Shadow Game - Ryou, Dragon and Dratini 'vs' Bakura

Ryou hadn’t agreed to this, hadn’t wanted to be a part of the Shadow Game that Bakura had convinced him to help in designing, but here he was, playing White Mage to a pair of girls who were convinced that the other shouldn’t exist.

He knew what Bakura had been planning for this game, knew why the girls were here, had an idea of how this game would run, but the girls didn’t seem to be aware that they were in a game, so lost in trying to work out where the hell the other had come from, that going from his living room to a stone room with only one exit, an exit he knew led to a maze, hadn’t interrupted their row.

“You can’t be real!” The midnight blue eyed Jamie with white highlights in her hair was snarling, “I’m Jamie Francis! Me! Not you! You’ve got to be some fake created by some villain for one reason or another!”

“You’re wrong,” The sapphire eyed, normal haired Jamie replied, backing up a little, fear obvious, “I’m Jamie, I’ve always been Jamie…”

Sapphire hit the floor when midnight slapped her hard enough to leave an imprint of her hand.

“Will you two quit it?” Ryou asked, getting between then and trying not to look nervous as one Jamie scowled at him and the other gave him a confused, slightly nervous look.

“…You’re Ryou… aren’t you?” Sapphire eyes asked, watching him carefully as she sat up, holding her cheek.

“Yes.” Ryou nodded, “For some strange reason my dark side decided it would be funny to bring me into your game against him.” He addressed the pair of them.

“Sorry…” Sapphire eyes looked down, guilt obvious, understandable even, as she had asked Bakura if they could play a game, but midnight grew irritable.

“If you’re Ryou, then you’d know why ‘Kura created her!” Midnight scowled, gesturing at sapphire. “Why he’d create such a weak copy of me!?”

“He didn’t.” Ryou had wondered if this was why he’d been shoved into the game, to stop midnight doing anything dangerous regarding sapphire.

“He had to have done, there’s only one Jamie Francis and I’m her!”

“No I am!” Sapphire protested, getting to her feet. “I was Jamie Francis long before you came about!”

“You’re both Jamie!” Ryou snapped before they could start rowing again.

“No we’re not!” Both girls snapped back at him simultaneously, then blinked at each other for a moment before midnight was scowling again. Sapphire though, looked thoughtful. “Ryou? How did you and Bakura get split?”

“The Millennium Ring split Bakura’s soul into two back in Egypt,” Ryou explained carefully. “Into light and darkness. The light became reincarnated.”

“That’s you, right?” Sapphire double checked.

Ryou nodded. “And the darkness was sealed in the Ring, only to be released when I had the Ring and came into contact with the Puzzle, five thousand years later.”

“And Yugi gained his bond with the Pharaoh when he gained the Puzzle…” Sapphire said. Ryou noted the way midnight’s eyes flashed when Sapphire mentioned Yami, but didn’t bring it up.

Midnight frowned, seeing where this was going. “But I do not hold a Millennium Item.”

“We did.” Sapphire had already worked the problem through to its logical conclusion and had forced herself to accept what he was saying; even if she wasn’t sure she completely believed it, “Remember Dragonite? We held the Ring for ‘Kura after Marik tried to get rid of him and…”Sapphire looked at Ryou. “We held the Ring for you, temporarily, but Yugi got you back so...”

Dragonite? Ryou wondered, looking from one girl to the other, wondering just how aware they had been of each other before this.

Midnight was thinking, “So Dratini isn’t just a dream…” She mused out loud, turning to watch the sapphire eyed girl who looked afraid that ‘Dragonite’ would hit her again, “I am her and she is me and we together make Jamie Francis…”

“Together we are Jamie, or we used to be Jamie… could we be Jamie again?” Sapphire asked Bakura’s dark.

“You are still Jamie.” Ryou tried to reassure her, “But so is Dragonite,” He seized on ‘Dratini’s’ name for the midnight eyed girl, “Both of you are Jamie but at the same time the Jamie that was, is no longer here. Not unless the pair of you can work together.”

“But couldn’t we just merge back into one soul?” Dratini asked, an innocent question coming from an innocent soul, neither Jamie could have a clue of what being split truly meant.

“Not without intervention greater then that of a Millennium Item.” Ryou shook his head.

“Then we are stuck with each other?” Dragonite asked, examining Dratini as if now considering her as a tag-team partner, “I have to deal with her weakness and emotional outbursts?” She sounded disgusted.

“And I have to deal with her temper and violence?” Dratini could give as good as she got. Ryou was amused. For someone who had had their battle hardened and temperamental side ripped away from them and formed into someone else, Dratini wasn’t one to roll over and play dead, probably because she’d had both Bakura and Dragonite in her head at the same time at one point. This was good. She’d need this bite, should Dragonite become like Yami Marik…

The pair glowered at each other.

“If you wish to be Jamie, yes.” Ryou nodded.

“But she’s so…”

“Unless the pair of you want to end up like Marik.” Ryou cut off their chorused protest and watched Dratini shake her head empathically and Dragonite scowl at him like he should be ashamed of even considering that they could become like Marik.

“Never. We,” Dragonite indicated herself and Dratini, “Are Jamelia Francis, Aspiring Pokémon Champion from the Town of Littleroot, not some cheating scumbag who could only attack from the shadows until his own darkness overwhelmed him.”

There was the ‘we’. This Shadow Game had been planned by his dark long before Dratini had asked if Bakura would teach her how to play Monster World, and it’s primary focus had been to create this ‘we’ that Dragonite was talking about.

He knew what Bakura was doing, but it hurt that Bakura was doing this to create a proper, symbiotic, relationship between Dragonite and Dratini, the two aspects that made up the girl Bakura loved, when he had never done anything like it to try to bond with his own hikari.

But then would Ryou have welcomed it, after everything Bakura had done?

Like sealing his friends from back home in those game pieces?

Like sealing Ryou inside his favourite card and trying to force him to destroy his new friends here?

Like all the things that Bakura had gotten him to do in order to further his own, insane plan, which, if it succeeded, would result in the end of the world…?

Would Ryou want a relationship like the one this game was designed to try and foster between Dratini and Dragonite knowing what Bakura had done and what he was trying to do?

He didn’t know, but if it meant getting out of the game he had been shoved into in order to stop the girls from killing each other, then he would help Bakura’s insane game plan along.

“Well then, shall we find our way out?” Ryou asked, noting Dratini was wary of taking the hand offered to her by Dragonite, looking half afraid it would bite, and watching as Dragonite grew exasperated and pulled the light to her feet anyway.

“I’m sorry you got pulled into our game.” Dratini told Ryou earnestly.

“Do you know what class I’m playing?” Ryou asked, actually kind of looking forward to it, knowing what the penalties were and not too worried about them unless Dratini and Dragonite were unable to work together. Then it might get dangerous.

Bakura had arranged this game to be difficult, difficult enough to incite Jamie’s passion for challenge and triumph, but certainly not impossible, like the game he’d set up when he’d played Yugi the first time had been meant to be.

Dragonite headed towards the room’s one exit, hand automatically going to her belt, where six small balls resembling Pokeballs, but in different colours, rested. He remembered hand modelling and painting those to go on her character model; Dratini had a set just like it.

“No…”

“I’m a white mage, a healer.” He explained properly when she looked confused, “It means I can use healing magic if you get injured.”

“Then I’m glad you’re here.” Dragonite hissed from the doorway. “It doesn’t look like Bakura’s going to make this easy on us…”

“What do you…?” Dratini’s question was cut off by an answering roar of whatever was wandering up the passageway. “Oh.”

“This should be fun.” Dragonite sounded far too happy about being faced down by a chimera like monster. “Now how did Bakura say this Monster Caller thing worked?” She muttered to herself.

“Like this…” Dratini tapped the blue and white Pokeball like thing. “I summon my water spirit!” She announced and was delighted when Tidal Fox appeared in front of her.

“Oh that’s simple enough.” Dragonite nodded, “Dark spirit come forth!” She tapped the purple and white ball and Fox Shadow sprang to her aid.

Ryou watched for a moment, then raised his staff, wondering what would happen should Dratini and Dragonite call the same ‘spirit’ at the same time considering that they were working off of the same character sheet…

“Fox Shadow!” Dragonite demanded, “Attack!”

Guardians Short Part 4: Prompty prompty prompt

Jack let out a low hiss as he examined the former site of the portal. Tiny fragments of glass and the familiar look to the portal told him what had caused it. Jamie had informed him earlier that he and his friends had found one of Santa’s snow globes after the big battle in the streets and skies of Burgess a few months ago. Jack had been planning on taking it back to North after he had finished playing with his friends.

Unfortunately that wasn’t going to be an option any more since the snow globes North created exploded when they were activated, the magic disintegrating the glass as it spread out to create a portal to wherever the person who had shaken the snow globe had told it too. Jack just wished he knew where this particular one had sent the kids.

He hadn’t been able to catch much of what had been being said over the noise of the children all shouting at once, the only possible hint he had was that Jamie had mentioned that the globe was Santa’s. Jack both hoped and feared that the portal had led to Santoff Claussen, the home of Santa Claus, or as Jack knew him, Nicholas St. North, the Guardian of Wonder.

Hoped because if the children had been dropped off inside, they would be warm, safe and easy-ish to find. Feared because if they had been dropped off outside, they could be children-sicles before he got there.

That train of thoughts made up his mind for him. He shot outside, calling on the wind to carry him to Santoff Claussen as he took his first steps back onto the porch. Picking up on his urgency the wind blew him towards the North Pole as fast as possible.

It took longer than Jack would have liked to get up to the workshop where North was busy working away, making him cuss himself out for not picking up the tiny emergency snow globe that North had been trying to give him since Easter when he had first signed up for the Guardian gig. However when he flitted in through the window that had no glass and was the Man in the Moon’s access to the Globe Room of Santoff Claussen, he was greeted by a sight that lifted his spirits.

North’s globe, which was brightly lit by the glows symbolising all the children who believed in the Guardians, had gained a small group of little lights right here at the North Pole.

“Okay, so you know they’re here.” Jack told himself as he let out a relieved sigh and balanced on the railing near North’s control panel, ignoring the looks he was getting from the yetis who still weren’t used to not trying to kick him out of the workshop after a couple of centuries of him trying to break in. “The question is where.” He got down and started looking around as he tried to remember which way North had led him during the brief tour, “I mean they have to be inside and if they’re inside you’re only in trouble if they got caught and...” Jack paused his monologue as the nearby double doors burst open and North entered the room, followed by an ecstatic looking Jamie and an ever bouncy Sophie. “I’m in trouble.”

“Jack Frost.” North looked like he wasn’t sure whether to be pleased or not, probably because it was Jack’s band of believers who had invaded his workshop a month before Christmas, “Is good that you are here.” North patted him on the shoulder. Whether he knew his own strength or not, Jack staggered at the impact, “You can help find other children, no? And then we can be having words.”

Definitely in trouble, Jack decided.

 -------------------------------------------------------------

And that's all I have written so far.

Guardians Short Part 3: Promptimus

Pippa had taken cover behind Mrs Bennet’s currently empty greenhouse and poked her head out from behind it as Cupcake and Jack were pelted by the ‘ammo’ of Jamie’s squad, who were all loaded up with freshly packed snowballs.

“Get them!” Jamie laughed as he pelted the pair with snowballs, the other non-zombies following his direction. Jack managed to avoid the worst of it by taking off into the air, but poor Cupcake got hit by at least four. The girl let out a growl and darted forward even as the other of the two boys complained that “flying zombies were cheating.”

“Run!” Monty screeched, turning and doing just that as the huge girl barreled forwards. Sophie, who had been hiding behind her big brother, grabbed Jamie’s arm and pulled him away just before Cupcake careened into the group, tagging Monty as the others legged it, laughing as they did so. The bespectacled blonde joined Jack’s steadily growing zombie army as the leader of said army swept back down to the ground and grinned at his forces.

“Brains.” Jack pointed in the direction the other kids had gone.

“BRAAAAAINS!” Pippa, Cupcake and Monty replied loudly and chased the others around to the front of the house only to find that Jamie and his diminishing forces had prepared for them. Jack paused momentarily to wonder where Sophie had gone before he was under fire again, Jamie’s troops not bunching up this time as the ‘zombies’ went after them, having learnt their lesson from Cupcake’s charge.

“Jack. Jack. Jack.” Jack didn’t have time to react before he was tackled by a small, giggling blonde who latched onto his side and refused to let go, slowing him down enough for Jamie to escape being beeped on the nose. “Hi.” Sophie giggled at him.

“Brains.” Jack tapped her on the nose instead of her older brother.

“Cold!” Sophie complained, before letting go, giggling again and chasing her brother around the garden, “Brains, brains, brains, brains, brains...”

Jack grinned as Jamie dodged his sister then yelped and narrowly dodged around Cupcake who was in fact chasing the boy who seemed to live in basketball tops no matter how cold out it was. At this point of the proceedings he could probably bow out and watch the insanity unfold, sometimes it was fun to see how his small pack of believers could draw the other children in the area into his games, however today he had no intention of bowing out. Not until he had tagged Jamie at least.

He took off, aiming to swoop round behind his friend only to get pelted by snowballs from most of Jamie’s remaining squad who were determined to keep their friend out of the clutches of the zombies. Jack tumbled in midair, knocked off balance by the impact as the three remaining ‘human’ members of the group escaped back into the house.

“Brains, brains, brains, brains, brains...” Sophie happily warbled as she followed her brother inside.

It took a moment for Jack to right himself but Pippa was holding the door open for him when he managed it. He nodded to her as he drifted through, listening for the sounds of the ‘battle’ continuing. He could hear the sounds of the kids running around upstairs and he drifted that way, moving to one side so Pippa could shoot up to join the others after she shut the front door.

Alighting on the landing, he followed the sounds, his concern piqued when he heard Jamie yelp, “No, that’s Santa’s!” and saw a bright flash. He darted towards the door, only to arrive in time to see Sophie giggling as she ran through a portal to Jack had no clue where.

“Sophie! Wait!” Jamie darted after her, his friends in hot pursuit.

“Wait for...” Jack shot forward only for the portal to close before he could get there, “Me.”

Guardians Short Part 2: Still in response to the prompt

Jack silently continued through to the hallway and was just turning to try upstairs, having heard the sounds of feet pounding up them when a rather large kid shaped cannonball careened into him, knocking him into the rails. Cupcake looked proud of herself as she stood guard over Jack, allowing Monty, who had been hiding halfway up the stairs, to race past the downed Guardian as he rubbed his head and picked himself up. She didn’t, however, expect zombie Pippa to jump her and beep her on the nose.

“Brains.” Pippa nodded to Jack as Cupcake stared at the girl in shock, before Jack’s first convertee shot off in the direction Monty had gone.

“Brains?” Cupcake asked Jack, confusion obvious for a moment as she tried to reconcile what had happened with what she knew.

“Brains.” Jack agreed, grinning in reply.

“Brains.” Cupcake nodded, getting it and gesturing towards the study.

“Braaaaains.” Jack drawled, thoroughly enjoying himself as he entered the study, listening for signs and becoming amused by the soft squeak of one of the two boys whose names he still couldn’t remember no matter how much he hung around the group of friends. Noting that Cupcake had followed him into the room, he started looking for the source of the squeak.

They were halfway around the room before the boy shot out of his hiding place behind the door and bolted out into the corridor, causing Jack and Cupcake to look at each other before they took off after him, darting down the corridor and out into the backyard where Jamie was leading the resistance against the zombie invasion.

Guardians Short Part 1: In response to a prompt

After everything was said and done, when North's workshop was put rightway up, Pitch appeased, the children returned home and the last of the 'infected' elves rounded up, it was decided that it was all, as per usual, Jack's fault.

The Guardian of Fun had been hanging around his favourite believers waiting for them to be done with their zombie movie so they could go and play in the snow. Jack had seen the film before, being invisible had its perks after all and sneaking into cinemas was one of them but it was a whole different atmosphere with the kids. Especially with the curtains drawn, the lights off and a couple of them hidden behind pillows.

As the film reached its climax, Jack leant forwards, aiming to put his hand on the back of the sofa only to put it on Jamie's shoulder by accident. The boy yelped in shock and bolted off of the sofa, causing all the other children to shriek and scramble away as fast as possible.

"Guys, I'm a spirit, not a..." Jack trailed off as the thought struck him. He had died and come back to life, so was he technically a zombie? Then an idea hit him and he smirked evilly, unnerving the children slightly, "Alright, you caught me." Jack informed them, "Now I'm going to have to eat your brains."

The kids looked at him, confusion on their features. At least until he took a step forward. Then with a delighted but terrified shriek of the variety that normally was only heard from kids on roller coasters, the children darted in every direction, giggling as they dodged around Jack, narrowly missing his attempts at catching them as they passed, darted out of doors and escaped any other way they could manage.

“Well at least that got them outside.” Jack chuckled to himself, “At least some of them.” He turned towards the kitchen door, listening for the sounds that would give the hiding children away.  He stalked into the kitchen silently, not needing to float to be able to move without making a noise and grinned as he saw Pippa’s ever-present white hat hiding behind the bin. “Braaaains.” He groaned, only just refraining from chuckling when he heard the girl squeak. “Braaaaains.”

Pippa exploded out from her hiding place, pushing past the bin and narrowly avoiding knocking it over, though by the time she had ensured the bin wasn’t going to tip and send its contents across the kitchen floor, Jack had tapped her on the nose.  Pippa yelped at the touch of frost on the tip of her nose and rubbed it quickly, before grinning at Jack for a moment before ambling out of the room slowly, groaning “Braaaaains,” as she did so.

Jack blinked after her, still a little surprised when the children joined in with whatever game he wanted to play and changed the rules without him even noticing so they could ensure he had as much fun as they did, then the winter spirit turned pretend zombie carried on looking for the other kids.