Disclaimer:Yu-Gi-Oh!is copyright Kazuki Takahashi.

Kuri-kun and the “little kuriboh” sentence are in no way related to LittleKuriboh.

Lol, this chapter is tiny. Also, this is the last one, kiddies. Seriously.

Chapter is weakly beta'd. Will beta farther sometime tonight, however.

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Child of the Sun

Chapter 17: Dice

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My blood, my blood, oh my God, oh my God! I’m standing in a freaking riverof my own blood!

The crimson clashes violently with the shades of grey and I scream. I scream and I scream, I’m not sure why but I’m positive that the blood is my blood, that it’s been taken from insideof me. Oh God, there’s so much, I’m suffocating!

I’m still screaming, my voice does not ache, I scream, and I continue to scream... until I’m pinched.

I stop, my eyes are open wide and everything is back to how it was before they scream. I look to my side. There stands a little kuriboh, his hand poking my side. He is the one who just broke me out of my… nightmare? Yes, it wasa nightmare; I look to my feet. The ground is dry. There is no blood.

Akumu… nightmares… is that what the obstacles in this game are about? If it is, I surely would’ve failed if it wasn’t for this kuriboh. Where did it come from, anyway? Well, it doesn’t really matter right now. I’m pretty sure I can trust it. I just have this feeling it’s safe.

I reach out and pat the kuriboh’s head. “Thank you,” I murmur softly.

How long had I been in that nightmare? For all I know, I could’ve lost the game. Ack, could it really have been that long?

The kuriboh, who I’ve decided to call Kuri-kun, pulls at my leg and points in a direction. Does he want me to go that way? I kneel to Kuri-kun’s height so I can communicate better.

“Do you want me to go that way?” I question. Kuri-kun jumps up and down happily, nodding. I half-nod. “Alright, I trust you.” Kuri-kun makes a cute kuriboh sound and leads the way. He guides me through a maze of left runs, only one of them being right. I chase after him nearly out of breath. It’s so fast! I can barely keep up…

Kuri-kun stops finally when he reaches a large rock located by a frozen river. The river is grew and unmoving, though still filled with shining water underneath the surface. The rock is plan and grey. I catch up to Kuri-kun and the moment I do I see him leap into a crack in the river head first.

“Wait!” I call out when it’s too late,” You’ll drown!!”

Everything is eerily silent once more.

Then, there is a splash and Kuri-kun returns from the river depths, shining gold. No, wait, he isn’t shininggold, he’s holdinggold. Kuri-kun has found a Millennium Item?! Or has he just led me to one?

Kuri-kun grins and jumps up and down, clearly satisfied with himself. I let upon my face a smile and try to calm him down. After a moment I notice that in his green stubby hands is an eye; so it’s the Millennium Eye.

Kuri-kun suddenly freezes.

The eye falls from his hands.

He looks straight at me, his eyes suddenly wide and blood red.

Then he leaps at my throat, his stubby hands reaching out to choke me!

“Kuri-kun,” I cry out, “What are you—”

I dodge the possessed kuriboh and stare wide-eyed… Is it another nightmare? I take the moment to pinch myself. No! It isn’t! Then what could’ve--?

Kuriboh jumps at me once again but it’s pretty easy to dodge him again. What am I supposed to do? The kuriboh is out of control and possessed but I can’t hurt it – it’s still the one who just saved my butt and helped me! Besides, how am I supposed to get close to him without him killing me? What even caused him to suddenly go all demonic?!

Kuriboh leaps at me once more and I get a glance of the Milennium Eye that he's picked up again. The moment it took me to see the eye, however, was a bad idea and gives him enough time to land on me, even pin me down. Huh? Why is he so heavy? Some property of the eyes? Could it really weigh that much?

“Always much more than that!!” Kuriboh speaks! His voice is scary; creepy, evil! I stare straight into his blood-thirsty eyes. Another mistake. I can see the golden eye inch forward to my left eye. Has it always been this cold here…?

I shriek.

My eye, no, my bodyshakes when I shriek, the pain from that one eye is too intense! I see visions once more, visions of my past, my mother’s slaughter, my father leaving, grandpa’s murder. I see visions, and though I can’t tell what they are they horrify me and I shriek.

Kuriboh pushes the ye father in and it hurts even more and I behind to sob.

I am five. I hold the knife. I see the woman’s pain as clear as day. I don’t move.

I am six. I see him slam the door shut. I see Granpa hurt on the floor. I don’t care.

I am twelve. I see the boy tossed around from person to person, I see him beaten. I don’t speak.

I am fifteen. I see the animal before me. My arms move. Red eyes meet red. He disappears. It is just me. I look at my hands. So plan and innocent looking…

I shriek.

I wake.

The eye has accepted its new host.

Kuriboh is gone.

Look at the sky.

I am alone.

The sky is something I remember.

I look up.

How dare you?! How dare you smirk at his funeral?

I look at the river.

How does it feel; achieving a low grade?

Half my face is blocked by shadow; the left half.

“You know,” the watcher says, “they saw the left half of the body is the evil side.” He arches an eyebrow and meets my gaze in the reflection. I do not turn. He does not care.

“If you don’t win this,” I say, “you’ll lose.”

“If you don’t finish this,” he replies, “I’ll win.”

I turn now, looking into his eye with one red eye, the other still violet.

“Then,” I prepare to run, “I’ll just have to beat you there, won’t I, Bakura?”

Bakura grins a challenging grin and jumps down next to me, readying himself for a race as well. We count together, glaring at each other. Strangely, the Millennium Eye can’t be seen though it is there and it feels rather light. I know it’s there, though.

“One,” Bakura counts.

“Two,” I continue.

“Three!”

We run fast, both at each other’s pace. Our stats match and when either tries to go ahead the other catches up quickly. The only way this won’t end in a tie is if one of us trips. I’m sure that it the only way, because Bakura’s path is clear of obstacles while mine is littered with them.

“You tired yet?” Bakura tries to distract me. The other spot-able difference between us would be that Bakura hasn’t been weighed down by a nightmare. By logic, this should mean that Bakura doesn’t have a Millennium Item.

Incorrect; Bakura and Yami had advantages over me when the game started, apparently, because the Millennium Ring around Bakura’s neck is glowing green.

Unfortunately for me, I have no idea how to use the Millennium Eye now crammed in my skull. In fact, I can’t even tell it’s there anymore; it’s completely weightless! As I mention, it isn’t visible, either. The only indication is that my eye is red.

“You wish,” I tell him, though my breath isn’t exactly even, therefore ruining the intimidating effect. Bakura’s eyes narrow and before the does it I know that he’s about to aim the ring’s green beam at me. I can’t get out of the way. And I don’t have to, either.

I feel the weight of the gold in my eye and I see with my right a red beam coming from my left. The Eye and Ring’s beams meet. The two beams proceed to fight each other in a bttle of power. Bakura growls and balls his hands into fists, concentrating harder on the Ring. Raw power battles aren’t my strong point. At all. I’m going to lost this!

“Bakura,” I have the strength to call out his name and still manage to use the Eye’s power. We are both sweating and with two final bursts the beams cancel each other out in a flash of white.

“Stop,” I say. I fall feel really irrational when I’m around Bakura and Yami, but for some reason I know that that is the first rational thing I’ve said today. We are both taking in deep breaths.

“What?” Bakura asks sharply, “What did you say, you little bitch?”

I don’t even attempt to make sense of his next words. They’re all gibberish to me; it’s a whole different language. Sounds rather ancient and–son of a–where the hell does this guy get all his god-damned stamina?!

It’s a summon. The gibberish is a summonand he’s going to want to face off with me or something. A grand light in the shape of a circle begins to dance on the ground where Bakura kneels.

Finally, Bakura stops speaking and collapses, unconscious. For a moment there is silence between me and the still-dancing glow on the ground. Then..

Out of the ground, a Diabound appears. Bakura’s body starts to yell, something unfathomable – “Haha! Haha!” I have a bit of an idea why his body is laughing. Diabound is huge and in a few seconds will unleash its uncontrolled fury upon me. Yay.

…Where’s Yami when you need him?

I just stand there, shock still, while the Diabound stares down at me. Huh… hadn’t someone warned me about this?

You have unleashed… Diabound.

Oh yeah, the Dark Magician had told me about Diabound and how I’m an idiot and such for unleashing it. I really wish I wasn’t fanboying and had actually paid attention to what the hell he was saying.

So… let’s see. I’m a sixteen-year-old hobbit, my grandpa was just murdered, my previous enemy needs my help, but first I have to destroy something from a children’s card game. All. In. One. Week. …My life sucks.

At least it’s exciting. I better not wake up soon to find out that this is all some dream or something. That would really suck.

Diabound strikes, I dodge. The Millennium Eye doesn’t feel heavy anymore, so I move more cleanly and swiftly, though I’ve no idea where I got these athletic skills. Diabound… how do I get passed him? Do I have to summon a monster of my own? Use the Eye? Or is this just my end?

“Use the Millennium Eye, Yugi,” I hear someone lazily murmur from behind me, “Is it really that hard to figure that out?”

…Yami Yugi, you have the worst timing ever and now I remember exactly why I hate you.

“How?” I ask, “I have no idea how to use this thing!”

He rolls his eyes.

“Focus your energy to the area where it is.”

I nod, still dodging most of Diabound’s attacks. One of them hits Yami, but apparently that doesn’t matter as he’s perfectly fine. I try to focus my energy on the eye but it isn’t as easy as it sounds – my concentration is split between Yami, Diabound, my life, and the Eye. I’d like to close my eyes so I can concentrate, but I’m too afraid that Diabound will hit me if I do. This can’t be that hard… I use the word “I” all the time…

Eye.

Diabound.

Eye.

Yami.

Eye.

Bakura.

EYE!!

My eyes are shut yet I can see! The world looks red through the Millennium Eye but now it’s easier to see. Diabound aims at my head. I know where I have to aim – it’s now or never. I don’t dodge Diabound’s attack this time. Instead, I attack back with a shockwave from the Eye. I can see inside of Diabound; I see Bakura. All I must do is pull him out. I begin to do so, but a foreign strength aims at me.

“Don’t bring him out!” Yami says, “On the count of three, follow me, fast!”

I gulp and I nod, getting ready to tear my gaze away from Diabound.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three!”

Yami runs, no longer restraining my Eye, which in turn I stop using. I chase after him. Diabound is momentarily handicapped and we run faster still; we have to get the castle before he can recover and catch up!

We take only three turns and finally we reach the towering building. Yami tells me to step on it first. I do so and with that one step, win the game. Yami comes second. We look behind us and Diabound is watching, shock obvious in his expression.

Bakura has lost.

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“Oujisama.”

“Chichiue?”

He holds me tightly… I am his only son, I am his prince…

“You’ll be a fine pharaoh.”

“Chichiue, I hold no royal blood!”

But you hold me.

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White.

I see white.

Dice.

I hear dice.

Death.

I feel death.

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I open my eyes to find that I’m alone, back in Bakura’s chamber. I sit up and take a good look around me; the room is completely empty. Neither Yami nor Bakura, or even perhaps Marik, is present. I stand, and notice two small dice.

One, closer to me, reads Six. The other is at the other side of the room.

I don’t know what possesses me to do it, but I pick up the die and go towards the other one.

One.

It takes only a moment for all of it to register in my head.

Damn you, Yami Yugi.

If you didn’t understand the ending, here’s an explained version of what actually happened.

After losing his game, Bakura dies, and both Yami and Yugi are sent back to his room. Yugi is unconscious again because of a device in Bakura’s room. Yami, on the other hand, is perfectly fine and it is his turn to choose a game and the rules. He chooses a simple game of rolling dice, and he is allowed to roll for the person. Yami then rolls Yugi’s die, earning a six, after which he rolls his own and gets a one. Yami lost, therefore dying, and Yugi is left the winner and the only one alive. Yugi is smart enough to realize that Yami doesn’t want him to waste the last wish on a life. Yugi ends up using the wish to lock away the Millennium Items.

Any questions, concerns, flames, etc, may be reviewed and I will be sure to answer all of yours this time! If I end up getting a large amount of the same comment or question, I will put up a webpage that will be linked in my profile.

Thank you so much for sticking with me, everyone!

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