Note: This story is set during the Memory World Arc. I can't imagine that no one noticed that Atem changed overnight. I never use Atem's real name in this story, mainly because it seems more authentic. He didn't know his name during this arc and no one else used it, so it seemed appropriate to leave it out. That's why you'll see "the Pharaoh" a lot. Anyway, this is just something I wrote up really fast and it's still a little rough around the edges. I might come back and do some editing later. It is mainly hurt/comfort and friendship, but there is a little humor and fluff as well. Enjoy.
Mana sighed in relief as she finished her last task of the day and was released to take a break. It had certainly been a long day. The Pharaoh and his advisors had been plotting against the Thief King for hours, and she had been allowed to sit in for part of the discussion. She probably had Mahad to thank for that. She was certain that Seth hadn't wanted her to be included, judging by the dark looks he kept throwing her. But then again, he pretty much always looked like that.
Chuckling to herself at the thought, she rounded the corner and stopped short. The Pharaoh was standing on the nearby balcony, gazing out over his kingdom with melancholy eyes. Mana hesitated as she debated the wisest course of action. Normally she would just bounce right over there and try to cheer him up. They were friends after all, and that's how they had always treated each other.
But something made her pause. She still hadn't been able to quite put her finger on what it was, but something was definitely different about him. One day he had been completely normal, just the boy she had grown up with, and the next day he had changed. He still looked the same, and for the most part he talked the same and acted the same, but something was a little off. She supposed that the biggest giveaway was his eyes. He used to light up when he saw her coming, but sometimes she couldn't even see a flicker of recognition in his eyes when she approached now.
She had thought that she had done something wrong the first time he turned those cold, uncomprehending eyes on her, but then she realized that he looked at everyone that way now. And he didn't act angry, just uncertain. He was nice enough, but sometimes he said or did things that didn't make sense, and he didn't always seem to remember things he should have known. She was certain that those eyes were holding secrets that he had no intention of sharing with her.
Taking a deep breath, she started forward again. He was acting strangely, but he was still her friend. By the looks of it, he could use a friend right now.
"Hey, Pharaoh!" she said cheerfully as she leaned up against the railing beside him.
He jerked back in surprise, and those strange eyes locked onto her face.
"Mana?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"
She grinned. "Well, I was just going to go collapse in my room out of exhaustion, but then I saw you standing here." Her smile faded a little. "What is bothering you?"
His gaze turned calculating, and Mana could feel him evaluating her.
"Nothing that will not solve itself in time," he replied finally, smiling wryly to himself as if he had just made a joke that only he understood.
Mana frowned a little. "We're friends, aren't we?" she asked, her voice wavering uncertainly. She would have never questioned that assumption a few days ago, but sometimes he didn't even seem to know her anymore. And he certainly didn't seem to trust her enough to tell her what was wrong.
The Pharaoh's eyes widened slightly and the corners of his lips twitched downward.
"Yes, of course," he replied.
"Then why won't you tell me what's wrong?" she questioned.
He sighed and turned back to the view, resting his arms on the railing of the balcony. His eyes wandered over the desert landscape as if searching for an answer.
"Because you can't help me," he said bluntly. Mana recoiled half a pace.
"Isn't there anything I can do?" Her voice wavered slightly, but she pressed on. "We're friends. This is what friends do. We help each other and stand by each other, even when things go wrong. Remember when your father died and I sat with you for days to comfort you? Remember when one of my spells backfired in the middle of a major assessment and I was terrified that I wouldn't be allowed to continue my training? You comforted me and reassured me that it wasn't really a big deal, until I believed you. We have always helped each other before. Why not now? Isn't there something I can do for you?"
He looked over at her with a startled expression, and she hurriedly blinked back the tears threatening to spill down her face. For a long moment, there was only silence. Then he finally spoke.
"Those stories you mentioned…Tell me more. Remind me of all the things we did together."
Mana relaxed a little, and leaned forward to rest her elbow on the railing and her chin on her hand. This was more familiar ground. When people were upset, they often wanted to be reminded of the good times. She could do that.
"Hmm…Remember that time we swiped Seth's staff and hid it in one of those big pots of flour?" A wide grin split her face as she visualized the scene. "He was so angry! For some reason he immediately assumed it was us. Didn't even give us the benefit of the doubt. I mean, not everything is our fault!" She smirked a little.
"He made us show him where the staff was, and we took him to the kitchen. When he ordered you to give it to him, you walked behind the pot and knocked it over so that the staff fell out. But of course, all the flour came out too, and exploded all over Seth. His face was priceless, and he was white as a ghost! It was great, but I got weeks of extra duties for it." She winced a little at the memory.
The Pharaoh chuckled, his eyes sparkling with mirth. "I wish I could have seen that," he said feelingly.
Mana's brows crinkled in confusion. "You did. You were there."
Something flashed in his eyes as he backtracked. "Of course. Forgive me if I misspoke. I meant that I wish I could see it again. I am sure that it would be just as funny the second time around."
"Oh, it would be. I wonder if he would fall for something like that again." Mana relaxed, accepting his explanation. People made errors in speech all the time.
"Tell me another story of our mischief," the Pharaoh urged. His voice had a hungry edge that puzzled Mana, but she brushed it off.
"Remember that time Isis kept getting visions of horrible sandstorms that would completely blanket the town and palace? And then no storms happened for two weeks, so we took matters into our own hands. Literally. Wasn't it so much fun when we snuck out at night and brought in tons of sand? We dumped it all over Isis' room while she was sleeping so that she woke up and thought a sandstorm had actually materialized in the palace." She laughed. "Mind you, cleaning up all that sand was not very fun. And when those huge storms hit a few days later we had to clean up most of that sand too. It was totally worth it though."
The Pharaoh let out a sharp bark of laughter. "We were awfully mischievous little tyrants, weren't we?"
She nodded happily. "Were? We could pull another prank right now," she suggested, a scheming look lighting up her eyes. "We haven't done anything big in months. No one will be expecting it. And maybe it would help you take your mind off things."
He hesitated a moment before shaking his head. "I do not think that would be a good idea right now. Everyone is already on edge because of Bakura. But you can keep telling stories."
Mana sighed in disappointment. She should have expected it, really. He was Pharaoh now.
"Well…It was a lot of fun when we used to hide in the giant urns in the hallways and make noises when the servants walked past. Our voices echoed so much that they sounded downright ghostly. We scared quite a few people, and managed to hide from Mahad in the process. It's too bad someone finally figured out that our voices were coming from the vases."
"Oh. I had forgotten that," the Pharaoh murmured.
Mana's eyebrows shot up. They had hidden in the urns many times over the years. That would be rather hard to forget.
"What do you remember?" she blurted out. She instantly knew that she had made a mistake when a guarded look fell over his face and he turned away. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" She trailed off, at a loss for words.
"It is alright," the Pharaoh said quietly, staring ahead blankly. "Perhaps you were right to say something."
Mana didn't know what to say to that, so an awkward silence descended on them. She shifted uncomfortably, regretting that she had spoken without thinking. Sure he had seemed a little odd the past few days, but that hardly meant he had forgotten everything overnight. She shouldn't have implied such a thing. And yet…he did seem to have forgotten many important things.
"Mana," he said finally, his voice careful and uncertain, "Why do you not call me by my name?"
"Because you are the Pharaoh now," she replied immediately. Then she frowned in bewilderment. That would not have stopped her before, but now it did. Or rather, something did.
"But we are also friends, are we not?" he queried, turning to look at her so that those strange eyes could search her own with an almost desperate intensity.
"Yes…" She trailed off, not finishing the thought. …Until a few days ago. She paused. It was true. She had stopped calling him by his name a few days ago, right around the time he had changed. Had he started treating her coolly because she had stopped using his name, or had she stopped using his name because he was acting oddly? She wasn't quite sure.
She opened her mouth to say his name, but she couldn't bring herself to voice it. A puzzled look spread across her features as she opened and closed her mouth silently a few times.
The Pharaoh looked at her with bewildered concern.
"Mana? Are you alright?"
His voice seemed to snap her out of it, and she shook her head to clear it.
"Yes. It's just…" She shook her head again. "Oh, I don't know. It's silly. It's like I just can't bring myself to call you by your name anymore, friend or not. I mean…you are the Pharaoh, and you are not the same…" She trailed off, unsure of how to continue.
He wore a look of grim resignation as he returned his gaze to the darkening land below them.
"It is alright."
Mana flinched. It wasn't really alright, was it? Despite everything, he was still her friend. She should call him by his name like he called her by hers. She should be able to perform this one simple task.
"I'm sorry," she said miserably, slumping over to rest her chin on the railing.
The Pharaoh glanced at her in surprise.
"Mana…It really is alright." He hesitated for a brief moment. "I know you desperately want to help me solve all my problems, but really, you have already done so much."
She straightened up and opened her mouth to protest that she had done nothing, but he cut her off with a sharp hand gesture.
"No, really. You have been a great friend to me, and I appreciate all that you have done. I think that standing here with you and talking about the past is probably the best thing I could have done right now. I realize that I have been a little…distant…lately. Forgive me. I am honored to be your friend, and I will try to do better in the future." He paused, before looking at her earnestly. "Friends?" he asked hesitantly, holding out his hand to her.
She blinked at his outstretched palm quizzically for a moment, before reaching out and grasping it. They shook hands firmly.
"Friends," she replied. Then her face lit up as she grinned at him.
An answering smile spread across his face as well, and her own grin widened as she realized that, for the first time in days, it was a genuine one.
"You have a contagious smile," he said with amusement.
He went to let go of her hand, but she kept it grasped tight. He looked at her questioningly, and her grin took on a mischievous cast.
"Now that we are really friends again, we simply must go play a prank on Seth. Have you noticed how uptight he has been lately? He's practically begging us to mess with him."
She continued her cheerful chatter as she pulled on his hand and began tugging him off the balcony. He laughed as she led him away from his solitary brooding, and she smiled in triumph. She would make sure he wasn't unhappy and alone.
Without ceasing her relentless chattering, she glanced back at him. He smiled at her, and she was relieved to see that his good humor touched his eyes. In fact, his eyes sparkled with the same mirth and warmth that they always had, and she was relieved. This was the friend she had grown up with.
At least for right now, he wasn't just someone that she used to know.