, Yami looked to the Ring’s spirit curiously and was met with a level stare. “We agreed that you need to be put into a better shape before tomorrow. I thought we would try meditation now.”

Ruffled by the fact that help to aid his debateable mental state was practically being forced onto him, Yami did nothing more than narrow his sharp eyes slightly. He hated being weak, hated knowing that a wrong word or motion could break his already fragile state and he hated that he was obviously hiding these facts very badly from those around him. Even Anzu and Honda knew that something had transpired now whereas before they had been the least informed out of all of them, including Kaiba.

Yami shuddered internally at that. He had hated that his most vicious opponent in the duelling arena had been one of the first to find him when he had made a damn-good attempt to take his life. It haunted him still, remembered seeing those steely eyes fix on his and reassess him, taking his newfound weakness and stupidity into account. Thankfully he had not seen or heard from the billionaire since that eventful day, one of the reasons that he was so worried about tomorrow.

There was a new Duelling Tournament so logically Kaiba would be participating, which meant that he would be at the registration office. Yami was sure that no amount of help or guidance that he received from Bakura tonight would allow him to face the CEO tomorrow.

He could picture the scenarios as if they were a sharp memories or if he were actually witnessing them happening, his mind darting through the possibilities no matter how much he willed, begged it not to. A cold, cruel, mocking laugh from Kaiba would be the most likely reaction. There was a long list of comments that he could make, references to his suicide attempt and the infiltration of his body featuring in them. He could see those cold eyes boring into his, ensuring that the cruel words punctured his spirit to their greatest effect.

Shaking his head to clear the images, Yami watched with partial interest as the Ring glowed and Bakura’s eyes narrowed, his magic gathering and throbbing in the air as he prepared for the transport. Casting his mind to other things before it could work return into the frightening and depressing groove he had just made, Yami clenched his fists and closed his eyes in preparation for the shift from this dimension to the Shadow Realm.

Yamie a e a point not to show any sign of discomfort or surprise when he felt his body dissolve and remerge in the Shadow Realm. Oddly enough this was the only place where he found the darkness safe. The monsters ignored him and no mortal could get here without outside interference. He was safe here.

Bakura had risen to his feet on what could be identified as the ground, although in this place the joint between wall and floor could never be distinguished. It was entirely plausible that this Realm was spherical with no walls to speak of, a never-ending place of darkness and power.

Rising to his feet slowly from where he had been sat on the ground, Yami resisted the urge to create his usual shield across his chest and instead stood before the other with his arms at his sides, waiting patiently for him to give any indication as to what was going to follow. Bakura’s ideas of help where nothing short of creative, ranging from simple arguing to outright combat, but all were surprisingly affective. On a level that he would never admit to possessing, Yami felt a pain that Bakura knew how to cope with such feelings so well.

It was no great surprise when Bakura came at him without warning with a raised fist, landing a good blow on his jaw before he had the chance to retaliate. The fight was short-lived compared to some of their scraps, both combatants tangled among each other on theiees ees as heavy, simulated breathing and flares of pain decided that it was time to stop.

Releasing him, Bakura then surprised Yami by sitting back and arranging himself to sit on his heels with his hands on his lap, his head dipped and shoulders searching for a comfortable position to be held in before they too fell still. Sensing that Yami was staring rather than copying, the thief cracked narrow eyes open and looked up at the former Pharaoh pointedly, smirking when Yami sighed slightly and imitated his position.

Once both were settled with their eyes closed, Bakura opened his mouth to speak. Yami found that the usual harsh tones of his voice were oddly soothing and unobtrusive when spoken in this manner, the words flowing into each other but his voice still commanding a certain degree of obedience.

“You feel pain. It’s in your jaw where I hit you and in your ribs where I kicked you. It’s white whereas you are black. Hot and searing where you feel dead and cold. A comfort and a curse.”

Yami nodded slightly without knowing that he had done so, immersed in the spirit’s words and focussing on the flares of pain resonating through his body, the injuries inflicted moments ago by the other. He knew better than most how true those latter words were. Pain could be indeed be a comfort, but when it wrested control away it rapidly became one of the worst kinds of curses.

“The pain in your spirit is black where you are black and cold where you are cold. This means that it’s hard to find and harder to heal. White pain you cope with by ignoring with your mind, but black pain must be sought out to be treated.

“You’re going to practice seeking now. Focus on the pain in your jaw, see it as white and feel yourself inside it. The pain will engulf you and throb at every point on your body, but if you concentrate it will diminish and fade. In this way your mind has accepted that there is damage and you have convinced the nerves in your jaw to stop sending the signal. Acceptance. Accept the problem and the solution will come.”

Those were not easy words to follow and it took many minutes before Yami could allow the pain in his jaw to ‘engulf’ him. He did not feel surprise at Bakura’s perception when he did indeed identify the pain as white, everything seeming to have numbed as his mind fixated on it. Throbbing and flaring, after a few minutes of focussing intently the pain receded and Yami jerked slightly when he found himself ‘back’ in his body.

Eyes adjusting slowly to the all-consuming blackness surrounding them, he caught the other’s gaze and found it to be far too smug for his liking. Smiling at him wryly and shaking his head slightly, Yami adjusted his position slightly before glancing around himself questioningly. “Are we done?”

“Do you think this was enough?” Bakura asked with a slightly incredulous tone. They had only been in here for half an hour; there was no possible way that that had been of any significant help.

Sighing and bringing a hand up to his eyes that, even in his metaphysical form, burned and stung, Yami eased himself into a standing position. “I’m tired Bakura. I don’t know how much more I can take tonight.”

“So how do you think you’re going to be able to handle tomorrow?” came the challenging response, a hint of a sneer in the words.

“I’ll deal with it. I just want to sleep now,” Yami replied with a sterner tone. It was one thing to grudgingly receive help but another to have it forced when the levels were deemed unacceptable.

Bakura gave him a long, measuring gaze before nodding his agreement. He knew that he needed to do more to help the former Pharaoh through the following day but there was no need to push. If he forced the issue he would just hinder rather than help. Yami would come to him if he needed his help badly enough but until then he promised himself to watch over the other spirit like a hawk. Tomorrow was going to be difficult for him and if someone so much as raised their voice to him, then they would have a severely pissed-off tomb raider to deal with.

Yami used his own magic to bring them back to the physical world, preferring to control his spirit’s movement this time. It had been a while since he’d last done that though and the drain left him feeling a little light-headed. Bakura glanced his pale form over once before tipping his head slightly and stepping back outside the tent.

After waiting for the lean shadow to shrink to the extent that Yami knew that Bakura was out of earshot, he buried his hands in his tri-coloured hair and took in a hissing breath between his teeth. His head was pounding now from the events of the day and he wanted nothing more than to sleep and regain some of his strength.

Hearing voices outside around the fire, light laughter and mirthful tones, Yami breathed a sigh of relief that no one was going to bother him tonight. It was a bitter thought; a twinge of jealously pricking at his heart before being shoved aside. Distracted with their own lives, the others would leave him to battle his demons alone, which was exactly what he wanted.

Stepping off of the blanket he had materialised on, Yami sank to his knees before curling up on his side. His head was pounding too viciously to allow him the respite of his Soul Room and he didn’t have the energy to ask Yugi for help. His pride wouldn’t allow for that anyway. Flicking the blanket out until it lay reasonably flat over his form, Yami buried his head into his arms and succumbing to sleep, praying that the demons of his dreams would let him lie for just this night.

****

“I can’t do this Yuug. I don’t wanna enter another tournament without you by my side.”

For the unknown time that morning Yami sighed to himself internally. The group had been immensely surprised when Yugi had told them that he wasn’t going to submit for the duelling tournament, and now it seemed that Yugi’s guilt over his weakness was preventing Joey from participating too.

“But Joey! You got all the way to the fs las last time! You don’t need me to enter with you and I think the other duellists would have one hell of a time trying to beat you!”

“Ya really think so?”

“I know so Joey.”

Shaking his head a little from his perch on the windowsill, once again amazed by the strength of his Light’s spirit, Yami rose to his feet and made his way through the small crowd of people to get outside of the registration area. The queue had shortened significantly whilst they were there and Joey was now close to the front of the line, waiting to sign his name and details down in the large red binder that the women at the desk held.

Bakura was stood off to the side with Ryou and Yami could feel the other spirit’s cool gaze on the back of his neck, a feeling that he had been having all morning. When he had looked to the tomb raider questioningly when it had first started, Bakura hadn’t even tried to disguise his monitoring. Yami hated that. Hated the fact that those around him felt that he needed to be watched, needed to be protected now that he was fragile. For his part Yami ignored him and kept his face composed, but inside his spirit was trembling.

He wasn’t feeling as bad as before but it was still too crowded in here for Yami’s liking, the sheer number of people around him seemingly pressing against him from all sides like a weight, uncomfortable and disturbing. Mercifully he had not seen any sign of Kaiba all morning, a fact that he was immensely thankful for with every passing moment. His nightmare had been different last night, obviously stemming from his anxiof mof meeting the other again. Seeing Kaiba above him from where he led in a cooling pool of crimson, his body paralysed as the taller teen sneered down at him; it was little wonder he had been trembling most of the morning.

A few metres away from the door, Yami could almost taste the inviting freedom when someone moved to block his path. Fear gripping him blindly for a second, Yami brought his eyes up from the ground and was surprised to see Rex Raptor stood before him. Opening his mouth to tell him to stand aside and let him pass, his voice caught in his throat at the peculiar expression on the other’s face.

It was a strange look that he couldn’t identify which passed after a few long seconds as Rex nodded to him stiffly and moved out of his path. Yami stood frozen for a second after the duellist disappeared back into the throng, his mind scrambling through possibilities before it came to a painful conclusion.

He was getting paranoid again. Glancing around himself, this realisation was strengthened when he saw that other duellists whom he had met before seemed to be avoiding his eyes, their faces tight as they regarded him briefly before turning away from him. ‘It’s as if they can sense the filth covering my skin, can see the bruises on my spirit and the scars on my body’.

Deciding that fresh air was desperately needed to clear away this feeling of panic and the irrational thoughts pummelling against his skull, Yami renewed his attempt at escape, forcing his way through people when they didn’t move to let him pass.

Yugi noticed him slip out but a reassuring wave through their link allowed Yami to leave without being followed. Bakura didn’t move from his spot but his eyes tracked him out, a sensation that Yami deeply resented. Heaving a sigh when he finally found himself alone in the fresh air, Yami’s smile faltered a little when he saw the ominous clouds roiling above him, a promise of a se ste storm hanging in the air. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he decided to remain outside until Joey was done rather than returning inside to the hoard. He rapidly started to reconsider this when he glanced up the street and his eyes locked on Kaiba’s lean frame.

Swallowing heavily, Yami straightened from where he had been leaning against the wall and moved his hands down to rest at his sides. The wind that was beginning to pick up snatched at the long coat that the CEO could always be seen wearing, his form appearing to swell and shrink as he closed the distance between them. Calculating eyes slightly obscured by unruly hair held his own and a slight smirk was spreading on his lips.

“Kaiba,” Yami acknowledged gruffly with a slight nod of his head, his hands curling into fists as he forced himself to hold his ground against the imposing form. ‘I refuse to fear him. I will not.’

“Yami,” Kaiba replied smoothly with a more cheerful note in his voice than Yami had possessed. Glancing through the window behind him, he met the crimson eyes again. “Registering?”

“No.”

A fine brow rose in genuine surprise at that. “Really? How odd. I made the arrangements over the phone earlier so I don’t need to be here. It has been a long time since we’ve seen each other though and I thought you would be here submitting to the Tournament so, here I am.”

“How delightful,” Yami muttered back, the words curling with a sneer. The defences were going up faster and firmer than they had in a long time. His mental response was almost as painful as his physical against the taller figure, barriers locking and muscles tightening until they burned. “And why did you seek my presence?”

Kaiba made a noise in the back of his throat that was almost melancholy. “I’m out of practice. I need to be at my best to duel and as you are the only duellist who could provide me with a challenge, I seek a duel with you. I had thought that you could use the opportunity to sharpen your skills, but now that I know you have no intention of registering we could just call it a friendly match.”

Blinking for a few seconds, Yami scrambled through his thoughts for an answer for that. His instinctive response was to reply in the negative, protect himself from being attacked in such a manner, prevent his nemesis from seeing that his spirit had become so weak that his cards were ignoring him.

But logic dictated that he had an image to maintain, a façade of Game King to uphold and all the aspects of that title with it. Last year, before Kresha, he would have relished a duel with Kaiba. Would have enjoyed showing his superiority and ferocity in the arena. He knew that the underlying reason for this duel was the grudge that was still held against him for that single defeat, but that was no concern of his.

Kaiba wanted a friendly duel so there was nothing more at stake than his pride and negligible spirit. His pride had been beaten enough recently for him to accept a loss, even at the hands of his enemy. He needed to keep pretending, needed to prove that as fas fine. To Kaiba, duelling was the only way that that was going to happen.

The CEO had been watching him carefully, watching a muscle beneath Yami’s right eye twitch as his mind worked before crimson eyes came back into focus and met his. A barely perceptible nod and Kaiba smiled thinly. Outward emotion was not something that he excelled at and the cool mask with the oily smile made Yami cringe inside.

Body jolting when a hand clapped on his shoulder, he jerked around to see Honda laughing with Joey, his other arm slung around the bond’s shoulders. Bakura moving to his side with Ryou hanging back from them both cautiously, not wanting to interfere with whatever may transpire. Still resentful, Yami blanked the snowy-haired teen entirely. Yugi and Anzu followed them all out, his Hikari instantly sensing the tumultuous emotions throbbing in his aura and frowning at him with concern.

//Are you alright Yami?//

//Yes, Little Light. You’re concern is unnecessary; I’m fine.//

Unconvinced, Yugi still remained quiet, deciding not to push the matter lest he offend his Dark. He knew that his yami’s mental state wasn’t exactly stable at the moment, which meant that his emotions were extremely volatile. A wrong word could make the other snap; he could feel it.

“What’ya doin’ here Kaiba?” Joey asked sincerely, his voice holding none of its former malice to the elder Kaiba brother. His assistance in helping them free Yami from Kresha’s possession had not been forgotten and both he and Yugi felt in his debt. Neither of them were sure what Yami felt but they sensed that he hadn’t been entirely pleased with the situation. Yami hated weakness in himself, that much was obvious. The question was how much damage had that fact done when combined with having Kaiba seeing him minutes after he’d sliced open his arms.

“Challenging Yami to a duel, one which he has agreed to. I’m sure that you cheerleaders will be most affronted if we were to leave you here, so if you would follow me now,” Kaiba said over his shoulder as he turned and began walking back up the street. Bakura growled quietly, the noise deep in his throat and barely perceptible even to Yami’s ears. Yami hesitated for a fraction of a second before following, his hands finding their way into his pockets and his head dipped lower than he would’ve liked. Feeling eyes on his back once more, his shoulder muscles tightened and he quickened his pace a little.

Yugi caught up with his Dark after glancing at Joey’s face and seeing the pointed look. Bakura’s expression was hovering between worry and fury, his mouth a thin line and his eyes ablaze, which only worried the smaller teen further. Reaching up a small hand, he placed it on Yami’s elbow to gain his attention. Crimson eyes snapped onto him expectantly although their brisk pace did not alter in the slightest.

//Yami? Are you sure you’re okay with this?//

There was an animalistic growl down the link that made Yugi snap his hand back from his Dark. Yami’s face had tightened and his eyes were dark, but he was not truly threatening him. //Stop asking that Yugi. If I wish for you to check upon my state of being I will ask. Now leave me alone and w mew me to focus on this upcoming duel.//

Swallowing heavily and feeling tears prickling at the sharp tones, Yugi nodded slightly and fell back to walk beside Joey, the blond looking down at him with worry. Yami rarely called him by his name and he had never seen his eyes turn to him when the irises were that fierce.

Bakura had obviously sensed the hostility through their link and glanced at the hikari with mild interest, his eyes returning to the back of the Pharaoh’s head as his resolve to watch him became iron-clad. Falling back a few paces so that he walked just behind Joey and Yugi, he clenched his teeth and vowed to bring much suffering to Kaiba should he cause this situation to get any worse than it already was.

Satisfied now that he was walking alone behind Kaiba, Yami cast his eyes forward once more and shut away the niggling feeling of guilt for talking to his Aibou in such tones. He could not afford feelings like that now. He needed to be cold and heartless to protect himself against this assault and operate at some semblance of his former skills.

He couldn’t see this as a simple duel; to him it was a test of his disguise and an attack on his spirit. With little to no confidence in his abilities and the loss of his cards’ loyalty, for the moment at least, Yami knew that this would most likely be a defeat for him. But the world judged him by his duelling so to convince them that he was in good health in body, mind and spirit he had to duel. His title condemned him once again. First it gave him a false sense of security and now it dragged him to fight broken and weak against an adversary who was whole and strong.

Something wet spattered on his cheek and Yami looked up with some dismay. The storm that had been brewing all day was finally opening above them. A grumbling in the distance and fragmented light assured him that this would be a long and spectacular one, the air charged and heavy around them as they walked.

The mansion came into view just as the heavens opened, the group breaking into a jog up the long path and through the double, heavy doors. The group surged around and past him when Yami froze just inside the doorway, his arms splayed to prevent him from falling as his momentum continued whilst his boots held firm. It was dark inside of the house; not a single light on. Illumination came brokenly from behind him for a few seconds as lightening cracked, sending his shadow, long and jagged, out several metres and highlighting the other figures in the room.

Heart pounding to the degree that he could feel it against his ribs, a sense of relief swelled through him when the overhead lights burst to life, his eyes burning from the sudden brightness as his body curled slightly against it. Remembering where he was, he straightened his posture and closed the doors behind him. Repressing a shudder when he acknowledged that he was trapping himself, Yami turned on his heel and watched as the others squeezed water out of the hair and clothes onto the carpet until Kaiba threw them towels.

Leaving the others to themselves, Kaiba now turned his attentions to Yami, approaching him slowly as a cat would, a staking quality in his step. Yami wasn’t sure if it was his fear-ridden imagination twisting his motions or if Kaiba had indeed started walking like that. Standing an uncomfortable distance from him now, Kaiba stared Yami down for a few seconds in silence before speaking.

“Ordinarily I’d invite you to duel on the outdoor arena; it’s a size larger than my indoor one. But, with the storm I think we should stay inside.”

Nodding slightly, Yami blinked at Kaiba’s wave to follow him yet again before casting a worried glance to the rest of the group. At the signal that they were following, he followed the elder teen’s longer strides through the door opposite the ones he had just entered, tracking him through something of a maze of corridors.

Feeling himself getting more lost with every turn, Yami suddenly felt a clench of panic about his heart. If he were lost he wouldn’t be able to get out if his strength failed him. He could be lost in this labyrinth for hours on end, alone, in the dark. As fast as the thought occurred to him he discarded it. They were petty fears; he had worse things to worry about now.

****