I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! If I did, Iona would have had more of a role in the show.

Chapter Two: The Muse and the Scholar

Anthea brushed the strings her lyre as she listened to Princess Iona's lesson. The lyre was her favorite instrument; she loved the sound the strings vibrating. But her mind kept wandering to the boy with the strange hair she ran into on her way to class. She blushed when she thought about how he stared at her. It wasn't uncomfortable; she guessed he was just awkward, which was sweet, or at least Anthea thought so. She wondered if it were possible to see him again. It would be nice to have someone outside the muses-in-training to talk to, and he was cute. With hair like that, he shouldn't be too hard to find. But she couldn't tell her gossip-heavy roommates. They coo and caw over Anthea having a crush, and she wasn't even sure that's what this was.

"Anthea?" Iona called on her. "Are you still with us?"

"Y-yes, Your Highness," Anthea bowed her head.

"Then can you play for us an A-major chord," Iona raised an eyebrow at her. Anthea strummed her lyre, playing the requested chord. "Very good."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Anthea set her lyre down.

"Now, moving on," Iona continued the lesson, to which Anthea put in her best effort to pay attention.

It felt like the lesson would never end. When it finally did, Anthea picked up her lyre and hurried to the door. "Anthea, a moment," Iona called to her.

"Yes, Your Highness," Anthea gave the princess a curtsy.

"Your mind seemed to be anywhere but the classroom today," Iona said. "Is something bothering you?"

"No, nothing like that," Anthea assured her. "I-I'm having a bit of an off day." She ran a hand through her wavy brown hair.

"I see," Iona accepted her answer, though didn't appear convinced. "You're normally so attentive; I don't want something to happen to one of my most promising students."

"I promise I'll do better," Anthea promised.

"By the way, how goes your composition for your recital next month?"

"I'm a little stuck," the muse-in-training admitted. "I just can't seem to find any good inspiration."

"Why don't you go to the library then?" Iona suggested. "Myths and stories are allowed to be part of your composition."

"Thank you, I will," Anthea curtsied and, after a nod from Iona, left the classroom.

She saw only servants and workers as she made her way to the library. No sign of him. That's a little disappointing. Of course, she had no idea who is was or even what his role in the palace was. She'd just have to hope she'd run into him again.

The library was deserted when she arrived. Let's see. The legend stories are over this way. She rounded the corner and ran straight into another girl carrying an armload of books. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" the girl apologized.

"No, it's my fault," Anthea told her. "I should have more careful. Here, let me get those for you." She helped the girl pick up all the discarded books.

"Thank you." Together they retrieved all the books from the girls' stack, allowing Anthea to get a good look at her. She had pink hair so pale it was almost white cascading down her back, her bangs falling into her sapphire eyes. She wore a simple pink gown accented by a white sash.

"There, all better," Anthea grinned. "I'm Anthea by the way."

"Belinda," the girl said. "What brings you here?"

"I need ideas for a composition," the brunette answered. "I'm training to be a muse, and I was hoping to read a few legends and myths for inspiration. What about you?"

"I'm always here," Belinda told her. "I've always liked legends and stories, and my family thought being a scholar would be a good fit for me. It's not what I expected, but I can't complain."

"What would you do if you had the chance?"

"Explore," the girl gazed out the nearest window. "I've read about all these places, including this whole other world where all kinds of creatures exist, and I'd love to just see them for myself."

"What have you found?" Anthea asked, her interest peaked. This other world might be perfect for her composition.

"All kinds of stuff," Belinda gestured for Anthea to follow her to the nearest table. "Apparently in that world, every being has some kind of power instead of just a few here."

"What kind of power?"

"Magic," Belinda set a book in the center of the table and held her hands over it. She chanted something, and her hands and the book glowed with a pale pink light. Then the book rose, hovering above the table.

"That's amazing," Anthea breathed.

"This is nothing," Belinda ended the spell. "I have only a spot of power. I can show you how if you'd like, but I'm the only one who really knows anything. Magic isn't really studied except for what I've done. My masters dismiss this as nothing more than legend to use as material for songs and stories."

"Well I like it," Anthea insisted. "And I'd love to learn."

"Great!" Belinda grinned and looked at the ground. "I… haven't really had anyone to share any of this with. They think I waste my time with it."

"It's not a waste," Anthea assured her. "Where do we start?"

"Let's try the spell I just showed you," Belinda went over the chant with her. Given Anthea's requirements to learn multiple passages and lyrics, she memorized it quickly. "Now hold your hands over the book and repeat the chant. Focus on what you want to happen. And don't feel bad if it doesn't work the first time."

Anthea closed her eyes and imagined the book floating like it had before. She recited the chant; her hands tingled. She opened her eyes, and the book hovered higher than when Belinda had cast the spell; it and her hands glowed a light blue.

"That's incredible," Belinda said. "It took me three weeks to get that right."

"So what does it mean?" Anthea asked.

"It means you have a knack for this," Belinda told her.

"Cool," she smiled. The glowed faded, and the book crashed to the table.

"I'm still figuring out what all is possible here," Belinda said. "But I hope to someday find that world. The books call it the Dominion of the Beasts."

"You did say it had a variety of creatures," Anthea grinned. "So what else can you do?"

"How much time do you got?"

ΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩ

Anthea began going to the library after class every day. She made great progress on her composition, and she soon caught up to Belinda in terms of magic. They researched new spells and worked out theories to contact the Dominion of the Beasts. Anthea had always wanted to be a muse, but she was glad to help Belinda achieve her dreams. Especially since she never saw Belinda outside the library.

She never found the boy with the strange hair, to her disappointment. She'd though that since she saw him in her wing, he lived or worked somewhere around there. But nothing. Where could he be?

Anthea finally had enough. "Hey, Belinda, you see everyone who comes in here, right?"

"Yeah, but they usually don't remember me," she answered. "You're the only who does."

"They should," Anthea said. "You are amazing. You know all this stuff that people can't even imagine, and you taught yourself how to do magic. How many other thirteen-year-olds can do that? I'm proud to call you my friend."

"You really see me that way?" Belinda flushed under her praise.

"Yes," the brunette insisted. "In fact, you're my best friend."

"But surely there are other girls closer to you," Belinda denied. "I mean, you have some friends among the muses."

"Not really," Anthea told her. "They like to gossip too much. All I really hear from them is who screwed up in practice this week, which guy is the best-looking, and what the new couples are. With you I can have a real conversation."

"To be honest, you're the first friend I've had in a long time," Belinda said. "But why did you want to know about who came here?"

"Promise not to make fun of me?"

"I would never do that!"

Anthea sighed. "The day we met, I ran into a boy our age. Literally. I, well… I think he was cute, and I want to find him again. But I haven't seen him since that day."

"What does he look like?"

"He had really crazy hair. Black, indigo, and turquoise. But he can't have kept it that way."

"Oh, that's Timaeus," Belinda answered. "He's a squire, so that's probably why you haven't seen him. And yeah, that hair is natural. He has no control over it whatsoever."

A squire…? "So does he come here often?"

"Usually to either find a book or escape his partners. No one knows why His Majesty put those three together. All they seem to do is fight. At least the other two do; Timaeus's job is to get them to stop, but it never seems to last."

Anthea chuckled. "Poor guy. And he has to survive four years with them?"

"Yep," Belinda laughed. "I've overheard people taking bets on who's going to quit first. The one thing they all seem to have in common is that they're stubborn."

I think I'd like this Timaeus if we ever got to talk. From what she says, he could probably do with a friend outside the squires. Or at least someone to vent to. "Thanks, Belinda," Anthea said. "I finally know who it was."

"If you ever talk to him, let me know," her friend told her. "I'm not one for gossip, but I like to hear how things are going for you."

"You'll be the first to know," Anthea promised.

So, yeah, no Squires themselves this chapter, but these two are going to be important. Since Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos don't have a similar name or color scheme to their modern counterparts, other counterpart OCs I write won't either (there's one more to introduce). So yes, Anthea and Belinda are based on characters from the other timelines. Anthea is a hybrid of two different characters; Belinda is based on only one. Points if you figure out who.

Anyway, thanks for reading!