AN: My computer's giving me grief with my word documents so Im writing this one piece by piece to avoid it getting erased.

This one's a bit different than the stuff I'm use to writing. Hope you guys enjoy it. No It's not a oneshot, don't worry. I'll have more of it up soon.

But reviews and constructive criticism are helpful and appreciated.

Defenseless

"Hellooo-oooo?"

Ryou gasped and spun around as the low, eerie voice sailed through the hallway, echoing off the walls; coming through the very floorboards, it seemed. It sounded so quiet, and yet it rang in his ears, causing his heart to leap up into his throat.

Panic took him and he ducked into the nearest bedroom, wasting no time in diving under the bed. Decades of built-up dust covered every surface in the room and his body left a large smudge on the floor, pointing directly toward his hiding place. It wasn't a clever place to begin with but what could he do? The rickety closet doors were rotting off their hinges, that wouldn't do any good. There was nowhere else to hide.

More creaking noises from elsewhere in the old house. Ryou shoved himself deeper under the bed, gasping when his already bloody hand brushed something moist and sticky. A large rat nibbled at a half-eaten carcass of some other animal Ryou had touched - the pale one stifled a yelp. The rat turned to him, it's busy whiskers sniffing at the young man as it approached. Ryou tried to swat at it but the floorboards underneath him creaked with every move. He struggled to catch his breath; covering his mouth with his other hand in attempt to block out the disturbed dust and keep himself quiet at the same time.

A louder creak came from out in the hall and he froze. He could feel moisture trying to build up in the corners of his eyes but he was too scared to cry. The creaking continued - louder and heavier as those heavy boots climbed the old stairs; deliberately sending waves of terror through their owner's prey. The sound stopped briefly at the top of the stairway. Ryou bit his lip and tried desperately to hold his breath. A face full of whiskers assaulted his skin as the rat continued to sniff at his face. Ryou squeezed his eyes shut tight and reached out with every part of his mind - Bakura, where are you?

...

The Ring Spirit had insisted on taking a separate form for a while. Living like a parasite in another person's body was starting to wear at his mind. He wanted to feel a bit of freedom again. After some protest, Ryou finally agreed. It didn't seem like a good idea for the spirit to be moving around on his own… But then he did that anyway whenever he took over the British boy's body. At least this way Ryou would be free to act if he needed to, instead of suppressed inside his soul room, with no idea of what was happening around him in the real world.

The Ring Spirit, called Bakura these days, had considered the idea for a long time and finally concluded that there would be no damage done to either himself, his host, or the Millennium Ring so long as the separation was temporary. After all, it would take nearly all of the Ring's power to maintain a physical form for him, especially if he was separated from the item. And he would have to be. The spirit had no body of his own, which meant the ring needed to create a duplicate of his host's physical form. It was very tricky. Ryou's own energy would have to supply the Ring with the power to maintain the separate body, so Bakura had made absolutely sure his host had received adequate rest and nutrition. He also decided it would be better for Ryou not to be left alone in case something were to happen. The day before they were to attempt the process, he called the one person he felt confident in leaving his host with.

"Wait, you're going to what?" Marik Ishtar asked through the phone

"I need time out of this child's body or I'm going to lose my bloody mind," Bakura answered.

I'm not a child, Ryou pouted from his soul room.

"How are you going to do that?" Marik asked.

Bakura went through the details and explained his plan. There was a long pause after which Marik replied thoughtfully, "Really?…"

"It'll only be for one day," The spirit continued, feeling a little excited as he spoke. "Just to play it safe."

"What about the Ring?" Marik asked.

"Ryou will have to keep it on him. The Ring will need to draw energy from him and use his body as a model for the replica. If he separates from it while I'm in a separate form then…"

"Uh huh…" Marik replied quietly.

"So I think it would be a good idea if he stayed close to you until I got back. I wont be able to go too far, of course. But maybe I can get to the outskirts of the city."

There was no reply.

"…Marik?"

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" the Egyptian asked suddenly. There was something that sounded like worry in his voice, that hadn't been there before.

"We won't know for sure until we find out. But the Ring is powerful. It should be able to take it for a day. And we've already got the means to keep Ryou's energy up."

"What does he say about this?" Marik's voice was low, the worry gone from his tone.

"He's agreed to it. It's not like I'm forcing him," Bakura said, a little defensively.

There was another pause. Then Marik said quietly, "Is he scared?"

"A little nervous, maybe. But he'll be fine."

"Mmm…"

Bakura frowned slightly, "You sound kind of irritated, Marik."

"Just a little tired, that's all. So you want me to come by your place tomorrow, or -?"

"We'll be out tomorrow. You think you can meet him outside the plaza?"

"Sure, I can do that."

"Alright, he'll see you then."

"Yep." There was a light click and Bakura hung up the phone.