Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh.
I thoought of this story while watching yugioh and I thought "Wow, alot of kids get hurt in this show." So, here you go.
Yugi found himself wandering a small ancient Egyptian town. The town, thought, had been set aflame. He could hear the sounds of frantic footsteps and people screaming in terror. However, he could see no one, no adults at least. The only people around he could see were children. They ran franticly through the streets, huddled in dead ends, and were dragged away by an unseen force.
He turned a corner and saw his Yami. The spirit was looking down at the ground. He stood helplessly among the madness, letting the frightened children pass right through him as they ran. The pitiful sight was somewhat disturbing to Yugi. He had never seen his strong friend look so helpless. Yugi ran up to him, deeply concerned.
"Pharaoh, what is all of this?" Yugi asked, unable to hide the panic in his voice.
The pharaoh looked up slightly, but still had a solemn look on his face. "I believe, Yugi, that this is a scene from my past."
"Your past?" Yugi asked, surprised. "How? How can such devastation even be traced back to you?"
At that moment, a guard, the first adult Yugi had seen in this place, grabbed a nearby child. The small figure cried and struggled to get away but his efforts were in vein.
"Hey, let him go!" Yugi cried. He moved to run toward the guard but Yami stopped him by simply placing a hand on Yugi's shoulder.
"They can't hear you, Yugi…and you can't stop them. The past is already done. We cannot change it…no matter how much we want to."
Yugi looked up at the pharaoh, his eyes filled with shock. I can't…we can't… this certainly not how the strong spirit usually spoke. "I get the feeling you've tried before."
Yami nodded. "This scene has haunted my dreams many times. I've tried to protect the children and stop the guards. Every time I've found that I cannot interfere. My hands just pass through them…"
The struggling child let out screams for his family as tears ran down his cheeks. The guard holding him simply clubbed the child on the head and continued to carry the child away. "In the name of the Pharaoh" he said in a cold, blank voice.
The sting of the guard's words showed across Yami's face. Yugi looked on in astonishment. Yami was strong, perhaps the strongest person Yugi knew, and yet here he was looking so sad and hopeless. He looked…broken.
"Yami, you couldn't have been the one who ordered this. I know you. You would never wish this on anyone, especially not innocent children. This is the work of an evil man and I'm sure you were a good Pharaoh."
"Pharaoh?" a small but angry voice interjected. They looked down to find a small, white-haired boy looking up at them. "Are you the Pharaoh who caused all this?"
Yami looked down ashamed. "I'm sorry…" was all he could manage to say. This disaster was connected to him somehow. He just hoped he was not the one who ordered the massacre.
"You're sorry?" The boy cried, his voice filled with immeasurable rage. "They just took my mother away! I saw them kill her!" They boy tried to look brave but he could not keep himself from breaking down in tears. "Why did she have to die, Pharaoh?" the boy screamed through sobs. "You should be the one to die!"
"Son…" Yami knelt down and placed a hand on the child's shoulder. "I wish I could stop this. I wish I could help."
"No!" The boy's small fist struck the Pharaoh across the face. "You want to help? Go away! Go away and don't come back! Never bother anyone again!"
Then, as if the child actually had the power to make them disappear, both Yugi and Yami fell through the ground. They found themselves in a dark hallway with walls and floor made out of stone.
"Where are we this time Pharaoh?" Yugi asked shivering. The place was dark, gloomy, and cold; almost like…a tomb.
Faintly, they heard the sound of a child sobbing echoing through the hall. The sobs became louder as they made their way down the hall. At the end, they found a small boy crying. He knelt under a well that let the moonlight shine on his bandaged back.
Yugi gently approached the child and knelt down in front of him. "Excuse me, are you alright?"
The boy looked up. His lavender eyes were glazed with tears. "Please, please don't tell my father…" he begged, his voice panicked.
"Don't tell you're father what?" Yugi asked, keeping his voice gentle.
"That I was crying." The child said softly. "He says I shouldn't cry. He says I should be glad I'm carrying on the pharaoh's legacy. But how can I be glad?" he broke down into sobs again. "This pharaoh has caused me and my family so much pain."
Suddenly, more little boys began appearing one by one. Hundreds of generations came into sight. These boys did not look as solid as the lavender-eyed boy before them, but the all wore the same blood-soaked bandages as the boy.
"Who are these children?" Yami asked in astonishment.
"My ancestors." The boy answered matter-of-factly. "This is the long line of those who received the pharaoh's memory. Each one endured the pain and torture, but for what?" The boy's seemingly calm demeanor melted into anger. "Does he know? Does he know how many lives were wasted down here serving under him? If he does he is cruel and unworthy of our loyalty. He doesn't deserve it! He doesn't deserve to be Pharaoh!"
As the boy's voice rose, the walls around them began to crumble. The other children began to disappear until only the lavender-eyed boy was left. The floor beneath them crumbled and they fell into the darkness.
When the landed, the found themselves in the back of a car. Also in the back were two small boys. Yugi tried to communicate with them but found that he, as well as Yami, was invisible to the other passengers.
"Don't cry, Mokie." The older, brunette boy said patting his younger brother on the head. "We'll be alright."
"Why are they taking us away, Seto? What if dad comes back for us and we're not there?"
The older boy pulled his brother close. "I'm sorry Mokie, but I don't see that happening." When Seto received the news that their father had died, he was also left with the task of telling Mokuba. He found himself wanting to protect Mokuba from the truth, so he told him that their father disappeared.
Seto glanced out the window. He saw a spiky-haired boy around his age walking down the street with his grandfather. They looked so happy and care-free and that made Seto sick. Why should that kid get to be happy when he was miserable?
"You see that kid, Mokie?" Seto said pointing out the window. His little brother, along with the unseen Yugi and Yami, looked out. "Someday, that's gonna be us. Someday, we're going to have what he has."
The car suddenly stopped at an orphanage and let the two boys out. Yugi was about to follow them but the car door slammed in his face
[-]
Yugi woke up suddenly in his bed. Eager to discuss the strange dream, he grabbed the Puzzle off his desk.
"Yami, are you there?"
"I'm here, Yugi."
Yugi looked up to see his friend's spirit sitting on the edge of the bed.
"What was that? I've never had a dream like that before."
"I believe, Yugi, that it was my dream." The Pharaoh said. "It was showing me how I've affected people's lives. I never knew how many children were hurt because of me."
"You think you intentionally hurt innocent people?" Yugi interrupted. "No way, Pharaoh. You always help people. Don't you remember the end of Battle City?"
They both looked over at Yugi's desk. The Millennium Necklace, Millennium Ring, and the Millennium Rod all sat on the desk and glittered in the moonlight. Yugi got out of bed, went over to the desk and picked up the Millennium Rod.
"Just a few weeks ago, Marik was our greatest enemy; but when his dark side took over, you saved his good side. You saved him even after all he'd done. Does that sound like someone who would intentionally hurt kids?"
Yami smiled then looked down at the floor. "What about those children in the town? And I know it wasn't just the children who were harmed, it was everyone. That guard said the Pharaoh ordered the slaughter."
"Look, I don't know if you were the Pharaoh he was referring to or not, but there's no way you actually ordered that. We share a mind, remember? If you really were that evil, I would know. In fact, if you were evil, we wouldn't even be friends." Yami looked up in surprise at Yugi. "If you were evil, we'd be more like Bakura and the spirit of the Millennium Ring." Yugi looked at his somewhat, reassured friend. "I may not have been alive back then, but I'm sure you were a good, just leader. The only thing I'm not sure about is why Kaiba was in the dream."
"I think I know, Yugi." He stood and crossed over to where Yugi was standing. "It's because Kaiba's past, the trials he went trough, lead him to us. Remember, he was a rival of mine in the past. That means it was his destiny to find us."
"I wish it didn't mean he had to go through such misery."
Yami nodded in agreement. "It seems that childhood pain is the only way for people to find their way to us."
"That's not true." Yugi protested with a smile. "I know a child who came to you in a more positive way."
[-]
Flashback
It was Yugi's 7th birthday.
"Make a wish." His mother told him before he blew out the candles. He thought about it then blew out all seven candles at once. I wish for something magical to happen…he said to himself.
While Yugi was digging into his cake, his beloved grandfather came up to him with a big smile on his face. "I have something for you, Yugi; something special." He took a gold box out from behind his back and gave it to his grandson. Yugi eagerly opened it, and found several small, gold pieces inside.
"What is it?" the small boy asked curiously.
"A puzzle…" his grandfather answered with a smile. "A very special puzzle. If you solve it, who know, maybe some magic will happen.
My wish…Yugi thought to himself. My wish will come true. I know it will.