The Guardian (Tifa and Yuffie)

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Yugioh AU roleplay, yay!!

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Since youth he'd lead a difficult life, since he was always the smallest kid in class. That had only gotten worse when his parents died and he was forced to move away from his only friend, to Domino city. After the accident it was even worse off because of how sick he got. He never had to worry about dying young at least, that wasn't the kind of sickness he had. No, he had to deal with sitting out of sports class to prevent a crisis for the rest of his life. It didn't change his home life with his grandfather at all, since he knew exactly how much Yugi could take without a crisis, but it meant all the more teasing at school for the small, sickly boy.
He was small even for the standards of an under average height teen, and that had meant more than a few people would use that to their advantage, but he'd basically seen it all and he wasn't even bothered by it any more.

Today was much the same: a day of sitting quietly at the side while others had fun at sport class and then heading to lunch to hide somewhere that hopefully would keep the bullies away and then suffering the locker pranks in the afternoon and whatever the usual idiots had to throw at him.
But the afternoon was different this time. He got home as usual, greeted his grandfather as usual, went to his room as usual, did his homework as usual, wondered what he'd do tonight as usual. But when his grandfather asked him if he could go up and fetch something from the attic for him, the evening became that much more interesting. He found exactly what grandpa wanted easily, but he also found something else; something that would come to change everything for him. It was a little box, gold in colour and elaborately decorated with Egyptian symbols. He pulled it down and asked his grandpa what it was, finding that within the golden box lay a puzzle of unusual shape and origin. Grandpa explained that it was given to him by his father, whom had never been able to solve it. According to legend, the one who solved it could have their greatest wish granted. Yugi decided that he'd give it a shot. He stayed up late that night, and the next, and the next, trying to put the puzzle together. It was a long project for him and took him many nights, more than a few of them sleepless, but he eventually solved it, smiling proudly as he finally slipped the final piece into place. After so many years the puzzle was finally complete again.
As he looked up from his completed project at the starlit sky outside his window, Yugi picked up the puzzle - shaped like an inverted pyramid - and wondered to himself if the stories were real. Would his greatest wish really be granted? He knew his parents had always said - just like grandpa - that people only call something a fairytale or a superstition because nobody else has ever seen it happen since the first time. But something made him unsure, still, yet all the same he closed his eyes and made a wish, because after all, if it really were true, that would be the best thing that ever happened to him, by a long shot.
He thought hard about it...he wasn't quite sure what he wanted. But in the end he supposed that it was meant to be the person's greatest wish, and that wasn't exactly something you chose. So he simply prayed that the stories were real and that the wish - whatever it might be - would come true.

The next few days passed much the same, and Yugi began to think that maybe the stories weren't true after all. Still, he wore the puzzle proudly around his neck, thinking that maybe it could at least be like a good luck charm or a memoir of his success. However, after a few days, Yugi found himself in a horrible nightmare. He was surrounded by hideous beasts and darkness, strange creatures that chased him and clawed at him and growled frighteningly at him. He was deeply afraid, running in fear from the shadows, yet strangely finding himself surrounded by an endless void of black. Then he tripped and he felt a claw grab his foot to hold him there, yet just as he thought it was over, a new figures took shape and with a flick of its (his?) hand the beasts vanished and the darkness evaporated from his dream and he was safe in his room. It was hard to tell at which point the dream turned to reality, but the figure was what mattered most. Who was the stranger in the dream that had come to his rescue when he needed help most? he had vanished when the shadows had retreated into reality and Yugi didn't get a good look at him, but he could have sworn there was something eerily familiar about his face.

The following day was back to the usual routine again, yet again the mysterious and undefined figure appeared to protect him. He began to wonder if these dreams meant something and throughout his day he pondered what it could mean. As he began walking home he still had no idea what the strange dreams could mean or who the stranger in the dream might be, but he put it behind him, giving up on ever understanding the bizarre dream and looking up as he continued over the crosswalk towards home.

((maybe go over things from Yami's POV and a slight continuation? ))

[Tifa Lockhart]

It had been for time immemorial that he'd hung suspended in his world of endless doors and stairways. All he could do in that place was wait, losing sight of just how long he'd sat there waiting. He couldn't remember the last time he'd set eyes upon another being of any form, and he'd forgotten what it felt like to speak in any tongue.
So it had come to him as a great surprise when a voice had echoed through his empty halls, pleading.

His kind had existed since the dawn of time, beings of spirit meant to exist beside humanity. Some had chosen to make their occupation the suffering of humanity, theirs was the realm of nightmares and horror. Then there was his kind, who had chosen to serve and protect, whose only purpose was to see the deepest dreams of the human heart fulfilled.

The call rang loud to him, a pleading, aching heart yearning for something... anything to stop the pain.

So he'd risen from his meditative slumber, and stepped forth from the realm of his trinket. He'd forgotten what the real world felt like, so as he stood in the middle of an unfamiliar room, flexing his hands, he came to understand what it was like again.
There was a boy sleeping on the far side of the room, he tossed and turned, whimpering with fear as he rested. He recognised immediately that this was the heart that had called for him... and it was not hard to see why. He reached out, his hand shimmering slightly in its non-corporeal state. He pressed his cool flesh to the boy's face, watching as his body slowly began to take the form that his new master wished deep within him.
He reached into the boy's mind, felt the dark shadows of the nightmares there, and sent them away.
For several nights he would do this, and each day he would follow the boy. He knew nothing about him, but he knew that this was his sworn duty, to see that the boy's wish was seen through.

Today he'd watched the boy at school for a time, before departing to be alone with his thoughts. So long he had been gone... he was having trouble working out this new world... it was so strange to him. He walked absently for a long time, not mindful of where his feet fell. After a while he raised his gaze, finding that his feet had led him to a crosswalk.

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Absently, Yugi began to walk across the white-painted strip of tarmac between the footpaths on either side of the road, passing the chattering faces and cheerful smiles of many strangers as he walked, he absently brushed past a taller man, whom walked with his hands in his pockets and his eyes elsewhere. When he reached the far side of the crossing, something clicked in the back of his mind; he'd seen that man's face before! He knew his face from the dreams, he was sure of it! He turned around to glance back at the man, surprised to see a man with an appearance not unlike his own but minutely different: older and more solemn. It occurred to him that surely someone should have noticed the two of them looked exactly alike, so why was he able to walk right past him and nobody even batted an eyelash? His eyes only briefly saw the strange man before cars began to pass and as the tinted windows of a large bus passed him by, his own wide-eyed face looking back at him, the man seemed to vanish, gone as quickly as he seemed appear. Yugi contemplated walking back to find him in the crowd, but thought better of it, realizing he had already long disappeared into the streets.

He continued on home after that, wondering what it could mean to see someone in ones dreams only to learn they were real? He wasn't sure, but it left him very confused and he couldn't ignore the nagging feeling that maybe the man was meant to meet him, that there was something they had to do. In his musings, Yugi found himself purposefully taking the long route home to give himself time to think. It was a route through he backstreets and out into the harbor, walking along a concrete pathway beneath the breakwater that held back tidewaters and storm induced floods from the streets up behind the barriers. It was a quiet path that most avoided because of being so close to open water, but that made it a good route to take when he wanted to avoid threats from bully's to beat him up on the way home or when he wanted to think in silence. Today he wouldn't get that silence, though, because today as he wandered the path on his own he heard footsteps approaching from behind and as he spun on his heel to face his "company" he came face-to-face with a tall man with a not-too-friendly grin and a pair of unnervingly brutish fists. Yugi began to back away as the man spoke "well, well, what have we here?" he growled, as the sound of men vaulting the railings and coming to stop behind him reached Yugi's ears. "what are you doing down this way, shorty? This here is OUR turf, kid, you shouldn't be here!" Yugi tensed in fear, not having known a gang of thugs had recently claimed the area as theirs he'd walked right into a sure beating.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know this was your place! I-I'll leave, and I'll make sure not to come back! I didn't mean to intrude on your...Uh, turf" Yugi stammered, already knowing that they wouldn't offer mercy even if he begged, but trying all the same out of pure hope that they might, by some small chance. But the men walked closer, boxing him in so only the water could offer escape, not that he was willing to brave the turning tide anyway.
"heh, sorry brat, but we don't forgive trespassers! You ain't leaving here without giving us something in return! So what'll it be, shrimp? A beating, or that necklace of yours? I'm sure that puppy would fetch a nice price, eh, boys?" the thug growled again, cracking the knuckles on his monstrous fists with another menacing grin. Yugi was scared of the thought of a beating by these brutes, but there was no way he was giving up his puzzle, not for anyone or any reason. He'd have to pry it from his corpse if he wanted it that much. He said nothing, but the way his hand moved to hold the cord of the pendant tightly was words enough for the thug, who sneered menacingly. "have it your way, then, brat!" Yugi braced himself for the inevitable impact of a huge fist with his face, and shut his eyes, full used to the pain it came with, though he never really got used to the fear these kinds of situations brought.

[Tifa Lockhart]

This time however, Yugi would never feel the crunch of an incoming punch. He had spotted the boy at the crosswalk, exchanging a brief moment of eye contact as they passed one another. He turned to look back as the bus went past, a soft frown darkening his serious features. He'd found his way back to the boy's side for a reason, so he decided to follow him.

It was lucky he did, because he'd come upon the thugs assaulting him, and stepped immediately into action.
"You might want to rethink your current course of action," he growled, fingers wrapped tightly around the thug's wrist, holding it from hitting Yugi. His purple eyes burned threateningly, a shadowed frown on his face.

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

When the hit never came and the deep voice growled from in front of him, Yugi's eyes shot open and he looked up to find his gaze meeting the shoulders of the same man he'd passed at the crossing, the same one who'd stood to protect him in his dreams. The thug winced in pain, sneering at the man who'd stood between him and the boy, Daring to challenge him.
"you've got some nerve...and just what makes you think you can stop me, eh? You got nothing, tough guy! Clear out or I'll beat you down too!" he pulled up his other fist and swung it at the challenger, intent on getting him out of the way, so he could get to the kid and the prize looped around his neck.

[Tifa Lockhart]

The man tilted his head aside casually, his stance barely moving as the punch missed him. He then jerked the man's arm up and around, pinning it tightly against his spine. Next he swept a leg out and knocked the thug from his feet. The man steered the thug's momentum forward, slamming his face into the wooden railing of the walkway. He then released him, letting the man fall unconscious and bloodied to the floor.
"Walk away," he growled deeply, pointing straight at the other thugs.

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Yugi wasn't sure whether to be amazed or terrified by the man, all at once afraid of the incredible ease with which he trounced the thug or thankful for the rescue. The other gang members quickly hightailed it away from the man and the boy, racing up the stairway a few meters up the walkway and running off up the street, too scared to even stop to retrieve their gang-mate's unconscious body.
Yugi watched them flee in awe, before he turned nervously back to the man who had saved him, swallowing nervously. "um...th-thankyou..." he said, his hand still gripping his puzzle nervously. "um...I'm Yugi Moto...I-I think I saw you at the crossing earlier...did you follow me here?" he asked, seeming unsure of whether or not trusting the individual, whether he had saved him or not, was a good idea. "and...why do you look so much like me?" he added, seeming somewhat disturbed by that observation, though still open to answers.

[Tifa Lockhart]

unluckily for Yugi the other man didn't seem so disposed towards giving him answers to his questions. He'd already turned his back, hands sliding back into his pockets.
"Yami,' he replied flatly before he started to walk away, raising a casual hand to wave a farewell. 'Try to be more careful in future.'

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Yugi started slightly when the man answered so briskly and began walking away, considering running to try and stop him from leaving, but realising that wasn't an option for him. "ah! H-hey, wait!" he called, trying to stop the man from leaving just yet. "why did you help me? You could have just walked away, what made you stop? Who ARE you?" he asked, something in him strangely desperate for an answer, as if it already had an idea but wanted to know if it was really true and not just a figment of its imagination.

[Tifa Lockhart]

The closest thing Yugi would get in way of an answer was Yami stopping to turn and look back at him. He locked eyes with the boy firmly, their gazes similar, save for how severe his was.
"Go home to your Grandfather, Yugi,' he said in an authoritative voice.
He then turned around and continued on his way.

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Yugi didn't want to just go without an answer and certainly not on his own after that encounter, but something about that authoritative tone of Yami's voice made Yugi listen despite himself. What both puzzled and disturbed him was that the man knew of his Grandpa...he had never mentioned his Grandpa! Not that he'd even had the chance to mention him if he'd even had the intention to. Who was this 'Yami'? How did he know so much about Yugi without even being being told a thing? Why had he helped and followed him, and why had he appeared in Yugi's dreams? Why did they look so much the same? These questions went unanswered however, as Yugi followed the man's somehow un-disobeyable instructions and turned to continue home to his Grandpa's shop. When his Grandpa cheerfully asked how his day was with that usual smile, Yugi opted not to explain what had happened that afternoon an ld simply replied exactly as he always did, saying that his day was good. He then went upstairs to his room and flopped down on his bed to contemplate all he questions that rolled around in his mind, wondering who Yami really was and why he was there and in his dreams and why they looked the same...the same endless questions that - no matter how hard he thought about it - he couldn't find the answers to.

That night, after eventually settling down to his homework and finishing it off just in time to go to sleep, Yugi again found himself in a land of nightmares, though one so much more bizarre than others in the past and much less violent and brutal. He wasn't sure what to make of the peculiar happenings at first, but soon deciphered that it was because he was confused so normal things in his life had decided to turn strange in his dreams and dance around his head to tease him for not being able to find answers on his own. He waited for the ever-elusive Yami to appear in his dreams again, though he feared that perhaps it was a one-off event and the dreams had been a sign that he would save him, but he waited all the same, hoping that maybe in his dreams he might be able to get some answers from the mysterious man.

[Tifa Lockhart]

Eventually, Yugi's dreams would begin to take a different form, one that was just as nonsensical, but clearer. He was standing in a broad room, and before him lay hundreds of hallways, doorways and stairwells. They crossed back and forth, upside and down many in positions that hardly seemed logical. From the shadows, Yami watched, curious how the boy had made his way here.

[Yuffie Kisaragi]

Yugi looked around him in wonder at the peculiar surroundings and impossible stairwells that spiraled and crisscrossed around him, climbing the walls and roof in manners that brought him to wonder if there truly was a roof at all. He began to walk, in no direction in particular, following the endless corridors both aimlessly and with the intention of finding a way out. He paused after a moment, turning to glance around him, feeling as though he were being watched, feeling the eyes on him from the darkness. When his purple-red eyes found nothing in the shadowy nooks around the stairways behind him, he turned back to the way ahead of him, turning his attention back to finding the way out of this mysterious hall. Around him were doors lined up along the walls like flat steel shields guarding untold secrets, and staircases winding and stretching up to yet more steel doors. It was like endless secrets poking their tongues at him and daring him to open up the doors and gaze in at the wonders. Unsure of what door he should open, and wondering if he could really be alone in this strange realm, he looked up at the halls stretching endlessly into the dark and took a deep breath to call into the void stretching out above him. "hello? Is there anyone in here?!" he called, cringing to hear his voice echo back to him as though taunting him that he'd never escape the endless halls.

[Tifa Lockhart]

Yami had followed Yugi for quite some time as he wandered aimlessly. he did it mostly to ensure that no harm came to him.
It was only when the boy stopped and called out into the darkness that Yami stepped forward. After all... this was part of the boy's greatest desire.. though he barely understood it.
"How did you find this place?" he asked, the shadows framing him as he stepped forward.