A/N: I don't know shit about ancient Egypt…or Yugioh for that matter. Marik is just fucking gorgeous. AU. In ancient Egypt, Marik, a young tomb keeper, experiences a glimpse of the outside world from a handsome thief. Yami Bakura/Marik.

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Maddening.

That was a good word to describe it. This feeling I felt. I was trapped in the darkness and its relentless torture. Fear was a ravenous beast that would consume me lest I kept it shackled to reality. When you don't see the glorious light of the sun for more than a glimpse at a time, the darkness will take its toll and the demon that is your own mind will threaten to tip the balance that is your sanity.

I've gotten used to it. I am a being without hope. I used to spend hours staring at the small ring of light around the entrance to the tomb, wondering what it would be like to taste the outside air. Surely it smelled nice. Surely it didn't reek of the decaying carcasses of pharaohs past.

The shadows are my friends now. I've spent nearly fifteen years with them and have known only their lonely embrace since infancy. They speak a language only a keeper of tombs can understand. They are my captors, but their depths of unknown are a welcome hell. I don't need brothers or fathers. My thoughts are the only company I need.

I walk the familiar stone corridors with a burning torch in my hand. Sinister figures dance upon the dank walls as my flame flickers intermittently. I watch them absently, along with my own silhouette, swirling in and out of sight. I know this labyrinth by heart. My feet are bare and trod lightly upon the cool dirt as I take cautious steps down the corridor, avoiding the various booby-traps poised to imprison the souls of trespassers in these dark keeps for eternity. The golden bangles jingle softly around my ankles and wrists, warding off the deafening silence only the restless dead can provide.

I stop and listen hard. Even the holy sanctuary of the deceased wasn't immune to the invasions of rodents and snakes, but this was different somehow. What was this…presence? My heart was racing like never before as I scrutinized my surroundings in the dim firelight.

"You must be…the Keeper. I've been waiting for you," a voice whispered in my ear. Something sharp pricked me between the shoulder blades. "Lead me to the treasure, boy, if you wish to see another day of your sorry life."

I arched my back slightly to avoid the dagger's tip as my thoughts ran rapid. A tomb robber? Impossible. They never made it this far into the maze. Always, they stumbled into a fatal trap along the way and met their well-deserving, but untimely, deaths.

"Spill my blood here and invite the wrath of generations of departed kings upon yourself. I shall lead you to some gold, clever thief, if I may have your name in return," I responded irritably, barely concealing my curiosity.

"You can know me as the thief-king, Bakura."

"Bakura, eh?"

.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.

My fingers scraped at the stone as the thief's body moved against my own. None can escape the desert heat, but I found myself in a quandary. I had never been hot like this before. I knew of sex and of the lust that plagued the common man, but I was not part of that world. A tomb-keeper had no place for such earthly desires in his life. I was of a higher order.

Or so I thought…

I let the noises escape my lips, knowing that no one would hear me. His mouth was all over me, hot and eager to taste my pure, sunless skin. My entire body trembled. I could not figure out why. I wasn't frightened. I wasn't excited. My clothes were soon discarded and my bare back pressed against the cold wall of the tomb. I winced in pain. My initiation scars were still raw. It was enough to rattle some sense back into my puzzled mind and help me push away the strange outsider whose handsome body had me momentarily seduced.

I stood, stark naked and eyed the taller man warily. I was unashamed. Modesty was a social concept. Tomb keepers remained outside the norms of society.

"This is the innermost chamber. Here you will find the most valuable items in existence. Most are owned by the Pharaoh Atem, himself," I remarked quietly, gesturing widely around the grandiose room. "Take whatever you wish. The Pharaoh will know by the next sunrise, but I suppose you are already a wanted man."

The thief's eyes strayed around the room lazily. It was a few minutes before he finally spoke. "Wanted. Of course it is only natural that a sinner such as I be brought to justice. So yes, I am wanted. Wanted by kings. Wanted by entire countries…" His dark eyes scanned my body for a moment and his white teeth were suddenly bared in a grin, "Wanted, it seems, by you as well."

I blinked, slightly confused by his comment. "I do not understand you, thief. Take what you want and leave. It pains me enough to know that such a sacred place had been sullied by your lowly presence."

And then, without warning, I was thrown up against that wall again, the sandpaper texture grating against my delicate skin.

"Then I shall take you, Tomb keeper. Take you right here in the Pharaoh's golden chamber, in this sacred place and defile your own virgin body with my lowly presence," He forced himself between my bare thighs and this time I could not conceal the unwanted flush of my face. My cock stood, hard against the bulge in his pants and begging for attention.

"You wouldn't dare!" I snarled

"A thief has no code of honor. I am the king of thieves." He thrust his clothed erection against mine and my body began to tremble once more. Why was I suddenly craving this man so strongly? Was this how it really felt? Sex? Arousal? It was not at all a bad feeling. It was just…foreign.

My hesitation was felt by Bakura, who used the opportunity to crush our bodies together and pin my wrists above my head. I was trapped, and yet I was more aroused than ever. The slow grinding of his hips against mine and the feel of his wet tongue on my neck caused me to shudder involuntarily.

"Hurry up," I managed to growl, though I wasn't quite sure what needed to be hurried. Perhaps I wanted this dirty thief out of my dark and lonely sanctuary. Perhaps I wanted to be released from the strange feeling building deep within my body.

The thief paused for a moment to disentangle himself from his own robes and stolen adornments and returned to me, this time forcing his hardened, naked body against mine. The heat was beginning to become unbearable. I squirmed uncomfortably and felt a drop of perspiration slide down my face.

The older man looked at me seriously for a moment. His calloused hand slid down my hip and under my leg, which he proceeded to wrap around his waist. I could have resisted, but my curiosity had long since gotten the better of me. I panted like an animal, hardly believing the sounds coming from my lips. The thief covered my mouth with a hand that smelled of blood and stolen metals.

"Now…don't scream," he whispered soothingly, mockingly.

I wasn't at all prepared for what happened next. His swollen cock forced its way into my body and his hand, still in position, muffled my wail of anguish. I struggled to get him off of me; out of me, but he began thrusting ruthlessly and I was unable to escape the pain. My fingers clawed and my body strained against his but it was useless. Tears streamed down my face.

It seemed to be taking an eternity for him to finish. My head was slumped forward onto his shoulder, my body moving up and down with his rhythmic thrusts. The pain had gone and my mind was free to wander. Unconsciously, my right hand reached down and began to stroke my own erection.

Bakura chuckled darkly. "That's it, boy." His larger hand replaced mine and suddenly everything started to feel…good. My head lolled back against the hard stone and a pitiful whine broke from my lips.

"Yes…th-there," I managed to say, while shifting desperately for that feeling again. Strong hands gripped my hips and held me steady while his organ penetrated the deepest parts of my body. I moaned and let my lust be known to the sleeping pharaohs. I was close…so close.

Then it happened. My whole body went rigid and my mouth fell open in surprise as the most intense, most pleasurable feeling engulfed me and overwhelmed my entire mind. It happened to Bakura as well. I felt warm liquid coat my insides and his hot breath on my chest as he panted heavily. After a moment, his hands released me.

I leaned against the wall for support. My legs were trembling and my chest was heaving. There was a strange wetness tricking down my thighs. My mind was a mess as I reached up and touched the gooey substance that covered my own body, and, I noticed, some of Bakura's.

I sank down into the dirt, naked and exhausted. I couldn't think. I couldn't even remember what had just happened.

"That is what people outside do?" I asked quietly. Bakura was already examining the golden items in the room. I wasn't even sure if he heard me…of if he cared. I hugged my knees to my chest, more confused than ever. "It's so dirty. It's so wrong."

The thief had his back to me, but he let out a hearty laugh. He turned to me, slipping a golden necklace around his neck. The Millennium Ring. "But it is fun, isn't it?"

I blushed and his eyes were suddenly sparkling dangerously. "Wrong, right, who gives a fuck? This is life. You do what makes you feel good. That's it. Would you like to know the things that make me feel good, innocent Keeper? Touching gold, feeling gold, stealing gold, and sex." He paced about the dark room and scanned the rest of the items with little interest. "What, might I ask you, makes you feel happy…alive…in a dungeon like this?"

I wracked my brain for an answer. The life of a tomb keeper could be described as anything but "fun". It angered me that this thief, this degenerate seemed to have more of a life than I did. He knew who he was while I was walking the razor's edge of insanity.

A hand entered my vision. Welcome…inviting…tempting.

"You can spend your life here, with your scriptures and your rules, or you can get out. You may think differently, but there is nothing that separates you…from me."

I looked into his murky, brown eyes. They were deceitful. They held many lies, and yet somehow he understood me, this creature that came from the outside world.

Tentatively, I placed my hand into his own. Where he would lead me, I had no idea. And that was the unknown. That was the adventure.

.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.