Hey again all! I'm gonna keep this as brief as I can: The song in this songfic is 'Bright Eyes' (performed by Art Garfunkel), most famed from its part in the film Watership Down. If you know the song (and especially the film), this fic will mean so much more to you. So go download it once you're done! It's one of the most beautiful songs ever made, and was one reason for my love of music as a child.
This fic isn't really a yaoi... though there are very slight, subtle, bazified hints. Pocky, pixie sticks and pineapple juice if you can pick them out!
Well, enjoy!
*~*~*~*~*~*
"Come on Yugi!" Yami called up the stairs. "I want to go sometime this millennia!"
Yugi grumbled to himself about Yami never giving him long enough to get ready as he made his way down the stairs. Yami had told Yugi he was going out, and Yugi had decided to join him, simply because he didn't want to be left at home alone. He still didn't know what was happening. "Where are we going, Yami?"
"Shopping," was the simple reply. "I need to get some new leathers."
"Oh… I guess the drycleaners couldn't get the stains out then?"
"No…" Yami muttered darkly. "I'm sending the receipts to Bakura."
Yugi grinned. Bakura had protested several times he hadn't known Yami's leathers weren't part of the fence he was varnishing, but - to put it simply - even Ryou had given him a look that said 'Come on, we're not that stupid.'
Just as Yugi grabbed his jacket, the taxi driver outside honked his horn to signal his arrival, and Yugi ran to the door before Yami could pick him up and carry him out, laughing as he went. Yami smiled at his hikari's antics, and made his way out too.
"Town centre, please."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Once in the shopping centre, Yami wandered from clothes shop to clothes shop, browsing through all the leathers available before he decided which one he was going to buy. Yugi had a hard time keeping up, especially since a few of the taller people failed to notice him and nearly tripped over him.
"Yamiii…" he whined. "Can't you slow down a bit? I can't move as fast as you through here!"
Yami suddenly stopped where he was, and Yugi nearly walked into him. "I didn't mean that slow, Yami," he commented, a small smile on his face. When he didn't get a response, the smile dropped. "Yami?" Yugi walked round to see what was wrong, and what he saw made him take an involuntary step backwards. He felt his hands beginning to shake, and he began slowly shaking his head, whispering "No," over and over again, his eyes wide with horror.
Yami's face had turned almost grey, and a cold layer of perspiration had broken out across his forehead. He was clutching at his chest and stomach, his face contorted in agony, and he slowly dropped to his knees. Yugi fell to his hands and knees and scurried across the small distance that separated him from his yami, putting an arm around his shoulders. "Yami? Yami, what's wrong?"
Yami weakly looked up at his hikari, and Yugi saw the torment in his eyes - not just because of what he was going through, but because he knew how much it was scaring his aibou. "Yugi…" he faintly whispered, before collapsing to the floor.
"Yami?" Yugi asked, unaware of the large crowd around them. "Yami? YAMI!"
Five minutes later, they were both in the back of an ambulance, speeding through traffic to get Yami to the hospital. Yugi told the paramedics what he'd seen, and they'd whispered something to eachother. When they didn't tell him what they thought, he felt his stomach sink.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi sat by Yami's bed, staring through saddened eyes. He couldn't believe that the unmoving figure before him, covered with tubes and wires and surrounded by blinking and bleeping machines, was the same bright, smiling Yami that had wanted to go shopping that morning. He looked so lifeless, so pale… he hadn't even moved on his own since he'd collapsed.
"Yami…" Yugi whispered.
The sound of footsteps rang through the small, isolated room Yami was in, and Yugi looked up to see who was coming. The grave look on the approaching doctor's face didn't offer Yugi much in the way of encouragement. "Yugi Motou, I presume?"
Yugi nodded. "I am Doctor Kuroi. And would this be…" The doctor checked his notes. "Yami Motou?" Yugi nodded again.
"Well Yugi, I'm afraid I'll have to be blunt about this. I think you should perhaps have a seat…"
Yugi paled slightly, and weakly reached for his seat. When Dr Kuroi thought he seemed reasonably comfortable, he continued.
"It appears Yami has contracted the Omachi virus. It's a new and very dangerous strain that we don't have a known cure for."
Yugi's eyes drifted to Yami's prone figure. This morning he hadn't even heard of the Omachi virus… and now it was threatening his yami's life.
"The virus disrupts the operation of organs and tissues, causing the body's functions to gradually shut down. In effect, it slowly kills the body. The fatality rate is over 90%."
Yugi felt as if someone had struck him with a sledgehammer. 'Yami's… going to die?' His eyes clouded over slightly. 'No… he can't…'
"We've done everything we can, but I'm afraid it's now down to the patient's immune system and natural resilience. I'm sorry."
The doctor's words fell on deaf ears. Yugi's world had been consumed by the one thought of losing Yami. What could Yugi ever do without him? It'd be like half of himself had died, or been ripped away… and once one half went, the other was destined to follow, one way or the other.
The doctor spoke again, and somehow his words found a little gap in the screams in Yugi's head. "If he doesn't wake up in the next few hours, he probably won't wake up at all." Doctor Kuroi stood up. "Do you need anything?"
Yugi shook his head, and the doctor left. Yugi felt a deep emptiness inside himself, as if a great void had opened. The idea of losing Yami had left him utterly distraught.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi sat as close to Yami's side as the chair would let him, his hand wrapped around Yami's. Somehow it was comforting, almost as if it could help Yami, and Yugi needed as much comfort as he could get.
"Yami…" he whispered. "You've gotta get through this… you've always been so strong, and now you need to be more than ever. Remember when we duelled Pegasus in the Shadow Realm? I wasn't able to cope with it, and when I collapsed you had to take the burden all by yourself. You were worrying about me, and having to support the monsters as well, and you still managed to fight on and beat Pegasus. That took the kind of strength and determination you need now, Yami."
Yugi sniffled and smiled at the memory. "You've always worried about me, haven't you Yami? And now it's my turn to worry about you, and to shoulder the burden." He leaned closer to Yami and whispered, almost as if he was afraid of harming Yami's frail form, "I'll be okay if you are Yami. As long as I know you're okay, I can go through anything." Yugi felt tears stinging at his eyes, and he blinked them away. Sitting back, he continued talking to Yami. "I remember the time I got that fever, and you stayed by my side all the time, wetting the flannel to keep me cool and feeding me chicken soup that you made yourself when I needed it." Yugi couldn't quite catch the tear this time, and wiped it away with his free hand. "Then, when I felt a little better, you hired out that video for me. Do you remember it? Watership Down, with all the rabbits… Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig…" Yugi choked back a sob. "I remember… when that farmer shot Hazel, and we both thought he was dead… we both cried when they played that song…" Yugi stared at Yami's ashen face, a faint teary-eyed smile on his own.
"'Bright eyes', it was called. You used to love that song… you just kept playing it over and over…" Yugi took a deep sigh as the memory stung him in a more personal way. "Yami, I never told you this, but I learnt to sing that song, specially so that if you were ever upset I could sing it for you… you never were, though."
Yugi gazed down at Yami's greyed face again, not speaking. He closed his eyes as more memories washed over him, and he could have sworn he heard Yami's voice speak faintly: "Please…"
Yugi opened his eyes again, studying Yami's face intently to see if there was any other sign of life. None came, of course, and Yugi sighed sadly. Taking a deep breath, Yugi began to sing, his beautiful voice ringing softly around the room.
"Is it a kind of dream?
Floating out on the tide
Following the river death downstream
Oh, is it a dream?"
Yugi felt a tear roll down his cheek, and he made no effort to stop it. He knew it was the first of many, the painful memories and the harsh reality combining to try to overcome him.
"There's a fog along the horizon
A strange glow in the sky
And nobody seems to know where you go
And what does it mean?
Oh, is it a dream?"
Yugi realised with a sinking feeling how appropriate the song suddenly seemed - what is it like to die? To be dying? What do you see? What do you feel?
Even worse, Yugi realised the chorus - Yami's favourite part of the song - was going to absolutely kill him to sing, and he wasn't sure he could go on, or finish the song. Giving it his best go, he let his voice rise higher, the notes ringing clear and bell-like off the walls of the small room.
"Bright eyes, burning like fire"
Yugi felt the tears begin to fall more freely. Yami's crimson eyes… they had always burned so brightly, like they had a flame deep within them. As the words rolled on, they felt more and more like they'd been written for this moment.
"Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?"
'Exactly' Yugi thought, sniffling slightly. 'How did it come to be like this? You were always so happy, so full of life… how could this happen to you? How can you be dying before me?' Yugi had to swallow a lump in his throat before he could continue.
'How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes"
Yugi sobbed - only the one, before he could suppress them, but it was enough. He realised his cheeks were a sea of tears. Yugi sniffed deeply. 'I've got to go on… for Yami.'
"Is it a kind of shadow?
Reaching into the night
Wandering the hills unseen
Or is it a dream?"
Yugi felt the hand holding Yami's tighten involuntarily, and felt his face beginning to screw up, demanding that he cry. He stared at Yami, his vision blurred through tears, and forced himself to continue.
"There's a high wind in the trees
A cold sound in the air
And nobody ever knows where you go
And where do you start?
Oh, into the dark"
There it was again. What did Yami feel now? Where was he now? Had he already left his body? Did he know what Yugi was doing? Could he sense Yugi's pain? When does the body draw the line between what it can and can't take?
'Only you know, Yami…'
Yugi took a few seconds to compose himself before launching into the chorus again, each line tearing him apart.
"Bright eyes, burning like fire
Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?"
Yugi felt his mental barriers beginning to crack, and he finished the song with tears pouring down his cheeks, choking back sob after sob.
"Bright eyes…"
The song over, Yugi couldn't take it any more, and his emotions overcame him. He grabbed Yami's hand with both his own and buried his head in Yami's bedcovers, his delicate frame racked with sobs he'd never known he was capable of.
"Please Yami…" he choked out, his voice muffled. "Please don't leave me… please wake up." A wail escaped Yugi's body, all but silenced by the duvet. "I can't take you being like this… I couldn't live without you…" Yugi's tears forced him into silence, the sobs becoming physically painful, and Yugi squeezed Yami's hand all the tighter. Forcibly lifting his head from the mattress, Yugi stared at the hazy figure laying on the bed. "Please Yami!" he wailed. "I need you!"
Yugi felt his sobs suddenly die as the machines started making a different noise. He stared at them expectantly, waiting to see if they'd settle or give some sort of sign as to whether he should worry or not. Because he watching the machines, he nearly missed the almost imperceptible motion on the bed.
The wet tears sparkling on his cheeks, Yugi spun his head round and fixed his red-rimmed eyes on his yami's body. "…Y…Yami?" Yugi asked quietly, his eyes fully of teary optimism.
Slowly, and with an evident effort, Yami's eyes weakly flickered open. "Hai… I won't leave you aibou…" he whispered almost imperceptibly, the pain evident in his voice.
Yugi's eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped in delight. "YAMI!" he cried, leaning over the bed and wrapping his arms around his dark. "You're gonna be ok!" Yami returned Yugi's hug, groaning with the effort it took, and Yugi felt him nod. Pulling away, Yugi saw Yami's eyes had closed again, but his face looked more natural… and he was smiling. He whispered a quiet "Thankyou," aimed at any Gods that were listening, before jumping up and rushing off to find a doctor.
*~*~*~*~*~*
~End~
*~*~*~*~*~*
*sob* I love that song... and this fic turned out so much better than I'd hoped, even if it still doesn't do the song justice. Like I said, make sure you get a copy of it, 'Bright Eyes' by Art Garfunkel. I have a copy if you want that!
All now being done, please review!
This fic isn't really a yaoi... though there are very slight, subtle, bazified hints. Pocky, pixie sticks and pineapple juice if you can pick them out!
Well, enjoy!
*~*~*~*~*~*
"Come on Yugi!" Yami called up the stairs. "I want to go sometime this millennia!"
Yugi grumbled to himself about Yami never giving him long enough to get ready as he made his way down the stairs. Yami had told Yugi he was going out, and Yugi had decided to join him, simply because he didn't want to be left at home alone. He still didn't know what was happening. "Where are we going, Yami?"
"Shopping," was the simple reply. "I need to get some new leathers."
"Oh… I guess the drycleaners couldn't get the stains out then?"
"No…" Yami muttered darkly. "I'm sending the receipts to Bakura."
Yugi grinned. Bakura had protested several times he hadn't known Yami's leathers weren't part of the fence he was varnishing, but - to put it simply - even Ryou had given him a look that said 'Come on, we're not that stupid.'
Just as Yugi grabbed his jacket, the taxi driver outside honked his horn to signal his arrival, and Yugi ran to the door before Yami could pick him up and carry him out, laughing as he went. Yami smiled at his hikari's antics, and made his way out too.
"Town centre, please."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Once in the shopping centre, Yami wandered from clothes shop to clothes shop, browsing through all the leathers available before he decided which one he was going to buy. Yugi had a hard time keeping up, especially since a few of the taller people failed to notice him and nearly tripped over him.
"Yamiii…" he whined. "Can't you slow down a bit? I can't move as fast as you through here!"
Yami suddenly stopped where he was, and Yugi nearly walked into him. "I didn't mean that slow, Yami," he commented, a small smile on his face. When he didn't get a response, the smile dropped. "Yami?" Yugi walked round to see what was wrong, and what he saw made him take an involuntary step backwards. He felt his hands beginning to shake, and he began slowly shaking his head, whispering "No," over and over again, his eyes wide with horror.
Yami's face had turned almost grey, and a cold layer of perspiration had broken out across his forehead. He was clutching at his chest and stomach, his face contorted in agony, and he slowly dropped to his knees. Yugi fell to his hands and knees and scurried across the small distance that separated him from his yami, putting an arm around his shoulders. "Yami? Yami, what's wrong?"
Yami weakly looked up at his hikari, and Yugi saw the torment in his eyes - not just because of what he was going through, but because he knew how much it was scaring his aibou. "Yugi…" he faintly whispered, before collapsing to the floor.
"Yami?" Yugi asked, unaware of the large crowd around them. "Yami? YAMI!"
Five minutes later, they were both in the back of an ambulance, speeding through traffic to get Yami to the hospital. Yugi told the paramedics what he'd seen, and they'd whispered something to eachother. When they didn't tell him what they thought, he felt his stomach sink.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi sat by Yami's bed, staring through saddened eyes. He couldn't believe that the unmoving figure before him, covered with tubes and wires and surrounded by blinking and bleeping machines, was the same bright, smiling Yami that had wanted to go shopping that morning. He looked so lifeless, so pale… he hadn't even moved on his own since he'd collapsed.
"Yami…" Yugi whispered.
The sound of footsteps rang through the small, isolated room Yami was in, and Yugi looked up to see who was coming. The grave look on the approaching doctor's face didn't offer Yugi much in the way of encouragement. "Yugi Motou, I presume?"
Yugi nodded. "I am Doctor Kuroi. And would this be…" The doctor checked his notes. "Yami Motou?" Yugi nodded again.
"Well Yugi, I'm afraid I'll have to be blunt about this. I think you should perhaps have a seat…"
Yugi paled slightly, and weakly reached for his seat. When Dr Kuroi thought he seemed reasonably comfortable, he continued.
"It appears Yami has contracted the Omachi virus. It's a new and very dangerous strain that we don't have a known cure for."
Yugi's eyes drifted to Yami's prone figure. This morning he hadn't even heard of the Omachi virus… and now it was threatening his yami's life.
"The virus disrupts the operation of organs and tissues, causing the body's functions to gradually shut down. In effect, it slowly kills the body. The fatality rate is over 90%."
Yugi felt as if someone had struck him with a sledgehammer. 'Yami's… going to die?' His eyes clouded over slightly. 'No… he can't…'
"We've done everything we can, but I'm afraid it's now down to the patient's immune system and natural resilience. I'm sorry."
The doctor's words fell on deaf ears. Yugi's world had been consumed by the one thought of losing Yami. What could Yugi ever do without him? It'd be like half of himself had died, or been ripped away… and once one half went, the other was destined to follow, one way or the other.
The doctor spoke again, and somehow his words found a little gap in the screams in Yugi's head. "If he doesn't wake up in the next few hours, he probably won't wake up at all." Doctor Kuroi stood up. "Do you need anything?"
Yugi shook his head, and the doctor left. Yugi felt a deep emptiness inside himself, as if a great void had opened. The idea of losing Yami had left him utterly distraught.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi sat as close to Yami's side as the chair would let him, his hand wrapped around Yami's. Somehow it was comforting, almost as if it could help Yami, and Yugi needed as much comfort as he could get.
"Yami…" he whispered. "You've gotta get through this… you've always been so strong, and now you need to be more than ever. Remember when we duelled Pegasus in the Shadow Realm? I wasn't able to cope with it, and when I collapsed you had to take the burden all by yourself. You were worrying about me, and having to support the monsters as well, and you still managed to fight on and beat Pegasus. That took the kind of strength and determination you need now, Yami."
Yugi sniffled and smiled at the memory. "You've always worried about me, haven't you Yami? And now it's my turn to worry about you, and to shoulder the burden." He leaned closer to Yami and whispered, almost as if he was afraid of harming Yami's frail form, "I'll be okay if you are Yami. As long as I know you're okay, I can go through anything." Yugi felt tears stinging at his eyes, and he blinked them away. Sitting back, he continued talking to Yami. "I remember the time I got that fever, and you stayed by my side all the time, wetting the flannel to keep me cool and feeding me chicken soup that you made yourself when I needed it." Yugi couldn't quite catch the tear this time, and wiped it away with his free hand. "Then, when I felt a little better, you hired out that video for me. Do you remember it? Watership Down, with all the rabbits… Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig…" Yugi choked back a sob. "I remember… when that farmer shot Hazel, and we both thought he was dead… we both cried when they played that song…" Yugi stared at Yami's ashen face, a faint teary-eyed smile on his own.
"'Bright eyes', it was called. You used to love that song… you just kept playing it over and over…" Yugi took a deep sigh as the memory stung him in a more personal way. "Yami, I never told you this, but I learnt to sing that song, specially so that if you were ever upset I could sing it for you… you never were, though."
Yugi gazed down at Yami's greyed face again, not speaking. He closed his eyes as more memories washed over him, and he could have sworn he heard Yami's voice speak faintly: "Please…"
Yugi opened his eyes again, studying Yami's face intently to see if there was any other sign of life. None came, of course, and Yugi sighed sadly. Taking a deep breath, Yugi began to sing, his beautiful voice ringing softly around the room.
"Is it a kind of dream?
Floating out on the tide
Following the river death downstream
Oh, is it a dream?"
Yugi felt a tear roll down his cheek, and he made no effort to stop it. He knew it was the first of many, the painful memories and the harsh reality combining to try to overcome him.
"There's a fog along the horizon
A strange glow in the sky
And nobody seems to know where you go
And what does it mean?
Oh, is it a dream?"
Yugi realised with a sinking feeling how appropriate the song suddenly seemed - what is it like to die? To be dying? What do you see? What do you feel?
Even worse, Yugi realised the chorus - Yami's favourite part of the song - was going to absolutely kill him to sing, and he wasn't sure he could go on, or finish the song. Giving it his best go, he let his voice rise higher, the notes ringing clear and bell-like off the walls of the small room.
"Bright eyes, burning like fire"
Yugi felt the tears begin to fall more freely. Yami's crimson eyes… they had always burned so brightly, like they had a flame deep within them. As the words rolled on, they felt more and more like they'd been written for this moment.
"Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?"
'Exactly' Yugi thought, sniffling slightly. 'How did it come to be like this? You were always so happy, so full of life… how could this happen to you? How can you be dying before me?' Yugi had to swallow a lump in his throat before he could continue.
'How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes"
Yugi sobbed - only the one, before he could suppress them, but it was enough. He realised his cheeks were a sea of tears. Yugi sniffed deeply. 'I've got to go on… for Yami.'
"Is it a kind of shadow?
Reaching into the night
Wandering the hills unseen
Or is it a dream?"
Yugi felt the hand holding Yami's tighten involuntarily, and felt his face beginning to screw up, demanding that he cry. He stared at Yami, his vision blurred through tears, and forced himself to continue.
"There's a high wind in the trees
A cold sound in the air
And nobody ever knows where you go
And where do you start?
Oh, into the dark"
There it was again. What did Yami feel now? Where was he now? Had he already left his body? Did he know what Yugi was doing? Could he sense Yugi's pain? When does the body draw the line between what it can and can't take?
'Only you know, Yami…'
Yugi took a few seconds to compose himself before launching into the chorus again, each line tearing him apart.
"Bright eyes, burning like fire
Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?"
Yugi felt his mental barriers beginning to crack, and he finished the song with tears pouring down his cheeks, choking back sob after sob.
"Bright eyes…"
The song over, Yugi couldn't take it any more, and his emotions overcame him. He grabbed Yami's hand with both his own and buried his head in Yami's bedcovers, his delicate frame racked with sobs he'd never known he was capable of.
"Please Yami…" he choked out, his voice muffled. "Please don't leave me… please wake up." A wail escaped Yugi's body, all but silenced by the duvet. "I can't take you being like this… I couldn't live without you…" Yugi's tears forced him into silence, the sobs becoming physically painful, and Yugi squeezed Yami's hand all the tighter. Forcibly lifting his head from the mattress, Yugi stared at the hazy figure laying on the bed. "Please Yami!" he wailed. "I need you!"
Yugi felt his sobs suddenly die as the machines started making a different noise. He stared at them expectantly, waiting to see if they'd settle or give some sort of sign as to whether he should worry or not. Because he watching the machines, he nearly missed the almost imperceptible motion on the bed.
The wet tears sparkling on his cheeks, Yugi spun his head round and fixed his red-rimmed eyes on his yami's body. "…Y…Yami?" Yugi asked quietly, his eyes fully of teary optimism.
Slowly, and with an evident effort, Yami's eyes weakly flickered open. "Hai… I won't leave you aibou…" he whispered almost imperceptibly, the pain evident in his voice.
Yugi's eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped in delight. "YAMI!" he cried, leaning over the bed and wrapping his arms around his dark. "You're gonna be ok!" Yami returned Yugi's hug, groaning with the effort it took, and Yugi felt him nod. Pulling away, Yugi saw Yami's eyes had closed again, but his face looked more natural… and he was smiling. He whispered a quiet "Thankyou," aimed at any Gods that were listening, before jumping up and rushing off to find a doctor.
*~*~*~*~*~*
~End~
*~*~*~*~*~*
*sob* I love that song... and this fic turned out so much better than I'd hoped, even if it still doesn't do the song justice. Like I said, make sure you get a copy of it, 'Bright Eyes' by Art Garfunkel. I have a copy if you want that!
All now being done, please review!