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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 4:08:56 GMT -5
Yuugi looked embarassed at Souji's first response. Those kinds of speeches? That sounded like something Kaiba would have said. He wasn't unknown for challenging his faith in things like friendship and willpower. Kaiba had taunted him about Jounouchi when Malik was controlling him. He'd given Atem that card during one of the Battle City duels, daring Atem to "make a miracle". Maybe he was good at those "speeches", but that made it sound so preachy. He was just stating what he really felt, after all.
Yuugi looked a little relieved at Souji's next lines. Good, they'd fight. After all, giving up was just losing before the final result. He managed a small genuine smile and gave a firm nod. The fact that Souji meant him went over his head. His entire mood seemed to have lightened with Souji's reaction to his conversation.
"Anzu's actually better..." he looked embarassed, "Maybe one day you'll meet her... Seta-kun, thanks for listening. I'll see you in the morning, okay?"
Yuugi waited to make sure it was okay to leave.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 9:58:15 GMT -5
Souji smiled. At the very least, he'd made Yuugi feel better, it looked like. They didn't need a depressive mood around here. It was bad enough with Minato and Ryoji, who were depressed for some rather obvious reasons. They didn't have long until the Fall, so they might as well enjoy what time they had left.
"Yeah, see you in the morning," Souji said. He hoped Yuugi did manage to talk to Atem about whatever problems they were having. He knew that Yuugi had been rather nervous at the prospect of talking to Atem. Heck, he looked practically depressed.
Souji walked back toward his own apartment after saying goodbye to Yuugi. Wasn't much to do now but sit there. Maybe check the weather report. It had looked like it was going to rain, so maybe he could watch the Midnight Channel. See if anyone was on it. If Takahashi was on it, Adachi was going to get hell. Souji doubted it, though. Adachi was way more concerned about Bakura than anything else.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 11:34:58 GMT -5
Teddie pushed open the door to the Apartments. Once he was inside he shook in a dramatic fashion. Resembled a dog, really. The shaking transfered to his arms and he lowered the frequency until they reached his finger tips only and he finally stopped. It was pouring out there. It had started maybe five minutes after he had left the police station. He'd hopped back under the awning and shifted forms. No need to muck up his fur, after all.
They'd cut it really close. He'd cut it really close. No... whoever had locked him in that room had cut it close. That still bothered him. Lucius bothered him too. He didn't know where the teenager had gone, but there were a lot of things inconsistent with the facts he knew about the Other Side. He got on a pleased grin, wondering if Sensei would praise him for noting all the suspicious things.
He'd looked at the pouring rain for a few moments before deciding it wasn't going to let up and taking of towards a run towards the Apartments. Now he was dripping, and he rung out his shirt and pants as much as he could. He had to squint a bit to see in the mostly dark halls. He made his way up the stairs. He wondered how long he'd been missing. Had the others looked for him? Or worse, had they thought he'd vanished? Minato might have said something to Souji after some of the conversations they'd had, after all. Yuugi had already turned on the third floor by the time he reached the second floor. He saw Souji just as he was reaching his door.
"Sensei!" he let out an excited sound something like a squeal and began running towards Souji. His shoes squished as he did so, and he was still dripping pretty well. Even his normally windswept hair was pretty plastered against his face due to how soaked he was.
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Yuugi pushed open the door to the apartment. The lights were off, and he wondered if Atem had gone out. There was a dim light in the halls, so he couldn't see the room clearly. His eyes seemed to be taking a while to adjust as well.
"Partner, are you okay?"
"Ack!" Yuugi jumped at the sound of Atem's voice from the middle of the room.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 13:17:07 GMT -5
Souji turned as he heard a voice he hadn't heard in nearly two days from down the hall. Teddie was running toward him, and he was soaked. It looked like he was soaked from practically head to toe. Had Teddie been out in that storm? It had broken while Souji had been talking to Yuugi before, but he hadn't really noticed it was raining until he saw Teddie running up to him.
"Teddie!" Souji said. He walked toward Teddie as the bear-in-human-form ran toward him. "Where have you been? I've been worried."
He'd been more than worried. It had been a couple days since he'd last seen Teddie. With everything that had been going on lately, he was getting worried that something bad had happened to Teddie. Teddie was a Shadow; he wouldn't get killed in the TV World. But the fact that he'd been gone for so long without explanation had been greatly worrying.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 14:30:43 GMT -5
Teddie was grinning from ear to ear as Souji said his name. Teddie closed the distance far more than Souji. He shook again and managed to spray the silver haired teenager just as he finished expressing his concern. He cringed a bit with an apologetic grin before shaking his head. Right. He needed to tell Souji what had happened.
"I wanted to come back really soon! But something attacked me on the Other Side and next thing I knew I was locked up in this weird room of someone's world! I'm almost positive it was a Persona User, too, but I don't think it was Adachi-baby! I didn't recognize it... I didn't even get a good look at it, but it wasn't a Shadow..."
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Atem was on his feet as Yuugi let out his surprised exclamation. The former Pharaoh had been sleeping, although he only knew that because he had woken up. He'd spent the day alone. The fact that Yuugi hadn't come back at all had worried him, and his concern faded to relief when he realized he'd just startled his Partner.
"Partner?"
"S-Sorry, Atem... I didn't see you," Yuugi groped around behind him and flicked the light switch on. Atem shielded his eyes as he heard his Partner continue in a concerned tone, "Have you been by yourself all day...?"
"....I've been thinking." Atem said.
"About last night?" Atem looked up. He couldn't claim to be surprised, he was probably broad casting. Yuugi continued without waiting for confirmation, sporting a grin that mixed concern and comfort, "It's because of the Fall, right?"
"....Here I thought being split would let me hide things better," Atem shook his head, "That's part of it, Partner."
Yuugi blinked, "Part?"
"Yes, part. Maybe a lot. But not all."
"No, I get that. I mean, what's the other part...?"
Atem had a serious look on his face. Yuugi hesitated a bit at that. The former Pharoah could do lighthearted. Yuugi had seen it more than a few times. He tended to only get this serious about things like the Dark Games or his memories when he didn't have them. Yuugi rubbed the back of his head at the silence. Was there something Atem had learned that he didn't know about? Atem let out a exasperated sigh. Maybe he and his Partner were similar, but Yuugi was sometimes just too innocent. Even returning the feelings he didn't seem to get it.
"What I did last night was effected by the threat of the Fall. It made me rush things. However, if I told you it made me do anything more than what I wanted, I would be lying," Atem lightened his gaze, "And you're the only one that doesn't seem to fall for my bluffs, Partner."
Yuugi let out a nervous laugh, "I-It was just a kiss, right...?"
"You don't believe that."
Yuugi bit his lip and looked away. No, he didn't. If it had been "just" a kiss, it would have been problematic. He would have been torn up and he would have still been in shock. But... he knew it hadn't been. Even if he'd convinced himself it had been, Atem was more than implying it hadn't been. Denial would do him no good. He felt a lump in his throat and he wasn't sure he was going to be able to swallow the next time he tried. His cheeks were heating up again.
"I..."
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 15:02:29 GMT -5
Souji winced and held an arm up in front of his face as Teddie sprayed him with a fair amount of water. He really had gotten soaked out there, as if the puddle that was gathering at Teddie's feet wasn't a big enough clue. He lowered it again once Teddie started talking.
"You were attacked and ended up in someone's world?" Souji repeated. "Why would someone attack you, though? On that note, why would there be another Persona user in there? All of the Persona users I know are on this side; if they were still over there, they'd be dead by now." He was referring to the rain. The fog would probably be setting in on this side soon, meaning that whoever had been over there would probably be killed by shadows. Not a fun way to go.
"Did you see who attacked you?" Souji asked. The first thing they needed to find out was who attacked Teddie. And Teddie had said he'd been locked in a room in someone's world. How had he gotten there? Did the Persona user that had attacked him drag him there and lock him up? That didn't make much sense, either. That implied that the Persona user that had attacked Teddie had a degree of control over the world that had been born from their psyche.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 15:53:19 GMT -5
Teddie blinked as Souji let out a string of questions. He paused for a statement before asking the big question. Teddie looked depressed and shook his head. If he'd seen who'd attacked him, it would have helped. He had really been blindsided, even being a Shadow he hadn't been able to pick out the Arcana. The attack had knocked him out, he guessed, cause he'd woken up in that odd room.
"I didn't get a good look or even a good feel. Whatever it was, it was really strong... I think it might have been able to stand up against your main Persona, Sensei! I don't know how they would have gotten out, either though. I did rescue two people!" Teddie's gaze turned into an upset glare, a very uncommon expression for his human form, "Adachi-baby pushed Takahashi-san into the TV World! I barely got them out in time!"
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"...I... well," Yuugi shook his head, "No... I don't. Am I wrong?"
"...no."
Yuugi's face got redder again, "A-Atem!! That's... I mean... you didn't even... th-th-th... I..."
"I'm just being honest, Partner," Atem looked towards the windows, "I'm not counting on Ryoji avoiding this."
"You can't just give up!"
Atem's expression had narrowed again as he returned his gaze to Yuugi, "I'm not. But I don't think there is anything we can do. Maybe Minato-kun can do something, but I believe that at the end of everything, it will rest on Ryoji's autonomy. Ryoji's choice. He seems to have already made it. He's fighting to stay with Minato as long as he can, but he is convinced that the Fall is going to come and we are going to die."
"I don't believe that! It's not even December yet, Atem! Mochizuki-kun can fight it! He just has to work up the courage!"
"What if he doesn't?" Atem's voice was flat, "Even if we put everything towards hoping he does, what if he doesn't? We won't know until our last moments in our own minds. And then... it would be too late."
"Atem, that's exactly the problem! I don't want to do anything just because we have to! Just because if we don't and the world Falls we won't ever! There's more to a relationship than that, Atem! I don't care if I sound like some stupid romance manga, there is more! And.. and... Atem, I'm not ready for that! I just... I'm still in high school! I don't care if you were ruling an entire country and mature and... that! I'm only seventeen, Atem! A modern Japanese seventeen year old! I haven't even had a date!"
"Anz-"
"No! Atem, she liked you! I was just in the way, I'm sure of it..."
"Partner..."
Yuugi covered his face with his hands. Why was he near tears? Because Atem was being dense, that was why. And now he knew what Atem wanted and he couldn't do anything about that. Things were just going to be awkward now. Atem was probably right about the Fall. If it did happen and they missed their chance... but he wasn't ready for that. Honestly the thought still... he'd never thought of a guy like that. He was aware his face was bright red, but he was also aware some of it was anger.
"You want to be honest? The honest answer is I can't consent to that until we get past the Fall. Now I'm going to feel like I'm just acting on fear of that. I know you're not trying to take advantage of me but that thought would always be there. And I... hell, we should at least graduate high school first..."
Atem blinked, "We?"
"Yeah, we. Atem, how old were you when you died...?"
Atem shook his head, "We didn't use the same calender system."
"Guess."
"...About fifteen, I suppose. Around the same age you were when you solved the Puzzle."
"So that makes you seventeen now, right? You're still high school age, Atem. You're not a Pharaoh anymore. You sacrificed that life to protect the world. Now you're just another teenager. Maybe more mature than most, you did rule a country, but you should go to school."
"You're changing the topic, Partner."
Yuugi was reaching into his pocket when Atem spoke. Yeah, maybe he was. There wasn't anything more to say. Things would be awkward. Now he'd be second guessing everything Atem did. Maybe he was being old fashioned, but they really needed to graduate high school first. He didn't know how his grandpa was going to pay for two tuitions, but they'd work something out. He refocuse on the Ring and pulled it out, holding it up.
"Right now we have other issues," Yuugi said, wondering since when he was so serious.
"Partner, is that...!?"
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 16:37:06 GMT -5
Souji's eyes narrowed as Teddie went on. He'd found two people in the TV World. And one of them had been Takahashi. The same Takahashi that the entire police station, including Adachi, who obviously was a very good actor considering how freaked out he looked over Takahashi, had been freaking out about. Adachi's boss. Souji didn't even know why Adachi had attacked someone so close to him, something that would automatically implicate Adachi in the murder once Takahashi reappeared in this world, but one thing was clear. Adachi was still pushing people into the other side.
"Adachi was at the police station earlier. We found him on our way back to the apartments after we found Bakura. Bakura got attacked by someone, Teddie. We don't know what they did to him, but he's passed out in Adachi's apartment," Souji explained. "The whole police station was freaking out because Takahashi was missing."
He glared down at Adachi's apartment for a moment before turning back toward Teddie. "Who was the other person you found in the TV World?"
It was odd for there to be more than one person pushed into the TV World at once. Namatame had entered the other side of his own accord after throwing Nanako in. But other than that, it had always been one person in the other side.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 16:45:47 GMT -5
Teddie growled as Souji spoke. Again, Adachi-baby was doing it again. Teddie had to wonder what his excuse was this time. More boredom? Teddie was clenching his fists when Souji looked back at him. He blinked. Right, the other person. That had been weird and he wanted to mention that.
"I don't know him, I've never seen him before. I think he's in high school, he's a little shorter than you, Sensei. I'd know him if I saw him again. He was really mean and kept calling Takahashi-san old man! I'm just confused how he arrived in Takahashi's world because TVs connect to the same location every time! He never answered me when I asked how he got into the TV World... Am I overthinking it? Maybe Adachi-baby did it to him, too? He looked American but he spoke fluent Japanese... Sensei, will Bakura-san be okay there...?"
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"It's the Millenium Ring. Atem, some... probably Abel attacked Bakura-kun today," Yuugi paled a bit, "....whoever did it carved a scar into his face. The same one Anpu had, Atem..."
Atem narrowed his gaze, "You're right. I doubt it was a random attack. Of Abel's group, I would only expect Cain or Abel to do so... Partner, I thought you still called him K1."
Yuugi lowered his head, "I do. A lot is going on, Atem. I talked to Atsuro-kun today..."
"We have to do something with that Ring. It would not surprise me if it tried to get back to Bakura."
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 17:27:35 GMT -5
The other person had been in Takahashi's world? Takahashi's world had to have been there first, so the other person would have to have been pushed in Takahashi. But that didn't make sense; there wouldn't have been time to push someone else in with all of the uproar at the station. Someone would have definitely noticed. Something was up. It occurred to Souji that this kid may have been the unknown Persona user who had attacked Teddie. He'd press Teddie later about it.
"Bakura trusts Adachi... and Adachi seems to be pretty protective of Bakura. I heard him talking to Yuugi before. He said that he'd do anything to get the Ring away from Bakura... If he had been planning to push Bakura in, he would have done it long before now," Souji said. "I think if anyone needs to worry about getting thrown into the other side, it's Anpu."
That didn't mean that he wasn't still worried (and mad at) Adachi. He looked toward Adachi's apartment again. "Let's pay Adachi a visit, though. Just in case."
Souji walked across the hall to Adachi's apartment, and lightly knocked on the door. From within Adachi's apartment, he could hear eager footsteps as someone ran over to the door and unlocked the five locks before they opened the door. Adachi's expression fell when he saw Souji.
"...Oh... What are you doing here?" Adachi asked.
"Nothing much. Teddie found Takahashi inside the TV World," Souji said. Adachi paled, looked toward Teddie and stepped back. "You were trying to kill Takahashi weren't you?"
"I wasn't doing it because I wanted to. Can't you go? I'm waiting for the doctor to arrive so they can help Ryou-kun," Adachi asked.
"You were trying to kill your boss, Adachi!" Souji growled, louder this time. "Why the hell did you push Takahashi in?"
Adachi grabbed the door and had himself positioned just right to slam the door in Souji's face. "Do you want a fight that badly?" Adachi growled back in a more calmer tone than before. "It doesn't matter. Yuugi's got that Ring now, and Takahashi-san's alive. Now I just need to make sure that Ryou-kun's alright, and I won't have to worry about anything else until tomorrow."
Souji glared at Adachi. So he'd pushed Takahashi in because of Anpu, it looked like.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 21:50:41 GMT -5
Teddie found himself looking at Souji with a blank expression. When Souji had called Adachi pretty protective of Bakura, it didn't seem to quite compute. Teddie hadn't noticed the man all that much despite having known him for a lot of the time he was in Souji's world. He'd see him hanging around Junes' grocery department a lot, he seemed to buy food on a daily basis rather than the way Nanako did it. He remembered more than well the true face of the man. Maybe that god had been guiding Adachi somewhat, but Teddie still hated him. A lot. Souji's own hatred of the man was probably to blame, Teddie was the time who'd jump of a building if his "Sensei" told him to.
Teddie saw that all too familiar switch in Adachi's mannerisms. The man was creepy when he got like this. It was the first time since Teddie could remember the man sporting that face since... well, since before the Island. He was really upset though. His world was messed up. Adachi had seemed regretful in that letter, but had it just been an act? Still, Adachi did look ready to fight.
"Bakura-kun wouldn't want you to kill people!" Teddie said. It felt like a weak argument.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 22:17:13 GMT -5
Adachi looked away, but he was still keeping an eye on Souji and Teddie. A rather close eye. He still had that bruise from when Souji had attacked him the previous night, after all. His hand was still positioned on the doorknob.
"No, he wouldn't. But Anpu threatened to take Ryou away if I didn't do something about Takahashi. Of course, when I actually do something about it, turns out I don't need to, 'cause someone goes and attacks Ryou and cuts off the Ring," Adachi said.
Souji didn't lift his glare. "And what about that other kid?"
Now Adachi blinked. He actually looked surprised. "What other kid?"
"There were two people inside the TV today. Takahashi and a teenager. Why did you push the teenager in?" Souji asked. Adachi blinked again. Now he looked really confused.
"I only pushed Takahashi into the TV," Adachi said. He looked toward Teddie, then back at the Seta kid. "I don't know about anyone else. Are you sure it wasn't just a trick of the fog?" Adachi smirked. Maybe Teddie had just found a Shadow. Maybe it had been Takahashi's shadow. That was an amusing thought. Takahashi's Shadow taking the form of a teenager.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 22:40:57 GMT -5
Wait, Adachi was protecting someone? And not himself. Teddie had been there for some of the conversations, he knew that's what Adachi was claiming and that Bakura seemed to trust the man. Still, the idea that it was actually right? Teddie was really confused. And then he mentioned the Ring. The Ring was off? How long had he been gone, anyhow? It seemed a lot had happened. He glanced at Souji as he continued to talk and got a new glare when Adachi made his "joke".
"He wasn't a trick!" Teddie felt insulted.
However, when he tried to come up with a reason why the blond hadn't been a Shadow, he couldn't. After all, he was a Shadow. Ryoji was a shadow. In all his memories, Teddie couldn't remember another Shadow gaining sentience the way he had. Ryoji had been a real shock. So it had to be rare, right? He couldn't think of anything more to contribute, but he was really mad at Adachi.
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"Partner, could I see the Ring?"
Yuugi looked up. He had a confused expression. Why would Atem need to see the Ring? He nodded and walked over, handing the artifact to Atem. The former Pharaoh held it in his hands and frowned. It really wasn't Zorc. The thing felt as empty as it had after they defeated that demon. Well, it was likely because Anpu, for all his faults, had been human. He shook his head.
"Atem?"
The tanned teenager clenched his fists around it, "I don't think there is anything we can do to prevent this getting back to Bakura-kun if it really wants to. Anpu likes the situation having Bakura's life as a hostage puts us in. He put the Ring back in Yuugi's hands, "Our only consolation is I don't think he quite realizes what the Ring can do. He hasn't used any ability other than its ability to sense the other Items and using Bakura as his host."
"Then what can we do?"
"We can observe it. Partner, even if it does get back to Bakura, we might be able to figure out something about it. I can't say I knew all that much about the Items even in Egypt. If anyone even came close to getting them, it was the keeper of the Millenium Eye, Akhenaden, due to the process of their creation. As for the abilities it has in relation to the modern Dark Games, I know even less about that."
"Are you saying we should use Bakura-kun as a test!?"
"If we can figure it out, we may be able to stop whatever process gets it back to its 'host'," He shifted to looking upset, "I suspect whoever attacked him was trying to send me a message. Which is why I think it was Abel."
"I'm worried about K1-kun, Atem."
"He made his choice, Partner. It's up to him to deal with the consequences."
Yuugi hung his head, "So where are we going to store the Ring...? You still have the Eye that Kaiba-kun gave you, right?"
"It's in a corner of the drawers. I have a feeling its not the last of the Millenium Items we'll be seeing. The things seem to be drawn to each other no matter how much distance seperates them. What concerns me is what could happen if people start finding them. Partner, let me have the Ring again. I want to keep it on me, I don't trust it..."
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Feb 13, 2010 23:03:26 GMT -5
Adachi's smirk widened as he saw how mad Teddie got at him after making that little joke. Even with how serious a situation this was, he still found that bear's overreactions hilarious as crap. He let his expression return back to a more serious one. "I don't know why there was someone else in the TV World. But Takahashi's obviously safe now, and Ryou should be okay if that doctor ever gets here, so could you two please leave?"
Souji glared at Adachi before finally deciding he couldn't get anything else out of Adachi. And if the man got in trouble (now that was an understatement) for attempted murder when he went into work, that was good too.
"Come on, Teddie. We should be getting to bed anyways," Souji said. It was nearly the Dark Hour, after all. They didn't need to exhaust themselves further, plus Souji wanted to ask Teddie a few more questions about what happened in the other side.
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Post by mugenginga on Feb 13, 2010 23:14:28 GMT -5
Teddie got more annoyed at the smirk. Once more, Adachi was treating a situation as a game. He had no idea that by reacting more he was merely playing into what Adachi was doing. Teddie wasn't one that pulled off glares all that well, either, especially in human form. He blinked and looked at Souji as he spoke and let his shoulders drop. They weren't getting anywhere with Adachi anyhow. He gave an irritated look at Adachi before heading directly across the hall and waiting for Souji in front of his apartment door.
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"I just wish more people knew about these... there has to be some way to handle them we're not thinking of," Yuugi said as he handed the Ring to Atem.
"The only way I know of is no longer an option, Partner," He folded up the prongs and placed it in his pocket the same way Yuugi had been carrying it, "You look exhausted. Go ahead and go to bed, I'll see you in the morning."
Yuugi yawned and put his hand in front of his face, "...Alright. Hey, Atem, I'm worried about Kaiba-kun. We haven't heard from him in a day or two."
"Kaiba can take care of himself... If it would make you feel better we can try and find him. The fact that he was willing to suck up his pride enough to stay here one night is a bit concerning."
"Thanks."
Atem gave a soft smile and nodded.
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Ryoji was standing at the window at Minato's Apartment, watching the rain. He turned his head towards the door once again. It was almost the Dark Hour. He didn't need a watch to know that. He could feel Tartarus' signal get stronger this time every night. He let out a sigh. He refused to sleep during it. It was possible he'd wander somewhere without being aware if he did. He could crash after the Hour was over. The rain was really coming down though. Considering what happened to water during the Dark Hour, he doubted it would be a pleasant sight.
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