Ghosts of Christmas Past

[sglily]

Hello!

First off, I have to say that I feel really... knobby?... for doing this, as in, it feels a little too self-important to me; however, I did want to make an effort to reply to those readers who do take the time to review and offer their opinion - which is so very appreciated and means a lot (A LOT!), who might have questions, or any other number of things in regards to this story (or any other stories I've written, I suppose). I guess this is the new arena to do all of the above since review replies are now frowned upon within the body of the story. Thems the [new] rules. Thems the breaks. I'm just trying to comply. And, hey! It could be fun!

Link to story:

http://ygo.adult-fanfiction.org/story.php?no=600101464

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So, here are replies to reviews I received since the previous posting... that would be for Chapter Five:

Yami Kuro Ookami Hatake:

Bakura may come off as a bumbling idiot at times, and believe me, it is intentional on my part! Some of this stuff needed to happen - that Bakura says and does things that, in Ryou's mind anyway, could be taken a certain way... and not necessarily in a good/happy light... or in the right way. Ryou got burnt by this butthole, big time, many years ago. Ryou is also mortified because he still harbors feelings for someone who, basically, took him for a ride and dumped him. There are a lot of hurt feelings that have not been properly dealt with. Unfortunately for them, there will be more feelings trampled on before it is all said and done.

I loved your solution to the problem... where you thought/would like the story to go. You'll just have to wait around see where I take it! Thanks so much for the lovely comments!

NiteNite:

Emotional drama between Ryou and Bakura... yes, that's what I love about these two! There is so much (more potential) drama... and angst... and unresolved feelings... oh, my! The list goes on! I'm also glad that you (and Bakura) enjoy the wild(cat) side of Ryou... I like to make him say things in the heat of the moment that he more than likely would not (could not) do otherwise. At times, he is just as much of a Man-Pig as the King of Man-Piggedness himself... Bakura. And, yes, a possessive as hell Bakura... well, there is nothing like knowing the guy you are bopping (or in Ryou's case being popped) wants you that much. Wow. Drool.

These two just need to talk... and air out a lot of their dirty laundry. Will they get the chance? Well, we'll see... Will Bakura get to meet the twins? Well, again, we'll see. Chances are that if the story wants a happy ending... yeah... there would have to be some "meet and greets" in R/B's future. Won't that be interesting, eh? Let's hope that Ryou hides the knives and forks because in your scenario... that is just downright scary! Poor Bakura, attacked by two rabid, rug-rats...

You want Ryou in another thong? Hmm...

Anieme:

Lemons did abound in that chapter, eh? And, what was that crack about not being divided "into 3" chapters??? I'll remember that! (Especially since the next chapter is basically Part One of Three... author payback time...)

I stopped sending out update notices because most of the email addresses I had kept bouncing back to me. It became rather senseless.

Anime-fan Meepa:

You were working on fanart? That's so sweet!

OMG! Two errors??? I did look back at the one you mentioned - when Bakura sees the Santa pic of the twins:

"Even though both boys were clearly identical twins with the same long mop of whitish blond hair flecked with deeper highlights of spun gold, the same sparkling blue eyes, the same button noses, and same slim build like their dad, there were subtle differences beside the mannerisms that pointed out which child was who."

The sentence was supposed to read that the last part (same slim build) would be the characteristic shared between the boys and their dad. The other aspects, the blond in the hair, blue eyes, button noses were just shared between the twins. We all know that Ryou has pure white hair and those lovely milk chocolate eyes. I can see where the confusion would take place and it should have been punctuated and worded better. Thanks for pointing it out!

I'm glad that the story cheers you up. I suppose it could go either way, eh? At times, anyway.

As far as being creative with different words, descriptions, or what have you for certain body... ah... parts... I don't know. There are some "terms" that grate on my nerves and that I think disrupt the flow of a story. I also don't like to repeat a word... I also think it has a better flow that way to mix it up. Yeah, it can get rather humorous (and trying at times) attempting to come up with analogies that will work... especially since Bakura is the cruder of the two who loves his "F" word!

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Please enjoy the latest offering of the story! And thanks for taking a look!

Sincerely,

sglily

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In my rush to get this Forum thing up, I forgot a bunch of review replies that I had written (back in October). Yeah, I'm a butthead! Sorry for leaving them out...

Chickigirl: Thank you for your kind words! And, I really wish I would/could update more often as well. Lack of time and sometimes motivation has a lot to with it. Plus the fact that I am horribly anal (and getting worse) when it comes to getting a sentence right… hell, sometimes just a single word. Wicked is one of those stories that I have not forgotten but it really is not speaking to me. It will get done but it is low-man on the totem pole right now. Ghosts has been my top priority. Rings was updated a few hours after Ghosts as well. Thanks again for the encouragement! Honestly, having a beta/proof reader would not speed the process along. One has to write stuff in order to be able to proof it… ; )

EmeraldRains: Good fic withdrawal… I know what you mean! I think there has been a huge lull in updates across the board. Regardless, I am honored that you consider this stuff good! And, it seems it was well worth the wait? Even better!

Delis: Thank you! Glad you enjoyed even if it took for-freakin’-ever for the update to appear!

Kitteh: Thanks! Ah… we’ll see if your “prediction” will come to pass…

Kitten: Many thanks! Ah… maybe? You’ll have to wait and see…

Captain: I’ll one up you… it took me about 3 months to write! ; ) Hope you enjoyed!

Yami-Bakura-Itemri: So the boyfriend is a fan of the tigers? He’s OK in my book! Those tigers (quite possibly the same tiger in study, I suppose) are simply gorgeous… even if they were not of the pure white variety… ; )

Edited April 11, 2010 by sglily

[Yami-Kuro]

It took me long enough, but i finally got here! Yay! I much enjoyed Chapter six! Ryou's a little sneak (must have some Thief blood in him somewhere *snicker*)

[Yami Bakura Itemri]

Wow! What a chapter!!! I'm so excited for the next one. Keep up the awsome work hun~!

[sglily]

It took me long enough, but i finally got here! Yay! I much enjoyed Chapter six! Ryou's a little sneak (must have some Thief blood in him somewhere *snicker*)

Oh, that cracked me up! You nailed it. Ryou definitely has some thief in him... (and earlier in the evening, that could have been taken very literally... twice, in fact! In two very different positions! ha ha ha!). Even though there may not be the "usual" Ryou/Bakura YGO style relationship between the two in this story, I still love to throw things into the mix to still reference those missing elements... like when Ryou was contemplating the ridiculousness of sharing a mind-link with his (ex-)lover in a very early chapter. And, in this particular instance you brought up, there was a (maybe not so subtle) line that Ryou was preparing to leave Bakura "like a thief in the night". Lame, yeah. But fun to work in all the same!

sglily

[sglily]

Wow! What a chapter!!! I'm so excited for the next one. Keep up the awsome work hun~!

Well, I'm a butthead! You did comment on the previous chapter (that had been posted so long ago) but I failed to include yours and a few others in the original posting of this thread in the Forum. I will correct that shortly!

Glad you enjoyed the chapter! I also forgot to mention that Chapters 6-8 are all just one huge-ass chapter all from Ryou's perspective. It didn't start off that way... believe me. As I was editing it, it just kept growing... and growing... and growing... until it got to the point that I had to break it down into 2 chapters... which eventually made it to 3. I am getting too wordy and whatever in my old age! Actually, the next two chapters (again, all of Ryou's part) are finished. Maybe I have to touch up the ending of Part 3... (I work better if I throw something at the page and then walk away, come back and read it/fix it a few days later.) I just started the next chapter - which will be all Bakura. When it's complete, I'll update. That schedule sort of works for me.

Thanks!

sglily

[sglily]

Hi Everyone!

I know it has been a while since this story was last updated, but it is not forgotten. In fact, I’ve been kind of on a roll with it as of late. That’s a good thing! Trust me…

There is one more chapter to follow that will finish up explaining all that Ryou is feeling since leaving Bakura’s place. It is just amazing to me that there was supposed to be one chapter (count’em, my friends… ONE) that encompassed all that – Ryou hightailing it, and how he dealt with the aftermath of his decision to bolt. Well, as you can see, if you’ve stuck with the story, it became too much of a monster to keep all nice and tidy in one chapter. In fact, the third and final part of the “Keeping It Together” series is still sort of too big… but it really needs to be presented all at once. Hopefully, that fact will be appreciated when I get that bad boy uploaded! Personally, that last one is my favorite, the one that took the most time to get right.

Currently, I am finishing up Bakura’s reaction to Ryou’s disappearance from his bed – which is chapter nine. Hopefully, I can get cracking on what happens after that so an update will be in the near future… instead of the distant future.

Also, thank you to those of you who have been reading and commenting on my other stories – most of which are finished. It does make me feel good that they are still being enjoyed.

Best wishes…

sglily

Review Responses for Ghosts of Christmas Past – Chapter Six:

Iasae abyss: Thank you! Glad you find the story, characters, and how the characters interact of value! To me, there is nothing sexier than tons of foreplay… These guys are the masters of it! Enjoy!

Captain: Here you go

[Guest Saiyamaru]

Hello love, you were indeed correct. MM.org said nothing about this bit of loveliness so Im glad you did.

I wasn't expecting to be so incredibly interested in the twins, but after this chapter I'm stuck thinking about them! I guess just hearing about them and things they would actually say and do, as well as the mental image you painted of them when born brought them to life the way just having Ryou boast about them to Bakura did not.

But what Im just as interested in if not more is your next chapter. I can hardly wait to see Bakura's reaction. I have the hazmat suit and my nuclear hide-away all set.

[sglily]

You surprised me being here like this! A very nice surprise indeed...

About the MM.org thing... I still don't know what is going on there. At least now I can get into the site. For the past two days, I've been trying to upload the new chapter to Ghosts but it keeps failing. I'll keep trying as I think about it. Hopefully it is just a temporary glitch in the system. We'll see...

Oh... if you love the twins now, wait until you get a'load of the next chapter... the one that is my favorite, thus far. I think you will enjoy it... at least I hope you will!

And, yes... it would probably be best to read the chapter dedicated to Bakura's reaction to Ryou's desertion from a safe distance away from anything combustible and/or flammable... probably one in the same. It would also be safe to say that if Bakura really did exist in our world today, the entire East Coast of the US would be incinerated, a charred smudge on the map of the Earth. So, I really don't think I am giving anything away there. It's not like His Royal Bastardness would go, "Oh, well! C'est la vie! Guess my wildcat wasn't interested. Onto the next!" Uh... no. That is sooooo not Bakura, Mr. Possessive Gotta Have My Own Way. We all know there will be a confrontation of some kind. Whether or not both parties make it out alive, well, who knows?

Thanks for joining the party!

Much love,

sglily

[sglily]

Hi Everyone!

Recently, I was contacted by someone who was inspired by "Hazy, Hot, and Humid" and who created a beautiful drawing of Ryou and Bakura sharing a relaxing, very intimate moment on a swing built for two. The gorgeous artwork is entitled "Fireflies", and if you are at all familiar with the story, you'll know exactly where the scene from which the title was taken from. The artist, is the lovely and very talented Nightmaker, and the artwork can be seen on Deviant Art by using the following link:

http://nightmaker.deviantart.com/art/Fireflies-Tendershipping-186419373

Please take a look, and if you have the ability to do so, please, by all means, leave Nightmaker a review/comment.

As I told Nightmaker, it is very humbling to have created something that in turn inspired someone else to take one's vision a step further. I believe the look on Ryou's face is priceless... I also believe that that look was placed there by none other than The Dark One, Bakura himself, who no doubt just whispered something scandlous (yeah, dirty as hell!) in his ear, being the Man-Pig that he is. Quite frankly, I'm surprised Ryou's poor ear hasn't shriveled up, blackened, and fallen off by now...

Regards,

sglily

[Yami Bakura Itemri]

OMFG It totally did not take me all afternoon since I got home from work to finally manage to somehow figure out what my username was and the email attached to this account then try to remember my password only to FAIL so epically badly at it and went through all that BS jargin of getting a password reset just so I could make this happen... >______< BOW AND WORPSHIP MY AWSOMENESS!

LOL... I have a confession to make... which in hopes I shall be truelly forgiven... I had forgotten to check for you updates!

My excuse would be that I recently turned TREKKER~! Yes you read right.... YBI turned even more GEEK then already could have been. What did it....? That "Oh so wonderfully hot as 2009 movie"... *fans self* Spock....Kirk... OMnomnomnomnom... XD Anyway enuff trek talk.. >P

What do I have to say to you (besides UPDATE MORE... but you already knew that one XD) ...? I guess I'd like to royaly kick Ryou in the tenderloins for waltzing out like that... WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU BOY!!!! *pouts* You have a hot ass hunk of man-bitch/beast/drop dead sexy man-pig RIGHT THERE and you... Grrrrrrr.... *gnaaaarrrrll*

It will be interesting to see what 'Kura's reaction will be... *snerk* Oh I look so forward to that one.. and not to mention seeing the boys. X3 They sound like the cutest lads ever. Ryou's a very lucky father to be having such sweethearts!!!

all in favor of bringing back the man-pig say EYE!!!!

EYE~!

<3 YBI

[sglily]

Yami Bakura Itemri,

Damn, you are something else! (What... I'm not quite sure... )

But, I do appreciate your efforts, of course, to get here! Funny thing is, I don't think one needs to be a member of the forum any more in order to be here... perhaps it isn't as locked down as it was previously. Regardless... thank you for making the effort!

I wish there were an update notfiier for this site. It sure would make it so much easier on everyone involved.

Star Trek? So, that's where you have strayed to? Ah! That is too funny! But, it better not completely replace your need to get a Ryou/Bakura fix!

Yeah, what Ryou did (leaving Bakura on the sly), you knew it had to happen that way... right? We gotta build up the angst and other good/bad emotions to the point where everything just goes KABLOOEY! And, hopefully, in the aftermath, we'll see that the two lovebirds just can't live without each other... and from there on it, they'd have to be surgically removed from one another... or something. Well, we hope so, right? One can only dream... ahem.

The next chapter is the continuation of Ryou's exploits since leaving Bakura in the dust. I hope that you do enjoy the rugrats when they make their appearance in the next installment. It is a LONG one... and I will not be cutting it up... anymore than it already has been. With spacing and whatnot, using Word, it runs over 40 pages. So, hopefully that will make up for any long period of time that goes on in-between all the updates... and me getting bitched at for not updating more.

Oh, and yes, Bakura's reaction... well, it ain't gonna be pretty, huh? Here's to a riled up, hot under the collar Bakura on the rampage, baby!

Oh, and here... Had to add it. At first glance, I thought it was a sperm... sperm... whip...tail... thingie... I'm sure you can see where I'd get confused...

Thanks for stopping by!

sglily

[Guest Saiyamaru]

Cool, nifty little fast reply means I don't have to log in. Awesome. And I'm always glad to join your party.

-Saiyamaru

[Guest Ahny]

Apologies, Sherri! This actually has ... absolutely nothing in the WHOLE wide world to do with your story, but I couldn't find any other way to reach you at the moment... Eheh. Forgive me? (You can't see it right now, but my eyes are SPARKLING with sorrow and regret.)

On second thought, I have read the story, so I don't see why I can't drop a few words. Lessee... long-time reader, first-time poster, you know.... laziness FTW. Ah, you're extraordinarily talented; nobody can hold a candle to your skills, and reading anything you write is a pleasure, dearie (Ew, I sound so old... I'm 19). This story is no exception. I was a little surprised by the lack of dialogue the past two chapters, and I do have moments of "Did we really need to know all this?" but I think that's just my own impatience nagging me, so no worries there.

Geez, I hope Bakura doesn't wake up and beat someone with an hourglass out of anger and angst over Ryou just up and VANISHING... yikes. (You know... maybe this would be better off in a REVIEW... see, I just put that one together. It's 6AM.) I was a little confused! I was under the impression it was all good, and then Ryou had to just... GO. I want to be aggravated with him but he's too darn cute!

Oh gosh. Chatty girl is chatty. I'm working on a TS story at the moment, but it's underdeveloped; it has lots of outlining to go through. I really like your characterization of Bakura, but I haven't incorporated it into mine. Mine is AU as well, but he's described as someone who's not above using his charm, wit, and sex appeal to get what he wants. Also, he enjoys Tim Burton... and Starbucks. Haha, different circumstances, yanno? The reason I bring it up is because... I wouldn't imagine you'd find it flattering if I DID decide to base my Bakura off of yours. This might sound arrogant, but, before I took down my former stories, I was extremely popular in another fandom, and people were doing exactly that ALL THE TIME to me. They were essentially ripping off my ideas and characters, is what I mean. I know; it happens with fame, but I was getting REALLY aggravated seeing your stories practically regurgitated around the regular FF too. I see it on AFF, as well. Have you, or am I looking too hard?

I'm not saying that everyone is running around posting epic stories about wonderfully arousing games of hide and seek, but ... Perhaps it would be easier if I showed you what I wrote so you know what I mean? Haha. I don't know if you're active or not on Fanfiction (you're popular there regardless...) but this was the message I posted:

"Holy hell. I have to get this one off my chest.

Tendershipping writers: quit copying Cat and Mouse, and every other story written by sglily for that matter. We’re aware that Sherri's writing prowess reins supreme over just about everyone else's in the fandom, but you’re doing yourselves no favors. You think people don’t notice? Are y'all just that brain-dead? Maybe you spent so long staring at a thesaurus that you threw yourselves into a tailspin. I don't know! I can assure you that we do recognize who the mastermind behind every quirky or clever line in your otherwise unimaginative story is. If you're gonna try your hand at a hardcore TS sex-scene, at least have the balls to come up with your own pet names. When Bakura calls Ryou “precious one,” that’s her trademark. Ryou’s bitchy attitude when he’s in the “mood” is also her thing. Do we even need to go into Ryou’s unusual turn-on (you know the one) or Bakura's specific fashion sense?

It’s not classy. It's a horrible way to show appreciation. It doesn't increase the quality of your work. If we wanted to read something by sglily, we would type the address of her profile page into the address bar and do so. It requires about two joules of brainpower... but thank you for your fail imitation. Do something different, PLEASE.

This applies to AFF, Media Miner, and FF. Not cool, guys..."

I know it's not my place to tell people this, and if you want it taken down, by all means, I'll do just that. I just wanted you to be aware in case any issues should arise further down the line? Nor was it meant to discourage anyone who follows you!

Well, I'm done rambling my head off. Hopefully you don't bitch-slap me for being so off topic. I'm on a ton of medication from surgery, and one of the side effects is that it makes me a complete chatter-box! Eek!

Keep on writing... this story is a masterpiece!

PS: I had to verify my humanity by typing "tification chipsir"... QUESTION MARK? I found it funny... sorry.

[Guest Saiyamaru]

Don't know how Sglily feels about this personally, but I think that as long as they aren't cutting and pasting her hard work and showing it off as their own (in which case I'll be second in line to have a little 'chat' with them) its not a huge deal. In case you haven't noticed most tendershipper writers are far more likely to make Ryou's pet name "cum dumpster I pointlessly abuse". I much prefer that the current wave of writers trying to emulate the sexy and loving relationship Sglily portrays then the hate, pain, and despair I generally find cropping up in a lot of the fics revolving around my favorite couple.

True, the people in question won't become better if they don't think up their own things, but a much better way of encouraging them to do so is to 1) let them know you notice their awesome taste in fanfiction, 2) suggest that as awesome and amazing as it is, they are creative in their own right and can come up with a smexy-cute nick name of their own. Or if they can't, to at least let everyone know which awesome lady inspired them to write. :3

Also, share the love man! Bakura is incredibly hot as Sglily wrote him! So lets spread the hotness! Yes, we need to encourage new writers to come up with their own descriptions, but its not a sin to write a character as being sexy (as long as they actually write it), so there's no need to bite off their heads (yet). Let them know what they did right, make suggestions that they could try to do better, and encourage them to become a better writer with their own style. Otherwise they'll think you're just trolling and trying to start a flame war. They won't see it as you acting as you are to defend another writer and 'force' them to become better. They'll see you as trying to pick a fight because you're mean or something. Honey and flies babes. ; )

[Guest Ahny]

Valid! I took it down. I suppose I was in a strange mood when I wrote it.

Anyway, fact still remains that I adore you, sglily. (:

[Guest ahny]

Forgive me; I had a cocktail before typing this.

I must say, it doesn't have to reach the extent of C&P before it can be considered copyright-infringement. Not in my opinion. I did take it down, but I still do understand if Sherri is upset about the whole fiasco. I would be. I understand that Bakura is sexy as Sherri wrote him, but there's a difference between "let's make Bakura and Ryou's relationship a devoted and compassionate and loving one" and "gee, I think I'll just take every element Sherri used and implement it in my shitty story." I don't know! The woman is in her mid-40's. She can do whatever she damn well pleases. I just personally find it insulting.

I'm gonna regret posting this tomorrow, but this is how I feel at the moment... Damn.

Okay, I'm getting off now.

[Guest ahny]

Oh! And, no malice was meant towards either sglily or saiyamaru. You both seem like very intelligent people and have influenced me to rethink my own thoughts. Thank you for your words of wisdom; just getting in my final word!

[Guest Saiyamaru]

*pats head.* Its alright. And as annoying as it is, put it in perspective. No matter what they say, its almost 100% a kid that's doing it. (The fact the person reading her work to try and copy it is younger then the intended age is probably what would bother her the most.)

A few years ago I'd be right beside you, grouching and grumbling but... well, as I mentioned, there are worse things to see in fanfiction. I also mentioned that insulting them and what they are doing will get you no where, where as politely making suggestions might actually get them to improve. Don't get into fights with kids over the internet, its a fight you cant win.

Now. moving on to other things. Obviously you're a YGO fan yourself, or at least like Bakura and Ryou. I'm assuming here, since you are posting on this forum you are the proper age, so make a proper account and stick around a bit, eh? This sites lonely so lets make it less so. Go, populate the ygo yaoi forum, make it flourish. And lets save this particular thread for Reviews and Discussion of Ghost of Christmas Past (as well as general Sglily worship ;p )only.

[sglily]

Saiyamaru,

Sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you here... but you know how it is!

I still don't know exactly what is going on with MM but I finally broke down and went out into their forums to find some answers and apparently there are a lot of people facing the same issue - unable to upload new stories or new chapters - and it looks like there is a lack of system support there. It's been going on for months. It's a shame because I still get reviews from readers on that site who are looking for updates. I have them, just can't post them.

Well, I just posted the newest update to Ghosts a little earlier this evening so you will get your first "real" glimpse of the twins... hope you love them as much as I enjoyed writing them and coming up with their personalities! Beau kind of surprised me. He is not going to be the little wallflower I sort of imagined, the real backwards kind of little Ryou. He's almost (if not) as fiesty as his big brother. But, there is definitely a distinction as to who is who. I only hope that reads that way.

And, yes, the NEXT update will be Bakura... or the Wrath of Bakura, more like it. I sort of can't wait for that one to be up either!

Much love, love!

sglily

Edited January 15, 2011 by sglily

[sglily]

Hi Everyone!

Wow! An update… and it’s only been TWO months! WooHOO!

Yes, Chapter 8 is now available to read. This is the last in the three part series of explaining Ryou’s actions after his little reunion/affair with Bakura. This is also the one where the twins are introduced. I am really interested in hearing what you readers think of them… are they what you expected? Any surprises? Disappointments? I’d really like to know.

This chapter is also my personal favorite. It took me forever to get it to the point where I was happy with it. It also really got expanded upon more than expected. The little glimpse into Ryou and Bakura’s past being a surprise even to me! That was fun to explore, too. But, I think, it was writing the boys and developing their characters that took the longest. Children are hard to write. It’s difficult to determine sometimes how much they will comprehend, words they would be able to say and use in context at the age they are supposed to be, and even how they will say some words (or mispronounce them). I also wanted to try to stay away from the typical cliché – of the mini-Ryou and mini-Bakura clones. I think Beau (who is supposed to be more Ryou-like) came across as a bit of a stronger character than I had originally planned. So, maybe, in that respect, he has become a mini-Ryou-according-to-sglily’s-rules? Regardless, as much of a pain-in-the-rear-end they were to get down on “paper”, to get as close to right as I could make them, they truly are near and dear to my heart.

Currently, I am finishing up the chapter after Bakura’s reaction to Ryou’s disappearance. Yep, Bakura makes his reappearance in the next update (Chapter 9). That’s another chapter that I am anxious to see if it goes over well… or not.

Also, thank you to those of you who have been reading and commenting on my other stories – most of which are finished. It does make me feel good that they are still being enjoyed.

Best wishes…

sglily

Review Responses for Ghosts of Christmas Past – Chapter Seven:

Gantaeno: Ah, the story was never forgotten, trust me! And, you have an update a lot quicker than I have been able to get them out in the general past. That’s good for you and for me, eh? Glad you liked Azizi in Naughty or Nice… and here’s to you enjoying Beau and Kura just as much… or even better. I’ll take either! Thanks for the kind comments…

Lbrylady: Glad you thought the chapter was worth the wait. I don’t know what I would do without all the lovely readers who stick with this and my other stories that remain unfinished. (I do plan on finishing them all someday.) And, I do so appreciate the comments and encouragement… it does spur me on and makes me want to wrangle out the next few scenes. I guess I do love to put my Ryou and Bakura through emotional torture… but they learn and grow from it in the end… I suppose! Yeah, one would kind of expect a pissed off Bakura on the warpath being frisked and hogtied at the local airport for showing up with both barrels loaded bear, but “only” hunting for his wayward, silly wabbit Ryou… Let me just say this, Bakura has some issues (and insecurities) of his own. How he chooses to handle the latest crisis to his personal life (aka blow to his ego)… I’ll have to let him show you in the next update. Hopefully, it will not disappoint. See, some people pay attention! Kudos to you for catching that one! I love getting in those little zingers that sort of tease about Ryou and Bakura’s “normal” relationship in the YugiOh! World and scheme of things. Thanks for the lovely comments! Enjoy the newest update!

Saiyamaru: Yes, you are just quite the young lady ‘bout town, aren’t you? ; ) I think we will have to both stick to this site and only this site for a while. MM ain’t lookin’ too healthy as of late. I guess the middle chapter (7) didn’t go a whole lot of anywhere but to me it was necessary. I guess it sort of didn’t help either that the “one” chapter got that huge that it had to be chopped into 3 more manageable pieces. I didn’t purposely draw it out to get the kiddos in there. In fact, in the original version, their part was quite a bit smaller and definitely not as involved. I really liked how they turned out. I hope you do, too! And, yeah… Ryou fantasizing and… showing… excitement… yeah, that wouldn’t be too funny for him (but, man, oh, man…does that come back to haunt him later on!) but we do get some sick sort of enjoyment out of it, eh? When was the first time (in Rings) Ryou came face to face with Big, Bad, Bakura Demon? Well, you’re right… Cat and Mouse doesn’t have The Big Bad in it. I guess Bakura sort of goes demonic when he takes out George at the construction site. That’s when Ryou offers himself to Bakura in the restroom of the restaurant (same one as in Wicked by the way…) because he knows Bakura needs release… and that opens up that whole lovey-dovey scene between them. (One of my favorites.) Yeah, Bakura goes all Big Bad when he sucks the darkness out of his suffering light. I wouldn’t be surprised if Big, Bad Bakura makes another appearance by the time Rings is said and done. Did I answer your question? Sorta kinda? You know you can pester me for a better answer if need be!

[sglily]

Guest Ahny,

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you. Today, after posting the newest update to Ghosts was the first I saw your message in the Forum.

Thank you for reading my stories and your kind words.

Whether or not it makes a difference in the explanation, Ryou’s whole perspective was supposed to have been one chapter, but I ended up breaking it down into three. Yeah, the lack of dialogue, naturally, is because the past two (that you’ve read) and the newest one, are mainly delving into Ryou’s thoughts and exploring his emotional turmoil. Did anyone really need to know all that Ryou was going through? Maybe, maybe not. That’s just how it chose to express itself at the time. There’s a lot of angst and a lot of self-flagellation going on in Ryou’s poor head. The middle chapter is kind of like the middle (original) Star Wars movie… information is in it to keep the plot moving but very little action. It was difficult to find the best place(s) to divide the one huge chapter up. The first one works well. The second and third should really be a single chapter… but Part three was nearly 50 pages in Word alone. See the dilemma?

You’ll get to see Bakura’s reaction to Ryou’s departure in the next installment. You aren’t the only reader who is less than happy with Ryou leaving! But then there wouldn’t be much of a story to tell. And, the whole purpose behind the “filler” chapter and the newest update where Ryou’s boys make an appearance is to give a lot more background into why Ryou felt he did the right thing by leaving Bakura. He’s also trying his hardest to talk himself into believing he did the right thing, for both their sakes. I’m not so sure it worked out the way he thought it would.

Good luck with your own writing! Bakura liking Tim Burton… that’s strange and… totally Bakura, dark and creepy… sort of like Burton’s partner in crime, Danny Elfman. I think you’ve got something there! And, what’s not to like about Starbuck’s? Except their prices… but the brew(s) are fine, trendy, and it’s a great place to meet people.

Thank you for the compliments about my characterizations of Ryou and Bakura. I am very flattered by that because for the longest time, especially when I first got interested in the fandom, Ryou was depicted as a spineless whipping boy – Bakura’s whipping boy, in particular. Ryou was oftentimes raped, starved, ignored, beaten, emotionally tormented… anything one could do to demoralize a human being, poor Ryou, for whatever reason, was the one chosen to bear that (or any number of) burden(s). Bakura, on the other hand, was depicted as an uncaring psycho, bent on his light’s ultimate destruction, and was more than likely the one abusing Ryou in the ways mentioned above. I hated it. Got tired of it. Read a few stories that offered an alternative twist to one or both characters personalities, and decided to try my hand at making Ryou a stronger individual with a goal in life – something other than making it through the day without a fat lip or broken bone. To me, Bakura needed to remain hardheaded and a prick, to most people at any rate, but most of all, I wanted him to want Ryou in more than just a sexual manner – I wanted him to make Ryou happy while keeping the tough guy image.

I have had a few writers ask me if they could write a story based on my characterization of Ryou and Bakura have come about. I don’t necessarily have a problem with that. I appreciate that I am being asked first. But, I do stress that it would be nice to take some aspects, turn them around, tweak them, whatever, and then own them… make them the new writer’s own. That would be ideal.

I also have to stress that as much as I would love to own Ryou and Bakura… I still basing my characterizations on characters created by someone else. Besides… in my world… Ryou owns Bakura’s ass…. But, shhhhhh…. just don’t tell His Royal Darkness that. ; )

Have I seen Ryou and Bakura characterizations written by other writers that “copy” my style? Aside from the example I mentioned above where the author asked permission, (and it almost seemed like more of a blurb/continuation of one of my stories that that particular author decided to write about), I really can’t say that I have. Maybe I am not reading the same stories? Honestly, there’s been such a decline in the popularity of the series that I don’t see that many new stories period. And of them, even fewer are based solely on Ryou and Bakura.

I typically don’t go out to FF anymore. I never posted there because of the mature content of my stories… it would have been against the site rules (of the time anyway). And, I doubt it’s changed. MM has had its own issues for the past several months. It has been impossible to update a story without getting an error. Doesn’t look like it’s going to get fixed anytime soon either.

Regardless, I really didn’t realize I had a following at all in the FF community. As I said, I don’t post there. I read there on occasion, but not often anymore. That’s flattering, that my stories are being read and appreciated. I also think it is flattering that my writing style is being emulated. No, I would not appreciate it much if it was downright plagiarism. But, I do not have a problem with other writers taking what they like and trying to make it better… or to play with it and see if they can come up with something of their own style.

I think that Saiyamaru gave you the right advice in regards to the post you made – I assume on FF. Some of what she mentioned, I have touched upon in my reply here. Most of all I have to agree, that if the current trend is for authors to write about a loving relationship between Ryou and Bakura, we are all better off for it. While I appreciate your concern, I have to agree it is not worth getting into a verbal war that cannot be won. However, as I mentioned above, cutting and pasting bits or just flat out claiming an entire work of my fiction as another’s own, that would be worth getting upset about. Yeah, that would be an entirely different story.

I don’t know… we all, in a way, emulate something (or many things) we like. The trick is to make it your own in some fashion. I just think it is kind of cool that people love something I have taken a shine to, and perhaps, taken to the next level, and they in turn are trying their best to own it.

We all have to remember, Ryou and Bakura own each other… and are ultimately, owned by Kazuki Takahashi. ; )

Sincerely,

sglily

P.S. I do have one thing I would like to ask of you and anybody else who happens to read this, please, from now on, here, in the Forum or anywhere outside of it, no more personal information randomly thrown into the mix. Please.

[Yami-Kuro]

Just a small message - So i'm not a lurker!

Looking very forward to reading the next two chapters (I regret to say that i somehow missed chapter 7...somehow. I feel like a horrible fan!)

BUT VERY EXCITED ABOUT MEETING THE BOYS TODAY. VERY EXCITED <3

Love,

Kuro

[sglily]

Kuro,

You better not be a lurker! Or I'll have to punish you with the infamous "sperm" icon with the whip!

(But... if you're anything like Bakura... you'd like that...)

Holy crap! I, honest to God, just saw this one! It's perfect for Ryou!

(Perhaps you'd prefer this one, hm?)

Ah, my... don't mind me. It's been one of those mornings!

Don't fret about missing Chapter 7 much. It sort of cropped up from out of nowhere. And, acutally, for you, (except for the prospect of having to spend longer reading all in one swoop), you might like it better that you get the entire Ryou bundle of angst out of the way... how it had been orginally intended - as one MEGA CHAPTER! (Did you hear my BIG ANNOUNCING VOICE take over?) Now we are all caught up from Ryou's standpoint... next, it'll be on to what one Mr. Lusciousness will do when he realizes his wildcat has amscrayed.

Hope you like the twins! I truly did have a fun time developing them. You'll have to let me know what you think...

Thanks for taking the time to say HEY! And, sorry about the above. I think I need another cup of coffee...

Much love,

sglily

[Guest Saiyamaru]

Review Responses for Ghosts of Christmas Past – Chapter Seven:

Saiyamaru: Yes, you are just quite the young lady 'bout town, aren't you? ; ) I think we will have to both stick to this site and only this site for a while. MM ain't lookin' too healthy as of late. I guess the middle chapter (7) didn't go a whole lot of anywhere but to me it was necessary. I guess it sort of didn't help either that the "one" chapter got that huge that it had to be chopped into 3 more manageable pieces. I didn't purposely draw it out to get the kiddos in there. In fact, in the original version, their part was quite a bit smaller and definitely not as involved. I really liked how they turned out. I hope you do, too! And, yeah… Ryou fantasizing and… showing… excitement… yeah, that wouldn't be too funny for him (but, man, oh, man…does that come back to haunt him later on!) but we do get some sick sort of enjoyment out of it, eh? When was the first time (in Rings) Ryou came face to face with Big, Bad, Bakura Demon? Well, you're right… Cat and Mouse doesn't have The Big Bad in it. I guess Bakura sort of goes demonic when he takes out George at the construction site. That's when Ryou offers himself to Bakura in the restroom of the restaurant (same one as in Wicked by the way…) because he knows Bakura needs release… and that opens up that whole lovey-dovey scene between them. (One of my favorites.) Yeah, Bakura goes all Big Bad when he sucks the darkness out of his suffering light. I wouldn't be surprised if Big, Bad Bakura makes another appearance by the time Rings is said and done. Did I answer your question? Sorta kinda? You know you can pester me for a better answer if need be!

I'm glad Beau turned out as he did... And not too surprised. Yes, he takes after his father a lot, but if Ryou had had a loving supporting "Kura" of his own from day 0, I think he'd have turned out like this as well. Besides, he's a little boy still, one whose family loves and supports him, so I'd say he's doing good for himself.

Naughty Ryou...Boy, did that Ever come back to haunt him! Still though, its amazing how much one night did for our lover boy. Having Bakura love him right for the first time in a long time seemed to have sparked as many tiny little fires of hope as they opened doors of pent up pain.

And as for the demon I think that that will do for now, thanks for answering my question. I was rereading Rings myself, and I think it kind of shed some more light on the subject. Speaking of Rings, I don't know if its recent or if the chapter's have just always been a little crazy but when I hit chapter 14 and some of the ones after the format was all crazy and the scripting was posted.

[sglily]

I think that if Beau (and Ryou, for that matter) followed the "trend" of becoming the cliche of what Ryou is usually portrayed as being (i.e. bookish, backward, shy, crying all the time, afraid of his own shadow, etc, etc, etc), it wouldn't have worked. Now granted, I have said that Beau is smart for his age (at least more book savy than his brother, at least enjoying the ability to read as well finding joy in the fine arts... even if in the form of crayon and paper... more of the Ryou-ish type of things) and he did cry when Kura acted up at the Mall and both boys were in danger of not getting the Wii they wanted, but I wanted to give Beau a little bit of fire. Oh, he has his older brother wrapped (much as Ryou usually has Bakura wrapped in some fashion in at least my stories!), but I wanted him to be able to stand up to Kura too... to not be a constant wet rag. (Maybe a little example of that would be when the two boys had the pulling contest with the picture of Bakura and their father.) And, Kura... he is just a little devil! I wanted to make him sort of sly... and already a big flirt... knowing exactly the right words to say that would have his little brother nothing but putty in his hands. But, I also wanted to make it perfectly clear that he lives for his brother... Beau's wealthfare is pretty much all he cares about... He may be a little devil but he is not a complete demon. He is lovable and far from evil. He has a huge heart and just happens to be more of a typical, messy little boy... with a bit of ADHD thrown into the mix. Both brothers play off one another... and ulitmately, love one another as only twins can.

Oh, Ryou never got over Bakura. And, yes, it is sort of sad how just one night rocked Ryou's world - in more ways than one... rocking and knocking it right off its axis, is probably more like it, eh? Maybe it had been overkill as far as really delving into all the whys and whatfors surrounding Ryou's decision to leave Bakura as he had, all the internal, emotional stuff. But, once again, I wanted it perfectly clear why he did it. There should be no question in anybody's mind now why Ryou is denying himself the comfort of his first love. He feels that Bakura doesn't want him even half as much as Ryou wants Bakura. Ryou believes he was nothing but a fling to Bakura. To Ryou, he has so many things going against him... and anything he could bring to the table in a relationship would be loaded down with emotional baggage, hefty debts, and the added "bonus" of two children... and to someone like Bakura, just one of those issues on its own would be like the kiss of death... And even though Ryou was perplexed by some of the changes he had seen in Bakura in the few hours they had spent together on that infamous night, Ryou still perceives Bakura as being locked within those old ways. So, yes... Ryou is caught in a Catch 22... where he has come into his own, allowed himself to feel, found the love of his life, could possibly be happy... and then, undermines all of that with all his fears and doubts and making decisions for both Bakura and himself based solely on Bakura's past behavior, when the moron ran out on him six years ago.

I hope that I did answer the demon question for you. If you think of something you need answered better... or in more detail... let me know. It challenges me to think... which is a good thing!

And, thank you for alerting me to the awful state of Rings. As it so happened, Rings was not the only story that had been affected. I went through and at least got rid of all the code garbage that didn't belong in the body of any of the chapters of all my stories. Some are still in bad shape as far as huge gaps and whatnot in-between paragraphs but at least it is readable. I will attempt to go in and fix that mess when I can. It really irks me that past chapters that had been perfectly fine up to the big overhaul of the site were completely and utterly dorked up. Hopefully, the end result will be for the best so I'll bite my tongue and say no more.

Get ready for the Big Blowout! I had to seriously consider chopping Bakura's chapter in half because, like Ryou's scurrying away back home, it grew and is now this monster. Not so big as Ryou's 3-Parter. But, it is 50 pages of a Word document. But, honestly, there was no good place to stop it so I'm going to let it roll as is. It'll just take some time to read. But, maybe it will be worth the wait? Let's hope!

Edited February 14, 2011 by sglily