Had a bit of fun with this one, as you will see :) Imaginary cookies to anyone who can spot YGOTAS references!
Chapter Eight : May Be Something There that Wasn't There Before
Bakura in Rare's body stood up after he collapsed from the attack. "Very impressive," he said grudgingly, "But I am far from beaten. Your Millennium Item is as good as mine!" He and the other Rare Hunters walked away and…disappeared into thin air?
"Wow…" I said softly, "That was intense."
"We're just lucky that he didn't turn it into a Shadow Game," Yami said quietly.
The phrase sounded familiar… "Shadow Game?"
"In which the monster become real, and the loser is banished to the Shadow Realm," the pharaoh explained.
Then I remembered. "That's how the Sarana from five thousand years ago died, isn't it?"
"Yes." Yami avoided my gaze. I could tell he was still bothered by the concept of a love interest in his former life.
"Hey, uh…" I said awkwardly; what could I say to a pharaoh? "Um, thanks for, you know, saving me."
The pharaoh looked back at me, his eyes softening. "No problem."
"Just out of curiosity, how did you find me?" I asked.
"Yugi ran after you when he saw you escape that mob. He saw the Rare Hunters and went to get your Duel Disk, because there was no way they'd let you go without a fight."
"Who are the Rare Hunters? And who's Bakura? You sounded like you know him or something…"
"He was a friend of mine and Yugi's until he was possessed by the spirit of the Millennium Ring," Yami said shortly, "Now he is bent on destroying the world, and I have to stop him in any way I can." He sounded like he didn't want to go on about Bakura. "The Rare Hunters are the thugs of Duel Monsters. They attack unsuspecting duelists and steal their best cards. Bakura must have used the Millennium Rod to brainwash the ones we dueled…"
"Hmm…" I mumbled. I glanced at my watch. "Oh, I have to leave; Dad will be home from the dig soon." I gave Yami a grin. "Again, thank you." He shot back a slightly uncertain answering smile, and I left the alley with a wave.
When I wasn't looking…
Sarana's smile seemed glued to Yami's eyes. It was as if the sun had broken through the heavy rain clouds of his despair and left a rainbow for him.
Since when was he this poetical?
"Okay spill it, what's the deal?" Yugi demanded playfully.
"What's what deal?" Yami asked, confused.
"You do like her, don't you?" Yugi teased.
"Gah…maybe," the pharaoh said evasively.
"Oh come on! If she has something to do with this girl you liked five thousand years ago, then maybe you're destined for each other!"
Yami froze; he hadn't thought of that. No! Focus! I can't be falling in love!
"Hey, just because you're a millennia-old spirit doesn't mean you can't have a crush on somebody," Yugi said cheerfully. "She is very pretty, you know."
"Sounds like I'm not the only one who may or may not have feelings for someone," Yami teased back, causing Yugi to blush slightly.
"N-no, it's not like that! I like her the way I like Tea; she's a really good friend!"
In his mind, Yugi began to think: he may have had feelings for the sweet young girl who he had taught Duel Monster and that under his instruction had beaten Kaiba, but Yami needed her more, so it was time to plan another…surprise for him. The duelist grinned evilly; this was going to be fun!
The next day…
Yugi searched feverishly through his dresser; there had to be in there other than black leather and school uniforms!
"Yugi what are you up to?" Yami asked warily.
"It's a surprise," Yugi said mysteriously.
"That last time you said that, I ended up spending a day with Tea at random places and saved her from a creep who wanted to go on a date with her because she beat him at Dance Dance Revolution."
"No worries, that won't happen today," Yugi quipped. He sighed. "I guess we'll just have to do with black leather…Maybe you guys can go shopping today."
"What?"
"Oh…nothing," Yugi said quickly, but Yami still looked suspicious. Dang, he probably already knew what was coming…
Back to me…
This was going to be one heck of a nerve-wracking day. I checked myself in the mirror one more time to make sure that I looked okay.
Yugi had phoned me last night, and he told me what he was doing. I still had a feeling he was hiding something, but hey, I owed him a favor after what his alter ego did yesterday.
Today I wore a gray halter top and another pair of my nicer jeans. I left my black hair to tumble down my back and around my shoulders in an inky-bronze waterfall.
Dad had already left for work when I left my room, but I saw a note on the table:
Sarana,
We may have found some artifacts yesterday, so I left early to continue working on it. I forgot to tell you yesterday, but I want you to keep your Duel Disk on you at all times. There are people who call themselves Rare Hunters that lurk about this place, and they will steal whatever cards they can find. I just want you to defend yourself.
XOXO,
Dad
I snorted. Dad didn't need to tell me any of this: he had been so excited last night when I came home because they had dug up some more evidence of Duel Monsters in the past, and I already had a run-in with the Rare Hunters yesterday. The fierce duel was still burned into my mind. Nevertheless, I put on my Duel Disk as he instructed. Hey who knows, I might be using it later, if Kaiba still held a grudge.
I saw the stove clock turn to 8:45, and Yugi wanted to meet me at Cairo Plaza at 9:30. Since it was about a 20 minute walk, I figured I'd start now. Here's hoping I didn't run into any Rare Hunters on the way…
A little while later at Cairo Plaza…
There was no sign of Yugi or any of his friends when I arrived, so I sat on a bench and waited patiently for someone to show up.
"Have fun pharaoh, you can thank me later," I heard, and my head whipped around and saw Yami being completely flummoxed, before he realized what was happening.
"Yugi! You promised you wouldn't do this again!" Then he realized that I was standing right there, and he waved, somewhat shyly, and said "hello," awkwardly.
I waved back, and he walked till he was by my side. "Don't know why Yugi put me up to this. Do you?"
"Nope," I answered, "He just told me to meet him here, now. He didn't mention anything about why."
"Well, since we're here, what do you want to do?" It appeared that Yami had little experience with outings or…dates.
"No idea, I don't know what's here," I quipped, "I've only been here a few days…"
"Right…It's weird, because I haven't known for a long time, but it already feels like I've known you for years. If this is because of something in my past…"
"Well, how about we go back to museum?" I asked, "Maybe we'll find something new!"
"Alright, that sounds like a good idea," the pharaoh agreed.
"Hey, I didn't see that here before," I said, surprised.
In front of us was a giant rock upon which was…the pharaoh? He was dueling some random person with a Dark Magician against the opponent's Blue – Eyes White Dragon.
"This was how I first learned that I was a pharaoh," Yami said, "and that I somehow saved the world from being destroyed by the Shadow Games. Something that confuses me is that person on the left," he pointed to the other figure, "seems to be Kaiba, but he denies everything even associated with ancient Egypt. He doesn't believe in magic, or the Millennium Items, or even in this stone tablet. He believes that it was only freakish coincidence."
"Well, he surrounds himself with the world's metal and plastic, and if I were him, I wouldn't be too interested in things like magic or make-believe." Yami stared at me, surprised and a little puzzled.
"Think of it this way," I continued, "Magic isn't something that can really be proven. Kaiba, with his inventions, wants to believe in only things that can be proven, and believes that if something out of the ordinary happens, it should have a scientific explanation. Since magic can't be explained, he has no reason to believe in it. In a way, he forces himself not to believe in anything but science and technology."
"I never thought of it that way," Yami said, astonished, "I'm surprised you were able to get such a reading on him even though you've only met him a few times."
"I didn't," I said, "I was just guessing from what I've seen and heard about him."
"It was still very accurate," Yami said softly. We made eye contact, and the burgundy fire in his eyes made a blush creep into my cheeks again.
"Yugi! Rookie!" a voice that was unmistakably Kaiba shouted. "Rematch!" We turned and saw him glowering at us with his arms crossed.
"Can't it wait, Kaiba?" I asked wearily.
"No! You – both of you – have stomped me down far too many times!" Kaiba shouted, "It's payback time!"
"I'll handle this," Yami muttered, activating his Duel Disk. "This won't take long." He faced his biggest rival. "You've hassled us for the last time, Kaiba! If I win this duel you will wait one month before challenging either of us again!"
Us, my mind whispered, he said us. He was defending me too…? But why?
"But if I win, then you and the girl will hand over your Egyptian God Cards and tell everyone that I am the real Duel King!" Kaiba countered.
"Very well," the pharaoh said, and both opponents declared, "Let's duel!"
It wasn't a very long duel.
Sure, Kaiba Summoned his Blue – Eyes Ultimate Dragon, but Yami managed to Summon the second Egyptian God Card – Obelisk the Tormentor!
It was huge, and blue. Its towering Attack Points, however, were still several hundred less than Kaiba's dragon, at least until Yami sacrificed his Big Shield Guardna and Celtic Guardian to give the god infinite Attack Points and win the duel!
"One month," Yami repeated, and walked back to me. "Told you it wouldn't be long,' he said with a small smirk.
"I'll never get bored of watching you duel," I promised. Indeed, Yami had a way with dueling that made it seem…I dunno, I can't think of the best word to describe it…artistic?
"So now that that's done what would you like to do?" he asked casually, as if no interruption had taken place.
"Um, how about you pick?" I asked. Now that the duel was over, it once again felt awkward to be in the pharaoh's presence.
"Well, there's a trading card game shop nearby, if you want to check it out," Yami said, avoiding my gaze; he must have been pretty desperate, reverting to the topic he was most comfortable with.
Most comfortable with…
"That sounds perfect!" I said excitedly, "Let's go!"
Yami brightened up at my enthusiasm, and so the card shop it was!
This place was interesting: you could either just buy some cards, or you could trade in some of your cards for some new ones.
"There was a place back in Yugi's home like this," Yami informed me as we browsed. "I was able to find some excellent cards."
I nodded absently. There were so many to look at! I finally was able to choose a couple card packs and just see what I got.
As we walked out of the store I opened the first of three packs. Nothing that really caught my eye, though Yami whistled at the Summoned Skull. Next pack had an interesting surprise – Dark Magician Girl, but not really any else that could go with my fairy deck theme.
However, both our jaws dropped when I opened the last pack.
"Is that…me?" I asked incredulously.
"Sure looks like you, doesn't it?"
It was the Dark Witch card. Her hair was the same style as mine, although hers was blue-black as opposed to brown-black, and our faces had an uncanny resemblance. She looked a little older though, and large black wings sprouted from her shoulders.
"I wonder…" Yami murmured.
"Wonder what?" I asked.
"It's nothing. Just a thought." Yami sent me a genuine smile, rare for him.
"About what?" I persisted.
"…Do you know what ka are?" the pharaoh asked after a moment of consideration.
"Um, I think so…It's like your soul if it had a form, right?"
"Almost. Ancient Egyptians believed that they had a guardian that evolved as they grew and matured, and it was their constant spirit companion during their lifetime, and that it accompanied their ba, or life force, to the afterlife.
"That's actually only the half the truth that is revealed to the present. Actually, yes they had a spirit companion, and it did evolve, but it reflected the heart of the man. If he was pure of heart, his ka was good, a spirit or god ka. However, if his heart was black with evil, then his ka reflected his darkness.
"After some time, the ancient Egyptians realized that they could summon their spirits at will to do battle with other ka. Someone realized the potential of the creatures to battle enemies, and the Millennium Items were created to harness their power." Yami's dark red eyes stared sadly into my dark brown ones. "Six Guardians, plus the pharaoh, were assigned to be the masters of these Items, but not even they could stop the war that erupted fifteen years after the Item's creation." Yami looked away ashamedly. "This war would have destroyed the world if one pharaoh hadn't locked it all away within his Millennium Puzzle…and broke it into pieces."
With a jolt, I realized that I had just learned the history of Duel Monsters…and even some of the pharaoh's past!
"Anyway, back to my original thought," Yami added quickly, remembering the cause of this conversation, "I was wondering if maybe the Dark Witch was the ancient Egyptian Sarana's ka…"
I looked again at the card. There was so much resemblance to between me and it that it impossible to miss!
"Hold on, Yami, did you say Guardians?" I asked.
He nodded. "There were six total plus the pharaoh, as I said. Each was given a Millennium Item, and it was their job to seal the monster ka into stone slabs, effectively ridding a person of the evil in his heart. Also, whenever enemies threatened Egypt, the six Guardians and the pharaoh protected the lands with the captured ka."
"How do you know this?" I wondered.
"In my quest for answers to my past, I met an Egyptian clan devoted to protecting the Millennium Items until the return of the pharaoh, and they shared some of my past with me."
"A whole family…devoted…to you?"
Yami nodded. "I was surprised when I learned that as well."
Just then, the hot August sun peeked out from underneath a bridge across the Nile. Without knowing it, our day together was almost over.
"Wow…today was just…something else," I said haltingly, unable to quite describe it.
"It's not over yet," Yami said slyly.
"It's…not?"
"Not yet. There's still something we have to do."
"What's that?"
Yami activated his Duel Disk. "Will you duel me, Sarana?"
The request was so unexpected, it took a moment for me to comprehend his question and answer: "Of course I will." I activated my own Disk. "Let's duel."
This should be interesting: Sarana vs. Yami! Place your bets!
