Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or Harry Potter
The group tightened their grip on their weapons and Yami stepped forward.
"What do you want Bakura? Why did you bring us here?"
His laughter echoed around the trees. "I simply want what has been denied me."
"And what would that be?"
"You'll find out eventually, Pharaoh."
Yami took a step back. "What did you call me?"
"Ooh. I seemed to have touched a nerve."
"Tell Me!"
"No. I don't think I will. This amuses me greatly." He smiled again. He didn't look like Ryou at all. Where Ryou was gentle and soft spoken, this being was coarse and malevolent. He looked different as well. Ryou had brown eyes and his hair, while unruly, was soft looking. Now his hair was spiked up, almost looking like bat wings, and his eyes were tinged with red. His teeth were pointed into fangs, but that might have been because he was dressed as Vampire Lord.
"Then tell us who you really are."
He chuckled lowly. "Very good Pharaoh. Ryou is no longer here. I am a thief and a stealer of souls. And I have done terrible things in my age long quest."
"Quest for what?"
"You should know. You bear one of the Millennium Items."
Yami's hand went to the Puzzle around his neck. "What does my Millennium Puzzle have to do with anything?"
"I'll show you." Bakura curled his hands in a partial circle in front of his chest. They heard a deep humming and watched. An odd haze, like a heat wave, flickered between his hands. They saw a shape of gold that wavered until it took the shape of a flat pyramid surrounded by a circle of gold with five sharp looking inverted spires hanging from it. The Eye of Horus was raised from the center of the pyramid. "It was the power of my Millennium Ring that allowed me to bring all of us here."
"And now you want my Millennium Puzzle as well?"
"Yes. And the other Millennium Items as well."
"Why do you want them?"
"You don't remember the legends do you? Whosoever wields all seven shall possess power unimaginable. And before we're done with this little game your Millennium Puzzle will be mine and I'll be one step closer to that power."
"That's not going to happen."
"You'll need to win this Shadow Game first."
"Then this is a Shadow Game?"
"Of course. And you're all players. But be sure your careful. To lose here means you lose your souls as well. And the souls of your other friends." As he spoke he started to fade into the shadows. "We will meet again Pharaoh."
"Bakura! Let us go! Return us to Hogwarts and release the others you have trapped!"
His laughter was the last thing to fade away.
"Hey! Get back here you coward and fight us!" Joey ran up to where Bakura had been, but there was nothing there. "Not cool."
"It's no use Joey. He's gone." Harry frowned.
"Well it's no use standing around here then. Let's take a look at that map."
"Kaiba! Don't be so insensitive!" Tea walked over to Yami, who stood frozen. "Are you okay?" She asked gently.
He didn't answer for a second.
"Yami?"
"Yes Yugi?"
"Are you all right?"
"I... am fine. I will have to think about this later. But for now we need to focus on the game."
"All right. But don't think I won't ask you about it again. But for now let's work on beating Bakura."
He turned to Tea. "I am fine." He frowned slightly and turned to Joey. The Puzzle flashed gold.
"Let's take a look at that map." Yugi tried to smile, but it was slightly strained.
Joey nodded and brought the map over to him. They unrolled it and placed it on the ground so everyone could see.
Harry pointed to a small collection of buildings near the top of the map. "It looks like that's the village we were just at. I don't see anything else that it could be. And look. There's the mountain, just south of it."
"It does look a lot like the village." Hermione agreed. "Which means that according to this the mountain is South. At least we can navigate now."
The rest of them nodded.
"And that building just past the mountain must be the palace the villagers were talking about."
"Maybe."
"But how are we going to get to it?"
Everyone just stared at the map. None of them wanted to do any more walking. But for now it seemed like that was their only option.
Kaiba was the first to stand. "We're walking." He started down the trail and the others groaned quietly as they followed. Joey grabbed the map and rolled it back up. Tristan and Ron shared a conspiratorial look.
"And no more butterbeer songs!"
They groaned.
It took them longer than they thought to reach the base of the mountain. On the way they were attacked four different times by monsters. They were all exhausted and starting to get on each others nerves. And their tempers weren't helped by the fact that once they got to the base of the mountain there was a huge expanse of smooth rock stretching as far as they could see.
Joey cracked his knuckles and walked up to it. He tried to find a handhold, but his fingers kept slipping over the stone. Finally he jumped up to try and grab a ledge, but it turned out to be nothing more than a reflection and he fell on his backside. Yugi ran up to him.
"Are you okay Joey?"
"I'm fine." He unsheathed his sword and swung it against the cliff in exasperation. The blade went straight through the wall and because he was expecting an impact Joey fell flat on his face, his head disappearing into the cliff face.
"Joey!"
He picked himself up and grinned. "Guys. You aren't going to believe this. Look!" He placed a hand on the cliff and then pushed through it, the wall was as easy to push through as water. He grinned and walked straight through it.
Yugi laughed and followed him, walking through the same spot. He looked around. They were in a straight tunnel made of a gray rock lined with streaks of blue. Spherical lanterns that gave off a soft light lined the passage. They were quickly joined by the others, Ron was rubbing his nose.
"He missed the opening." Tea grinned.
There was a short laugh and they headed down the tunnels. Kaiba led the way, again, and Yugi ended up walking next to Mai at the rear.
She looked down at him and smiled. "So how did you get mixed up in all this anyway?"
"Um. Well-"
"It has something to do with that pendant doesn't it?"
Yugi stopped for a second before having to run to catch up. "What makes you say that?"
She smirked. "Well. I noticed that none of my jewelry came here with me, and no one else is wearing something outside their monster's usual outfit. But I'm pretty sure that I've never seen the Dark Magician wearing a big gold pyramid before."
"So you play Duel Monsters then?"
"Yes, I do. But you're really bad at trying to change the subject."
"We'll have to play sometime then."
She stopped and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He sighed.
"We're going to lose the others if we stay here."
"Then talk fast. There is something going on with you and Bakura and I want to know what before not knowing gets me in trouble. He called it the 'Millennium Puzzle' right?"
"Yugi. Just tell her. It's okay. She's right. She should know the basics of what is going on. If she's too focused on trying to figure it out she might get in trouble."
"All right Yami."
Yugi sighed and started walking again, she followed. "Yeah. It's called the Millennium Puzzle. My grandpa gave it to me about eight years ago. I finished it the first day of term."
"It was that complicated?"
"Yes, it was. But that night it just started making sense, like it was fitting itself together."
"Okay. But that doesn't really explain why Bakura wants it."
He shook his head. "It's a five-thousand year old artifact from Ancient Egypt. On the box my grandpa found it in there was a message written, it said that whoever solved the puzzle would be granted a wish and power."
"Hmm. So Bakura wants it for its power?"
He shrugged. "I guess so. I really don't know that much about it."
"What about the spirit in the puzzle?"
Yugi froze, then shook his head and sighed. "He doesn't know much either."
She smirked. "Ravenclaw, remember? I'm not some ditzy blonde."
They laughed and the others turned around to look at them. She waved them off with a smile.
"For what it's worth, I'll help you find out."
"Thanks."
The tunnel brightened gradually until after one more turn they were plunged into blazing sunlight. In front of them was a tremendous castle. It looked like it was made of the same rock as the tunnel, but in the sunlight the blue almost blazed and the gray sparkled with bits of embedded crystal. The castle's towers rose above the green hills and reached to pierce the clouds. Walkways, suspended above the ground, connected the towers. The entire structure looked like a cluster of perfect crystals with strands of spider web draped between them.
The group gaped in open admiration.
"Now that is a palace."
Yugi nodded at Ron. "No kidding. Hogwarts is a castle, but this thing is just over the top."
"Well it's no use just looking at it. Come on then."
Joey stuck his tongue out at Kaiba, but started after him. The rest of the group followed.
The trail down from the mountain to the Palace was steep, but well kept. Trimmed bushes and neat beds of flowers lined the pathway. Once they reached the bottom of the mountain it widened into a proper road. They walked between neat trees and more flower beds.
"Who do you think does all the upkeep?" Hermione asked.
"Probably someone from the Palace."
"There are plants here from all over the world." She frowned. "They shouldn't be able to survive this close together. There are desert succulents and cacti right next to tropical plants that would require tons of water." They walked a little farther and she stopped and gaped. Right in front of them sea weed was sprouting straight from the dirt, swaying gently in the air as if it were still underwater.
"This is impossible!"
Yugi walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's a Shadow Game, remember? The same rules don't always apply here."
She shook her head and reached out to touch the sea weed. Yugi pulled her away from it. "Don't think about it to much. We have to keep going."
She nodded and they started walking again, but she kept looking and frowning at the plant life on the side of the road.
They finally reached the crystalline palace and stood in front of the door. They were massive sections of crystal, perfectly cut to fit in the doorway. Kaiba stepped forward and pulled on a silken cord hanging next to them. A deep, pure tone filled the air and echoed through the halls inside. The doors swung open and the group walked inside.
It was brightly lit and the sound of the bell still echoed slightly off the pale walls. Silver lined the floor and swirled on the ceiling in patterns of jewels and flowers. As they were looking around they didn't notice a small girl stepping out in front of them.
"Hello."
They jumped and looked down.
"Um, Hello." Yugi smiled.
"We've been expecting you."
"What do you mean?"
"Follow me please." She turned lightly and started walking down the hall, turning swiftly through an ornate door.
Yugi turned to the others and shrugged before following the girl through the door. They came out in another hall, even more enormous than the first. The silver decorations were swirled around jewels of blue and purple. A silver chandelier with more gems hanging from it glittered on the ceiling.
"Woah." Joey and Ron gazed around in wonder. Kaiba snorted and walked straight up to the figure seated on a silver throne at the front of the room. The figure stood, deep purple robes billowing around her, raven hair framing a pale face before cascading down her back. Deep gray eyes shined with happiness.
"Welcome. I am Queen Alianora. We have been expecting you."
"Why?"
She laughed lightly, the sound chiming around the walls and echoing as the bell had earlier. "We have been expecting our heroes for a very long time."
"We just want to get out of here."
She frowned. "Aren't you here to destroy the evil and rescue my people?"
Kaiba opened his mouth again, but Hermione steped forward.
"Your Majesty. I believe there has been a misunderstanding. We are not heroes and we were brought to your world by mistake. We just want to get back to our home."
She frowned again, then smiled. "I see."
"Yes. So if you can help us in any way it would be appreciated."
"You are unaware of your destiny and the prophecy!"
"Wait what?!"
She nodded. "Yes. You see many years ago a great power came to this land. It terrorized my people and many were slain. Finally we were able to reach a peace with the power. Every year we must send sacrifices to the castle or the power will come down upon us again and destroy us all."
"So what do you want us to do about it?"
"Kaiba! Don't be rude." Yugi frowned at him.
Alianora smiled. "It is all right. You see there is also a prophecy declaring that heroes from a distant land will come to aid us and rid our land of the Dark Power forevermore!"
"I'm still confused." Tristan frowned.
Yugi turned back to the woman. "Excuse us for a moment." He turned to the others. "Look. We're stuck in a Shadow Game. The only way out is to win. And you win by playing the game."
"What are you saying Yug?"
"I'm saying that in order to get out of here we need to help her out." He pointed over his shoulder at the Queen.
Harry nodded. "It makes sense to me."
"I'm in Yug."
"Me too."
"This is crazy, but I'll come too."
"Thanks guys." Yugi grinned and turned to Kaiba. "What about you?"
"Someone will have to keep you kids from getting killed."
"Okay then! Let's do this!"
They turned back to the woman who was smiling widely. "Well heroes? What is your answer?"
"We will help you."
She clapped her hands and servants rushed from either side of the hall, quickly filling it with a long table that was soon covered with food. More even than filled the tables at Hogwarts.
"I am very pleased to hear that. Please feast with us before you begin your journey."
Joey, Ron, and Tristan rushed at the table and started filling their plates as fast as they could. The others laughed and joined them, eating until they were full. After the meal Alianora stood and the servants rushed into the room again, removing the table and food.
"If you will follow me I will explain your quest further."
She spun around and led them through a side door and into a room with an enormous map set up on a table. They gather around it and Joey brings out the map they found.
"Now. The Castle of the Dark Power is here." She pointed to a spot right smack in the middle of the mountains. "The Castle is inaccessible by carriage, horse, or foot."
"Then how are we supposed to get there!" Tristan growled.
"We fly." Mai stated like it was obvious. Hermione nodded.
"Yes. It's the only logical option."
Alianora smiled, pleased. "You are correct. You shall fly there."
"On what? Do you have brooms?" Ron asked eagerly.
"Brooms?"
"Nevermind."
She looked at him quizzically, then shook her head. "You will be riding Dragons."
Kaiba was the only one who seemed excited at the prospect. They were taken out into a large courtyard and Queen Alianora clapped her hands. Servants open a pair of enormous doors. The first creature out was a tiny orange dragon.
"Oh! It's so cute!" Tea ran forward and wrapped her arms around it. It cooed gently.
"That is baby dragon." Alianora identified.
The next was a little bigger and light blue. It's jaw was large and it showed off a set of fangs to match. Tristan grinned as it walked up to him.
"Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress."
A dragon that appeared to be made of bone entered next. It's eyes were red and its body had no legs. It roared a greeting as it flew forward, hovering in front of Ron.
"Curse of Dragon."
A dark blue dragon walked forward on its hind legs, its flesh shimmered slightly in the sunlight. Hermione greeted it.
"Luster Dragon."
A chain clanked as a dark red dragon with a chain around it's neck and a gold headpiece stepped forward and bowed to Mai.
"As a Harpie you can fly, but Harpie's Pet Dragon will follow it's master anywhere."
Lightning crackled as a long green dragon flew out of the opening and curled itself around Harry.
"Thunder Dragon seems to have taken a liking to you."
A dragon with four wings, a sharp beak and turquoise coloring flew out and landed behind Yugi hovering protectively.
"Different Dimension Dragon."
Two roars echoed around the courtyard and it sounded like two different dragons were trying to come out at once. The smile on Kaiba's face widened considerably and he stepped forward. Joey took a step to match him as he was the only one left without a dragon. The first dragon through roared in triumph. It was pure white with metallic claws and teeth. Bright blue eyes flashed and it blasted a bolt of white lightning up at the sky. It was followed quickly by a pure black dragon with flaming red eyes who blasted a globe of red and black fire up after the lightning. Kaiba walked up to the white dragon and the black dragon stepped forward to greet Joey.
"Hmm. Blue Eyes White Dragon and Red Eyes Black Dragon seem to have bonded with the pair of you more quickly than I would have thought."
Kaiba smirked. "Blue Eyes and I go back a long ways."
"Yes." She smiled. "Much farther than you think."
Servants brought forward a few wooden chests. She opened one and brought out a gold flute which she handed to Kaiba.
"The Flute of Summoning Dragon. This will only respond properly to you Lord of Dragons. It only has one use, but blow on it and all of your dragons will return to you when you need them." He nodded and she turned to Mai, opening another chest on the way.
"I believe that you will find that this Harpie's Feather Duster might come in handy. Be cautious. It also may only be used once." Alianora handed her a large feathered brush, then walked over to Hermione, handing her a delicate looking silver chain with an elaborate pendant. It was a blue crystal capped with a pair of elaborately designed silver wings. A red gem shimmered in the center of the wings, looking like a drop of fresh blood.
"I hope you never have to use this. But it will bring one creature back from the Graveyard. It is called Monster Reborn." Hermione nodded grimly and clasps it under her bushy hair, tucking the pendant into her robes.
Out of another chest she pulled out a long sword with a gold hilt. She presented it to Harry with a smile. "To protect your friends and yourself. Legendary Sword will increase your power."
Her smile faded slightly as she turned to Yugi. "My last gift is for you." She reached into the last chest and pulled out a shining golden apple. "Only use this in the gravest of circumstances. Its power will only last for a short time before running out, and draining you of energy. But it may be the difference between victory and defeat." She handed it to him and he nodded before tucking it safely away in the folds of his cloak.
She clapped her hands again and the dragons came to attention. "You must all leave quickly. If you do not reach the Castle by midnight the Dark Power's captives will be sacrificed to feed the Darkness and with its power increased you will not be able to defeat it!"
"Well that was dramatic." Harry said as they climbed onto their dragon's backs.
Joey and Tristan were the only ones who laughed. Yugi looked down grimly. Their fellow students would die if they didn't succeed.
"We won't fail Yugi."
"But what if I'm not strong enough Yami?"
"You are. You're stronger than you think."
He sighed as Different Dimension Dragon rose into the air. The others followed quickly and they sped off towards the heart of the mountains.
The air was cold and thin as they flew. Some of the peaks were high enough that Yugi could almost touch them as they passed overhead, then they plunged into misty valleys and dark crevasses that were impossible to see the bottom. He shivered and pulled his purple robes tightly around him.
Their dragons had quickly formed a line according to their station. Blue Eyes and Red Eyes vied for the first position while Different Dimension Dragon and Thunder Dragon flew patiently behind them. They were followed by Curse of Dragon and Luster Dragon. Harpie's Pet Dragon, Winged Dragon, and Baby Dragon brought up the rear.
When they had started their journey Joey had kept yelling back to Ron and Tristan, who had replied in kind while they laughed. Now they were huddled on their dragon's backs, trying to keep warm and reserving their breath.
Yugi shivered again, wrapping his numb fingers around his staff and gripping it tightly.
"We'll be fine Yugi."
"I know Yami. I'm just worried about Ryou."
"Yes. The Spirit of the Millennium Ring seems particularly vindictive. But hopefully once we win this Shadow Game we can free Ryou from his control."
"I hope so."
"AHHHHHH!" Yugi turned at the sound of the shrill scream. Flocks of large black birds were gaining quickly on them. A few had already caught up to the back row and were tearing at Tea's hair and clothes. Mai was clawing at the ones nearest to her and Tristan was trying to shoot them off of Tea. Yugi turned to Harry who nodded and they pulled their dragons back to attack the flock.
Yugi blasted them with Dark Magic Attack while Harry engaged them with his sword. They were quickly joined by Joey, Kaiba, Ron, and Hermione. Soon they were engaged in an all out battle over the mountains and the deepest crevase they had yet seen. The birds were dropping from the sky, relitavely weak alone, but in their numbers they were becoming overwhelming. Joey cried out as one raked its claws over his shoulder and another tried to grab his sword. It failed, bursting into flames and fell into the deep mountains.
They kept blasting them or slicing at them, but there were just too many. In an effort to draw them away from his friends, Yugi blasted at the thickest part of them before turning his dragon. The birds started to pull away and his friends cheered before they saw why. Yugi was a far distance away before he stopped to face them again. The mass swirled around him and all they could see was a dark cloud, before there was a flash of light and a small, purple figure fell from the middle of the cloud, tumbling down towards the jagged mountain slopes.
"YUGI!"
I'm horrible. I don't post for about a month and then I leave you with that? I'm sorry. I did make this one extra long to try and make up for it though. I'll try to post the next chapter soon.
Anyway... tell me what you think! :) I'm really excited about the next chapters!
