A Harlequinade of Shadows

by Beware of Starlight

Yugi Mutos life had never been anything other than ordinary. But when he meets the mysterious Yami, eveything changes. Over the course of the next year, his and Yamis paths keep crossing. Each meeting is tangled up in a web of murder, suicide and tragedy. Soon Yugi finds him self caught in the biggest Puzzle ever. Who is Yami? Based on "The mysterious Mr. Quin" by Agatha Christie.

1. The Midnight Visitor

The Midnight Visitor

New Year's Eve was slowly drifting through its final hour and the big hall at Roystock was filled with the small group of houseguests. Yugi Muto leaned back, still laughing at a story Téa, one of his oldest friends, just told about the latest mishaps taking place at practice at the dance company she was currently working in; and let his gaze wander through the room. It was a happy celebration, old friends and people he just met intermingling at ease but something didn't quite sit right with him, even if he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. But the longer the evening went on, the more urgent this feeling became. It was a little bit unsettling.

Roystock was an old house, currently inhabited by one of his grandfather's closest friends, Professor Arthur Hawkins. The archaeologist was currently back in England, and he and Yugi's grandfather had regaled the rest of the guests with increasingly alcohol fueled recountings of their explorations. With later hours the stories had gotten more and more embellished and Yugi was quite sure that his grandfather was enjoying making more and more things up. At least he hoped so, because the thought about a cult in India pulling out people's hearts while they were still alive and stealing holy stones did sound a bit creepy. Smiling he listened a bit to the story, and moved on with a small headshake. No, the problem wasn't with the two old friends.

Other than them, there weren't many other guests. Joey, Yugi's best friend since high school, was listening wide eyed to the two old men. He never quite grew out of fearing ghosts, and creepy stories could catch his attention and imagination like nothing else. So far so normal. Téa, a professional dancer, was attentively listening to Rebecca, Professor Hawkins granddaughter, a young genius hellbent on following her grandfather in his academic career. Yugi was sitting next to them on the sofa and thus could listen to every word of the admittedly very fascinating conversation. Ancient Egypt had always been something of a passion of his...and Rebecca knew what she was talking about. With her ambition and her fiery character and intelligence, Yugi had no doubt that that she would succeed in her endeavour. And then...then there were the Valentines...Yugi's eyes narrowed as his gaze wandered to them.

Yes, maybe they were the ones that unsettled him. It was nothing personal, he barely knew Valon, but he seemed sympathetic, a lively Australian with a genial attitude and a big smile and a mouth that could rival Joey's at times. And Yugi had known Mai Valentine for a while now: they had met at some card tournament and Yugi respected her as strong duellist and a friend. But Mai, normally so self-confident and brazen, was oddly withdrawn tonight. She had barely taken part in the conversations, her smile did seem a bit hollow and forced, and Yugi was quite sure that she had drowned her glasses in a tempo to match the two old men. And her husband...Looking back to Valon Yugi couldn't help but notice that he was sometimes looking over to his wife. Nothing unusual about that but...damn it, Yugi couldn't quite say what it was, but something in his eyes reminded him not only of love, but also of fear. But why would he be afraid of his own wife? Mai could be scary sometimes, admittedly, but Valon did seem like the kind of guy to be cowered by that. If that was the case Mai wouldn't have married him anyway. Yugi had played card games, any kind of game honestly, for much of his life. He had grown up in his grandfather's game shop, and the first memory he had was about a puzzle coming together under his fingers. He knew how to read people, knew how they looked when they were nervous, as that was a tell you always had to look for, and now he was sure that Valon was all nerves. Interesting...

The solemn chiming of the big clock in the corner roused him from his thoughts and with a small surprise he watched it strike twelve. Was it really so late already? "Twelve o'clock." Arthur Hawkins voice sounded across the room. "It's new year's day then. Happy new year to you all!"

Rebecca's gaze wandered over to the clock. "Isn't this one five minutes early?"

Her grandfather shrugged. "Five minutes more, five minutes less. It probably won't matter that much. Of course sometimes it does..." He interrupted himself and his eyes grew darker. But in the next moment, the impression was passed, and a congeal smile appeared back on his face. "But yes, we should probably wait a bit longer. Celebrating early could bring bad luck after all."

Rebecca snorted amusedly, and with the conversation drifting off to superstitions and old traditions, her grandfather didn't notice when Téa leaned over and started to whisper. "What was that about? Your grandfather looked sad for a moment." Yugi leaned a bit closer too, and even Joey detangled himself from the conversation, probably glad to hear something that didn't involve old curses, to listen to her.

Under that much attention Rebecca couldn't very well decline to answer, so with a sigh she lowered her voice, all the times glancing over to her grandfather, making sure he couldn't hear her. "You have heard of the duelist Rex Raptor? He played mostly with Dino cards?"

Yugi nodded slowly. "He was the runner up for regional champion a couple of years ago, wasn't he?" Right...he remembered. Together with Weevil Underwood, Rex Raptor had been one of the first professional duelists Yugi had heard about, back then when Duel Monsters just started to get popular. "But I never really heard about him after that...Did he stop playing?"

Rebecca's face was grim. "No. Or yes, but in a much more permanent way." The scratching of a chair over the floor made her look up, and she gazed over to Mai. "Oh, is it too hot?" Mai had been sitting close to the fire. "Sorry, grandfather always goes a bit overboard with that."

Mai just shook her head. "No, no, it's alright. I just need to get away from it." Now her face was partially hidden in the shadows, and when she spoke Yugi was sure he could detected a hint of anxiety. "I think I met Rex at a tournament once."

Rebecca nodded. "Probably, he was very popular back then I think. Goodness, that must have been ten years ago." She raised her hand to gesture at the room they were sitting in. "He originally owned this house you know." Again she interrupted herself, and took a small sip from her glass. Yugi wasn't sure if it was to make a dramatic break, or because she wasn't sure how to continue on. Both, maybe. When she talked again, her voice was lowered, like she was sharing a secret or telling a ghost story. "Ten years ago, he shot himself, right in this house. It was a terrible shock for grandfather. He was right there when it happened, and your grandfather too, I think." She glanced shortly over to Yugi. "I think he always thought that if he had payed more attention, or if they had started looking for him sooner, that that tragedy could have been avoided."

Silence descended after she finished, giving time for her words to settle. When the old grandfather clock in corner suddenly started to groan and wheeze before it stroke twelve, Yugi wasn't the only one who flinched. Even Joey jumped up a little bit. With one hand on his heart he glared at the old clock like it personally attacked him. "Fucking hell, I nearly got a heart attack! Stupid thing."

Next to him Téa laughed. "And it just wanted to tell you that the New Year finally arrived. But don't worry, Joey." She gave him a friendly nudge with her elbow. "I'm sure Rex isn't wandering around the house as a ghost. Professor Hawkins wouldn't live here otherwise."

Exasperated, Joey turned to her. "Yes, that's very calming, really..." He shook his head.

With a small laugh Rebecca raised herself from the sofa, and stretched. "So, after this nice way to start the New Year, I'm going to bed. I still have something to do tomorrow." She glanced around. "Anyone coming?"

To Yugi's surprise it was Mai who nodded. "Yes, I'm slowly getting tired. Maybe I'm out of shape." She grinned, and winked, but Yugi couldn't help but notice that she was very pale, paler than usual. Concerned, his eyes followed her while she said her round of goodnights, pecked her husband on the cheeks and started to go up the stairs. She had barely looked at Valon while she had kissed him, but on the top of the stairs she turned her head to look at him over her shoulders and gave him a long searching glance which had a queer intensity to it. It lasted barely a second; then she disappeared, but the feeling of dread, of danger that had accompanied Yugi for the whole evening returned with vengeance. He was so distracted that he barely noticed how he wished Rebecca goodnight.

Of course she noticed, but he got off with just a searching glance. Maybe she just thought he was tired. "Well, we can only hope it will be a happy new year. Anybody know any superstitions to assure that?" Grinning she looked around, and with a smile Téa shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, I only now the one about the dark man. You know, to bring luck to the house, the first person to step over the doorstep on New Year's Day must be a dark man. But I don't think that's something you can control." She laughed. "It really sounds like 'You will meet a tall, dark, stranger', doesn't it?"

Rebecca shrugged. "True. But who knows, maybe we will be lucky. Even fortune-teller clichés could be right sometimes." With a small smile she disappeared upstairs.

Now that the guests thinned down the rest drew together closer, and the last decanter of the whiskey went around. Joey, declining alcohol in general, let himself sink back into the couch and glanced with a sigh over to Yugi. "First death cults and now suicides. This year is staring off so well, I'm not sure a dark man could turn this around." His darkening gaze wandered back to the stairs, and Yugi couldn't help but wonder if he was worried too. Joey knew Mai better than him after all, the two of them having achieved a friendship based on bickering, mock fights and teasing. If anything was wrong, it wouldn't be hidden from him.

Even though the knot of worry in his stomach was far from calming, he gave his friend a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, like Téa said Professor Hawkins wouldn't live in a haunted house. At least I don't think so..." He gazed over to the old man, who gave him a weak smile.

"I admit, I hate it when Rebecca brings up the subject. It's a tragedy, no matter how you look at that." Curious, Professor Hawkins eyes wandered around his guests. "I don't think any of you knew Rex, didn't you. Apart from Solomon of course."

Yugi, Joey and Téa all shook their heads, but it was Valon who answered. "No, I never met him." It was strangely fierce and defensive, so that Yugi looked at him with surprise for a moment. But Arthur, having turned his attention back to Joey with a dangerously teasing glint in his eye, didn't seem to notice.

"To get back to this house being haunted, well, there was a lot of rotten talk back then, of course. After the tragedy the place was sold to a big manufacturer, and he cleared out soon after, barely lasted a year. It didn't suit him, but" – he shrugged – "people talk. It gave the house a bad name, and when Rebecca got into Cambridge and we needed someplace to live close by the house was going cheap, and in the end I bought it. I never encountered a ghost here." The smile he gave Joey now was reassuring, but it didn't last long. "Still, nobody likes to live in a house where an acquaintance shot himself. Especially since we will likely never know why the poor boy did it."

With a small snort Valon poured himself another whiskey. "It's not like he will be the first or the last person to commit suicide without anyone figuring out why." He took a small sip, seemingly careless but Yugi noticed a small shake in his hand, which probably didn't come from the alcohol. He had handled it quite liberally that evening, true, but his speech was clear, just like his eyes, and he still looked and sounded very sober. Whatever else was wrong with him, he could handle his alcohol. That just didn't ease his worry over everything else that could go wrong.

Téa shook her head. "That's cold."

Valon looked over to her, and shrugged again. "But true."

She just signed, before she turned her head, and focused on Joey, who was already looking uncomfortable enough with the topic. "So, how is the work going? Your exhibition is in a couple of months right?"

It was an obvious way of changing the topic, and Joey jumped on it gratefully. "Oh that's going great! Perfectly in fact." He laughed, and the nervousness in his voice couldn't really be overheard. "I mean, there is this one picture I'm still having trouble with, and …still…a lot…to finish, but" – he perked up again – "I'm Joey Wheeler, remember? This is going to be fantastic, you will see."

Téa's look was a bit exasperated, and Yugi couldn't help but smile. "I'm sure it will. Your pictures are beautiful..." His own understanding about art wasn't that great to be honest, games were where his talents really laid, but he liked what he had seen of Joey's work so far. And honestly, nobody, absolutely nobody, would have ever expected Joey Wheeler to end up as an artist, back when he first declared that he wanted to draw. Hell, Tristan was still teasing him about that to this day. But Joey stuck with it, and after a couple of years, and with a lot of low paying jobs on the side and the help of his friends to pay for rent and food, it actually did look like he could be successful at what he wanted to do. He wouldn't have gotten an exhibition in a small, but extremely well respected, gallery if his work wasn't up to scratch.

Interested Yugi leaned forward. "But trouble with a picture…Is that a new idea, or something you have been working on for longer?"

With a frustrated sigh Joey combed his fingers through his hair. "A new one. There was this building Serenity dragged me to, an old meiji time mansion or something she wanted to visit and one of those rooms just struck me." He smiled, even if it turned into half a grimace. "You are probably going to like it, when it's done, but you know, even there was talk about ghosts and old stories. I swear I'm being haunted by that!"

Yugi laughed, and started to answer, but before he could get out a word the shutters in the windows smashed together with a loud bang, and for a moment the light began to flicker. With a slight scream Joey jumped out from his seat. "See?! What do I tell you?"

Yugi's grandfather shook his head, smiling reassuringly at the blond young man. "That's not a ghost, that was just the wind. The storm has been building up for a while." Professor Hawkins nodded, but he glanced worriedly over to the windows, clearly wondering whether or not they would hold.

Playing with his whiskey glass, Valon shot Joey a sly grin. "Are you sure? It really sounds like tonight is a night for ghost to walk if they ever do." He winked. "All the devils are abroad tonight."

If looks could kill, Joey could have been charged with manslaughter right now. Shivering he glared at Valon, before he looked back at the window. "Could we please leave this topic be? Please?"

Solomon Muto shrugged, while his smile was compassionate. "Ok, but think about it this way. If Téa is right, even the darkest one of those devils can do nothing but bring us luck. And we could always use some of that."

With a laugh Téa raised her glass. "I'll drink to that." She grinned up to Joey. "It's the devil's luck after all, isn't it?"

He just regarded her with a long suffering glance. "I honestly could live without that." But his mutter was drowned in a loud wail, as the storm rose again in power, and before anyone could react three loud knocks were heard from the door, which brought all conversation to an abrupt standstill.

Curious glances were shared while everyone tried to figure out if there really had been a knock or if it had just been the storm. "A visitor at this time of the night?" Yugi's grandfather did sound surprised, which didn't happen to the old man all that much. "Must be a peculiar traveller."

The friends stared at each other, before Professor Hawkins shook his head and started to rise from his comfortable seat by the fire. "I'll go and open it. At this time no servants will be up any more." He walked over, accompanied by curious, and in Joey's case, who was muttering something about serial killers coming in at night, nervous, gazes, fumbled a bit with the heavy bars keeping the door in place, and flung it open at last. An icy blast of wind swept into the hall, bringing snowflakes and the tall and slender figure of a man on the doorstep with it. For Yugi, craning his neck to get a better sight, the stained glass over the door made him appear to be dressed in a curious costume, painted with every colour of the rainbow. Then, the stranger stepped forward and the strange effect disappeared. But he still looked fascinating.

The many coloured clothes were actually motorclothes, and not really many coloured. They were pitch black in fact, which did make Yugi wonder how he could have seen the colours for a moment. His face was a work of sharp angles, smooth lines and high cheekbones, looking fragilely beautiful, if there hadn't been a hint of sharpness and arrogance. His skin was dark, the colour of old gold bringing with it the memory of ancient treasures and desert sands, helped by the fact that the stranger's eyes were a deep, dark red, looking like rubies surrounded by gold. It was the most striking pair of eyes Yugi had ever seen. Those interesting contrasts turned the face from merely beautiful to fascinating.

"I'm sorry to disturb you tonight." The stranger's voice was a deep rich baritone, pleasant and haunting like a moonlight melody. An apologetic smile accompanied his words. "But my car broke down, just down the road. It's not a big problem, my driver is working on it right now, but he thinks it would take half an hour at most and with the snow storm…" His smile grew as he broke off, and Professor Hawkins nodded at once.

"Of course, nobody could ask you to wait outside in the cold. Come in and have a drink, the fire is still hot. Do you think your driver would need help with the car?"

With a grateful smile the stranger shook his head. "No, no, thank you. He knows what to do. By the way." He offered his hand. "My name is Atem. Atem Sennen. Pleased to meet you." His smile had an impish undertone, his ruby coloured eyes sparkling as if he was constantly laughing about something only he could see, yet everything about his manner was warm and friendly. With a small gesture Professor Hawkins pointed at the chair Yugi's grandfather had already pulled forward, the same chair Mai had left before. "Please, sit down, Mr Sennen." With one hand he began to introduce his guest. "Solomon Muto, Yugi Muto, Joey Wheeler, Téa Gardner. Valon Valentine. My name is Professor Arthur Hawkins."

With a polite nod the visitor acknowledged the introductions and dropped into the chair by the fireside. Sitting now directly left to Yugi, some effect of the firelight threw a strange mark over his face, a bar of shadows which gave Yugi almost the impression that Sennen was wearing a mask.

Still standing Professor Hawkins threw a few more logs into the fire, and offered his new guest a drink. While the visitor accepted it, Yugi's grandfather looked over him with the curiosity which had accompanied the old man through his whole life. "So, what brings you to this part of the world Mr. Sennen? Do you know it quite well?"

A pair of red eyes wandered over to Solomon, and Mr. Sennen nodded. "I passed through it some years ago." He couldn't have sounded like he cared less, but something in his words made Yugi listen more closely. Just like with Mai before, he couldn't say what it was, but he knew that it was important. "Really?" The question was out before he could think about, but Sennen answered it nonetheless. " Yes. It's been a while though. Back then this house still belonged to the duelist Rex Raptor."

"Ah." Interested and maybe a bit relieved Professor Hawkins leaned forward. "So you knew Rex?"

The visitor looked back towards him. "Yes. I knew him." He didn't smile while he spoke, but there seemed to be a special undertone to his words. Either way, Professor Hawkins leaned back, a little bit more at ease. If the stranger knew Rex in whatever distant way, perhaps the acquaintance of an acquaintance, then he wasn't a complete stranger, and thus the old man was delighted to talk more with him. Truth to be told, he probably would have done it either way, the professor had always been very hospitable, and he truly liked people.

"An astonishing coincidence. We were just talking about his horrible death. I can tell you, I'm still not completely at ease with living here." With a glint in his eyes he cheerfully overheard Joey's complaint about why he had to stay here then, if even their host was afraid. "If there had been anything else suitable…" He sighed deeply, and swirled his whiskey thoughtfully in its glass. "I was here you know, on the night he shot himself, together with Solomon." He nodded towards his old friend. "And really" – now there was no doubt he was glancing over to Joey, and there was a teasing grin hidden underneath his grey moustache – "I always wondered whether or not I was going to meet his ghost wandering the halls one day."

Joey just groaned, and buried his head in his hands, while Yugi patted his back encouragingly. That really wasn't Joey's perfect start into a new year.

Sennen still watched Professor Hawkins attentively. "A very inexplicable business." He spoke slowly and deliberately, as if he was savouring each word, and when he paused it was with the air of a seasoned player who just put down an important piece in a game.

Yugi's grandfather nodded slowly. His eyes hadn't left the new visitor since he arrived, his eyebrows drawn together as if in deep thought. "That's one way of putting it. Arthur did doubt if we ever knew what drove the poor boy towards that."

"I wonder." Sennen's voice was tilting along non-committedly. "It was such a surprise?"

Hawkins sighed. "You mean we should have noticed something? Some reason for him to do a thing like that? As if I hadn't thought about that for years. There wasn't one, that's what makes it such a mystery. True, he just came second place in the regional finals against Weevil Underwood, but those two always had the kind of rivalry where they were constantly one upping another. Rex was full of plans on how he would defeat Weevil next and make him pay for his loss. He was kind of dramatic to be honest." He interrupted himself. "He was oddly cheerful, now that I think about it. Top of his spirits, celebrating his plans for the future with a few guests and visitors. And after dinner he went straight up to his room, drew a revolver and shot himself. Why, that is something nobody will ever know."

Sennen raised his eyebrow slowly. "That's a rather sweeping statement Professor Hawkins, isn't it?" A smile accompanied his words, the reproach so mild it was barely noticeable.

Thus Professor Hawkins regarded his new visitor with barely more than a hint of amusement. "So you think it would be possible to figure this out?"

Sennen nodded. "Of course. Just because a problem remained unsolved it doesn't mean that it's unsolvable."

At this Valon started to laugh. "Oh come on. You don't believe that, after all this time of nobody knowing, something is going to come out now? Ten years after the fact?" He sounded strangely bitter, and there was something sad to his smile when he spoke.

Mr. Sennen nodded gently. "Yes, I do believe that. The evidence of history is against you in this argument. As professor Hawkins will probably agree, a history written by a contemporary historian will never be so true as the history written by a historian of a later perspective. It's a question of getting the true perspective, of seeing things in their full connections. You could call it a question of relativity, if you'd like."

Professor Hawkins hummed thoughtfully. "Interesting theory. But true, time does put questions in different ways, and sometimes that's what opens up our eyes. But you forget archaeology also moves forward because we find new evidence. It's not just looking at things differently."

Yugi's grandfather looked over to his old friend and smiled. "I don't know, I think it depends on the question. Schliemann did find Troy after all exactly where Homer told him it was; it's just that nobody else thought about taking him literally." He threw a sly grin towards Mr. Sennen. "If our new friend wants to suggest that a court of inquiry, held by us tonight, could arrive at the truth about Rex Raptor's death just as well as if we would have been back then, I'm up for the challenge."

Yugi had to hide a smile. His grandfather never could resist a challenge, that would probably never change. But he could feel a surge of excitement himself, because this was a puzzle, a game of logic still unsolved. He couldn't resist something like that either. Even if he was feeling bad about treating another person's suicide like an entertaining game. He'd never met Rex but he deserved better than to be someone's entertainment. But this was the way he thought best, the way he could deal with such things, and if it could help with finding a reason, finding an explanation…wasn't that helping Rex too?

The visitor smiled. "I honestly think we would be more likely to figure it out, Mr. Muto. The personal factor, your emotions and relationship with the dead, has largely disappeared. What's left are the facts with as little interpretation tied to them as possible." Yugi's grandfather snorted. "There are no facts without interpretation: we humans aren't built that way." Mr. Sennen just smiled placidly, and the old man continued. "Good, then where do we start?"

Raising an eyebrow Mr. Sennen turned his whiskey glass absentmindedly around in his hand. "A theory maybe? Something any of you thought of that could explain what happened." He raised his hands in an apologetic manner. "I could imagine that everyone here has some idea about what they think could be the reason."

Professor Hawkins frowned. "Well, yes, we thought, given the way he talked…" The old man seemed to be a bit embarrassed and when he looked up he smiled apologetically. "Maybe it was a question of heartbreak gone wrong? It's a bit cliché but that or money trouble are the first things coming to mind when thinking about reasons for people to commit suicide, and Rex had no trouble with money. He was earning quite well as a professional player, and while he did spend much, he could afford it. So what else could it have been?"

Startled Yugi looked up. He had been leaning forward attentively, listening to the conversation, and trying to find his way in a ten year old mystery, when he had been suddenly jerked out of his thoughts by a flash just barely outside the corners of his vision. When he looked up to check, he caught side of a woman's figure crouched against the balustrade of the gallery above. She was barely visible from anywhere but where he himself sat, and so immovable that for a moment one could believe her to be part of the balustrades decorations. But Yugi recognised her, even hidden in the shadows as she was. Mai Valentine was listening to the conversation downstairs, and it seemed to trouble her so much that her fingers were white from clawing at the wood.

When Yugi looked down he caught Joey's eyes, eyes that had followed his, and in the short barely even existing moment he saw the dark and knowing worry in them. Everything seemed to fall into place. Sennens arrival, Mai's behaviour, Valon's nervousness, even Joey's worry…all seemed to be not events of chance or Yugi's own tiredness and vivid imagination, but pieces of a puzzle, slowly being put together at Roystock tonight. And the most important piece was only important because it was absent. Rex Raptor was a piece in this puzzle tonight, Yugi was sure of it. He just needed to find the right place for everything and he would understand what the puzzle was and why it happened now.

He looked back over to the people in the hall, saw a smile, an attentive tilt of the head, red eyes gleaming in the firelight, and suddenly something else became painstakingly clear. Sennen was the one who had put this puzzle on the table here and now. He may not have arranged the pieces himself, but he picked the players, and like a game master was moving them along, pulling the strings and making the marionettes dance. He knew everything, every piece of the puzzle, right down to Mai upstairs, and Yugi would bet he knew what the finished picture would look like too.

At the same moment Sennen was looking up. His and Yugi's eyes crossed for a moment, and whatever Sennen saw in Yugi's seemed to surprise him. His eyes widened for a moment, but then and interested gleam appeared in them. He smiled, and with an impish wink put his finger to his mouth for a moment. Yugi couldn't help but smile back, and nod. No, he wouldn't try to interrupt that. He was way too curious to see how this would turn out, what exactly Sennen had planned. But there was a challenge in Sennen's eyes, and Yugi would be damned if he didn't take him up on it. Let's see if he couldn't figure out his game before the final round. With a satisfied smile, Sennen was leaning back, and quietly and naturally began to pull the strings again, setting the players down on their path. But every now and then his eyes were wandering back towards Yugi with a thoughtful look and an interested smile.

"Heartbreak…yes," he murmured thoughtfully. "There wasn't anyone special mentioned at dinner?"

The eyes of Yugi's grandfather widened for a moment, and he nodded slowly, almost reluctantly. "Well, yes, there was…but Rex had a habit of bragging, and overstating things, so when he said that there would be an engagement in his future soon, we didn't really give much about it. Especially when he said that he didn't have the lady's agreement yet, so it should still be kept a secret."

Téa rolled her eyes. "Really? He proclaimed himself engaged before even getting a yes? Sounds quite charming."

Professor Hawkins shook his head, even while he couldn't hide a smile. "Well, being charming was never something you could accuse Rex of being. Just like having issues with his self-confidence. Honestly, back then we kind of thought he was exaggerating. I'm not even sure he talked about a woman explicitly. He was pretty close with Weevil Underwood back then…I think we believed Rex was hinting towards him, and was just angry about losing their latest duel, which is why he was being so obtuse."

It seemed like it was Sennen's turn to keep the conversation moving, but he did not speak, and even though nothing in his face or manner pointed to a disagreement, his silence managed to be provocating.

It gave Professor Hawkins a pause. "Or was it like that? I can't think of any other possible candidate. Rex wasn't really close to anyone else. Solomon, did you notice something?" He turned towards Yugi's grandfather, who pondered the question.

"What exactly did he say back then? That he was surely getting engaged soon, that he couldn't tell us the lady's name, I'm sure he spoke about a woman…He said that luck was on his side now, which seemed strange given his recent loss…and that next year at latest he would be married. Bragged about it, like with everything he did. Maybe he was with Weevil a lot, but…"

He looked back towards Hawkins who nodded. "But there wouldn't have been any need for this secrecy. He could have just thrown a fit over his loss, but now that you mention it, he really didn't seem mad about that. It was as if the game barely even existed in his mind…" He shook his thoughts away, and Téa leaned forward. "If he had to keep it secret, maybe the woman was still married? Somebody who had to get a divorce, or who was still in mourning over her husband's recent death? Then it would make sense."

Hawkins nodded. "Yes, that would fit…and now, thinking back, I think it was Weevil who was annoyed with Rex…he wasn't at the dinner, you now, which was strange, given that he was Rex's oldest and best friend. He defeated Rex, again, but it was him who was mad at Rex…"

Thoughtfully Sennen turned his head. "Curious." In the light of the fire Yugi caught a small glint of a smile on his face. "You could say that."

Solomon's gaze wandered across the room, back to his old friend. "He said he was lucky, remember… That was what struck me the most, how happy he looked. Like he was drunk with it. And yet he looked oddly defiant, as if he was expecting someone to attack him right then and there. To challenge him for it."

"Like a man defying fate?" Valon spoke lightly, almost jokingly, but there was a dark look in his eyes and in his smile.

Yugi blinked. That was strange; he couldn't have known Rex…was he really talking about him? Or…was he talking about himself? Was that how he saw himself? Gambling with fate…and by the looks of it breaking under the stress? Again Yugi's eyes wandered upwards, back to where Mai was still watching and waiting motionless like a dead woman.

Yugi's grandfather looked over Valon carefully, and Yugi was sure the old man saw the same thing as himself. He looked worried, even as he nodded slowly. "Yes, that would fit. He was excited. I've only seen this kind of excitement on gamblers before, on people who staked heavily and won against all odds."

His friend coughed softly. "Most of the time that was you if I remember correctly."

The friendly rebuke was met with a bright smile, while Valon, not really noticing the conversation around him, stared straight into the fire. "Like he was gathering the courage for doing what he made up his mind to do?" he spoke mostly to himself, but Hawkins still shook his head in answer.

"No, no, Solomon is right. A successful gambler, who bought off a long shot and had trouble believing in his own luck. I saw this look too many times to misremember it now." He threw a sidewards glance towards Yugi's grandfather, who innocently sipped what was left of his whiskey. But when he put the glass down it was with a sigh. "And yet ten minutes later…"

Silence descended over the room, as the real consequence of this game just became clear. For a while nothing was heard apart from the clinking resulting from Joey playing with his glass. Finally he pushed it down on the table. "Ok, I'm not liking this topic, not at all, just to make that clear, but fuck it, I'm going to play devil's advocate then. Something must have happened in those ten minutes. What was it?" His gaze wandered from one person in the room to the next, with the kind of fiery determination that usually meant that Joey made a decision, and that nobody, not even all the ghosts in the world combined could get him away from it. But Yugi noticed that his friend was almost desperately avoiding looking upwards, to Mai, and he barely even glanced at Valon.

Yugi's grandfather looked at him for a moment, and then he nodded. "Ok, let's go over this carefully. We were talking over dinner, Rex was bragging and celebrating and in the middle of it he gets up and leaves the room…"

"Why?" Sennen's interruption came so abruptly that Yugi's grandfather lost his sentence.

Confused he blinked at the strange guest. "I…what do you mean?"

Sennen regarded him calmly. "I just asked why." He spoke softly, a small smile on his lips, but the amusement was gone.

Hawkins frowned, trying to catch long lost memories. "Such a little detail, it didn't seem to matter back then…Oh right, the post! We were so excited to hear the bell, because we had been snowed in for three days already. Biggest snowstorm for years and years, the roads were completely impassable. Rex wanted to see if something had arrived at last, he was waiting for a check from the last tournament, and he came back with a big pile of things. Newspapers and letter… He shortly glanced at the newspaper, to see if there was anything important in it, and went upstairs with his letters…and then." His excitement wavered and the old man sobered rapidly. "And three minutes later we heard the shot."

Valon's head sprang up. "That is your mystery? Isn't it obvious he got some bad news in one of those letter?"

Yugi's grandfather smiled slightly. "Oh yes, it sounds like that doesn't it? But that obvious route was checked, it was one of the first things the coroner asked about. But get this; Rex never opened even one of his letters. The whole pile lay unopened on his dressing room table."

With a headshake Valon let himself fall back. "Damn it. And you are sure of that? He couldn't have destroyed one after reading?"

Hawkins answered with a shake of his head. "No, no. That would be the natural solution, but nothing was burned, nothing torn up. There wasn't even a fire in the room."

Valon just shook his head. "Ok, that's a riddle, alright."

Professor Hawkins shuddered. "Oh yes, it was ghastly business." He looked over to his old friend. "Solomon and I went up just as we heard the shot. We were the ones who found him." A sad smile ghosted his lips. "It was quite a shock."

"So if I see this right you couldn't do anything but call for the police, right?" Sennen fixated his gaze on Professor Hawkins who shook his head.

"No, this place didn't have a telephone back then. I had it set up when we moved in. But we were lucky, if you want to call it that. The local constable was already in the kitchen at the time. One of his dogs had gone astray and he was looking around if anybody had seen him. He wanted to check in with Rex because of the wide land surrounding Royston, thought the dog might have gone there. He arrived just a minute before the shot was fired."

Solomon snorted. "The constable was lucky that he found his dog soon after. There was such a snowstorm back then, I haven't seen the like in years." Quizzically he looked towards his friend. "It was about this time of the year, right? Early January?"

Professor Hawkins shrugged. "Wasn't it February?"

But Yugi's Grandfather disagreed. "No, I'm pretty sure it was January. Me and Ayesha went back to Egypt at the end of January, and that was soon after that. I remember how glad I was for the distraction of work."

With a small smile Sennen leaned forward. "Fixing a date is one of the most difficult things in the world." He spoke almost conversationally. "Unless there is a landmark, some sort of public event happening some time before or after. An assassination of a crowned head or a big murder trial." For Yugi those examples sounded quite macabre, surely there were some other happenings of note which weren't tied to death and murder? But at the same time he was sure that Sennen had something specific in mind with his words, and right, in the next moment Hawkins face brightened up.

"Why of course, it was just before the Magnum case!" He looked around with a smile only to meet a few confused looks. It was clear that the room was neatly divided into people who knew exactly what he was talking about, and people who didn't.

"The Magnum case?" Téa was the one who gave the confusion a voice. "I'm not sure I know about this one?"

Yugi's grandfather smiled. "Ah, yes, those celebrity trials always seem so big and after a few years they blow over. Kind of sad to be honest. You know the actor, Jean-Claude Magnum?" Yugi's wasn't surprised that Joey nodded. His friend was good with movies. What surprised him as the tight, hard look around his eyes.

"He played mostly action movies. He died in his sleep and after his death there was a rumour that his wife poisoned him. Rex knew them, if I remember correctly. He was going on and on about what a pity that this beautiful woman must be married to Magnum. Of course, there wasn't any talk about her killing him back then, and Rex was the type who liked to look. And complain."

Hawkins nodded. "Yes, now it's coming back. I remember reading the paragraph in the paper about the exhumation order. It would have been the very same day… I only saw it with half my mind, the other half still being with Rex lying dead upstairs."

"That phenomenon is very common." Sennen's voice and smile were full of understanding. "In moments of great stress, the mind focuses on some unimportant small detail, which is remembered long afterwards in perfect clarity. It could be something quite irrelevant, like the pattern of wallpaper, but you will never forget it."

Yugi noticed that his grandfather was again measuring their guest with a strange gaze. Obviously the old man had also caught on that there was something taking place. Still he nodded slowly. "Strange that you would say that." His tone made it clear that he didn't find it quite as surprising as he proclaimed. "But I was just remembering how it was back in Rex's room, with him lying dead on the floor, and the shadow of the big tree in front of the window on the snow outside. The snow, the shadow, the tree, they are clearly visible in my mind, and yet I never realised I was looking at them."

"His room was the big one looking out on the porch, was it not?"

By Sennen's question Solomon raised an eyebrow, but he answered it nevertheless in good humour. "Oh yes. You can also still see the tree in question, the big beech just at the angle of the drive."

Sennen nodded as if satisfied, and Yugi's excitement grew. Every words spoken had a purpose he was sure of it, and even more so with his grandfather catching on. Every sentence was another piece in the puzzle, and he was sure the murder trial just mentioned and then passed carelessly aside was one of the biggest parts. He just wasn't sure yet what exactly Sennen was driving at, but he was more convinced than ever as to who was the master hand.

After a short pause, Hawkins reverted to the preceding topic. "Yes, the Magnum case, I remember it now. God, it seemed so long ago. Back then it was quite a sensation. Partly because he was a movie star, partly because of her. I never met her sadly, but I heard she was beautiful. Remarkably fair." Fair…maybe it was instinct that made Yugi raise his eyes at that moment, but he could swear he saw Mai's hand slide upwards for a moment, an involuntary gesture that got cut off abruptly. It seemed like she shrinked backwards for a moment, as if struck by a blow. Her gold, fair hair caught a small reflection of light.

The crash of a falling glass tore him out of his thoughts. Valon, having helped himself to another glass of whiskey had let the decanter slip through his fingers. "Damn it. I'm sorry, I can't think what happened. Damn." The last word was muttered much softer, and Hawkins waved of his apology.

"Quite alright. It's just glass, and if we are sticking with omens for the New Year broken glass is supposed to bring good luck anyway. Curious…" He interrupted himself and blinked. "Didn't she do it too? Mrs Magnum? She smashed the port decanter, didn't she?"

Yugi's grandfather blinked, and then nodded slowly. "Yes." Noticing Yugi's and Téa's confused looks, he explained. "Magnum had the habit of drinking one glass of port every night before going to bed. The day after his death, one of the servants saw how his wife took out the decanter and smashed it deliberately. That set the servants talking all right. They knew she had hated him… She was pressured into the marriage, being younger and without money, and Magnum was by all accords a brute at home. So the rumours grew and in the end, some months later, relatives of his applied for an exhumation order. And as it turned out he had indeed been poisoned. What was it again, arsenic?"

Professor Hawkins shook his head. "Strychnine, I think. But it doesn't really matter. But the case was very clear. There was only one person with motive and opportunity. She stood her trial, and when she was acquitted it was through lack of evidence, not because her innocence was proven. If you want to say so, you could call her lucky." He smiled sadly. "Poor girl. It was understandable why she did it, but at the same time there was never much doubt that she murdered him. I wonder what happened to her afterwards."

"Her sister took her in for a while I heard." Yugi's grandfather sighed. "But she lived in America, Vegas I think, and there Magnum and the whole circus were even more famous. So she managed to disappear from the public eye… I think she travelled, probably changed her name. Best thing she could do, under the circumstances. Hopefully she managed to get something of a life back." The story was fascinating, but as bad as he felt, Yugi couldn't help but notice, that Valon's right hand grasped his glass so tightly, that he was in danger of smashing it again. Interesting…

Yugi's grandfather stood up, and helped himself to another drink. "Well, we didn't get that much closer as to why Rex killed himself." He spoke lightly, but as he turned around and faced Sennen a small, challenging glint was sparkling in his eyes. "The court of inquiry could have done better, couldn't they, Mr. Sennen?"

Sennen laughed. It was a strange laugh, a clear deep tone, taking a up the challenge just presented to him. A bit mocking but mostly sad. Yugi's breath hitched, and he noticed that it made everybody else jump as well. "Are you sure about that, Mr. Muto? Or is the past still too strong with you?" His smile was gentle, but tempered with the same challenge that had been around him all evening. "Your preconceived notions may still hamper you thoughts. But you see, I'm an outsider, a stranger passing by. I see only the facts."

Yugi's grandfather snorted. "The facts?" He was clearly amused…and very interested. "Ok, then maybe you can tell us about the facts. What exactly do you see?"

Sennen's smile deepened. "A clear sequence of events, which you outlined yourselves, but maybe while missing the significance of it. Let us go back ten years and look again at what we see – untrammelled by ideas or sentiment."

With the last words Sennen had risen. Behind him the flames lit fitfully. Halfway hidden in this dance of light and shadow his eyes glowed like the flames themselves. His voice was low and hypnotically compelling, night black velvet hiding sharp steel. "You are at dinner. Rex Raptor announces his plans to get engaged. You think he is talking about Weevil, but now you are not so sure. He has the restless, excited manner of a man who has successfully defied fate – who, in your own words, pulled off a big coup against overwhelming odds. Then, with the clanging of a bell he walks out to get the long delayed mails. He doesn't open his letters, but you yourselves said that he opened the paper to glance at the news. That was ten years ago, we can't really know what was news that day. Maybe and earthquake, maybe a political crisis? But we do know one thing about the contents of this paper. It contained one small paragraph – a paragraph stating that the permission to exhume Jean-Claude Magnums body had been given three days ago."

"What?" Despite the exclamations of surprise Sennen went on. Yugi watched him with held breath, but at the same time he noticed that Joey's face was getting darker and darker. He knew something, he knew what exactly Sennen was going to say, and that worried Yugi more than anything else.

"Raptor goes up to his room, and then he looks out of his window and sees something. Mr Muto" – he indicated a small nod in the direction of Yugi's grandfather – "told us that the curtain was not drawn across the window, and that it looked out onto the drive. So what did Rex Raptor see? What could he have seen that forced him to take his own life?"

He paused for a moment and nearly instantly Professor Hawkins reacted. "What do you mean? What did he see?"

Sennen turned to him, and spoke slowly, giving every word an impression of importance. But for Yugi he also sounded sad. "I think that he saw a policeman. A policeman who had come looking for his dog. But Rex Raptor didn't know that. He just saw a policeman."

It took a while for the intended meaning to sink in, but when it did the reaction was immediate. Yugi's grandfather exhaled slowly. "Dear god…Magnum?" He interrupted himself. "Yes, that could work…"

Next to him his friend shook his head. "But Rex wasn't there when Magnum died. He was alone with his wife." But even Professor Hawkins sounded doubtful, and Yugi's grandfather shook his head almost immediately.

"He didn't need to. If he had been there a week or so earlier…Strychnine isn't very soluble. When put into the port, the greater part of it would be in the last glass, long after he left." His lips formed a strange sad smile. "It would fit Rex, a brutal and short way to what he wanted, without any immediate visible risk. His playing style was similar."

Valon's chair stumbled backwards as he suddenly jumped up. He was pale, and his hands were shaking even worse than before. "Then why did she break the decanter? Can you tell me that!?" He was almost pleading, even while he screamed out his words, and when Sennen looked at him, a compassionate shimmer appeared in his eyes.

The strange guest turned around, and to Yugi's surprise he found himself face to face with an encouraging smile and a pair of challenging red eyes, as Sennen addressed him directly for the first time this evening. "Maybe Mr. Muto could tell us that. I think you might have a theory."

It was a challenge but Sennen's smile was gentle, and Yugi nodded slowly, even though his throat suddenly felt raw. This was it. Sennen had just left the final move of the game up to him, and suddenly he was no longer an observer but a player himself. And he was sure he knew the answer. After all she was his friend, and he had played against her many times before.

"I think she…she suspected what Rex had done, and while she didn't want to marry him, she also didn't want him to die for what he did. She knew he wouldn't last in prison…She pitied him, I think." Yugi had spoken his part, and as he returned Sennen's smile the stranger just nodded, his own smile deepening.

Suddenly a long trembling sigh filled the air.

Joey jumped out of his seat with a curse on his lips. "Fuck it, what was that?!" Yugi could have told him that it was just Mai in the gallery above, where Joey already knew she was, but the effect was too good to ruin it now.

Sennen was laughing softly. "I think my car should be ready by now. Thank you for your hospitality, Professor Hawkins." He bowed respectfully. "I hope I could do something for my acquaintance today."

The Professor blinked at him. "Ah yes?"

Seeing his confusion, Sennen looked up with a smile. "Didn't you think about that? Rex loved that woman. In his way." The last words were spoken with a kind of grimace. "He killed her husband, selfishly believing that the way would be free now, and when retribution overtook him, as he thought, he took his own life. But so he left her to face the music."

Hawkins signed. "She was acquitted…but yes, I don't imagine that this was enough."

Sennen nodded. "Definitely not. She only got acquitted because nothing could be proven. There are a lot of bad things that could and can be said about Rex, but I don't think that he wanted this to happen. I fancy, and it's only a fancy, that she may still be facing the music."

Valon had sunk back into his chair, his face buried into his hands. Joey stood next to him, eyes on the floor, with a dark unreadable look on his face.

Sennen turned back towards Yugi. "Goodnight, Mr. Muto. You are interested in the game, are you not?"

Surprised Yugi laughed. "Ah, yes, you could say so. And please, call me Yugi. All my friends do." He didn't know why he offered his name towards Sennen, just that it felt right for a moment.

Sennen paused for a second, and Yugi had the small triumph of knowing he had surprised the enigmatic stranger. Then Sennen smiled a warm smile which made his eyes shimmer like flames. "Of course. My first name is Atem, as you but…" He hesitated for a moment. "But I prefer Yami."

Yugi nodded happily, and Yami turned before he stopped again.

Looking back towards Yugi he seemed to be puzzled for a moment. "I know it's not a game, but if you would turn your interest towards the drama for any reason, I must recommend the harlequinade. It's dying out nowadays, but it repays attention. The symbolism might be a bit difficult to follow, but –"

And there was it again, that sly, hidden smile that had accompanied Yami for much of the evening. "The immortals are always immortal, you know? Goodnight, I hope we'll meet again soon." With that he strode out into the dark. As Yugi watched him go, the coloured glass repeated the effect it had woven before, giving Yami the impression of wearing a motley...

Inside the hall, the houseguests were slowly moving towards their rooms. Yugi stopped Joey on the stairs, when he was sure nobody would listen. "You knew that Mai was Magnum's wife." It was a statement, not a question, unimportant really, but Yugi needed to now. "And…that they thought she murdered him."

Joey sighed. They were standing by a window, and thus could follow the figure of Yami down the driveway. From a side door a woman's figure came running towards him. For a moment they spoke, and then she retracted her steps towards the house. "I wasn't really sure." Joey's voice startled Yugi out of his thoughts. "Mai was kinda drunk when she told the story, otherwise she probably wouldn't have spoken about it at all. But it was enough to piece a story together." He grimaced. "I didn't count on Raptor being involved thought."

Outside Mai had now nearly reached the house. Her whole face was transformed, she seemed to glow with happiness. Another figure joined her. Yugi could recognise Valon, with the same unbelieving happiness as his wife, mixed with reproach and regret.

Joey followed his gaze. "Her sister took her in, helped her change her name and everything. But she told Valon the truth and ... damn it." He rolled his eyes, watching the two people talking. "He was afraid. The bastard loved her enough to marry her, he knew the truth and he was still afraid that something could have happen, that she might…" He shook his head but for all his curses there was an understanding in his eyes, and when the two figures on the driveway embraced, he couldn't help but smile. "Guess sometimes you really need to know the facts." Smiling both of the looked down on the pair on the driveway, lost in their own world, while around them slowly snow started to fall.