Fic: Illuminations (Yu-Gi-Oh)
Dec. 27th, 2023 03:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alchemicinkThis is the first of six Christmas fics I wrote this year! I thought it might be nice to crosspost them here too. I'll spread them out over the next few days. Enjoy!
Title: Illuminations
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh
Pairing: Malik Ishtar/Bakura Ryou (angstshipping)
Summary: Ryou takes Malik to experience Domino City's holiday lights for the first time
Length: 2.1k
Notes: fluff, getting together, post-canon, Christmas lights
AO3 link: here
Malik arrives at Ryou’s apartment just a few minutes early, but that’s because he basically jogged here all the way from the train station, partially to keep himself warm and partially to calm his jittery nerves.
Ryou answers the door after he knocks.
“Oh, Malik, you’re going to be so cold in that,” he says, ushering him inside instead of leaving immediately like they had planned.
Malik hovers in the entryway, wondering if he should take his shoes off and follow Ryou or just wait. He glances down at his coat while he considers it. Since the move from Egypt a few months ago, he hadn’t thought to buy a lot of winter clothing, and he hasn’t quite adjusted yet to the December chill of Domino City. He rubs his bare hands together in the hopes his fingers will thaw out a little before they head out.
“Here.” Ryou returns a second later with a bundle of fabric in his arms.
He thrusts a pair of gloves into Malik’s hands and then wraps a thick scarf around his neck, stepping closer as he makes sure it’s securely in place. Malik tenses at first, even though Ryou has never been anything other than gentle towards him. If the Spirit of the Ring was still around, Malik is sure he'd try to strangle him with the scarf. It would be an incredibly easy thing to do from this position.
Ryou hates when Malik compares the two of them, but it only ever serves as a reminder to Malik about how different the two of them were, even when sharing headspace.
Ryou has always been kinder.
It's probably why Malik has developed a bit of a crush on him, though he's been trying to stop thinking about it whenever they hang out these days. But the scarf isn't helping right now. They’re so close that Malik could count Ryou’s delicate eyelashes if he wanted to, and his heart skips a beat as he thinks about how little space separates them at the moment. An accidental stumble forward could easily make that space disappear completely.
Malik glances up at the ceiling before he does something stupid.
“That should do it,” Ryou says, oblivious to Malik's crisis as he smoothes out the part of the scarf that’s hanging down over his chest now. “It's not as fun if you're freezing the whole time.”
And then, Ryou also places a hat on his head too, tugging it down far enough to cover Malik's ears.
Which is good, probably, because it means Ryou won't see how red the tips of his ears are turning right now.
“Thanks,” Malik smiles as he slips on the borrowed gloves, almost forgotten in his distracted thoughts.
Ryou takes a step back, nods with approval, and then herds him back outside again. They've got plans to keep after all.
The evening chill is more tolerable now that Malik is bundled up better, but it does nothing to stave off the sensation of nervous butterflies setting up camp in his stomach. Usually, Yugi and the rest of his friends are around for these kinds of things, so it's easier to ignore. But tonight it's just him and Ryou.
Malik is excited about it but he also feels like he might puke. He just hopes he doesn’t make a fool of himself while they're out in public.
The shame might make him move back to the other side of the world again.
The bus stop isn’t far, but their delay leaving the apartment means they have to sprint the last few meters to reach it before the bus leaves, adrenaline kicking in as they race against the clock. Malik pulls Ryou inside at the last moment, pays the fare, and finds an open space to stand even though it’s crowded. He feels a little breathless as they laugh together over the close call. They didn’t need to rush – another bus would have come soon – but maybe there's something about the winter chill that ignited their excitement. Ryou huddles close to him as the bus makes its trek through the city streets, and Malik musters up the courage to reach out a few times to steady him when a sharp turn makes them lurch left and right, leaving them a little unsteady on their feet.
This isn’t a date, Malik reminds himself, but maybe it’s okay if he pretends a little.
When they arrive at their destination – the Domino City park – Malik catches his first glimpse of the glowing illumination display ahead.
“Woah, this is so cool.” He pauses for a moment, just taking in the full view, hoping he can commit it to memory.
“Just wait until you see it up close,” Ryou smiles. “It’s the best part of the holidays here. You can’t live in Domino City and not visit the Christmas lights at least once.”
Malik follows as Ryou leads him closer towards the lights, but slowly, so that he can appreciate the details as they reach the archway entrance. The lights shift from blue to purple to pink to red to orange to yellow to green, and then continue in an endless mesmerizing loop all over again, bathing the pedestrians underneath in a rainbow of colors. He glances over at Ryou and grins when he notices the lights make it look like his pale white hair is changing colors too.
“What are you smiling at?”
“Nothing.”
“C’mon, let’s keep going.”
The inside of the park is just as colorful as the entrance, with lights strung up everywhere. It’s so bright, Malik could almost forget that the sun set a few hours ago. They walk slowly because Malik keeps spinning around to see the Christmas displays from every angle possible. A few times, Ryou has to reach out and pull him back before he accidentally bumps into someone else passing by. He tries to take a few photos he can send to Ishizu and Rishid later, but the phone just doesn’t capture the beauty as well as it looks in real life.
“Do you come see this every year? Is this a holiday tradition for you?” Malik asks.
The tombkeepers never celebrated much of anything when he was growing up, and traditions have always felt more like shackles to Malik. The scars on his back were tradition after all. But that part of his life is over now, so Malik thinks it wouldn’t be bad to explore how other people live, to learn about their own ways to celebrate special things.
Ryou nods, but his expression shifts into something a little wistful.
“Most years, yes, I like to come here to see the illuminations,” he says. “But I missed it a few times, depending on how busy I was…”
He places a hand to his chest automatically and falls silent for a moment. Malik knows Ryou has his own scars there, from the Millennium Ring, so he figures he must be thinking about the Thief. Malik can imagine that the malevolent spirit didn’t make much time to enjoy Christmas lights when he was around.
Malik isn’t the only one who lost parts of his life to relics of the past.
Before he can think too much about how embarrassing his actions might be, Malik reaches out to hold Ryou’s hand, gently pulling it away from his chest until their hands hang together in between them instead.
It feels nice as Ryou’s grip tightens around his fingers.
“Show me your favorite parts of the display here?” he suggests. “I wanna see them all.”
Ryou brightens up again, shifting his focus away from unpleasant memories. “Then we should definitely see the Christmas Village.”
They’re still holding hands once they reach a different part of the park, but Malik doesn’t want to let go. Even through the borrowed gloves he’s wearing, his hand already feels warmer than before.
The “Christmas Village” turns out to be a row of large metal boxes with glass fronts, each featuring a different scene inside created with painted wooden dolls and scenery. Malik leans forward to inspect the first box, amazed at how it feels like he’s getting a peek into another little world independent of their own. Ryou fills him in on the stories that go with each box, and how they’ve changed over the years – new ones added and old ones updated.
Malik is sure he probably looks like an excitable little kid as he keeps pressing his face close to the glass window of each box to get a better look, but he’s too engrossed in absorbing all the details to care. He can see why this is Ryou’s favorite part of the park.
He takes several more photos, and Ryou patiently waits during each one, even suggesting a few different angles to capture the best parts.
Eventually, they meander down the path towards more light displays they haven’t seen yet, and then end up by a space full of food stalls selling snacks and drinks.
“Hot chocolate?” Malik suggests. The evening has been growing steadily cooler, the longer they walk around. And the sweet aroma is enough to lure him in for a break.
Ryou agrees and goes to find somewhere for them to sit while Malik buys a drink for each of them. The styrofoam cups feel like heating pads in both hands, and he holds them close to his chest for a little extra warmth.
When he spots Ryou a little farther away, resting on a bench and gazing up at the lights wrapped around the tree branches above, his breath catches in his throat. The illumination casts a warm glow over Ryou, and his expression softens into something calm and peaceful. Ryou looks beautiful, even as he's lost in thought. More beautiful than any of the amazing things he’s already seen tonight.
Malik stands in place longer than he should, just watching. The butterflies in his stomach feel like they might be thinking about escaping elsewhere.
This crush he has on Ryou is definitely not going away.
He wordlessly hands Ryou his drink when he finally slides beside him onto the bench. Malik doesn't look at him for a long moment, afraid of what he might blurt out if he turns.
“Malik…? Is something wrong?”
He shakes his head and takes a large gulp of his drink, nearly choking because he forgot how hot it still was. Ryou pats him on the back, gesture full of concern.
“Thanks for bringing me here,” Malik finally says once he can speak again, though, embarrassingly, his voice sounds scratchier now from the hot chocolate burning his throat. “I like when we get to hang out like this.”
Malik wonders if he can confess his feelings to Ryou without actually saying any of the words. For a split second, he almost misses having the Millennium Rod – mind control did usually save him the trouble of having to explain himself.
“I'm glad you had a good time,” Ryou replies. “I've been looking forward to coming here with you for weeks.”
It's still frigidly cold but Malik's cheeks suddenly feel extremely warm. He chances a glance at Ryou, and is startled to realize how close he is again. Just like he had been with the scarf earlier. His eyes shine with what Malik thinks is a bit of hopefulness.
Malik holds his breath and recalls all the times he's gambled on drawing the perfect card during a game. More often than not, he'd end up with a useless card instead. But when the gamble does pay off, it's worth the pain.
So he decides to take a gamble, right here under the glowing Christmas lights.
“I've been thinking about this for weeks too,” he begins, “Because I look forward to every moment we get to spend together, and even then, it never feels like enough. I really like you, Ryou. Can we do this again sometime, but as a date? If… if you're interested?”
He probably should have taken a pause somewhere in there to breathe, but once Malik had started letting the words flow, he found that he couldn't stop. But instead of the awkward rejection he'd expected, Malik gets a blushing smile in response.
“I was just thinking about how to ask you the same thing,” Ryou laughs, and then leans forward to press a hasty kiss to Malik's cheek.
Malik follows with a quick kiss to Ryou's lips in return.
They head back in the direction of Ryou's apartment a little bit later, holding hands as they walk under the lights. He thinks the chilly air of December isn't so bad after all, not when everything is so breathtakingly beautiful. Especially with Ryou by his side.
Title: Illuminations
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh
Pairing: Malik Ishtar/Bakura Ryou (angstshipping)
Summary: Ryou takes Malik to experience Domino City's holiday lights for the first time
Length: 2.1k
Notes: fluff, getting together, post-canon, Christmas lights
AO3 link: here
Malik arrives at Ryou’s apartment just a few minutes early, but that’s because he basically jogged here all the way from the train station, partially to keep himself warm and partially to calm his jittery nerves.
Ryou answers the door after he knocks.
“Oh, Malik, you’re going to be so cold in that,” he says, ushering him inside instead of leaving immediately like they had planned.
Malik hovers in the entryway, wondering if he should take his shoes off and follow Ryou or just wait. He glances down at his coat while he considers it. Since the move from Egypt a few months ago, he hadn’t thought to buy a lot of winter clothing, and he hasn’t quite adjusted yet to the December chill of Domino City. He rubs his bare hands together in the hopes his fingers will thaw out a little before they head out.
“Here.” Ryou returns a second later with a bundle of fabric in his arms.
He thrusts a pair of gloves into Malik’s hands and then wraps a thick scarf around his neck, stepping closer as he makes sure it’s securely in place. Malik tenses at first, even though Ryou has never been anything other than gentle towards him. If the Spirit of the Ring was still around, Malik is sure he'd try to strangle him with the scarf. It would be an incredibly easy thing to do from this position.
Ryou hates when Malik compares the two of them, but it only ever serves as a reminder to Malik about how different the two of them were, even when sharing headspace.
Ryou has always been kinder.
It's probably why Malik has developed a bit of a crush on him, though he's been trying to stop thinking about it whenever they hang out these days. But the scarf isn't helping right now. They’re so close that Malik could count Ryou’s delicate eyelashes if he wanted to, and his heart skips a beat as he thinks about how little space separates them at the moment. An accidental stumble forward could easily make that space disappear completely.
Malik glances up at the ceiling before he does something stupid.
“That should do it,” Ryou says, oblivious to Malik's crisis as he smoothes out the part of the scarf that’s hanging down over his chest now. “It's not as fun if you're freezing the whole time.”
And then, Ryou also places a hat on his head too, tugging it down far enough to cover Malik's ears.
Which is good, probably, because it means Ryou won't see how red the tips of his ears are turning right now.
“Thanks,” Malik smiles as he slips on the borrowed gloves, almost forgotten in his distracted thoughts.
Ryou takes a step back, nods with approval, and then herds him back outside again. They've got plans to keep after all.
The evening chill is more tolerable now that Malik is bundled up better, but it does nothing to stave off the sensation of nervous butterflies setting up camp in his stomach. Usually, Yugi and the rest of his friends are around for these kinds of things, so it's easier to ignore. But tonight it's just him and Ryou.
Malik is excited about it but he also feels like he might puke. He just hopes he doesn’t make a fool of himself while they're out in public.
The shame might make him move back to the other side of the world again.
The bus stop isn’t far, but their delay leaving the apartment means they have to sprint the last few meters to reach it before the bus leaves, adrenaline kicking in as they race against the clock. Malik pulls Ryou inside at the last moment, pays the fare, and finds an open space to stand even though it’s crowded. He feels a little breathless as they laugh together over the close call. They didn’t need to rush – another bus would have come soon – but maybe there's something about the winter chill that ignited their excitement. Ryou huddles close to him as the bus makes its trek through the city streets, and Malik musters up the courage to reach out a few times to steady him when a sharp turn makes them lurch left and right, leaving them a little unsteady on their feet.
This isn’t a date, Malik reminds himself, but maybe it’s okay if he pretends a little.
When they arrive at their destination – the Domino City park – Malik catches his first glimpse of the glowing illumination display ahead.
“Woah, this is so cool.” He pauses for a moment, just taking in the full view, hoping he can commit it to memory.
“Just wait until you see it up close,” Ryou smiles. “It’s the best part of the holidays here. You can’t live in Domino City and not visit the Christmas lights at least once.”
Malik follows as Ryou leads him closer towards the lights, but slowly, so that he can appreciate the details as they reach the archway entrance. The lights shift from blue to purple to pink to red to orange to yellow to green, and then continue in an endless mesmerizing loop all over again, bathing the pedestrians underneath in a rainbow of colors. He glances over at Ryou and grins when he notices the lights make it look like his pale white hair is changing colors too.
“What are you smiling at?”
“Nothing.”
“C’mon, let’s keep going.”
The inside of the park is just as colorful as the entrance, with lights strung up everywhere. It’s so bright, Malik could almost forget that the sun set a few hours ago. They walk slowly because Malik keeps spinning around to see the Christmas displays from every angle possible. A few times, Ryou has to reach out and pull him back before he accidentally bumps into someone else passing by. He tries to take a few photos he can send to Ishizu and Rishid later, but the phone just doesn’t capture the beauty as well as it looks in real life.
“Do you come see this every year? Is this a holiday tradition for you?” Malik asks.
The tombkeepers never celebrated much of anything when he was growing up, and traditions have always felt more like shackles to Malik. The scars on his back were tradition after all. But that part of his life is over now, so Malik thinks it wouldn’t be bad to explore how other people live, to learn about their own ways to celebrate special things.
Ryou nods, but his expression shifts into something a little wistful.
“Most years, yes, I like to come here to see the illuminations,” he says. “But I missed it a few times, depending on how busy I was…”
He places a hand to his chest automatically and falls silent for a moment. Malik knows Ryou has his own scars there, from the Millennium Ring, so he figures he must be thinking about the Thief. Malik can imagine that the malevolent spirit didn’t make much time to enjoy Christmas lights when he was around.
Malik isn’t the only one who lost parts of his life to relics of the past.
Before he can think too much about how embarrassing his actions might be, Malik reaches out to hold Ryou’s hand, gently pulling it away from his chest until their hands hang together in between them instead.
It feels nice as Ryou’s grip tightens around his fingers.
“Show me your favorite parts of the display here?” he suggests. “I wanna see them all.”
Ryou brightens up again, shifting his focus away from unpleasant memories. “Then we should definitely see the Christmas Village.”
They’re still holding hands once they reach a different part of the park, but Malik doesn’t want to let go. Even through the borrowed gloves he’s wearing, his hand already feels warmer than before.
The “Christmas Village” turns out to be a row of large metal boxes with glass fronts, each featuring a different scene inside created with painted wooden dolls and scenery. Malik leans forward to inspect the first box, amazed at how it feels like he’s getting a peek into another little world independent of their own. Ryou fills him in on the stories that go with each box, and how they’ve changed over the years – new ones added and old ones updated.
Malik is sure he probably looks like an excitable little kid as he keeps pressing his face close to the glass window of each box to get a better look, but he’s too engrossed in absorbing all the details to care. He can see why this is Ryou’s favorite part of the park.
He takes several more photos, and Ryou patiently waits during each one, even suggesting a few different angles to capture the best parts.
Eventually, they meander down the path towards more light displays they haven’t seen yet, and then end up by a space full of food stalls selling snacks and drinks.
“Hot chocolate?” Malik suggests. The evening has been growing steadily cooler, the longer they walk around. And the sweet aroma is enough to lure him in for a break.
Ryou agrees and goes to find somewhere for them to sit while Malik buys a drink for each of them. The styrofoam cups feel like heating pads in both hands, and he holds them close to his chest for a little extra warmth.
When he spots Ryou a little farther away, resting on a bench and gazing up at the lights wrapped around the tree branches above, his breath catches in his throat. The illumination casts a warm glow over Ryou, and his expression softens into something calm and peaceful. Ryou looks beautiful, even as he's lost in thought. More beautiful than any of the amazing things he’s already seen tonight.
Malik stands in place longer than he should, just watching. The butterflies in his stomach feel like they might be thinking about escaping elsewhere.
This crush he has on Ryou is definitely not going away.
He wordlessly hands Ryou his drink when he finally slides beside him onto the bench. Malik doesn't look at him for a long moment, afraid of what he might blurt out if he turns.
“Malik…? Is something wrong?”
He shakes his head and takes a large gulp of his drink, nearly choking because he forgot how hot it still was. Ryou pats him on the back, gesture full of concern.
“Thanks for bringing me here,” Malik finally says once he can speak again, though, embarrassingly, his voice sounds scratchier now from the hot chocolate burning his throat. “I like when we get to hang out like this.”
Malik wonders if he can confess his feelings to Ryou without actually saying any of the words. For a split second, he almost misses having the Millennium Rod – mind control did usually save him the trouble of having to explain himself.
“I'm glad you had a good time,” Ryou replies. “I've been looking forward to coming here with you for weeks.”
It's still frigidly cold but Malik's cheeks suddenly feel extremely warm. He chances a glance at Ryou, and is startled to realize how close he is again. Just like he had been with the scarf earlier. His eyes shine with what Malik thinks is a bit of hopefulness.
Malik holds his breath and recalls all the times he's gambled on drawing the perfect card during a game. More often than not, he'd end up with a useless card instead. But when the gamble does pay off, it's worth the pain.
So he decides to take a gamble, right here under the glowing Christmas lights.
“I've been thinking about this for weeks too,” he begins, “Because I look forward to every moment we get to spend together, and even then, it never feels like enough. I really like you, Ryou. Can we do this again sometime, but as a date? If… if you're interested?”
He probably should have taken a pause somewhere in there to breathe, but once Malik had started letting the words flow, he found that he couldn't stop. But instead of the awkward rejection he'd expected, Malik gets a blushing smile in response.
“I was just thinking about how to ask you the same thing,” Ryou laughs, and then leans forward to press a hasty kiss to Malik's cheek.
Malik follows with a quick kiss to Ryou's lips in return.
They head back in the direction of Ryou's apartment a little bit later, holding hands as they walk under the lights. He thinks the chilly air of December isn't so bad after all, not when everything is so breathtakingly beautiful. Especially with Ryou by his side.
