Time: approximately one year after the events of chapter one.

-.-.-.-

Tea with the Great Sage

-.-.-.-

It was late August and hot as Hell out there. Yugi was already regretting wearing leather beneath his hooded cape, but where he was going, it didn't hurt to be prepared. Besides, old habits die hard and Yugi's old habits died the hardest, like his affinity for leather and his tendency to wittingly and unwittingly annoy Kaiba with a vast majority of his actions.

This would, with all due likelihood, prove to be one of said actions.

He nodded to a similarly hooded Jonouchi snacking on some fried chicken. "I expect to be back sometime early tomorrow morning. I trust that you and Kaiba won't try to kill each other in the meantime."

Jonouchi tore off another bite as they turned into an empty alleyway, taking the time to ensure that it was truly empty. "Not even with dragons?"

"Especially not with dragons. Last time was expensive."

-.-.-.-

The introduction of summons had revolutionised the transportation system. Obviously, much of the old system of horses and carriages and whatnot still remained, but for people with resources, there were alternative means of transportation.

Of course, using summoned beasts as a means of transportation was hardly unproblematic. For one thing, not all of them were entirely keen on allowing themselves to be ridden; dragons in particular were a proud sort. Besides, it was hardly practical for Kaiba and his fellow Dragon Knights to ride dragons to every destination; for larger ventures or to make a statement, it was obviously acceptable, but otherwise, if horseback wasn't good enough for them, they'd simply have to walk.

Yugi himself preferred travelling on foot rather than on horseback but only ever did so when heading out on private excursions; official business required a whole lot of ceremonial bullshit, protocols and whatnot. Naturally, Yugi very much preferred travelling incognito, wearing a disguise. Of course, these days, he was hardly anonymous; Jonouchi was after all quite recognisable, and even with Yugi applying a bit of magic to keep people from looking too closely, there were a number of people who had by now put two and two together.

They were usually pretty polite about it though, the owners and workers of the establishments frequented by Jonouchi, as well as Honda and Anzu. Food and drinks were usually on the house, which was nice, because Jonouchi usually ate for two, possibly even three; not that Yugi could blame him or anything though, quite aware as he was of the circumstances of Jonouchi's childhood.

"No worries," Jonouchi reassured him with a smile. "I'll deal with Moneybags. As for the sage, you're on your own."

Yugi snorted softly at that, decidedly more amused than bemused. "Jonouchi, no dragons."

Jonouchi's smile widened to a grin. "No promises, Yugi."

-.-.-.-

The introduction of summons had revolutionised the transportation system. His first time riding a dragon had been a mildly terrifying but nevertheless exhilarating experience, but since then, Yugi had found other, alternative means of transportation better suited for his unofficial ventures.

In his hand was a card containing a summoning contract, and he smiled at the answering croon. "Kuriboh."

Kuriboh was a Level 1 Effect Monster; quite weak, in the opinion of most. Something that people tended to forget however was the fact that Kuriboh was technically a Monster of the Fiend variety and as such technically classified as a demonic summon.

Similarly, considering how Yugi himself had once held the title of Black Magic Knight, it was surprising just how many people failed to recall that Yugi's Deck, past and present, had always had a place for Monsters of the Fiend variety. Most of his current one was of the Earth variety, but his signature summons had always been either Light or Dark. And, truth to be told, Yugi had always had more of an affinity for the latter. Naturally, getting possessed by an ancient pharaoh with a definite affinity for the latter hadn't exactly helped in Yugi's case.

After that, as far as making contracts with Duel Monster Spirits went, Yugi really hadn't renewed himself that much. His most recent contract had been to Winged Kuriboh, Kuriboh's Level 1 Fairy counterpart; first a demon and then an angel, both of the small and fluffy variety. Still, they were loyal companions and had useful dimensional abilities at their disposal. For one thing, it did save a whole lot of time and money when it came to travelling. Besides, Yugi knew well to value loyalty, because it was different from the type of pride that prevented Kaiba from launching a coup d'état; Kaiba had lost his qualifications for kingship, and thus he had been forced to honour the agreement to serve whoever had ultimately ended up on top, much like the rest of them.

Kuriboh crooned, expressing concern.

"I'm alright," Yugi assured him, reaching out to touch the now materialised spirit. "Thank you."

-.-.-.-

The first couple of times he'd entered the Void, Yugi had been pulled into it by force; first by Pegasus and then by Bakura, the spirit of the Millennium Ring. Pegasus had only done it partially though, unlike Bakura, who'd gone all way through. Both times, there had been souls on the line, although Pegasus had not had the courtesy of mentioning this before it was almost over. Bakura meanwhile had made use of his host, Ryou, to lure them in.

Back then, the Void, or the Shadow Realm as some allegedly called it, had been a place of trauma and discomfort. These days, Yugi hardly minded it, provided that the time spent in it was brief; anything else would have been highly inadvisable, even for skilled summoners, because the location itself drained you, sapping away your energy for as long as you remained there.

Even now, Yugi would hardly venture into the Void without having someone to guide him; it was easy getting lost after all.

Of course, calling it the Void was a bit unfair; it was really a gateway between their world and the world of spirits. Of course, to this day, little was known about the latter; Yugi had meant to remedy that at some point, but retaining and improving the Duellist Kingdom had taken priority over exploring what lay beyond the inhospitable Void. Besides, now that the Millennium Items were once again sealed, the void that was the Shadow Realm remained virtually a nonissue, seeing that certain people could no longer drag their opponents and unlucky bystanders into it simply for their own amusement or some other dastardly purpose.

The Ghouls obviously came to mind; Ryou was no longer possessed and Marik no longer psychotic, but together, they still stirred up trouble even these days, albeit on a somewhat lesser scale now that they were no longer wielding the Millennium Ring and Rod. Of course, in their case, being somewhat less powerful still meant that they were decidedly more powerful than the average Duellist.

Marik's Dark affinity aside, Ryou probably held more contracts with Fiend Monsters than anyone, retaining a particular affinity for the zombie types. They had both spent a great deal of time in the Shadow Realm, building up something of a resistance to the effects of the void; much like Yugi himself.

Sighing, Yugi stepped out of the void and onto solid ground; only seconds had passed, but it had felt much longer than that. Jonouchi, after a rare and relatively tame experience with the void, had compared the sensation to wading through syrup; sticky and way more exhausting than it should be.

There was a massive staircase above; Yugi, standing upon the lowermost step, felt exhausted already.

"No, no, it's alright," he assured Kuriboh. "Thank you, Kuriboh. I'll take it from here."

Those damned staircases; at this rate, they'd be the death of him.

-.-.-.-

The Castle of the Great Sage, the Cradle of the Duellist Kingdom, was located on top of a mountain. Yugi recalled how he had once thought of it as a strange place to govern from; an old castle on a decidedly remote island.

Standing there now though, Yugi realised what a stroke of genius it had been; the remoteness alone was enough to ward off most of those pesky counts, clerks and clerics who would otherwise do their utmost to waste the time of the Duellist Court and of Yugi himself in particular.

After all, with the dimensional abilities of Kuriboh, it wasn't as though the distance would serve as much of an obstacle to Yugi himself; just to the people who'd turn up with issues that had already been assigned to individual knights.

Heck, the odd nobleman with a lack of experience with the workings of the Duellist Court would occasionally come to Yugi, complaining about insolence and whatnot, showing just how quickly the nobility had forgotten the terror of King Pegasus' reign.

One of the first things on Yugi's agenda back when he had first ascended the throne had been to move their base of operations to Domino City, where he had been born and raised. The partially ruined castle still remained a special place though, accommodating the once king and current sage.

Years prior, Yugi and the others, friends and fellow duellists, had arrived on this island, responding to a challenge issued by King Pegasus. Looking back at it now, Yugi could still recall the terror he'd experienced at the thought of failure; the soul of his beloved grandfather had been on the line, so losing really hadn't been an option. Losing hadn't really been an option for Kaiba either, with Mokuba's life on the line.

Reaching up, Yugi pulled down the hood, letting his hair get caught up in the ocean breeze. Then, after a nod in Kuriboh's direction, he began his ascent.

-.-.-.-

"Ah, Yugi-boy! Long time no see."

It had certainly been a while, but apparently not long enough for the sage to stop using that nickname. "It's been a while, Great Sage."

Pegasus bowed his head lightly in response, by no means subtle with his scrutiny as he eyed Yugi's mildly exhausted and somewhat dishevelled appearance. "Oh, there's no need for such, Yugi-boy. It's no great secret that you disagree with formalities."

"Then, disagreeing with formalities‒" Yugi began, making a mental note to put aside more time for a fitness regimen. "You requested advice."

"Not so much for myself. For my charge."

The air inside of the castle proved blessedly cool compared to that on the outside. "Johan Andersen, was it?"

-.-.-.-

Arriving in what used to be the dining room, Yugi noted that it had been transformed into a gallery of some sort. Gone were the long dining table and chairs, replaced by a single round table with a chair on each side. There were also snacks and two cups of steaming tea already set upon it. It looked really nice; innocent even. Had Kaiba been there, then he would have probably muttered something about risk management and poison.

Yugi removed his cape, folded it and hung it over the chair's backrest, claiming a seat while Pegasus did the same. "So?"

Pegasus frowned slightly at his teacup. "Johan-boy's feeling a bit troubled right now. And I'm afraid it's beyond anything I can fix these days."

Yugi picked a cookie from the tray, eyeing it briefly before taking an experimental bite. "He's here right now?"

The great sage just sighed. "Well, he was, up until maybe an hour ago. I took my eyes off him for two minutes and now he's gone."

Well, that sounded decidedly familiar. "Jonouchi's going to use that same excuse once Kaiba finds out I'm skipping out on the budget meeting."

Well, that and the monthly session of listening to people's complaints on how Yugi saw it fit to run his country. Yeah, Kaiba would probably‒ "Kaiba-boy will no doubt be thrilled."

Despite himself, Yugi chuckled. "Kaiba's still angry about what I did last time."

"Oh?" Pegasus looked decidedly intrigued. "Last time?"

Actually, those cookies were excellent; Yugi would have to ask someone for the recipe. "I'm surprised it hasn't reached your ears yet."

"Well then, you must tell me all about it." Pegasus sipped some more tea, his eyes sweeping across the room. "Other than Johan-boy and Hayato-boy, few people visit me these days, so it's been getting pretty dull. I don't get out much."

Yugi would imagine that just about anything would be quite dull compared to being a mad despot hell-bent on world conquest and whatnot. Still‒ "Hayato-boy?"

"Ah him?" Pegasus looked decidedly fond at their mention. "He used to be in the Osiris Red Dorm at Kaiba-boy's Academy, but his father wanted him to drop out and join the family business. That is how I met him actually. After I discovered his skill in painting, I offered to become his mentor."

Yugi wasn't particularly surprised. Rather, he was fairly pleased to learn that Pegasus had kept up with his old, decidedly less nefarious hobby.

"Hayato-boy's like you, you know," Pegasus said at last, looking decidedly thoughtful. "He's got the sight, even if it's a bit dodgy. He tells me the most delightful stories of the Central Academy though, so it's an outright pity that I cannot go there and see it for myself."

In a way, that made two of them. "I haven't seen it either, but I've heard much about it."

If Pegasus appeared at the Central Academy, then Kaiba would no doubt throw a fit. The man was probably very much aware of this, going by the somewhat crooked smile sent Yugi's way. "I know, Yugi-boy. Hayato said Winged Kuriboh was there, accompanying a friend of his."

Yugi helped himself to another cookie.

The sage sent him a decidedly amused look. "So, is that Judai-boy the reason why Kaiba-boy's upset?"

It was, more or less.

Pegasus looked decidedly pleased. "Intriguing. Tell me more."

Yugi contemplated his tea, wondering what blend it was, making an effort not to think about the other things he had done that had yet to invoke Kaiba's wrath, simply because they had so far managed to escape his notice. These days, he didn't technically have to mind his thoughts like this, because Pegasus was no longer able to read them. Old habits die hard though, and Yugi's old habits died the hardest. "Shouldn't we go looking for Johan first?"

Pegasus readily dismissed his concerns. "Johan-boy will be back once he's ready. Before that, I want to hear some interesting news for once. Tell me, who is this Judai-boy of yours?"

Yugi really had to find out what blend it was; Kaiba was a caffeine addict, so the court rarely got any decent tea, just coffee.

Coming to think of it, coffee had to be imported from abroad and was causing quite a dent in their budget, so maybe‒ Or not, because then Kaiba wouldn't be fun to deal with, not that he was ever very fun to deal with.

"Who knows?" Yugi decided at last, figuring that he'd put it off for long enough. "I picked him up."

Well, technically speaking‒ "Picked him up, did you? Because he's got the sight like you?"

Well, there was that, and then there was‒ "I had other motives as well."

"Other motives?" Some of them purer than others.

With a sigh, Yugi prepared himself for the inevitable, snatching himself another cookie while he was at it. "You are aware of the movements of the Dark World, right?"

Pegasus' expression immediately sobered up and he gave his tea a troubled look. "Indeed."

He too had to have felt it then; the shifting currents. The spirit-sensitive children had probably only confirmed the man's suspicions; the balance of power was shifting. Initially, Yugi himself had only experienced it as an uneasy feeling. It had gradually built up though, slowly at first only to escalate later on.

One question remained though. "To what extent?"

"Next to nothing, I'm afraid." Pegasus offered up a dismissive wave. "I'm not like you, Yugi-boy."

Yugi folded his arms across his chest, leaning back to level the other with a meaningful look. "Yuki Judai."

Pegasus shrugged mildly. "The boy you agreed to sponsor after you ran into him outside the Academia Entrance Exams last year. Hayato-boy told me. But what does that‒?"

Yugi thought about it; how to explain the situation. "Simply put, he's an alien."

"Alien?" Pegasus blinked. "Foreigner?"

"Not from this world," Yugi clarified, tilting his head slightly. "I wasn't sure at first, so I asked Mahado and Mana to investigate."

Pegasus whistled. "So, how does that boy of yours relate to the movements of the Dark World?"

"Political refugee," Yugi deadpanned, because that was true enough. "Much potential. I merely offered him the means to realise it."

For once, Pegasus looked stunned. Then, rather expectedly, he became visibly intrigued. "So you sent him to Central Academy? Is that why Kaiba-boy is so upset with you?"

Yugi considered it; how to put it delicately. "The Society of Light. You know about them, right?"

Pegasus shrugged mildly. "More or less."

"And the Seven Stars Assassins?"

"More about those, less about the Society of Light."

Despite the fact that there were only spirits in their immediate vicinity, Yugi lowered his voice. "Our newest knight refused to cease his involvement with the Society of Light, so Kaiba decided to suspend him. Then he got angry with me for giving away the discarded Deck."

Pegasus shot him another considering look. "Well, obviously he'd get mad, but that's not all there is, is it?"

Now, how to put it delicately or not so delicately‒ "Judai's joined the Seven Stars Assassins. As their new leader."

"Hoh?"

Putting it bluntly like that, it did sound kind of bad. Still, from what Yugi had heard, it honestly didn't seem like such a bad thing even though Kaiba had been at his throat since first learning of it. And then‒ "There's also the headmaster, Samejima, who keeps writing me, asking me to ask Judai to stop skipping class."

Pegasus poured himself some more tea, adding sugar and stirring. "In other words, Kaiba-boy's got a truant cult leader with unknown powers at his school and you're the one who put him there?"

While that was technically true, Yugi really couldn't say he regretted it, biting into yet another cookie while he was at it. "I don't see Kaiba's problem though. The Society of Light's disbanded and the Seven Stars are keeping quiet. From what I've heard, they seem to have developed a greater interest in fishing than in wreaking havoc at Kaiba's academy. I mean, can you imagine?"

"This Judai-boy must be quite a force to be reckoned with," Pegasus noted.

He most likely was, even if he had had help this time around. Still, Yugi wasn't here to discuss Judai, was he? "So, Johan's trials aren't going smoothly?" Yugi opted instead, directing attention back to why he'd been summoned there in the first place.

Surprisingly, Pegasus slid right into it. "Rainbow Dragon is high-level, so it demands a high-level trial. I've done what I can to support him, but no, it's not going smoothly."

Yugi took the opportunity to down what still remained of his tea. "So, you want me to talk to him? What should I say?"

The sage just shrugged mildly. "Whatever comes to mind. Yugi-boy, you're the king, remember? It's your job to be an inspiration to the rest of us."

Had not so much been at stake and had Yugi known beforehand just how much trouble the job was, then he would've let someone else have it.

"Well then‒" He got up. "Time to be an inspiration."

-.-.-.-

After asking around a bit amongst the spirits, Yugi finally found the person he was looking for.

The boy lay flat on his back in the grass, shaded by the canopy of the dense forest. The boy's spirits obviously saw Yugi coming. A number of them even bowed their heads, but they did not alert the boy of Yugi's presence. "Johan Andersen, I presume?"

Johan lifted the wrist that had previously lain across his eyes shielding them from the light, and sat himself up with some effort, looking at Yugi somewhat blearily. "King Yugi?"

A moment of silence passed between them, just as an unusually strong breeze came rushing through the forest, rustling the leaves in the trees all around them and sending more than a few birds ‒ regular and spirit ones alike ‒ into flight.

-.-.-.-

"Milord."

Black Magician Girl appeared before him where he stood out on the pier, overlooking the waves. "Mana, huh? How's the budget meeting?"

"Lord Seto and Lord Jonouchi are arguing again. Mahado said they'll probably end up trading blows."

"And the rest of them?"

"Lord Mokuba, Lady Anzuand Lady Mai are all rolling their eyes at it. Lord Honda is trying to encourage Lord Marufuji and Lord Phoenix to place their bets. The others are looking increasingly uncomfortable with the situation."

"And the annoying nobles?"

"They retreated after they'd caught sight of Lord Seto's facial expression. All of them."

If so, then Yugi had a distinct feeling that he might feel tempted to do the same thing. "It's no use delaying the inevitable, I suppose."

Still, Yugi wasn't looking forward to it.

-.-.-.-