AN: This fic is being co-written with Sitabethel. It's also being posted on AO3 under both our accounts; unfortunately this site doesn't allow for co-authors.
Bakura's name in ancient Egypt in this fic is Bakari, which means "noble oath" in ancient Egyptian. Malik is called Mahes (a name I used for him in a previous Citron fic.) He's named after an Egyptian god of war and protection whose name means "he who is true beside her."
Thanks to SuperSteffy for the beta!
...
Let my ib be bound to yours; let your ba be bound to mine.
They are drawn together always; they will reunite; let nothing prevent it.
The trial we take is this; I trust we overcome:
Let my ren be no more, and your ren be no more.
I do not know you, nor you me.
We forget, never to remember, save the day the ruler of your ib is cast aside so that you may embrace my ib instead.
If this shall be fulfilled, then let us be bound together for all time, never to be separated.
In exchange I offer this sacrifice:
What has happened before will once again. I will endure the sufferings of this life anew.
I call on Thoth to grant me this.
Let it be done.
Smoke distorted the drifting colors on the walls, shards of scarlet and ochre wavering across the stones. The light came from the brazier at the opposite end of the room and two small flax lamps sitting on either side of the brazier. Mahes sat on the floor, knees curled into his chest and arms circled around his legs, as if making himself small could spare him from what would happen next.
His father stood in front of the brazier, stoking the fire, watching the flames sink low as time progressed, leaving glowing, crimson coals. He blocked some of the light from Mahes's view, his shadow stretching across the floor and rising up against the wall.
Mahes sat in a corner, in his father's shadow. He pressed his face against his knees, suppressing a small whimper. His father hadn't spoken one word since he dragged Mahes into the lowest chamber in the tomb - an empty room, a dead end to confuse would-be thieves. Mahes watched his father's back. His shadow shifted from time to time as he moved the chisel in the coals until it glowed a similar red.
The back of Mahes's throat burned. A sour taste overpowered his mouth. Mahes couldn't go through another purification ceremony. His eyes, the color of dried sage blossoms, jerked towards the exit. He yearned for it - a dash of his legs and he'd be away from the room and racing down the hallway. But there was nowhere to go. His father would catch him. The punishment would be worse. Mahes couldn't imagine worse, but he knew his father could, and would, if Mahes dared to run.
"I didn't mean to." Mahes's voice was small, his face round and cherubic, the face of a young child. "There was an asp and I was frightened, and it happened again on accident."
"Better to trust the gods to save your soul than to trust the demon to save your flesh," his father said, voice grave and heavy.
Only a few weak flames remained. The lack of light drained the color from the room, leaving everything sanguine and distorted. Mahes trembled.
"I didn't mean to," he repeated.
"No." His father removed the long, bronze chisel. It glowed red in the dark. "It's simply your nature, the self-preserving nature of a demon."
"I'm sorry, Father."
The moment the thief stepped into the pitch black tomb, he felt a hand grab him from behind, and something sharp pressed against his throat - a knife. So much for hoping this might be easy. The guard outside the tomb had been asleep, and Bakari had been able to simply walk right by. He'd thought this robbery would go much more smoothly than the one he'd attempted earlier, when a guard had slashed him underneath his eye. Afterwards, he'd decided to flee and try somewhere else. But now, with the sharp bronze against his throat, his hopes that this time it would be a simple heist were quickly vanishing.
"The guard outside this tomb- is he alive?" a voice asked him.
"Yes, he is," Bakari answered. And then: "This is a mistake. You're going to regret this."
He felt the knife press a little harder against his throat, but it still didn't break the skin. "I have nothing to fear from you," his captor's voice echoed in the tomb. "From your size, I'd guess you're hardly more than a child."
Bakari couldn't see the person holding on to him from behind, but based on the hot breath he felt on his cheek, he guessed the tomb guard was only slightly taller than him. "I doubt you're much older, you're most likely just barely an adult yourself."
He heard the other growl low in his throat. "You have no idea what I am."
Bakari thought quickly. "If you really think I'm a kid...that means you have no problem killing a child? If that's the case, at least look at me when you kill me. Have a little bit of honor."
His captor didn't let go, but the grip around Bakari slackened. It was enough for Bakari to execute a quick spin, pushing the other against a nearby wall and holding him in place with muscular arms. Bakari managed to reach down and squeeze the other's wrist until his hold on the knife loosened, and soon enough their position from a few minutes ago was reversed, with the tomb robber now holding the knife against the tomb keeper's throat.
"Don't kill me," the tomb keeper said, his voice strained. "If you let me go, I'll lead you straight to the treasure."
Bakari knew it was a trick. If he let the tomb keeper go, he would lead Bakari into one of the tomb's traps instead of to the treasure. But he decided to let it play out. He was far too smart and experienced to wander into a trap, and besides, he didn't like killing anyone if he didn't have to. "Alright," he agreed. "But remember I'll be following right behind you with this knife to your back."
Bakari let go of the other, and a moment later, he saw a small light flicker on- the guard had picked up an oil lamp, but the light was very dim.
"Don't try anything," Bakari warned as he began to follow the hooded figure down a tunnel. "You've used up all my mercy. Next time, I won't hesitate to slit your throat." The other didn't respond, and Bakari said, "I suppose you couldn't expect me to follow you with no light at all, but you certainly are keeping that lamp as dim as possible, aren't you? Think it'll make it more likely for me to make a mistake?"
He saw the figure in front of him flinch a bit at having been figured out. Obviously, the guard had no idea how skilled Bakari really was. Bakari skipped easily around a stone that was obviously triggered to set something off if it were stepped on.
A moment later, the guard glanced briefly behind him, giving Bakari his first look at the other's face. He couldn't see much in the darkness, but did see a pair of brilliant amethyst eyes catching the small amount of light.
"Why are you bleeding?" the tomb keeper asked, apparently having spotted the bloody mess below Bakari's right eye. "Did my father do that to you? He's the one who guards the outside of this tomb. How did you get past him?"
Bakari sighed. It was another tactic- trying to distract him with conversation. But it wouldn't be that easy to get him to make a mistake. He really was being underestimated. But he would play along.
"Your father was asleep." He laughed. He saw the low light from the lamp briefly glint off of something metallic near the wall and easily sidestepped the danger. "He's quite a lazy guard."
At Bakari's words, the other instantly rounded on him, his stance indicating that he was about to attack him. Bakari held up the knife warningly.
"Don't," was all he said.
The young tomb keeper apparently wasn't interested in dying that night, and he reluctantly turned back around and started walking again, this time at a slightly quicker pace. If the guard thought the faster pace would be a problem for Bakari, he was mistaken- Bakari noticed the other ducking slightly at some hidden danger he must have long ago memorized, and Bakari followed suit.
"You're a liar," the guard finally said. "My father would never sleep on the job. You must have fought him- how else would you get that wound?"
"What reason have I to lie? I'm obviously the one with an advantage here." Bakari lightly poked the knife into the other's back to demonstrate his point. "If I'd fought him, I'd tell you- in fact, I'd be bragging about fighting my way past him. He really was asleep- but believe what you want. It's nothing to me."
The other made a sound of irritation, but didn't respond further. They walked for a while longer, and Bakari thought he saw the other flinch every time he easily avoided any danger. After a while, the guard finally spoke again, apparently wanting to restart their argument from earlier.
"You know, only three people have gotten in here before you. So obviously my father is good at his job- not the type to fall asleep."
"What happened to the other three?"
"I killed them."
"So why didn't you kill me?" Bakari asked.
"You seem young. I shouldn't have hesitated, but...the others weren't nearly as young as you. I didn't really want to kill someone who's barely out of childhood."
"I'm not a kid," Bakari scoffed. Then, just to prove he could continue to walk quickly through the tomb in the low light while conversing without having any problems, he went on with the conversation, asking an idle question. "So, are you always here at the same time as your father?"
"I'm always here. I don't leave this place."
Bakari stopped in his tracks for a moment, shocked by the answer. "Always? Are you saying you've never been outside?" His voice betrayed something that almost sounded like sympathy.
"I can't go outside. I'd like to see the outside world, but if I went out, they'd see what I am-" the other suddenly cut himself off, his voice turning angry and embarrassed. "I don't know why I'm telling you all of this!"
"To distract me so I'll step in a trap," Bakari said lightly, even as he sidestepped yet another area of danger.
The guard faltered in his step a bit.
"Didn't think I'd figured it out, did you?" Bakari laughed. "You think you're so smart. But I think it's become obvious by this point you're not going to trick me into getting myself killed. How about we quit playing games and you actually lead me to the treasure, as per our agreement?"
"I really can't do that," the guard said, and then he was whirling around, the lamp he carried clattering to the floor as he lunged at Bakari despite the knife he wielded. Bakari grabbed his wrists, momentarily stilling him, and then looked up and gasped at what he saw. The spin had caused the guard's hood to fall partway off his head, and the low light emanating from the lamp laying at their feet caught his blonde hair, making it shine like gold in the dimness.
"You're a light-hair," Bakari said with awe.
The other stiffened. "What would you know about that?"
Was that fear in his voice? Bakari wondered, as he marvelled at the stark contrast between pale hair and dark skin that was so rare to see.
Bakari knew plenty about it, though. He knew people with light hair, like himself, were able to summon their ka- and incredibly strong ka at that. While some with darker hair might be able to summon a ka with effort, light-hairs were naturals; usually, they could do it from a young age, and the ka would be especially powerful. Bakari's own ka had been lent power from others, and had he not been a light-hair himself, he likely would never have been able to house or control such a strong ka. And the tomb keeper, with his pale hair, had that same preternatural ability with ka that he did. So this blonde could be very, very useful to Bakari- much more useful than any other treasure he might find in this tomb.
Bakari chanced letting go of one of the youth's wrists, making sure to still hold the knife in a menacing way as he pulled his own hood down. The cloth slid off of his head, exposing a mess of silvery-white. "I know because I'm a light-hair, too."
The tomb keeper sucked in a sharp breath, a look of utter shock passing over his features. "It can't be...but...so you're like me. Then...then why haven't you killed me? You could have done it easily..."
Bakari grit his teeth before answering. "I don't use him if I don't need to. And besides, I don't like killing anyone if I don't have to."
"So you can actually control it? And you don't like to kill? That's impossible..."
Things suddenly clicked together for Bakari. The guard had said he had to stay confined here because of what he was...had he been locked away simply because he was capable of summoning a powerful ka? Bakari felt a flash of anger on the youth's behalf.
"Of course I can control it. It just takes practice. And what are you talking about killing? It doesn't make you want to kill." Then inspiration struck him- something he could say that might make the young guard come with him. "But, if you want, I can teach you how to control it, too." He could take him under his wing, tutor him, and then, later, when he was strong, he could use the tomb keeper's powers to his advantage. There was so much he could do if he had the the help of another's ka...
"But we're part demon," the other insisted, sounding distraught. "Demons are always evil."
Demon? Bakari thought. Does this kid think he's a demon because of his ka? Is that what he's been told? Bakari opened his mouth to disabuse of him of this notion, but then thought better of it. If the tomb keeper had been told his entire life that he harbored a demon inside him, a contradiction from a tomb robber wouldn't instantly convince him. He had to try a different tack.
"Well, you can clearly see that I don't like to kill- as you yourself said, you'd be dead already if I wanted you to be. I can control it, and I really can teach you how. Are you worried about accidentally hurting people? Because I can help you prevent that." He paused a moment. "I'm the only one who can help you. Only another...demon...could truly know how to control it, and show you how. I've lived with this my entire life, so I know all about it."
"But why would you help me?" the other asked warily.
"Because you're like me, so I feel sympathy for you. I know it's possible for you to control it, so there's no reason for you stay locked in this dreary place for your entire life. You can go outside and see the sun, and not worry about hurting people if you don't want to."
It was half true. Even though he wanted to use the blond for his powers, he did feel disgusted with the way he'd been treated, the way the Pharaoh had allowed this young tomb keeper to be treated- it wasn't right.
"Look, as a show of good faith, if you come with me, I won't even bother about the treasure. I'll leave here with only you. And on the way out, if you want, I can prove to you that I left your father alive. You want to learn, don't you? So you don't accidentally hurt anyone else?" Bakari left it there, and let the silence stretch out between them for a moment, hoping his manipulation had worked.
Finally, the blonde said, "Alright, I'll come with you." He sounded as if he were trying to control his voice, but Bakari could hear the undertone of giddiness. He probably didn't know whether or not to fully believe Bakari, but he had hope- and really, he was probably looking for any excuse to get out of this forsaken place.
"Come on then. I promise, things are going to get better from here on out." Bakari led the way out of the tomb, still clutching the knife to his side.