Chapter 1

Ripples

Author's note: just to not get in trouble, I should remind everyone that I don't own anything that has to do with YuGiOh. I just own my characters and Dark Mage of the Sea owns hers. Here is the sequel to my fanfiction Ripples; the sister fanfiction A Star Among Darkness will be written at the same time, each story covering the series in chronological order according to the series. To all those who read Ripples or are starting with this story (which is all right), I hope you enjoy it.

Thank you, Dark Mage of the Sea, my coauthor and best friend.

Years and centuries pass and faces and souls get recycled and get scattered all over the world. But destiny has a way of making things work, using people, events, and feelings to influence the tide of fate. As Seth predicted centuries earlier, the journey of the Sennen Items was not done yet and it started again when a man from Japan came to Egypt in search of the ultimate game. With the beginning piece in play, the heavens decided that it was time to set the paths before certain humans…

It seemed like any other day but, to one family driving down the street, it was the beginning of a new chapter in their lives. The parents knew what was happening but their son, a five year old who had star-shaped black hair with red tips and blond bangs, was too young to understand. Leaning his head against the window, he looked at the passing city and asked, "Where we going?"

Sitting next to the little boy, an old man wearing overalls and a bandanna smiled and touched his grandson's shoulder. "Well…you know how you asked for a little brother or sister?"

As the young boy nodded, the driver, the old man's son, looked at his wife in the passenger seat and smiled sadly, a smile she responded to. They had been trying to have another baby for a couple of years with no success. About a month ago, they thought that they would finally be blessed with another child but the pregnancy sadly did not last. Because of that, they decided to adopt; while they did not tell their son about the miscarriage as he was too young to understand, they wanted him to be an active part of the adoption since the child would be his playmate. Turning her seat, the woman looked at the little one and said, "We're going to get your brother or sister now."

The boy was a little confused, as he had never heard of such a place where one could go get a sibling as if they were going to get groceries. "I don't understand…"

His mother smiled. "I know. But look on the bright side: you will have a brother or sister to play with."

The boy looked up and asked, "Both?"

The driver shook his head with a smile. "No, son. You must pick one."

The boy whined a little and gave a little pout. The old man smiled and made the child look at him. "Better to have one than none…right?"

The child nodded and then looked at his parents. "Where bwother or sissy?" When he was told that they were going to an orphanage, the child asked, "What oh-fan-itch?"

His mother hesitated for a moment; how should she explain to her five-year-old son what an orphanage was? Seeing her son's innocent eyes, she gently explained, "It's where children with parents who are not alive go to live until they get new parents."

The other adults knew that, sometimes, there were other reasons why children become orphans but the description was the best one for the five-year-old to understand without being upset. The boy was about to ask another question when his father pulled up to an old-fashioned, brick building that looked more than a church with a front lawn that was littered with playground equipment. The child looked up at the building as the adults came out of the car. The mother went to the backseat and got her son out of his booster seat, setting him down on the ground. "Are you ready, sweetie?"

The little boy nodded and followed his family into the orphanage. They were greeted by the Reverend Mother, who started to lead them towards the main playroom. The child did not pay attention to the conversation between the adults; he was more eager to see the other children and choose his new brother or sister. They finally made it to the main playroom and the child's eyes started to dart around. There were children of all sizes and ages, making him excited with the range of choices he had. Looking down at him, his mother smiled and said, "Go find your new sibling."

The child nodded and started to walk about, looking at all the children. They all looked nice and fun to play with but none stood out to him. But then he saw a young girl who was about his age, sitting in a corner working on a puzzle. With long brown hair and bright blue eyes, she appeared to be having fun with her puzzle. Being a fan of games himself, the boy started to walk over to her. Having kept an eye on his grandson, the old man saw the girl he was walking towards and asked, "Reverend Mother…what's the story with that little girl?"

The other adults looked up and saw the child look up as the boy approached her. The parents' eyes shone as the Reverend Mother smiled. "That is Tiki. She came here almost a year ago with her older sister after her parents died in a car crash. Six months ago, her older sister was adopted, something Tiki was okay with. She's a very special child to forget herself and let her sister go to another family."

Having looked up when the boy chirped "Hi" at her, Tiki smiled. "Hi!"

The boy looked at the puzzle and asked, "Me play wit you?"

Tiki nodded and held up a puzzle piece for him to take. Sitting down with her, the boy started to look over the puzzle to find the piece's proper place. Watching him, the little girl said, "Me Tiki."

Still absorbed in the puzzle, the boy said, "Me Yugi."

Tiki tilted her head a little; she had never seen someone so focused on finding a puzzle piece's place as Yugi. But her mood changed when she looked at a nearby puzzle piece and saw that both that piece and the piece Yugi was holding went together. Picking up the stray piece, she connected the two and squealed with delight. Yugi giggled. "You like puzzles, Tiki?"

Tiki nodded eagerly. "Mm! I love puzzles and games!"

Yugi could not help but giggle in response. "Me too! They my favowites!"

Tiki looked at Yugi with delight. "Me you same!"

Yugi nodded and the two went back to work on making the picture come together. Watching them, Mrs. Mutou smiled and touched her heart. Looking at her husband and father-in-law, they shared a special look, one that the Reverend Mother saw and recognized from her many years of service. A couple minutes later, the two children finished the puzzle and looked at the picture, which was a beautiful rainbow surrounded by angels. Tiki squealed with glee. "We did it, Yugi!"

Yugi nodded and looked at his parents. He smiled at them: he made his choice. "Um…Tiki…if want…we play more games and puzzles…wit my family."

Tiki looked at Yugi in surprise. She had assumed Yugi was a new orphan boy but now… "Weally?"

Yugi nodded and pointed to his family, making Tiki look up in excitement. Unable to contain herself with the possibility of being adopted, she tackle-hugged Yugi, surprising the adults. The old man approached them and said hello. Tiki looked up and chirped hi back. Looking at the puzzle, the grandfather said, "I saw that you love playing games. We own a game shop that has lots of games for you and my grandson to play with."

Tiki's eyes started to shine with delight. She then looked at the two parents approaching them. Mrs. Mutou thanked the old man, whom she referred to as Solomon, and then got down on her knees to get to Tiki's level. Love already shining in her eyes, Mrs. Mutou asked, "Tiki…would you like to come home with us?"

Her smile continuing to widen, Tiki nodded and threw herself into the woman's arms. "Mommy!"

The parents and Solomon smiled while Yugi cheered a little. The family was now complete and young Tiki's path was beginning to form.


In another part of the world, there was another path that was starting to form, one that would have a lot of tests along the way.

Hidden in a tomb under the sands of Egypt, there sat a six-year-old at a desk studying a book. Dressed in an old-fashioned outfit, he stood out because, despite being Egyptian, he had natural platinum-blond hair. He often wondered if he got his hair color from his mother since his father's hair had gone white from age but he never met his mother, she having died in childbirth. Setting aside the book, he sighed and propped his head up with his fists. Thinking about his parents made him think about the fate that awaited him, a fate that his father claimed was his birthright. The six-year-old was a bit unusual because, from the history he was forced to read ever since he could, he was the first in a long line of tomb keepers who did not want to live this way and longed for the world above, a world that was forbidden now and would become even more forbidden the second he turned ten. His thoughts were temporarily interrupted when a fifteen-year-old boy with dark skin and a traditional black ponytail on the back of his bald head walked in with a book in his hand. The six-year-old looked up, hoping that he was getting lunch, and whined when he saw the book. "Another one?"

The teenager nodded. "Master Ishtar requires that you read everything before your tenth birthday—" The teenager was suddenly interrupted when the child suddenly and angrily snatched the book away from him, startling the elder. "Master Marik!"

The boy Marik saw the look on the elder's and regretted his actions. "I'm sorry, Odion…"

As Marik lowered his head, Odion smiled sadly: he knew why the younger was acting this way. Marik acted this way whenever Odion or Marik's sister Ishizu mentioned his tenth birthday because that was the day he would undergo the tomb keeper ritual. A practice that started with the first tomb keeper thousands of years ago, Marik's father, as a father performing the rite of passage to his son, would carve the secrets they were assigned to protect into Marik's back. After being bitten by a cobra a year ago, Marik grew to fear pain and it was written by an ancestor that the ritual caused so much that the tomb keeper could barely move for days afterwards. The young boy wished he would convince his father to wait until he was at least seventeen so he was mature enough to handle it but he had read that, while that was the practice for thousands of years, the ritual was changed so that the tomb keeper would undergo it when he was ten because, one generation, the firstborn died just before the ritual could be done and his ten-year-old brother had to undergo it to ensure that the secrets would not be forgotten. Sensing Odion was still there, Marik whispered, "I'm sorry…I just…don't like what's coming…"

Odion smiled and nodded. He himself did not know what the ritual was but he assumed that it must be horrific for Marik to always act this way. "I know."

Odion wished there was something he could do for the child but he could not think of anything, especially since the teenager was not an Ishtar by blood. If Marik's father asked Odion to undergo the ritual as he and his wife originally planned if they continued to be barren, the teenager would happily agree; even though he would have to undergo a horrible ritual and live a life in the dark, he would go through it if it meant being a member of the family. Taking a deep breath, Marik looked at the book and asked, "Can I have some water?"

Odion nodded and left. After noting that the book he was reading was written by the first tomb keeper (the tomb keeper he was named after), Marik opened the book. To his delight, there were pictures in the book, pictures the first tomb keeper drew himself. Flipping through the book, the child focused on the pictures first. Some were of the Sennen Items, two of which Marik recognized as the two his family watched over, and some were of battles; the battle pictures made Marik whine because they were drawn from a bad angle, as if the first tomb keeper was watching and drawing the battle from a hiding place. He then came to the last picture and froze. The picture showed two women, one floating above the other. Her head looking up towards the sky with her eyes closed and her hands extended, the woman on top was dressed in a long, flowing dress with six wings on her back. But, as beautiful as she was, it was the woman standing below her that really caught Marik's attention. Her eyes were half-closed and her fingers were clasped together in a prayer. With her curly hair and small smile on her face, she was a sight to behold for Marik, who had up until this point only seen the women in his tribe. Reading the words on the opposite page, he read about the Nameless Pharaoh's wife and Queen, Tima, who had been the Pharaoh's slave whom the Pharaoh fell in love with because of her kind heart and always putting others' needs before her own. There was a small explanation that the winged woman was her Ka Seraphita but Marik did not care about the spirit. To the child's disappointment, that was all there was about the Queen but that did not stop the smile from appearing on his face. Lowering the book a little, he started to daydream about Tima, wondering what she was really like. He continued to daydream until he heard Odion set a cup of water next to him. Waking from his fantasies, Marik took the cup and said, "Thank you."

Odion nodded and was about to leave to see if Ishizu needed anything when he saw the drawing. "What a pretty woman…"

Marik smiled and looked at the picture. "Yep. It's the Queen and she has a name; her name wasn't erased like the Pharaoh's was. Her name is Tima."

Odion smiled at the enthusiasm that Marik showed towards such a simple drawing. He knew that Marik sadly did not have much hope in his life so any little joy the child could have was something to encourage. As he left to check on Marik's sister, Marik got an idea. After peeking over his shoulder to make sure he was alone, he ripped out the page that had the drawing on it. Smiling gleefully, the child stared at the picture and resumed his daydreams. While the drawing made Tima look beautiful, he assumed that the picture must have not done her justice, especially her eyes since they were half-closed. He then started to wonder about her voice. As he imagined her with having the voice pf a goddess, he sighed cutely. "Tima…"

He continued to daydream until his fantasies were suddenly interrupted by a loud crash coming from the courtyard. Hiding the drawing under his pillow, he ran out to investigate. Along the way, he ran into Odion, who also heard the crash. The child asked, "Odion, what was that?"

Remembering Marik's unhealthy curiosity about the outside world, Odion theorized that whatever made that noise would only fuel his curiosity so the teenager told Marik, "Stay here."

The teenager left to investigate. To his disappointment, he heard Marik following him. He wanted to turn around and argue but decided against that. A minute later, they arrived at the courtyard and found the culprit: the ceiling near the well opening caved in and two outsiders fell through. The first was a man in his early thirties with tan skin and long black hair that was tied back in a ponytail. He was dressed in a quarter-sleeve buttoned tan shirt, worn-out brown pants, and hiking shoes. What worried the teenager was the pouch the outsider had on his side of his pants that appeared to be filled with the tools of an archaeologist, one of the "nosy enemies" that the tomb keepers feared above all. It was the fear and loathing for this nosy enemy that almost made Odion ignore the side of his shirt, which was slowly getting wet and red. But he then saw what in the outsider's arms and his heart softened: the adult had a little girl in his arms. Dressed in a sleeveless white shirt, short blue pants, and hiking shoes, the blond-haired, pale-skinned child was clinging to the older man, her eyes squeezed tight and her body trembling. Making a decision, Odion looked at Marik, who was staring with wide eyes at the outsiders, and told the child, "Master Marik, get your sister and find some help."

Seeing the wound on the man as well, Marik nodded and left quickly to find help. While he waited, Odion went to the two and, seeing a handkerchief tied to one of the man's legs, removed it to press it against the wound. While the teenager did this, he turned his attention to the little girl. "Miss, are you all right?"

The little girl opened one purple eye at Odion, only to recoil and close her eye again. As Marik arrived with help, they approached the outsiders cautiously. The only reason they came was because Ishizu convinced them that it was best to help the outsiders so they could return before others came looking for them. Marik approached Odion, who touched the girl's arm. Hearing her whine with fear, the teenager smiled softly. "It's all right, young one."

Marik smiled. "Yeah! Odion won't bite!"

The girl peeked again and saw Marik. Trusting someone around her age more, she loosened her grip, allowing Odion to pick her up and letting the others tend to the adult. Accompanied by a ten-year-old with black hair and wisdom beyond her years thanks to her acceptance of her family's lifestyle, the tomb keepers propped up the archaeologist and helped him to his feet. Looking at the wound, Marik's sister said, "We need to take him to a room to tend to his wound. It might need to be stitched up."

Getting down on his knees so the blond outsider could be closer to the ground, Odion nodded. "I agree, Mistress Ishizu."

The girl Ishizu looked at the men and told them, "Make sure Father doesn't see you."

The tomb keepers nodded and started to take the outsider to another room. Seeing the man being taken away, the girl teared up and reached for him. "Daddy! Where you take Daddy?!"

Odion rubbed the girl's back to calm her down. Marik smiled and took the girl's hand, making her look at him. "It will be okay. They are just making sure your father is okay."

Seeing his smile, the girl sniffled a little and started to calm down. As the man was taken out of the room, Ishizu looked at the child and then looked at her brother, who said, "I'm Marik. What's your name?"

Wiping her eyes, the blond child whimpered, "Merina…"

Marik could feel his excitement build: for the first time in his life, he was talking to an outsider! Wanting to know as much as he could before she left, he asked, "Where did you come from?"

Ishizu was about to scold her brother when Odion shook his head at her. He sensed that Merina was too young to give Marik an answer; sure enough, Merina pointed to the hole in the ceiling as her answer. Unfortunately, that only seemed to fuel Marik's curiosity. Looking up at the now-second hole with wonder, he asked, "What's it like up there?"

This time, Ishizu stepped forward and touched Marik's shoulder, giving him a look. Marik soured a little at the reminder that he was not supposed to ask about the outside world. Thankfully, Merina seemed too upset to answer. She looked up at Ishizu and asked, "Where Daddy?"

Ishizu smiled softly. "Your father has been taken to another room to have his wound cleaned and repaired."

Being five years old, Merina did not understand such words as "wound" and "repaired" but they did sound like scary words so she whimpered, "I wanna see Daddy!"

Thinking that Merina would accept her words as Marik had many times, Ishizu went down to Merina's level and said, "Forgive me, little one…but your father is going to need his rest first."

Merina started tearing up again, making Ishizu feel guilty. Seeing the tears, Marik said to Merina, "We can go see her now!"

Merina immediately brightened at the suggestion. Ishizu looked at Odion, hoping that the teenager would be on her side, but her wishes went unanswered: the teenager picked up Merina and smiled. "We'll go see your father. But you must agree to let Ishizu look in on him first to make sure he's all right."

Merina nodded, willing to do anything to see her father. Ishizu smiled and shook her head. "You are amazing, Odion."

Odion shrugged a little. He did not see himself as amazing but simply having more practice with young children. With Ishizu leading the way, Odion and Marik started to take Merina to see her father. Arriving at the room, Ishizu poked her head in first. Now shirtless, the man was laying on his side with his back to the door. One of the tomb keepers was currently wiping off the excess blood from his wound, which was not as serious as it could have been. Thanks to that angle, the ten-year-old could see the huge tribal-design scorpion tattoo that covered the man's back and her eyes widened: such a tattoo meant that this man and therefore Merina were descendants from an ancient and legendary clan called the Scorpion Warriors. From the scrolls she had read, they were a special force employed by the Pharaoh himself and the princess of the Scorpion Warriors had a romance with the Prince. As Ishizu wondered why fate would bring a possible direct descendant of the Scorpion Warriors to the Tomb Keepers, the tomb keeper started to stich up the cut. At the same time, Merina grew impatient and cried, "I wanna see Daddy!"

The man looked up. "Merina? Where…?"

He tried to get up but the tomb keeper kept him down. "Sir, I need to stich up this wound so please be still."

The man almost argued but a shot of pain went up the man's body, making him lay back down. Ishizu told Odion to keep Merina occupied as she walked into the room. Going into the archaeologist's view, Ishizu asked, "Who are you…?"

Gritting his teeth as his wound was stitched up, he opened his eyes, revealing gold eyes, and looked at the preteen. "Hika…Scipio Hika…" Grunting in pain, he asked, "Where's…where's my daughter?"

Ishizu smiled softly. "Do not worry, sir. She is fine."

As the tomb keeper finished stitching the wound, Scipio sat up and, as the tomb keeper started to wrap him in bandages, asked, "Can I see her?"

Ishizu nodded and went to the door. To her surprised amusement, Merina burst through the door as soon as the older girl opened it slightly and ran to her father. Scipio smiled and, ignoring the pain, bent over to pick up and hug his daughter. "Hey, Desert Rose." Chuckling at her crying, he said, "It's all right, I'm fine."

Ishizu smiled at the interaction between the father and daughter. What she did not realize was that Marik was watching as well. He could see that they were very close and felt a little jealous as he thought about the relationship he had with his father. While the boy respected him, he hated that his father was an extremist about the traditions and did not acknowledge Odion as his son, even though he and his late wife raised him from when Odion was a baby. As Marik continued to think about the tense relationship, he heard Merina ask something that made the boy feel even more jealous: "Daddy…we see Mommy?"

Marik perked up at hearing that: Merina had both parents in her life? As his jealousy grew, he saw Scipio nod. "Yes. As soon as this nice man says I can go, we can go back to Mommy."

Merina smiled and hugged Scipio. Marik felt a little depressed: Merina had to leave? The six-year-old did not want her to leave just yet. He wanted to know so much about her, about the world she came from, about her family; not only that but she was the first person he had ever seen with pale skin and yellow hair. Ishizu was about to say that she would help them back to the upper world when Scipio tried to move and cried out in pain, startling Merina. Forgetting his views about the upper world, the tomb keeper who tended to Scipio said, "Forgive me but I don't think it's wise to move you so soon. I recommend you rest until you are better."

Feeling the stitches in his side, Scipio nodded. "Thank you for your hospitality." He went to set Merina down on the ground but she gripped his shirt, making him smile. "I'll be fine, my little Desert Rose. But I need to rest and you know I can get boring when I'm resting."

Merina could not help but giggle. Rushing up to them, Marik said, "I can play with Merina! I can keep her happy while you're resting!"

Both Scipio and Ishizu were surprised by Marik but for different reasons: Ishizu was surprised that Marik seemed almost devoted to getting close to this outsider while Scipio was surprised that there was a child around Merina's age living here. Taking a chance, Ishizu said, "Marik, think about what you're doing…"

Marik glared up at Ishizu. "I'm helping Merina, making her smile instead of cry while we wait for her father to heal. What's wrong with that?"

This time, Ishizu had nothing to say to that, for she knew Marik was being truthful about this so she relented. "Very well…just make sure Father doesn't see you."

Scipio smiled and looked at Merina. "Go with Marik."

Looking at the boy, Merina nodded and let Scipio put her down. Excited to play with an outsider, Marik grabbed Merina's hand and pulled her out of the room. Scipio chuckled. "Your brother seems happy to play with my daughter."

Ishizu nodded; she just hoped that being around Merina would not affect Marik too much.


In his room, Marik smiled at Merina, who looked around the bare room with a sour look on her face. But she smiled when Marik pulled a box full of wooden toys out from under his bed. "Wow!"

Smiling, Marik overturned the box and dumped the toys, making Merina giggle and clap with delight. There was one toy that caught her attention, making her grab it. "Cheep cheep!"

Marik looked at the toy and laughed. "That's a very special bird, Merina." Seeing Merina blink innocently, the boy explained, "It's a phoenix, a bird of legend."

Merina did not understand so she started to make the bird fly around. Marik took the wooden horse and started to play as well. Soon, their giggles filled the room, making Odion who was waiting outside smile. He was happy that Marik was able to have this small moment of happiness; maybe this memory would help the child with things to come. Taking a moment, Marik smiled at Merina as his eyes laid on her blond hair. Unable to take it anymore, he reached out and petted her hair, causing her to stop and stare at him. Seeing this, Marik pulled his hand back and apologized. "You just…have pretty hair…"

Merina's eyes shone at the compliment. "Weally?" Off Marik's nod, the girl giggled with delight. "Mawik nice! Mewi like Mawik!"

Marik laughed, enjoying the feeling of having an outsider friend. As she passed by, Ishizu peeked in and got worried. Looking at Odion, she asked, "Do you think it's all right to have that girl with Marik?"

Odion knew that Ishizu was worried about Marik's curiosity about the upper world but he still nodded. "I don't see anything wrong with it. With as tough a life as he will have, there shouldn't be anything wrong with giving Marik a moment of happiness."

Ishizu was about to say that it was wrong but stopped herself with the look on Odion's face. The teenager knew how single moments of happiness could help a lifetime of misery. He himself survived the life in the darkness with the moments of happiness he experienced: believing that he could be given the tomb keeper ritual and be seen as a true member of the family, helping Ishizu's mother raise her, and Marik calling Odion "big brother" when the teenager almost killed the child out of jealousy. About to go in and join the children, Ishizu and Odion were approached by the tomb keeper who tended to Scipio's wound. "The outsider is insisting on leaving."

Ishizu looked at her clansman in surprise. "Is he rested up? It seems a bit fast."

He nodded. "I agree. I think he needs to rest a little longer…but Master Ishtar found us. After that encounter …the outsider is insisting on leaving and Master Ishtar is in agreement.

Ishizu mentally winced as she went silent. She hoped that she could have kept this all quiet but, deep down, she knew that her father would find out eventually since the old man always seemed to be one step ahead of them as he had lived longer in this lifestyle. Taking a deep breath, she nodded and looked into the room. She did not want to break the news to her brother, especially since it was very clear that he enjoyed Merina's company, but she had to do it because it was better to hear it from either her or Odion than to have her father come bursting into the room and ripping Merina from Marik's arms. Going into the room, Ishizu tenderly said, "Marik…Merina needs to go home."

Upon hearing that, Marik hugged Merina. Ishizu sighed and pleaded with her brother, only to have Marik whine, "Why?"

Before Ishizu could answer, Merina giggled and hugged him back. "It okay! We still fwiends!"

Marik looked at her in surprise. "Really?"

Merina nodded. "Yep! We be fwiends foever and ever!"

Marik smiled and hugged Merina a little tighter, making Merina giggle some more. The boy then got an idea. Pulling back, he asked, "You write to me? Please?" Even though Merina nodded, Marik asked, "You promise?"

Merina nodded and held up her pinky. "Pinky-pwomise!"

Marik stared at the finger, having never seen a promise being sealed in this fashion. Figuring it was the ways of the outsider, he took a guess and hooked his pinky with her. Merina giggled in response just as Scipio, fully dressed and still wincing, peeked into the room. "Time to go, Merina."

Seeing her father, the little girl raced up to him and hugged his leg. "Daddy! Mawik fwiend! Me wite to him! Dat okay?"

Scipio nodded and looked at Marik. "Thank you for helping my daughter. You've definitely made a friend for life."

Marik smiled at that and waved at Merina, who waved back. Not wanting there to be any more trouble, Ishizu led Scipio and his daughter to the door that led to the upper world, the door that was normally used by a neighboring tomb keeper clan to give her family the supplies they needed. She was about to feel through the darkness to find the handle when Scipio surprised her with a flashlight, a method of producing light she had never seen before. He found the handle with no problem and opened it, making all three of them wince at the sunlight. Merina ran out into the world but stopped within sight at Scipio's calls. Pulling out a notepad and a small pencil, he wrote some words on it and gave the paper to Ishizu. "Give this to your brother so he and Merina can be pen pals."

Ishizu nodded and then looked at Scipio with pleading eyes. "Please, sir…don't tell—"

Scipio finished, "—anyone about your clan? Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. Your father already…'persuaded' me that I shouldn't let anyone know."

Knowing how her father could be with persuading, Ishizu nodded as Scipio scooped Merina up into his arms and started to leave. Looking over his shoulder, Merina waved. "Bye bye!"

Ishizu smiled and waved before closing the door again. After her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she turned around, only to yelp with surprise: her father was there and he had a scowl on his face. "The nosy enemy gone?"

Gripping the paper to make it as small as possible, Ishizu nodded. "Yes, sir."

As tight as her hand was, it was no good: her father saw the paper and ripped it out of her hand. Reading the address, he scowled, "What is this?"

Ishizu looked away, feeling guilty that she was caught. "Marik wants to be…pen pals with…that little girl."

Her father's eyes narrowed with anger. "And you took the paper he handed you? I expected better of you, Ishizu. You know our ways." With that, he ripped up the piece of paper. "Now I want you to forget those outsiders and make sure your brother does as well."

Feeling her heart break for her brother, Ishizu nodded, giving her father what he wanted. As he left, the preteen considered her options. She knew that she was supposed to tell Marik to forget about Merina but she did not think it was fair to have the small light in the darkness snuffed out so quickly. Suddenly, she was hugged by Marik. Waking up from her thoughts, she looked around and saw that she had walked back to Marik's room. She was about to tell him what their father said when Marik smiled. "I'm so happy, big sister! I get to write to an outsider! Can you believe it?!"

Seeing how happy he was, Ishizu made a decision. "I'm happy for you. But we can't have Father knowing so this needs to be a secret between the three of us. I'll let Odion know so he can make sure your letters get to the outside world when we make a list of supplies we need."

Marik smiled brightly and jumped with delight into his room. Ishizu smiled sadly: while it was a lie, it was better than telling him the grim truth. She also told herself that, with Merina as young as she was, there was always a chance she would forget. She just hoped that Marik would do the same.


In his room, Marik laid down on his bed and pulled out the picture of Tima and Seraphita. "I made a friend, Tima, and she's pretty too. With flowing golden hair…I can't wait to start writing to her!" Imagining that the picture was listening to him, Marik hugged it and whispered, "And maybe…one day…I can meet you too…"

As he started to imagine that meeting, a strange feeling overcame him…


In their house, Yugi and Tiki were playing in their room. Tiki simply adored her new family, especially her brother. They were joined at the hip all day, playing games and doing puzzles from sun-up until sun-down. Because of their love for games and puzzles, they grew extremely close with their grandfather, who always provided them with games and puzzles and who liked to tell them stories about when he was younger and all the games he played. That particular day, the siblings were working on individual puzzles and finished at the same time. When they announced at the same time that they were done, they giggled at each other and Yugi suggested, "Find another!"

Getting up, they started to run towards their game closet. But, along the way, Tiki noticed another closet and stopped running, getting Yugi's attention. "Tiki, where going?"

Tiki pointed to the closet. "What in dere?"

Yugi shrugged and, curiosity touching, went into the closet with Tiki. It was the storage closet that Solomon used to store games that were not sold yet. Yugi looked at all the boxes and saw nothing of value until he felt Tiki pat his arm. He looked at her and saw that she was pointing to the top of one shelf. "Yugi, look! Pwetty!"

Yugi looked at what she was pointing at and his eyes shone: it was a small box made out of gold. As he looked at it, he felt like it was calling to him for some reason. Because of that feeling, Yugi said, "Let get it!"

The first thing they tried was jumping up and down to try and get it but it was too high. Getting an idea, Yugi pushed over a box and tried to climb on top of it. But it was a hollow box, which led to the boy collapsing into it and Tiki laughing at him. "Yugi funny!"

Popping out of the box, he glared at his sister but got another idea. Seconds later, Tiki was standing on Yugi's shoulders and reaching for the golden box. "Almost!"

Yugi tried to stay still but having his sister on his shoulders was not an easy feat for a five-year-old. Suddenly, just as Tiki's fingers started to touch the box, they heard a stern voice call their names. Startled, they collapsed; thankfully, they managed to fall onto the collapsed box, saving them from serious injury. Sitting up, they whined in slight pain until Tiki looked at her brother and pointed at him with glee. "Lookie!"

Yugi was confused until he looked up and smiled as well: when they fell, they shook the shelf enough to cause the golden box to fall on Yugi's head. Giggling, he took it in his hands. "Got it!"

Solomon, the one who startled them, recognized the box and quickly took it from Yugi's hands, making his grandson blink with confusion. Seeing their disappointed faces, the old man shook his head. "I'm sorry, you two, but this is not something for you to play with."

Tiki whined, "But Grandpa…"

Solomon shook his head, determined to keep the box out of their hands. But he made the mistake of looking down at them: they gave him the cute eyes, eyes that they knew Solomon could not resist. Sure enough, he smiled and gave the box back to them. Cheering in their victory, they sat down and opened it to see what was inside. Tiki pulled out the first thing she saw, which was a golden necklace with a diamond held by golden wings. "Pwetty!"

Yugi nodded. "Yes! Pwetty!"

Tiki looked at Yugi, intending to tease him for agreeing that a necklace was pretty, but she saw that his eyes were glued to the box. She peeked down and her eyes shone as well: the box was filled with golden puzzle pieces. Seeing the pieces, Solomon smiled and realized that he was worrying for nothing: as much as his grandson loved puzzles, Yugi was only five-years-old and the puzzle was too difficult for him. "It's a complicated puzzle, Yugi. Can you put it together?"

Excited with this challenge, Yugi nodded eagerly. "Yes!"

Looking at the pieces, Tiki chirped, "Tiki help!"

Yugi nodded again, his smile widening. Solomon could not help but smile, especially at how attached his grandchildren were at the contents of the box, so he decided to tell them, "You know…there's a legend behind that puzzle and necklace."

Loving stories above all, Tiki chirped, "Tell stowy!"

Solomon laughed heartily at her enthusiasm. "All right. How about we get out of this closet? Then I'll tell you the story."

As the children got up, Tiki held up the necklace. "Put on first!" Seeing Solomon's look, she sheepishly asked, "Pwease?"

Smiling, Solomon took the necklace and put it around her neck. Racing to the bathroom, Tiki climbed her stepstool and looked at herself, only to clap with delight. "Pwetty!"

When she came out, she followed Solomon and Yugi back to their room. With his grandchildren laying on Yugi's bed, Solomon told them that the puzzle was said to hold a special power when put together. Yugi perked up. "It gwant a wish?"

Solomon shrugged with a chuckle. "I guess you can say that…but no one has ever solved the puzzle so it's just a story."

The children did not care that it was "just a story;" they were determined to solve the puzzle and have their wish granted. Together, they stated, "We solve!"

Solomon smiled at his grandchildren. He still believed that the puzzle was too difficult for them but he knew better than to dampen the hopes of children. Instead, he said, "Maybe your wish will come true if you put the puzzle together."

The children giggled as Yugi dumped out all the pieces on his bed. Leaving them to work, Solomon left and ran into the children's parents. Looking in on them, the father noticed what they were playing with. "Father, I thought you were going to sell that."

Solomon chuckled. "I was…until they found it."

"Don't you think it's a little complicated for them?"

Solomon shrugged with a smile. "They're determined to solve it…especially since they have each other."

Mrs. Mutou smiled. "They really love each other, don't they?"

The adults shares a smile. Inside the bedroom, the children tried to work on the puzzle but it was just as complicated as Solomon said, if not more so. Whining, Tiki grew bored and went to color. But Yugi was determined to solve it, for he felt that something was telling him to finish the puzzle.


As the years went on, different events happened that caused ripples in certain souls.

Despite Odion offering to have the ritual instead, Marik had the carvings when he turned ten. During the ritual, something evil happened to the young one's soul. As if sensing it, Odion carved a sign of loyalty to Marik on his face. Though furious at his fate, Odion's scars and the picture of Tima helped the child cope. One year later, Marik was determined to sneak out, both to see the outside world at least once and to hopefully find Merina, who never responded to the hundreds of letters he wrote. Fifteen-year-old Ishizu tried to convince him this was a bad idea but eventually gave in when Odion offered to help. Marik enjoyed the visit but he and Ishizu were shaken up when they met a loyalist to the Pharaoh wearing the Sennen Key who said that the Pharaoh and Queen were returning. Not caring about the Pharaoh, Marik liked the idea of Tima coming back and, thanks to a page from a magazine, imagined her riding a motorcycle with him. But their fun came crashing down when they returned and realized, when they left, an alarm was set off. Thanks to his part in their disobedience, Odion was wiped to unconsciousness. With Odion unconscious, Marik felt a jolt of pain and passed out. When he came to, he was standing over Odion with the Millennium Rod in his hand. Despite Odion trying to shield the child, Marik saw that his father was dead. The child was crushed at the sight of his dead father and his anger grew when the loyalist appeared in spirit and told Marik that it was because of the soul of the Pharaoh that this happened, for he would be returning. The next morning, Ishizu found that Marik and Odion had run away, evident by their rooms ransacked and the door to the outside world open. Worried, she took the Tauk and was shown visions of what could happen. Having been taught that the Tauk shows the wearer the future that will happen, she left to find her brothers. At the same time, the two were on a bus, taking them away. Holding the preteen close, Odion hoped to help Marik. Thanks to the closeness, Odion did not notice that Marik was clutching the page that had the picture of Tima; thanks to him believing that the Pharaoh and his loyalist was responsible for his father's death, the preteen was determined not only to seek revenge on the Pharaoh for the cursed fate of the Tomb Keepers but to rescue Tima from the Pharaoh.


As Ishizu predicted, Merina forgot about Marik since she met him at such a young age and since none of his letters ever made it to her. Even so, the blond American grew up happily with her family, who instilled in her a love of history and gaming, especially Duel Monsters. But at the age of eleven, a tragic event had occurred: Merina lost her mother after a long battle with cancer. For a whole year, Merina and Scipio grieved until they realized that their lost loved one would want them to not let sadness dictate their every move. As they picked up the pieces, Merina noticed something: thanks to the medical bills left behind and Scipio's current job as a history teacher at a public high school, they were struggling financially. Because she was in junior high, Merina knew she could not get a part-time job but she found another solution: during the summers, she secretly earned money by participating in Duel Monsters Tournaments. Not wanting her father to find out, she wore a feathered mask and dueled under the name Red Phoenix. Thanks to her determination, she became champion in the tournaments and all the money she earned was given to Scipio, under the guise of being money Merina got from doing odd-jobs and money she saved up from friends and family. At first, Scipio was suspicious since there was always a sparkle in Merina's eyes whenever he asked her about the money. Finally, in the summer of her last year in junior high, he diskovered the truth: he was invited by a friend to watch the tournament since the friend's son was in the tournament. Scipio took particular interest in the Red Phoenix and then realized who she was when he recognized a trademark tactic Merina always used. After the final duel, he approached Merina, who was a little embarrassed at being caught, and told her, no matter what, she did not have to worry about her family's financial situation, for he was proud of his girl for doing something so selfless. Hugging her, he promised that things would get better. Hearing that, Merina retired from dueling, vowing to do it only when she felt it was right. When she made that decision, Merina met Torru, a fire phoenix. Bonding with her immediately, he told her that he had been watching her for a while, wanting to see if she was ready to have him by her side; with her selflessness about the prize money, he knew she was ready. A couple weeks later, as Scipio predicted, things got better: he received a job offer to be an archaeology professor at a University in Domino, Tokyo, Japan.


In Domino, Yugi and Tiki each blossomed into their own person. They still retained their love for games and puzzles but Yugi really dove into them, becoming even shyer as a result. Despite no one outside the family believing her, his sister knew there was more to him than meets the eye, especially those rare times when Yugi was brave and stood up to people who needed it. Tiki, still retaining her child voice and innocence, became obsessed with dresses and skirts, anything to feel like a princess she always claimed. Her family had long since given up on getting her to wear jeans instead of skirts and Tiki was fine with that, finding pants too restrictive. She was more outgoing than her brother but still was lonely like him, especially since she preferred to play games with her brother (though she preferred to watch Duel Monsters instead of playing the card game) instead of going outside and playing sports. But, no matter what game they played, Yugi and Tiki always found time to work on the puzzle they found as children. Tiki often tried to forget about it, claiming it was too hard, but Yugi's devotion to finishing it and the necklace she wore kept roping her back into helping her brother. Thanks to the story their grandfather told them about the powers that were rumored to be in the completed puzzle, they made a wish on the puzzle pieces to have friends. Deep down, Yugi knew the puzzle was almost impossible to solve, having gotten stuck in the same spot numerous times, but his wish for friends and the feeling he still had that he was being called to finish it kept him going. Little did they know that the puzzle and the game Duel Monsters would change their lives forever…