Game Kings and Ice Queens (Yu-Gi-Oh Season 0)

19 To forgive and forget

Yugi doesn't really understand. Well, he does understands that Ren is upset and believes it has something to do with what happened at the amusement park, but he didn't expect her to be this kind of upset.

Instead of sadness and shock, she's angry. And he doesn't quite know how to deal with an angry Ren, so that night as they go to sleep, he can only sigh as he takes a final glance at the girl whose back is turned to him before closing his eyes, hoping that she will be smiling again tomorrow.

...........

It was not Yugi, but Yami who crouches down beside Ren when the tossing and turning, along side the mumbling woke up the boy. She's stuck in a nightmare, one of the many she's been having.

Putting his hand on her arm, he lightly shakes her. "Ren, wake up. Ren."

It takes a few attempts before her eyes shoot open followed by a gasp. Her body trembles from fear as she attempts to get her bearings. Yami gently wipes away the blonde strands of hair sticking to her forehead.

When she does calm down however, her face pulls into a frown. "What are you doing here?" she questions, clearly not happy to see him. "I told you to leave me alone." she reminds him, turning her back to him as she lies back down.

"Ren, I really think we should speak about earlier." he says with a sigh. It upsets him to have gotten on her bad side, to have her act so coldly towards him.

"Oh really?" she huffs.

"I just want to explain and tell yo-..." he cuts himself off when the girl before him bursts upright, meeting him face to face, her eyes blazing like blue flames.

"I did not do it on purpose, not today. But let me get one thing straight; When I do involve myself in these things, on my own free will, it's because I care for others. If you think this is all about you, then you think too much of yourself!" she hisses, breathing harshly.

Spirit with supernatural dark powers or not, she is going to give this guy a piece of her mind. She opens her mouth to speak again, but in the shock that follows, nothing comes out.

Yami has suddenly pulled her to him, his arms wrapped around her tightly. She feels his breath in her hair as his chin rests on her shoulder. "I'm sorry Ren. I was mistaken." he speaks softly. "Instead of looking after you after your life had been threatened, I was being selfish and suspicious instead. I understand your anger very well. But I hope you can find it in you to forgive me."

Ren is speechless for a moment, not to mention red-faced by his actions that are so unexpected of him.

"I- I..." she tries before pulling herself away from him slowly. She needs to get out of his arms or she'll never find herself able to speak.

She looks up, meeting his pleading eyes. "Why? Why are you so suspicious? Why don't you trust me?" she asks him quietly. That is what she truly wants to know. Because after all they have been trough up until now, he is still so guarded. And it hurts that he puts up this wall between them whenever she tries to come closer.

He sighs, sitting back on his heels, his eyes saddened. She resists the urge to flinch when he reaches up and wipes away a stray tear from her hot cheek with his thumb.

His hand lingers as he starts to explain, "It is not that I don't trust you, it's a...." he takes a deep breath. Talking about his feelings is really not his forte. "It's a way to protect you, and myself." he states, making her blink up at him in confusion.

"I realize how easy it is for you to get hurt. You're a tough girl Ren, but still quite fragile... And I care for you." he admits. "If you are harmed, it hurts you obviously, but it hurts me as well. I had hoped that if I pushed you away that it would keep us both from hurting, but as I did, I did the one thing I had hoped to prevent. I'm not strong enough to turn you away when you weep, even though it's probably the smarter thing to do, for your safety. But in that aspect I find that I'm too selfish to do the right thing and find myself here begging for your forgiveness instead."

Ren's eyes are wide from his admittance. She swallows thickly, feeling moved by his words and... flattered in a way. It was only out of consideration of her safety and his feelings that he uttered those nasty words earlier. It was not one of his finer moments, but his intentions were good.

He releases another deep breath, moving back as she stays silent a while longer, too stunned for a moment to find words to react with.

"Go to sleep Ren. You need your rest." he urges quietly, moving to get up.

"Wait." Ren rushes, her hand shooting out to catch his wrist. He pauses, looking back at her, blinking in surprise.

She looks to the floor, blinking away her tears before finally speaking up, softening her grip. "I'm not a fan of your methods, but... I understand. I'm willing to forgive you Yami, just... please don't say such things or think lowly of me. I...I care for you too you know? And honestly it hurts me more to have you shut me out then to be harmed physically."

Yami moves closer once again, getting on one knee so he can look her in the eyes properly. He takes her hand in his.

"I could never think lowly of you. I'm sorry Ren, I learned from this mistake. I refuse to be the cause of your tears again." he states determinately before moving his other hand to the nape of her neck, having her tilt her head down slightly. Moving forward he brushes his lips against the skin of her forehead, making the blood rush to her cheeks once more.

"Now try to get some sleep." he says, letting her go.

"I'm not sure if I can." she says, referring to the nightmares probably waiting for her should she shut her eyes.

Yami understands. Such traumatic things have happened lately and he already left such an impact on her life with the power he holds. He feels responsible for her lack of comfort in the night. But, somehow she's intertwined with his 'life' now, if that is what you could call it. The only thing he can do for her now is help her fight her fears.

"It's alright Ren. Don't be afraid. Nothing can harm you, I'll be watching over you at all times. I'm not letting anything get to you." he promises, making her giggle softly all of a sudden.

He raises a brow indignantly. "What?"

"I'll be watching over you at all times." she repeats. "You made it sound a bit creepy." she snickers, making him sigh and roll his eyes before planting his hand on her head, pushing her down back into her little nest of blankets and throwing a blanket over her.

"Just go to sleep." he huffs. She wiggles her head out from under the blanket, grinning as she watch him stand. She would think him to be angry if it weren't for the amusement in his eyes.

"Goodnight Yami." she wishes as he crawls back into bed.

"Goodnight Ren." he states, glancing over to see her curl up, closing her eyes with a content sigh.

He closes his as well, feeling happy now that the air is cleared between them. He's also glad that his previous plan backfired to be honest. If he had succeeded, if he had been less selfish, he would have find himself alone once more, buried deep into the mind of Yugi without anyone giving him a second thought.

Slow updating ahead! Sorry guys, I'm going to move real soon and I need to spend most weekends ahead preparing and painting and all that stuff. I won't have much time to write, but once we've settled I hope to get going again.