DIS: The song, Teardrops On My Guitar, inspired this. I can't say that it really follows the song, but it made me want to write this. Not only that, I was looking at a bunch of my pictures and found those of Marik when I was in my obsessed stage sooo...This is what came out.

X

Title: Fingerprints

Rating: T

Genre: Romance/Drama

Summary: MarikxAnzu. He shouldn't have been the person that she spoke to about her worries, shouldn't have been the person to comfort her with his rough words. Somehow, though, things had a way of working out with her. One shot?

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh

Notes/Warnings: MarikxAnzu; one shot

X

Fingerprints

Anzu Mazaki leaned against the doorframe of her best friend, Yuugi's, bedroom door as she watched him move around the room. He and his grandpa were moving from their old Kame Game Shop to a completely other town. She held memories in the home that was her friend's, as she had known him since junior high. She couldn't simply walk down to hang out with him anymore, and this went for her other friends, as well.

Jounouchi had finally gotten over his initial problems with his mother so that he could spend more time with his little sister, so he moved to Shibuya a few towns away from Domino where Shizuka lived. Otogi had also moved to Shibuya, as he and Shizuka were dating and his game shop had branched out to other towns. Even Kaiba had moved with Mokuba, claiming that Domino's education system was lacking for his younger brother. Those that would remain in Domino in their small group would only be Anzu and Honda. Soon, though, Anzu knew she would be gone, too, to New York if she was lucky.

Everything is happening so fast, though, she reflected sadly, resting her head on the doorframe as she watched Yuugi fold a shirt and settle it in one of his suitcases. Ever since Atemu and the tomb robber, Bakura, were sealed away in the past, it seems like things have been advancing towards our separation. We're already being pushed apart, especially since high school ended... Anzu sighed and held herself, lowering her eyes to the ground.

"Anzu?" She glanced up to see Yuugi watching her with a curious, concerned expression. "Are you okay? You haven't said much since you came by." She hastily pasted a smile on her lips to reassure him. Anzu was generally the social type of person, so it was quite easy to see when she was upset.

"No, I'm fine, Yuugi," she lied without thinking about it. She was briefly confused at her lie, as she had always told Yuugi what she was thinking, no matter what the circumstances were. He was her best friend and even though she had been in love with Atemu when he had a crush on her, she couldn't help but adore him. There were times when she saw Atemu in him and a part of her wanted to stay with him to see if he would grow to be like the Pharaoh she had so admired. "I just wish you weren't moving away."

"It's only a town away," he told her, turning back to his packing. His room was bare of any duel monster posters, his shelves empty of his games and figurines; Anzu thought it looked utterly depressing. "We can take the subway to see each other." He glanced over his shoulder to flash her a smile. She returned the smile, but once he turned away, it slipped from her lips.

With another sigh, she straightened and left him to his packing, moving to the empty living room. She stood in the middle, vaguely aware of putting the pieces of furniture in their proper places in her head. She wanted to settle in front of the TV and cuddle with her friends like she once did. She would sit between Yuugi and Honda with Jounouchi on the other side of Yuugi. Sometimes Sugoroku Mutou, Yuugi's grandfather, would drift in and stand at the end of the couch, watching a few minutes of TV and making comments. But Jounouchi is in Shibuya, she thought sadly, and Honda has a job and Miho so that he barely has time to take a subway to Shibuya with me and Yuugi. Now, Yuugi is leaving. Honda and I have never been as close as I have been with Jounouchi and Yuugi... Who will I have for friends?

"Yuugi?" Anzu called, seeing that the sun was beginning to set. "Your grandpa has been waiting outside for awhile. You should probably hurry." He came out, dragging two huge suitcases that were too big for him. She took one, asking, "Is there anything else?"

"No, that's it. Thanks for seeing me off, Anzu. I gave you the new number and address, right?" She nodded to show that he had, not bothering to tell him of her troubled mind. She picked up the suitcase and followed him downstairs, pausing to send one last, lingering look at the empty room before continuing her descent. For a moment, she imagined seeing herself and her friends goofing around with the couch pillows.

Blinking back the memory, she joined Yuugi outside. He shut the door behind them, turning the knob to make certain that it was locked. They went to the trunk of the car and shoved the suitcases inside. "I'll see you this weekend, Yuugi," she said with a false cheerfulness. "Hopefully I can find the place without getting lost." She laughed, hearing the hollow sound in it. Yuugi and his grandfather were oblivious, chuckling with her and smiling. She hugged Yuugi and watched as he climbed in the car.

Folding her arms over her chest, Anzu watched the car pull away from the curb and cruise down the street. A small hand was waving to her from the passenger window. She waved back and when the car pulled around a corner, she lowered her hand and stared at the corner with a longing expression. If she could, she would move everyone to Shibuya and hope that their friendship would last that way.

As if that would do anything, she thought sullenly, turning to walk from her friend's past home. I just don't understand how everything happened. Mai simply disappeared after that deal with Dartz and we haven't seen her in ages. Other than Otogi, who moved to Shibuya before Jounouchi, we haven't seen Shizuka that much, either. Now that I think about it, even when Jounouchi was here, all of us never really hung out too much. But why? Simply because the yamis were gone?

Anzu shook her head and then raised it to get a glimpse of her surroundings. Buildings rose, engulfing her with their massive size. She felt stifled, as if there would be no escape from the city. She hastened her steps, nearly running as she fled from the busy streets to a quieter part of Domino City. She slowed and looked around before her eyes settled on the park. There were a few older kids playing, yelling and throwing a ball between each other.

Pulling her jacket around herself, Anzu went to a bench and settled on it to watch the kids play their game of what appeared to be some sort of version of soccer. We used to be like that, she thought. We were never completely carefree, though. There was always something that happened to us that we couldn't ignore. Ever since Yuugi solved the Sennen Puzzle, we have had countless problems in our lives. It's never been completely because of the Puzzle, either...

A sound beside her made her turn her head slightly and she started in alarm at seeing who the person was that had settled on the bench with her. Marik Ishtar, considered the "anger" of Malik Ishtar, was an accident formed into a person. When he was brought back into living in Malik's body, Shadii decided it best to give him his own body, as the struggle between Malik and Marik would be pointless and more trouble than it was worth. Although Marik was far more subdued, the sight of him still spiked fear in Anzu despite herself. She found it ironic that shortly after Jounouchi had moved from Domino, the Ishtars had settled permanently in the city.

"Is there a reason you're staring at me?" Marik coldly asked. She snapped out of her thoughts and quickly shook her head, looking away to gaze at the kids playing their game. He chuckled darkly, but didn't give any taunt like his nicer and more comfortable half might have. The thought of Malik made a corner of her mouth tilt upward. She had become friends with him in the time that he had been in Domino, unable to dislike him after everything he had done for them when they were in Egypt.

"Marik, you're not...usually alone, are you?" She queried hesitantly, recalling that Malik or Isis was always with the male whenever she saw him. He snorted and didn't reply for a long moment. When she continued to gaze at him expectantly, he straightened from his slouch and shifted his bored gaze to hers. Even though it was so much like Malik's, it was incredibly different at the same time. His eyes were heavy-lidded and rarely ever held any emotion. Malik's were constantly alive, warm and flashing with his thoughts.

"Isis and Malik don't know that I'm out of the house yet," he responded after gliding his gaze over her face. His mouth twisted into a mocking smirk. "Are you going to go squealing to them? Personally, I don't really care. I just needed to get away from their annoying voices for a few minutes." His voice sounded almost bitter, but she wasn't sure. The next time he spoke, the tone had been replaced with that of its original kind, "Yuugi Mutou left today, is that right?"

"Yes," she murmured. "I saw him off."

"One more to go and you'll be all alone," he pointed out in such an indifferent tone that she had to turn to stare at him. He glanced at her through the corner of his eye, an edge of his mouth curling upward. "Excluding Malik, of course. I've been noticing you two getting very close. How sweet...how disgustingly sweet."

"What do you care whether I'm alone or not?" Anzu snapped back moodily. She didn't need this man who acted like such a monster telling her that she was going to be left alone when she was well aware of that fact herself. "If you're trying to frighten me into moving, too, you've got a whole other thing coming to you! I'm not going anywhere. Domino is my home and it's where I'm staying until I get enough money to move to New York."

"Oh, you are insecure, aren't you?" Marik snickered. "I had a feeling that was why you were sitting here, looking so distraught." He raised his eyebrows at her, spreading a hand out towards her. She stared at the hand, her jaw tight with tension. "I happen to be in a listening sort of mood, so tell me, Mazaki...Tell me your thoughts on your friends moving away. I can guess - it's not hard, knowing how precious friendship is to you."

When he received no response from her, he dropped his hand and stood, slipping his hands in his pants pockets. It was only then that Anzu noticed his attire of dark blue jeans and a black turtleneck sweater. She doubted that Isis or Malik had dressed him and was surprised by the simplicity of the outfit. It looked too normal to fit the Marik she knew. "Can I assume that you are in the belief that you and your friends will lose all contact with each other?" Marik inquired, leaning against a tree, watching her with a small smile playing on his mouth.

"It's none of your business what I think, Marik," she flatly stated, turning away from him. The kids were still playing, though she noticed one glance over at them curiously, no doubt wondering who they were and whether they were together. Her shoulders stiffened at the thought of anyone mistaking her and Marik as a couple. "Leave me alone." When she glanced at him, she saw that his eyes were on the children. Slowly, his eyes moved to hers, a knowing look in his eyes.

"Go and tell them, then, Mazaki, that I am not your boyfriend. I would hardly be offended, let alone flattered if they believe that."

A bit unnerved that he was able to read her thoughts so accurately, Anzu ground out, "No, you wouldn't be either, but that's because you don't care about anything."

"Am I about to be subjected to one of your speeches? It will be a nice change to be annoyed by someone other than Malik or Isis." Her lips pursed into a thin, straight line and she looked away, her cheeks flushed with irritation. Instead of him getting worked up, she was working herself up into a rage. She didn't want to start yelling at him and she was certain that slapping him would earn herself a slap in return that would hurt much more. "Tell me," he said again.

"Yes," she finally told him. "Yes, I think we're going to be separated. Honda doesn't even talk to us anymore because he's dating Miho, he has to go to school to make up for lost credits, and he has a job on top of it." She hesitated and then decided that since Marik was insisting on listening to her problems, she would give them to him. "Ever since the yamis were taken back to the past, we have been growing further and further apart. Yuugi is completely unaware of it, but that's because he and Jounouchi keep in constant contact. I try to keep seeing Jounouchi, but it's hard when I want to save up my money for Julliard and Shibuya is some ways from Domino. He rarely ever comes from Shibuya and now he has virtually no reason to come to Domino since Yuugi is his best friend. I'm his friend, but I mean, we're not that close. It just seems like I'm losing all of my friends and I can't understand why this would happen after Atemu and Bakura left. Not to mention, I don't even see Ryou anymore since he's traveling with his dad. The only person I really talk to is Malik..."

Marik snorted at the mention of his lighter half. "Yes, Malik. What a nice exchange. You lose three friends and acquire a mentally unstable Egyptian boy in return."

"It was your fault that he became that way!" She snapped.

"No," he spat back, "it was never my fault. He and Isis and Rishid and everyone else are held in this belief, but I never made him that way. You forget that I was created by him turning that way. His father and his lifestyle turned him into what he was, Mazaki, and I suggest you remember that to tell everyone that believes I am the reason for his so-called miserable life. Yes, he has such a terrible life, doesn't he? He has his family, money, and freedom. Don't try telling me that it was my fault, because I could give you the nasty details of his life that I never contributed towards."

"You encouraged him," she quietly said.

"I will admit to that," he conceded, his brief spurt of anger evaporating. "His life as a tomb keeper made it so that he was forced to watch over the Pharaoh Atemu's tomb and wait for him to return. I encouraged him to get rid of the Pharaoh for that reason, but I never outright lied to him." He smiled silkily. "I had no reason to. Everything was set up for me to manipulate. But...I did not make him how he was. He created that person himself, I simply urged him along."

Anzu gazed up at him and then looked away, turning her eyes down to her lap. Her fingers curled into fists as she reflected on what he said, hating that he was right. Malik had told her of his life and the rules and principles he had to follow. The tattoos on his back were one of the many reasons that Marik emerged, but he had never tried to find any justice for Marik. As she reflected on it, Anzu realized that no one had ever tried to say that it was Malik's own fault for his manipulation of Battle City. Even Marik had never attempted to prove his innocence until now.

"Why did you tell me that?" She asked him, returning her gaze to his.

"Nobody else who listens comprehends what is being told to them," he answered steadily. "You at least pause to think over what was said to you, regardless of the person." His eyes narrowed slightly. "I think this is why Malik was more eager to befriend you than any of the others." There was a slight tap and he glanced down to where the soccer ball had bumped his foot. A girl and a boy approached him hesitantly, their eyes flickering to their ball. Marik picked it up and, without any threatening or sadistic comment, he threw it to them. The kids glanced from him to Anzu, who looked to them briefly. They quickly bowed and ran back to their companions.

"Thank you for listening to me, Marik," she told him, rising to her feet. "I couldn't tell Yuugi about it...I don't think he would understand." In the corner of her eye, she saw two figures stroll down the path and they looked strangely familiar even without turning her eyes to them directly.

Marik's mouth curved into a slight smirk. "Come and talk to me sometime, Mazaki. I tend to be in a listening mood more than is healthy." There was a call and he glanced over his shoulder, remarking, "It seems they've found me."

"What do they do if you escape?" She asked, curious.

"They are not violent enough to do anything to stop me from doing it again," he responded, releasing his hands from his pockets and pushing off from the tree. He walked towards Anzu and passed a hand above her cheek, brushing his fingers against her hair. "We'll have to do this again." He flashed a smirk that was almost lascivious, but not quite. He turned from her and strolled to meet the two Ishtars. Malik flicked a look at him, but continued towards Anzu.

"Anzu...Marik didn't...?" Malik trailed off uncertainly, unable to complete his sentence. Anzu shook her head and smiled as she watched Isis say something to Marik, who appeared to be completely ignoring her.

"No, he was really quite civil to me." She looked to Malik. "You should let him out on his own more often, Malik. I don't think he really wants to hurt anyone. He doesn't have much a reason to, does he?" Malik passed a hand over his face, a weary expression crossing his handsome features briefly.

"I'm not sure, Anzu. I would like to - his pacing drives me crazy - but Isis and Rishid don't trust him. They don't know him as well as I do, though, and Isis is hard to persuade. Besides, Marik hasn't tried to talk her into letting him out on his own. It's his own issue. I'll let him deal with it himself for now..." Anzu sighed a bit and then returned to gazing at Marik and Isis.

Maybe he doesn't think she'll really listen to him, she mused, a bit glad that a piece of Marik had been bared to her. As if feeling her eyes on him, he glanced back to her and she offered a small smile. He didn't return it, but she hadn't expected him to. He's not as bad as everyone thinks...I'll talk to him again sometime when I get the chance. I promise myself I will.

TBC?

X

DIS: Oh, man, I really shouldn't be starting a new story, but there's something hanging over this that is making me uncomfortable with leaving it as it is. I want to continue it, but at the same time I don't. It's up to the readers. Please leave me a review, telling me if you want it to stay as it is or you want to continue. I would love some feedback. Ciao!