The Beast Underneath: A Yu-Gi-Oh! Fanfiction

Chapter Nineteen: Choked at Home

"It's great to see you again, Uria," Hamon announced at Kiria's house. They were all hanging out in celebration of the piece that clued in the final character who'd been missing to them for so long.

"Hello, Hamon," Uria greeted warmly. All three stood together, smiling and talking, while their hosts sat together and talked, too. Shizira looked happy, and so did Kiria; they all did - happy, relaxed, care-free.

"What have you been up to?" Raviel asked.

"Being stuck in Egypt with 'Malice'. That's what she wants to call herself, anyway. What have you guys been up to?"

"Axel and I got stuck in the Shadow Realm," Hamon added nonchalantly, making Uria gasp in surprise.

"How'd that happen?!"

"Now that's a long story, but-"

"Kiria and I did it on accident," Raviel finished, cutting off the golden counterpart of the trio.

"How does one accidentally send someone to the Shadow Realm? Wait... I did that once or twice; okay, fine, forget I asked."

"How did you accidentally send someone to the Shadow Realm?" Hamon huffed in disbelief, eyes wide with surprise. For once, he wasn't being sarcastic.

"I never said it was an accident," Uria winked, giving a toothy smile. Raviel and Hamon exchanged somewhat nervous glances.

"Do you feel like you're missing something?" Hamon inquired after a brief pause.

"Sort of," Raviel admitted. His mind casually shifted to the thought of the fourth missing spirit from the ensemble, and he almost chuckled at his forgetfulness. "Oh, I remember. We forgot to introduce you to Izira! I'll warn you, Uria, she can come on a little... threatening."

"So do I to most people I meet," Uria replied sweetly. "Then again, they threaten me first."

Raviel and Hamon shared a look Uria couldn't read.

"Hey, Izira," called Raviel. "Come out, we want to introduce you to Uria!"

A shadow crept slowly up from the corner of the room, shaking metaphorical dust from its haunches. Its eyes flashed malevolent red and then a dark obsidian before glinting with gold. Izira stood tall, proud, translucent, with an irritable scowl on her face. She looked worse than usual; haggard, with narrowed eyes full of anger. Three-thousand years of anger that composed her very being, to be precise.

"Come over," Raviel continued. "We think you might like her!"

Izira sneered, turning away and letting her black hair hide her shoulders like a cloak. Only a single, near-invisible eye peered out from her corner, watching them.

"Don't be like that," Raviel insisted, sharing a sheepish look with Uria. "We know you normally do not like to socialize, but you and Uria both like killing, right?"

"There is nothing I like about that thing," Izira hissed, turning her head stubbornly away. "But do go on; continue socializing. My opinion doesn't matter. Nothing about me does."

"Uria is not a thing; she's a spirit, like us," Hamon retorted, stepping close to the red dragonesque lady. "What's with the attitude?"

"Perhaps you should have thought harder about asking me that before you left me to be dragged behind you all like a godforsaken dog."