AN: Update time! I really hope you enjoyed the kick-off of the prequel so far. Here's chapter two!

Guest Review Reply: Thank you so much for reading and your review! :-) Let me know how you like this update!

Happy reading!

CHAPTER II
Partners in Crime

It didn't take long that we crossed the city boarders of Cairo, soon after that we drove through several bazaars until we reached a district that was close to the famous Egyptian museum. I wondered what kind of business meeting he wanted to attend and what my job would be while my arms still were wrapped around his abdomen.

We pulled into a parking lot in front of a historic building. As the motor shut down I descended from the crimson motorcycle, so did Marik. Again I struggled with the clasps of my helmet while he easily took his off and hung it onto the right handle of the bike.

"I won't ever get used to those tricky clasps." I sighed and rolled my eyes in annoyance. My thin fingers still tried to get them off as I turned around and drew closer to a shop window to use my reflection as an orientation.

Suddenly I saw Marik drawing closer to me from behind in the reflection of the glass. His hands grabbed the clasps of my helmet und opened them effortless. "Whatever you do, Jesara." He sighed and smirked. "Please never consider knitting me a pullover. I'd be afraid you kill yourself with your two left hands." Marik said, his mouth close to my ear as his lavender orbs stared at me through the reflection. His closeness and how his breath felt beside my ear gave me goosebumps. A comfortable shiver climbed up my neck. Then he took off my helmet and stepped back to put it on the other handle of the bike.

"Oh no. I thought a Christmas pullover with one of those hilarious reindeer patterns would fit you well." I answered sarcastically, well aware that I probably was the only one who could say words like that and get away with it without suffering for eternity in the shadow realm or his cellar. His lavender eyes narrowed a bit and he raised a brow as he looked back at me; I knew that he had the same ridiculous imagination of him wearing a one-of-a-kind-tasteless garment like that.

"Joke apart, when will you tell me what kind of a business meeting this is?" I asked again, hoping that he will enlighten me this time. My feet made a few steps towards him, my arms crossed in front of my chest.

Before he said anything he gently rearranged my hair that was still ruffled from the helmet. I blushed a bit at the touch of his fingers that stroked through my ebony hair. "We will pay Zaha Hadad a visit." He answered as he was satisfied with fixing the mess on my head.

"Hadad? Isn't that the famous egyptologist?" I asked curiously, not sure what an egyptologist could know that someone like Marik didn't know. From the day of his birth he learned everything about Egyptian history, secrets and magic. Even the star egyptologist Hadad could learn more from Marik than in decades of research. "Why?"

He also crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I did some research since my foolish servants can't manage to find just a single track of the Winged Dragon. I'm sure that my sweet sister employed his services in hiding it."

"What places could he know which the Ishtar clan doesn't?" Marik's usual smirk played on his lips as he cocked his head to the left and his triangular earrings jingled beside his jaw from the sudden movement. His lavender eyes didn't break with mine as he did that.

"Jesara." He exhaled; I always loved it when he said my name on one of his better days, although this day started quite unpleasant for him. "Our family knows a lot about history, ancient magic and myths. But since we weren't allowed to leave the tomb for millennials we don't know all possible secret places which came into existence in later dynasties after the great pharaoh's death." Marik explained, using air quotes to accentuate the pharaoh-part of his sentence. Although he was raised to pay the ancient pharaoh endless respect and loyalty, his pronunciation of his words told nothing but hate and reluctance.

"So you just crash into his office and invade his mind with the millennium rod, right?" I asked and shifted my weight from my left to the right leg. Of course he was about to do that, maybe I just asked to be polite.

"Exactly, smart girl." Marik chuckled at me. Oh, how much I hated it when he used the ancient magic of the rod on innocent people to get what he wanted. The power the item inhabited scared me; I witnessed it too often when he sent some of his more untalented servants to the shadow realm or brought them on the edge of losing their sanity.

"And you wanted me to join your business meeting for what reason?" I dug deeper; this time I also used air quotes to accentuate my words.

"You will assist me and search through his office while I take a little look into his mind and memories." He explained and started to walk towards the entry of the building. Marik looked back at me over his shoulder as he stopped for a second. "Come."

I followed him a few steps behind as we walked into a breathtaking historic foyer. Marik approached the registration desk in the middle of it and elegantly rested his elbows on it. Behind the desk sat an egyptian lady with light amber eyes and ebony black hair as mine, styled in into a fashionable bun. As Marik rested his chin in his palm, smiling at her in his typical charming, but yet so dangerous way, she looked up and stared at him with a questioning raised brow.

"May I help you, Sir?" She asked, not sure if she might have forgotten one of Hadad's appointments. I looked over Marik's shoulder at her and I was everything than comfortable with the whole situation and plan.

"We have an appointment with Mr. Hadad." Marik said short and crisp, his confident smirk never left his tanned face. But then I noticed a light that enhanced from the millennium rod that was still attached to his belt. 'Of course he doesn't have an appointment.' I sighed and rolled my eyes mentally. The lady's eyes went blank and pointed towards the elevators.

"Mr. Hadad's office is on the sixth floor, first door on your right.' She said expressionless and pushed a button on her desk to call the elevator for us. Its doors opened just then right behind the luxurious desk.

"Thank you." Marik chuckled, amusement played in his words as he passed the desk and stepped into the elevator. I followed him on heel and the doors slid shut behind us. The cabin was just as historic as the foyer and low classical music played in the background. As I stood right beside him I watched him from the corner of my eyes, anxious about what to expect. Would he hurt Hadad to get what he was searching for? Possibly.

"What if Hadad knows nothing about the whereabouts of the Winged Dragon?" I asked to break the awkward silence that was mixed with one of Mozart's symphonies as the elevator ascended.

Marik sighed, but didn't look at me. He just stared at the display above the elevator doors that slowly counted upwards. "I won't rest until I found the Winged Dragon and the other two god cards."

Before I could say anything in return the elevator came to a halt on the sixth floor and the polished doors slid open. They revealed a short hallway; a door on each side and a third straight ahead. Marik stepped out and stopped in front of the door on the right, it had Zaha Hadad's name plate on it.

"Listen." Marik commanded cooly, his lavender gaze met my still strained eyes as I followed him with cautious steps. I wished he had asked another one of his footmen for assistance. Why me? "While I ask Hadad some questions it's your task to look for things that could be helpful in finding Ra and the other god cards. Maps, documents or anything else. Understood?"

"Understood, but-" Marik pushed the office door open without knocking before I was able to finish what I wanted to say. It still didn't make sense to me. A lot of what he did since we left the tomb behind didn't make sense to me, sometimes I also doubted his sanity. Since then he suffered from a tend to megalomania.

Discomfort overwhelmed me as I followed him into the office of Hadad. A tall, white haired man - I guessed he was in his late fifties - sat behind the luxurious desk. He gave us both a puzzled look as we just walked into his office. Hadad's eyes narrowed angrily.

"Haven't your parents told you some manners? We don't have an appointment, do we?" His old voice growled at us as he rose from his leather chair. "Who are you?"

"I'm certain that you already got to know the name Ishtar." Marik grinned and allowed himself to sat down in one of the leather chairs in front of Hadad's dark wood desk. I closed the door behind us with caution. Hadad's eyes widened as Marik dropped his last name; by this I knew that he was probably right about his suspicion. Probably the egyptologist did know something about the hiding place of the Winged Dragon.

Hadad hesitated for a second. "I don't know what you mean. Now leave my office." He stated harshly after he cleared his throat., his index finger pointed towards the door that we just came from. But then Marik took the millennium rod from behind his back where it was attached to his belt. Hadad gasped as his eyes met the Anubis eye on top of the golden item. I could tell from his shocked expression that he knew exactly what Marik held in his hands. At least Hadad had knowledge about the ancient millennium items and their power. Obviously.

"We can do this the easy way for you, Mr. Hadad…" Marik smirked at the old man while his index finger stroked playfully over the golden wings of the rod. "Or we could do it my way. It's your choice."

„Why are you here?" He asked sharply.

Marik's piercing lavender eyes stared intensively at him; I knew how the old man felt. There always was that magic in his eyes; they could give you comfort or stare at you like thousands of daggers.

„According to my research I think you know something about the whereabouts of the Winged Dragon of Ra." Marik explained with coolness in his tone. „Or didn't you help Ishizu Ishtar to hide them somewhere save?"

Zaha Hadad let out a growl, but didn't dare to answer Marik's question. I saw how beads of sweat gathered on his tanned forehead as he loosened his tie a bit. Marik's question and his knowledge about the god cards made him nervous.

„Fine. Then we will have this conversation my way, Mr. Hadad." Marik smirked as he stood up from the leather chair. Fear was the only feeling present in the old man's face as he pointed the shining millennium rod towards him. Within a second his wise eyes went blank, his limbs relaxed immediately and every expression vanished from his face. Marik chuckled while his eyes were still fixed on his latest mind control victim.

„Jesara, you know what to look for." He commanded and winked at me over his shoulder. I just answered with a short nod and kneeled down beside Hadad, who now had no will on his own. Then I started to search through all his desks drawers for something that could be useful for Marik to find Ra and the other god cards.

„Where is the Winged Dragon of Ra?" Marik asked with the millennium rod still pointed on Zaha Hadad. His voice was demanding and it made my flesh crawl - his behaviour was so unlike him… at least how I got to know him when we were kids.

„The Winged Dragon is hid in a secret chamber of the holy sepulcher of king Sethos I. in the valley of the kings." Hadad answered limply as his blank eyes looked at nothing in particular. I didn't find anything useful in his desks drawers, so I stood up again and started to search through his cabinet that was made from the same wood. While I opened the first door of it I watched Marik from the corner of my eyes and saw a bright smirk on his lips. He was right about Zaha Hadad's connection to Ishizu and the hiding places of the god cards.

„Marik?" I gasped when I opened one of the bottom doors of Hadad's cabinet and looked at a massive safe.

„What!?" He spat and I cringed immediately at his sharp words.

I stepped to the left and pointed to the safe shyly - although I knew I didn't do anything wrong and just did what he had requested… his body language made me feel like I did something wrong. „M-maybe you find what you seek in there?" I said with weakness in my voice - I didn't want to interrupt him.

His expression softened the moment his lavender eyes noticed the safe that I just found. His triumphant smirk still held something dark. „Good job."

I didn't dare to say anything more; but I nodded thankfully at his compliment.

„Open the safe." Marik commanded Hadad, who obeyed without resistance. The old man kneeled down beside me and typed in the eight-digit code to open the safe. „Sit down." Another command left Marik's grinning lips - again Hadad did as he said and sat down at the same leather chair Marik had sat on earlier. Then he didn't move anymore. Hadad was nothing more than a marionette in the hands of a teenage boy.

„What's in there?" Marik asked stern as I kneeled down again to see what the safe contained. It was just a big envelope in there. My body tensed a bit as Marik crouched down elegantly beside me and took the envelope from the safe. His shoulder and upper arm touched mine when he opened the envelope impatiently.

I leant over to him a bit to get a better look at the papers he drew out from it. Curiosity got the best of me. It looked like a map - could it be a map from the burial chamber Hadad talked about? Maybe. It would make things easier for Marik to get Ra in his hands, although he already knew where he had to search.

„This idiot.." Marik chuckled as he inspected the map. „He kept the map of the chamber in his safe and there's also the secret room listed on it. What a fool."

„So we're going to the valley of the kings?" I asked and shot him a questioning glance.

„Exactly." Marik said and stood up. He reached out his hand for me and offered to help me stand up; I accepted it with a thankful smile. With a jolt he lifted me up to my feet with a bit too much effort. I almost stumbled, but he catched me - or to be exactly - his chest preserved me from falling. Our noses almost touched and my cheeks blushed at the sudden touch of his hand around my waist - I stared into his eyes in puzzlement. But all I saw was an amused grin on his lips that I knew all too well.

„Watch your step, Jesara." He stated and then loosened his grip from my waist; then he took a calculated step back.

„Sorry." I exhaled wryly and swallowed hard.

Silence filled the room and gave the situation just a more awkward taste than it already had.

„Much to my regret…" Marik then broke the silence and paused as his gaze wandered over to the still mind-controlled Hadad on the leather chair. I cringed at his words, curious about what he was going to say next. „…Hadad knows nothing about the whereabouts of Slifer and Obelisk."

„Oh…" I sighed.

„But I will find out sooner or later." Marik explained - again seriousness filled his voice.

He then closed the safe and the door of the cabinet again. Without Marik saying a single word Hadad stood up from where he sat and walked over to his office chair to sit down in it again.

„What if he calls the police?" I asked in concernment. „He knows our faces… And our last name."

„Oh my dear Jesara…" Marik smirked at me. „Did you forget that I can do anything with his mind? I could just erase his memory of this incident. He'll never know that we were here. But I could also change his memory to something more amusing."

My eyebrows shot up at his words. „Something funny? I didn't see you doing funny things for ages, Marik." At this he shrugged his shoulders and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

„What about changing his memory to something like…" Marik said with his thinking-voice and paused. He cocked his head a bit. „An alien abduction?"

I couldn't help but start laughing heavily at his suggestion. „Seriously?" I exhaled as I caught my breath again.

„Why not?" He asked and raised a brow at me. Right now he looked so innocent and adventurous - just like I remembered him from the time before his initiation. That day changed so much in his soul, in his behaviour and mind. I was like hypnotised from getting a hasty glance of his soft nature that I haven't seen a lot during the last years.

„That's a bit awkward, don't you think?" I chuckled and rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. Deep inside me I hoped that this moment of him joking would never end. I missed that too much.

„I'm sure that it's worth the fun of reading tomorrows newspaper." He explained with a grin and then the golden light that came from the millennium rod intensified for a second. As it faded away Hadad's head slumped onto his desk. „It will take a while until he wakes up from his trip to mars again. Time to leave." With that he turned on heel and opened the door of the office.

Again I followed him and closed the office door behind me. The elevator opened its doors soon after Marik pressed the button.

„After you." He said short and crips and mentioned for me to step in. I did how he said in his typical demanding tone. His expression was back to normal - cool, serious, prideful…untouchable - but there was no more trace of the playful smirk I had seen just a few seconds ago. I sighed mentally. He was so close to me, but most of the time yet so far away.

We stood side by side, staring at the hallway of the sixth floor as the elevator's doors slid shut.

Like partners in crime.

AN: Hope you liked it! :-) I'm still thinking about an elevator scene :P Elevators have something tempting. Don't you think? Please review!

Merci