My final post for the Yu-Gi-Oh June Prompt 2020 Challenge!

I'm so proud of my self for finishing TWO fics in one day! And this one! I started this with a darkshipping story so I decided I should end this with a darkshipping story :)

This is part of the Intertwined series taking place between Shabka and I won't say I'm in love (another one that will be expanded on ;)

It's nice to bring this whole series full circle! Enjoy and see the end for notes!

For Orochi_Dragon14! You rock girl!

Yu-Gi-Oh June Prompt Challenge 2020

Book End Two: Day 30: Walls

Beyond these Palace Walls

A city of glass towers and steel presented an intriguing challenge for someone like Bakura who'd made his fortune scaling the monumenteous stone walls of palaces and pyramids. Compared to those death-defying heights climbing up the side of a two story building with a slanted roof and unlocking the sky light didn't even deserve to be called easy, but he knew better than to let his guard down or to overestimate himself—especially when it came to his most precious treasure.

The lock popped easily. He lifted the glass and dropped down silent as a cat into a room lit only by moonlight. The furnishings were borrowed and simple though unique trinkets spoke of the owner's individuality and the promise of more to come: an antique vanity littered with brushes, combs and make up bottles, a closet stuffed to the brim with shoes and costume pieces, a stuffed Kuriboh and the entire Dark Magicians set in plush toy form on the dresser next to a collection of jewelry overflowing an Egyptian style box. A painter's station was set up in the corner next to a table. A heavily decorated bedspread depicting a kaleidoscope of purple and blue butterflies pooled over the sides of the twin bed.

It was so dramatically different and yet shockingly similar to the room he'd broken into thousands of times, thousands of years ago that the man could only smile. Like its own little piece of the universe enclosed by four walls and yet open to all the possibilities of life. The owner of it had claimed this room as his own and made it his own piece of the universe secluded and safe but free of any walls that might try to lock him in—and Bakura took great pride in being part of that universe.

Sleek as a snake, he slid onto the bedspread, lowering himself to all fours and freezing when it gave a freak of protest. Slowly, he crawled up and over his hand smoothing over the valleys and hills of its occupant still sleeping soundly with his cheek pressed against the pillow, curled up not unlike a cat.

Bakura licked his lips and grinned. Froze once when he felt the boy move only for his smirk to curl when he rolled into his back, sprawled out and ready for him, his head lulled sweetly to the side exposing the creamy caramel channel of his neck and the thin mobile straps of the tank top he slept on.

Absolutely eatable.

Lowering himself like a lion ready to pounce, his smile bearing teeth and fangs ready to bite, Bakura lowered himself to his prey and pressed his lips against those of the slumbering king.

Blazing red eyes popped open with a gasp that Bakura swallowed completely and managed to press his lips harder. Then he let go and pulled back just in time to dodge the blade that sailed in a perfect arch in front of him: striking without hesitation. He smirked down at the frazzled king, wide awake and blazing-eyed and ready to fight. His bedroom hair disheveled in an untamed mane around his head, making him look like an angry kitten: all teeth and fur and claws and hisses but only he knew that a lioness slept beneath.

"Hello Princess," Bakura grinned leaning back on the bed. That old nickname rolling off his tongue with absolute lethargy. "Did you miss me?"

"Bakura!?" Those enrages eyes blinked and opened revealing bewildered brightness. Then they hardened. Atem groaned with exhaustion and replaced the blade beneath his pillow, a trick he'd done in habit as Pharaoh that he had yet to shake.

Though everyone wondered why.

"The Fuck are you doing here?" Atem rubbed his sleep worn face with a groan. Then those eyes once again brightened in realization. "Did you break in here?"

Bakura pointed unabashedly to the skylight. "Might want to lock it next time, darling. Can't have me losing my touch after all?"

"You. Are. Impossible." Atem hissed.

Bakura laughed and went to kiss him again but Atem was quicker and shoved him away with a sigh. "Please...not tonight," he said an actual please this time.

Bakura didn't like it. "What's wrong?"

"I..."Atem rubbed his arm, looking nervous and he was never nervous. Not even that first night when he'd gifted Bakura his maidenhead had he looked so nervous.

Bakura did not like it at all.

"What's the matter?" he asked with all the care and honesty he was capable of.

Atem smiled but still sighed. "I just…need more time, that's all, to think about this...us..." he gestured between them. "All of it."

Well, that was surprisingly. "What's there to think about?" he asked folding his legs beneath him and propping his chin in the arch of his folded hands. He was honestly curious.

"Listen, it's...different for me than it is for you. You remember everything, you've had those memories for over three thousand years and had all this time to process it. But I...I don't have that, and yes, I remember everything, and yes, I remember us, the real us and what we..."oh, gods he still couldn't say it without turning red. It was too embarrassing. "Were."

He choked on the word, red-faced.

Bakura really got a kick out of how much their past marital status embarrassed him.

"But," Atem continued, clearing his throat, his cheeks still red as his eyes. "I still need time to...process, all of this and figure out how I feel about it, this...us...everything. Okay? I just need to figure out how to navigate it."

Bakura sad back and jumped up. "Take all the time you need."

Atem blinked, surprised. "Just...like that?"

Bakura grinned. "Did you expect me to rant and rave and throw a tantrum?" He crossed his arms then and arched a brow when he got no answer. "If you did, I'm going to be pissed."

"No, I didn't think that," Atem sounded weary. "Honestly I didn't know what to expect." A smile came to his face. "Everything is different now, between us, but I…" He closed his eyes and chuckled. "I remember the first time you asked me to run away with you...you have no idea how many nights I thought about you...dreamt of you stealing into my bed room as the Thief King and ravaging me senseless." He flushed a deep, deep purple. "Gods, I was an idiot."

Bakura shrugged. "You needed time then, too. We both did, and besides…" He slid up beside the former king and flashed a snake-like grin that had Atem transfixed and fighting down what he knew was the worst possible blush. A long finger brushed up his collar, tapped something he wore around his neck. Something even now he couldn't bring himself to take off.

Bakura stared at it, a twinge of pride shivering up his spine and a strange, but not unfamiliar warmth filling his heart. Then he grinned and stared into those stunning fiery eyes that three thousand years ago had burned through all his defenses and broke down all his walls until the vacant empty void that was once his heart had no choice but to start beating again. "I waited three thousand years to do this again. I can wait a little bit longer."

Atem didn't say anything but the gratitude glittering in his eyes and the trust of his smile meant more to the man than any words could ever confirm.

"Besides…" the thief hopped up and swaggered back on his heels. "Just do us both a favor and try not to take too long." He was joking, of course, but that brash sarcastic sense of humor had always been one of the most impressive things about him. "Otherwise, I will have no choice but to do what I should've done 3,000 years ago."

"Get a real job?" Atem arched a smirking eyebrow and snorted when the Thief grimaced in disgust.

It lasted only a moment before that blazing confidence returned, his smile sharp and showing teeth. "Sneak back into your room and steal you."

He didn't even try and dodge the pillow thrown at his face.

"You're a pest," Atem laughed.

"Which means you can't get rid of me."

This is it...I'm so proud of myself for completing this challenge! Not only because it was the first time I actually participated in a challenge like this, but also because I COMPLETED it!

I have to say, this was a fantastic experience! I had a lot of fun and I learned a lot about myself and my writing because of this! I originally started this challenge to help me get out of a writing rut, work through my shut-in anxiety and honestly just to challenge myself to see if I could (its not the first time I have myself a month-long challenge and I bailed half-way through.) but this was the first time i truly completely a challenge like this and it was all because of the wonderful readers of these storied and my writing group friends for their support and encouragement :) Thank you all so much!

Not only was this fun, and helped me accomplish my goal of writing every day but I was able to play around with ideas I've had in my head for ages and just never wrote down, inspired me to write new ideas and even come up with new ones to create and explore (I already have plans to continue and expand on the vampire conspiracy series!) and I already have a handful I plan to remove (from these sites at least) and rewrite them as original stories :)

I'm so glad I did this :) and I definitely plan to continue writing every day and working on shorter pieces (and hopefully FINALLY finish the final chapter of Timaeus which is LONG over do...)

Special thanks to all of my readers and reviewers: YesterdayMaybe, Orochi_Dragon14, Yaminsu, WavesOver, ZephyrDragon384 and everyone for the comments and kudos :)

I definitely hope to take part in more of these in the coming months (especially if this shut-in continues) I already plan to find a challenge for October and December!