NOVEL WEB 8 – Talk With The Egyptians – End Of Introduction Arc
8 – Talk With The Egyptians
"Rasha...?" I ask into the darkness of the night.
Before I can say anything else, I am enveloped in a hug.
"Toshi, thank the Gods..." Rasha says into my shoulder, her arms wrapped tightly around me and her body quivering slightly.
I am shocked, but I quickly reciprocate the hug. My bad mood clears instantly and I, instead, feel elation. I go as far as to lift her off her feet and spin her in my arms, eliciting an adorable yelp in response.
"Rasha! What are you doing here!?! It is so good to see you again! Namu, Oberon! You two as well!" I say, a wide, genuine smile on my face.
I set her down after the spin and see her blushing furiously and looking down in embarrassment. As I stare at her, her image becomes double imposed in my mind with that of a character from the manga and anime. Said mind grinds to a halt as pieces to a puzzle I probably should have figured out sooner fall into place. I look to her, then to Namu, then to their older brother Oberon.
'Oh. OH! ...uh oh.' I go through many emotions as my mind runs a mile a minute.
My childhood friends were none other than Ishizu Ishtar and Marik Ishtar. The main side character and the main antagonist of the Battle City arc in the story. Their older brother, Odion, and I had only met on a couple of occasions, and I was pretty sure he didn't like me.
This assumption was proved correct as I saw the dark look and the frown he had on his face currently.
Hearing my question, Ishizu starts to panic visibly. "Ah...um...Well, we were just...here to..." She flounders and looks around for anything to latch onto. A glance at Marik does her no good as he only smirks at her predicament. Odion is as quiet as ever, following the lead of his two siblings.
As if by fate, the flyers I had printed earlier were laying on a nearby table. Ishizu immediately calms as she points to the flyers.
"I decided to attend college here while working at a museum. We were just...stopping by to check on you and let you know we were here. Indeed, that was the main reason, but we are also looking for a place to stay, and, what do you know, you are renting 3 rooms. This has to be fate!" She says with a smile, clearly proud to have said such a convincing lie.
Despite her obvious fib, I am not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Her being here was a breath of fresh air to me. The memories I now have with her were causing my stomach to knot and I had a hard time thinking clearly as I stared at her beautiful, confident smile.
'Still...I am not sure if it would be good to have them here...I want to remain inconspicuous and to have people who can support my alibi of being here if needed. I am not sure if having 2 of the most important people in the anime living with me was a good ide-'
"We'll pay 200 Duel Points a month. Each!" Seeing my look of uncertainty, Ishizu blurts out something quickly.
"Sold!" I say with a giant, greedy smile.
Hey, don't judge me! I need the points! Who cares if it is a teensy bit risky...Besides...Living with a childhood crush is any teenager's dream, right?
To be honest, It wasn't that overpriced. With the gated neighborhood, the 2 car garage and driveway, the decently sized, fully furnished rooms, the backyard and front yard, the huge kitchen, dining room, and living room, I was planning on renting out the rooms at 140-160 Duel Points a month, utilities included. ($1400 - $1600 USD)
This also solved the issue of finding people to fill the rooms! I already knew them and it lets me keep an eye on important characters in the story! Honestly, it was a great idea! ...Probably. I am certainly not trying to bury the bad reasons in the good...
Marik loses his smirk and Odion's frown grew deeper.
"Sister, should we not talk about this first? Why would we live with him?" Marik says with a frown of his own. He wanted to live in style, in a penthouse or something, not as a roommate to a random nobody.
"I agree Is-Rasha. We know nothing about this place or who he has become in the last 2 years." Odion agrees.
"You two are free to do as you wish. I will be living here." Ishizu says stubbornly, crossing her arms and frowning severely at her brothers.
"I cannot allow you to live here alone with him. I will be living here as well." Odion says with a nod. His decision was made.
"Well, have fun. I, for one, have better options." Marik says and turns to leave, only to pause at a sudden thought. "Where are your parents, Toshiaki? Did they move back to Egypt?"
A beat of silence followed this and all three were confused at the suddenly heavy atmosphere.
"My parents died in a car accident last year. I am renting the place out because I need the extra income." I say shortly, and a sad frown makes its way onto my face as I look away from the trio. Whereas before I was acting, this time, the sadness is genuine.
"Toshi...I am so sorry..." Ishizu says and touches my arm to offer a small bit of comfort, then she turns a vicious glare on Marik.
Marik, for his part, freezes. Even if he has been giving into the darkness of his other personality, the whole reason he started on this path was because of the death of his father. Even he feels sad about this news and he is not afraid to admit it.
"I am sorry for your loss, Toshiaki. I...will live here as well." He says with a small nod to Ishizu.
I realize that the kind brother Ishizu loves is, indeed, still in there. Maybe buried deep, but at times like this, he peeks out ever so slightly.
"Well, it looks like that is settled," Ishizu says happily, trying to dispel the awkward air that has started to grow in the silence following Marik's statement.
I snap out of my sad funk and offer her a weak smile. "Right, let me give you a tour of the house and your rooms. I apologize, but one room's furniture is still on the way, so two of you will need to share a room for the time being." I say and welcome them inside.
I give them a tour and they each pick rooms. Marik picks the farthest room from the master, my old bedroom, Odion picks the office in the middle that still needs new furniture, and Ishizu picks the room closest to the master bedroom, the one with the pink sheets. Odion will stay with Marik for the time being.
After our tour, I cook them a quick dinner and we all eat while Ishizu tells me about the last 2 years. I offer up my story as well, but Marik and Odion seem to prefer silence.
I then run to a 24/7 convenience store quickly with them to pick up any necessities they might need as well as a futon and new sheets for Odion.
When everyone is finally settled in, it is 11:38 PM.
I have school tomorrow and tell them all this. Marik, to my great surprise, expresses interest in going to school and I promise to get information for him tomorrow.
'He probably wants to spy on Yugi...Should I intervene?' I think while pondering the repercussions this new development will have on the story. '... Nah. I will if there is a problem, but until then, I will just leave things as they are.'
I am no hero. I am just doing my best to survive. I will stop blatant bullying or wrongdoing when it happens in front of me, like in the case of Yugi, Joey, Tristan, and the bully Ushio, but I will not go out of my way to help those who are not close to me. I may be seen as selfish in that way, but that is just who I am. Both as Josh and as Toshiaki. Besides, Yugi has plot armor as thick as any other MC, so I am not too worried for him.
Odion says that he needs to settle some of their affairs and accounts tomorrow, and Ishizu is "Working" during the day, but offers to pick me up after school. I graciously accept her offer, which makes her very happy.
'I am sure she needs to actually sign up for college and get the job at the museum.' I think with a sideways grin at my adorable childhood friend. Her confident smirk at thinking she got away with everything is just too cute.
The lease agreements will wait until the rooms and all the other checks are finished. Technically, they are just crashing here for free for now, and I refused their payments until we get the official lease agreement signed.
Everyone retires to their rooms for the night and as the day comes to a close, 4 very different thoughts were had.
Ishizu: 'He has become so handsome...but why did my Millenium Necklace not work on him?'
Marik: 'I can't believe I am stuck here...Still...Pharaoh, I will see you soon and make you pay. Mark my words, you will pay.'
Odion: 'Master, Mistress, do not worry. I will protect your daughter from this scoundrel.'
Toshiaki: 'This was an interesting day. I am glad Rasha...Ishizu is here. It's like I pulled a Secret Rare card...Oh shit! I never finished building my deck!'