Zypher: Hi all and welcome to another long-awaited chapter. Sorry for the delay with this one, even with the fact I use episodes to guide me as I go. As you all know, the ebil rut and the ebil writer block aka annoyance panther won't go away, and still won't but I'm still trying to update on a regular basis and for the moment, I'm going to try to work my butt off with getting at least this, The Demon King Saga and Two Worlds updated.

Any who, glad for all those that have reviewed the last chapter and I hope you'll enjoy this one. And as a reminder, still need votes for changing Meiling with Vivian (still have three or four votes after last chapter) and need some ideas for Yugi's battle costumes, link to Kero-chan's corner where you can see them is now available in my profile. So far, I have one design for Yugi for the Time card episode, courtesy of Red Dragon.

0

Chains of the Seal

Chapter 10

0

At Domino High, fireworks were ablaze as the yearly athletics festival at the school started. Students and parents alike participated in various sports events which most of the students didn't enjoy much. All except for one Motou Yugi. Currently, he was participating in a race with a few others, a white hat fitted over his head, a feat in itself with his gravity defying hair. He dashed past all the other participating and made it past the finish line, smiling brightly. He walked over to Myrrh, who was holding a flag with the number one written on it and handed it to Yugi. "Yugi, you run pretty fast." she praised and he smiled. They heard clapping and Yugi turned to see Aqua and Seth standing off to the side, two towering boxes filled with lunch on either side of Aqua.

"You do run fast. You must've been training a lot." Seth spoke as Yugi ran over. "Yeah! I guess I have. Glad you two could make it." he said and Aqua smiled down to him. "But of course. I wouldn't miss this for the world." he spoke. "Oh, and before I forget, your dad called me. He said he'll be running and little late and your jii-chan gives his support for whatever you participate in since he won't be able to make it." Seth added. "I know. They both have work to do but I'm happy that at least my dad will be coming." Yugi took a glance at the boxes then up to Seth. "Is that your lunch?" He nodded. "Man, it's huge but I guess a big lunch is what every growing boy needs." Yugi finished with a small laugh. Soon, the PA came on and Diamond's voice rung throughout the courtyard. "All members of the cheerleading squad please report at the front gate. I repeat, all members of the cheerleading squad please report of the front gate." she spoke.

From where she sat, two other students walked by, speaking about Yugi's race from not long ago. She smiled as she heard this before looking up, seeing Yugi along with Aqua and Seth walking over to the table. "Ah, I was just hearing about you, Yugi. I'm guessing you won the last race?" she questioned and he nodded. "Quick on your feet as always." she said as she stood and moved away from the table. "So, Diamond, is your mom or dad going to come?" She nodded. "Yeah. Mom's says she going to come once she's done with some business." she said before they decided that they should go ahead and go see the cheerleading competition. Another teacher walked over and talked quietly with Diamond as Yugi mused about the meeting of her and Ryou's mother for the first time. Since she was so busy, not ever Ryou or Diamond sees her often. After Diamond was done speaking with the teacher, the four started on their way to the front gate to see the cheerleading squad, meeting up with Ryou along the way. They watched, amazed at the skill they cheerleaders put off as they did their routine, Seth getting some pictures to remember the day by. After it was done, another announcement came on about the last event for the morning which was an obstacle course for the 2nd year students. While the announcement was being made, some petals started to fall from the sky but no one didn't spot them as of yet. Yugi and the others made their way to where the obstacle race was and Yugi got himself ready, adjusting his hat slightly as he stood at the starting line. "You do your best, Yugi!" Ryou called and he nodded as he got himself prepared for the race but noticed that Li was standing beside him in the next lane. He took a glance over to him and Li caught it before snorting derisively and Yugi huffed before turning away. 'I still hate that jerk'

"On your mark..."

"Do your best!" Seth called and both Li and Yugi turned to see him waving to Yugi and Li smiled warmly before turning to Yugi. "I won't lose to you." he whispered and Yugi sneered. "Well, let's just see what happens then, Li." he groused before Terada-sensei shot off the field gun, signaling the start of the race and the students participating started dashing off, coming up to the first obstacle. Yugi and Li made it pass before anyone else and started on the next obstacle consisting of them rolling either a huge red or white exercise sphere through part of the track. Again, Yugi and Li were neck in neck while one started to run off the track when they started losing control of their ball. They crossed the support beams, another student losing balance over that and then they crawled underneath a large net. What remaining students that were in the race got themselves caught and tangled somewhere within the confines of the net, leaving only Li and Yugi to finish the race with a final dash to the finish.

They were still neck in neck, both determined not to lose. "You can do it!" Seth called again, smiling brightly. Li turned to see him still waving towards them and his face flushed red. Due to it, he stumbled just before the finish line, giving Yugi the win. Diamond smiled as she recorded the entire race before she and the others went to meet with Yugi. He panted slightly but he was smiling all the while. He turned his gaze over to Diamond and Ryou. "So, any sign of your kaa-san yet?" he asked. "Nope, not yet." Ryou replied and he nodded. "Then why don't you two join us for lunch. We did pack a lot so there should be extra helpings." Aqua spoke. Ryou smiled and nodded, thanking him. "Well, we'll go get set up then. If any of your other friends show up, you can invite them too." Added Seth before he and Aqua left to find a spot where they could eat. Li walked by and Yugi turned to him. He felt a little tug at his heart and sighed.

"Hey Li?" he called softly and Li turned to him. "I can't believe I'm asking you off all people but would you like to join us for some lunch?" Yugi asked. Li snuffed as he turned away. "Why would I want to have lunch with the likes of you...?" he grumbled before they heard Seth calling to them, saying that everything was ready and his face flushed red again but the group of three didn't see it. "Alright! We're on our way!" Yugi called, waving to him before they started walking off but felt a tug on his shirt and turned to face the reddened Li. "I'll join you for lunch…" he whispered and Yugi nodded as the two went on their way. Once they reached the spot where Aqua and Seth set up, greeting Sakura who happened to have come by while they were setting up, they sat down and Aqua started setting out the food for them, bringing out the thermos filled with some green tea. "My, did you to really fix all this?" Sakura questioned and Aqua only grinned. "Other that Seth's appetite, I worry about the chances of having Jou come and find us. Have them both around and nothing will be left." Aqua replied and Yugi chuckled softly as he took a plate that had a helping of the omelet that Aqua and Seth cooked and took a bite.

"Wow, this is great! You both are great cooks." Aqua smiled.

"Glad I still have it." he preened as he poured himself a cup of tea while Seth was munching away beside him. Yugi handed a plate over to Sakura and she took it, thanking him and was about to eat when a stray petal landed softly on top of her omelet. "Now where did this come from?" she whispered, picking the petal up and looked around. Seth was still munching away, much to the surprise of Li and soon, Sakura. Aqua chuckled as he looked to him as well. "Having fun there, Seth?" he questioned cheerfully. Seth looked up and started noticing he was the only one eating. "Oops. Guess I'm the only one." he commented shyly, smiling. "Aw, don't worry about that." Aqua commented as he took another sip of his drink. "Eating a lot are signs of a strong, healthy person." "Still..." He stopped before he could speak more, looking to Li who stood up. "He's right. Eating a lot does mean you're healthy and you should keep on doing so to stay that way!" Seth looked to him and nodded. "That's right." he whispered and Li looked to him, getting another flush over his face before turning away. "T-thanks for the meal. I-I need to go." he said quickly as he slipped on his shoes and ran off. They watched him for a moment until he was out of sight. "I better be going too. See you later, Yugi-kun!" Sakura said as she let as well. Soon, another figure came running towards them and Yugi looked up before smiling. "Hi, otou-san! Glad you finally made it!" Yugi exclaimed as he stood to greet his father. He smiled down to his young son, patting his head lightly. "Sorry I was so late, though. I hoped to make it in time to see some of your races." he said.

"It's alright, Motou-san. Ryou and I recorded some of the races he was in and Seth took some pictures." Diamond said and he thanked her. He placed the cooler down onto the blanket and opened it, revealing six pudding cups, three decorated with peach slices and the other three with raspberries. "I made these last night. I asked the college if I could borrow a cooler so I could bring them here." he spoke as he handed them out. "Thank you, Motou-san." Aqua said as he took a bite. "Wow, this is really good." Ryou said and Yugi nodded in agreement. They peacefully ate the homemade dessert before Aqua, Seth and Fujitaka got up to toss the trash away "I can't wait to get home. Kero, and maybe Yami if he visits tonight, will love this." Yugi commented and Diamond nodded. "Ryou-kun. Diamond-chan." A voice called and they turned to see an elegant, white haired woman standing before them with four other women behind her dressed in black suits and wearing black glasses. "Kaa-san!" Diamond said happily as she stood along with Ryou. Ryou turned to Yugi, smiling softly. "Yugi, this is our mother." he introduced. 'Wow, she's so beautiful.' he thought as he bowed. The woman's eyes widened as she looked over Yugi before smiling softly. "Well hello there, Yugi-chan. I'm Sonomi Neirin. I'm so happy to know they have such a good friend." she said.

"Oh, that's not true at all. They're always coming to help me when I need it." he replied. Sonomi knelt down to his level, looking him over once more. "You are so cute." Then she frowned slightly. "You remind me of someone I once knew…" she whispered. Sonomi stood up fully once again and another smile spread over her face. "I heard so much about you, Yugi, but I never did get your last name from Ryou or Diamond. Care to tell me what it is?" she asked sweetly. "Oh, it Mou-" Yugi paused and stood when he heard his dad calling and turned. "Otou-san!" he called back, waving as the older man reached them and Sonomi had a fit as the other man approached.

"Motou-san?!" she screeched.

"Oh, Sonomi..." he whispered as he looked to the other woman. Sonomi pulled him away, much to the confusion of Yugi, Ryou and Diamond, and once they were in a secluded spot, she glared hotly at him. He gulped a bit before speaking. "Well, at first glance, I didn't really recognize you, with your last name being different and all. I remember you last as Sonomi Amamiya back when you were a student." Sonomi gave a small groan. "I should've known that it would be the son of you. I remember that Nadeshiko said she always wanted to name her son Yugi if she had a baby boy." Sonomi spoke. Fujitaka only smiled and Sonomi continued to glare at him. "I will never forgive you! Remember that." she hissed.

"I know. Nadeshiko was only a high school girl then and I was only a starting teacher..."

"Yes! A fledgling teacher and you had the gall to marry one of your students! And it just so happens to be my darling Nadeshiko!" Sonomi cried. He only waved a hand as if to calm her down, even if she wasn't facing him at the moment. "I had always watched her ever since we were in kindergarten to keep those nasty bugs from attaching themselves to her. But you," She pointed a threatening finger at him. "To have such a dumb bug such as you attached to her! You let her die only at the age of 27! How dare you feel so lighthearted after her unfortunate death?" she demanded. He gave a soft sigh before speaking. "I promised her I wouldn't cry." he replied. Sonomi tched to herself, feeling slightly sorry for the other before bringing back up the angry facade. "In any case, I still won't forgive you! Ever!" From afar, Aqua, Seth, Ryou, Yugi and Diamond watched as Fujitaka and Sonomi spoke. "Well, I didn't know my otou-san knew your kaa-san, Ryou."

"I wasn't expecting that either." Ryou replied.

"Those running in the parents' 100-meter dash please report to the front gate. Repeat, those running in the parents' 100-meter dash, please report to the front gate." The PA sounded. Fujitaka ran back over to the group and Yugi asked eagerly if he was going to run in the race. "Yes, I will be. Sonomi told me I should enter the race." Yugi nodded and started leading his father to the track field. Ryou and Diamond followed behind them and Aqua looked to Seth. "Do you happen to know what's going on between Yugi's father and Sonomi or should I not bother asking?" he questioned. "I heard this story from Jou once when he asked about Nadeshiko one day when he was at Yugi's. He said that Sonomi was once called Sonomi Amamiya...the maiden name of Yugi's mother. Nadeshiko and Sonomi are cousins and she happened to be the only daughter of a very famous conglomerate. Yugi's father was only a starting teacher. Nadeshiko knew she would face many hardships because of this relationship but she married Yugi's father when she was only 16."

"So young?" Aqua quipped and Seth nodded. "Yeah. The age of 16. I was just as surprised as you when I heard that." Seth replied before continuing the story. "Anyway, she did modeling while she went to school. But she became ill due to the modeling she did. Jou told me that there seemed to be some problems that went on back at her family's home. Sonomi always watched over her when they were little but she was highly against the marriage more than anyone else in the family."

"That's terrible." Seth nodded in agreement. More petals fell to the ground but neither noticed them. "But in the pictures that I see when I go over with Jou, she looks so happy." Aqua pointed out. "Even the ones that weren't used in the magazine that Yugi's grandfather showed to me once." Soon, the petals started falling more frequently, catching their attention. "Where could these be coming from?" Seth whispered softly as he held out a hand to capture one. Aqua looked around as well, knowing it was the work of a Clow card and hoped that Yugi will find it before Li could.

0

"I'm still surprised that kaa-san knew your dad, Yugi." Diamond spoke as she sat at the PA table, Yugi standing beside her along with Ryou. "Yeah, I'm just as surprised." he said before looking to the group of parents and was surprised to see one he wasn't expecting. "Hey, isn't that..." he started and Ryou looked up as well. "It's kaa-san! What's she doing in the race?!" Ryou questioned in alarm. "I wouldn't know. Is she a fast runner?" Yugi asked. Diamond placed a hand to her chin in thought. "If I remember correctly, she made it to the national championships when she was in high school." Yugi's eyes widened in amazement as he looked to Sonomi. "Sugoi. I wish I could make it to something like that." Ryou smiled and patted his shoulder. "If you keep it up, someone might suggest you and you may just get the chance." Yugi nodded. Petals continued to rain down as Terada-sensei gave off the signal and the first line of parents started the race, Sonomi bounding ahead of everyone with ease. She was determined not to lose but she wasn't expecting for Fujitaka to race past her. "Wow, he is amazing. No wonder you're so good at sports. Especially running track." Diamond said. The race continued on but the petals that were making a light drizzle started to fall with more force, catching everyone's attention and making them wonder where the flowers were actually coming from. Yugi looked around as well. "Could this be the work of a Clow card?" he mused as Ryou stood beside him. "It could be." Inside, Li looked out the window and knew a Clow card was at work and was about to leave but someone grabbed his arm. "Where are you going?" Marik questioned.

"Where?" Li removed his arm from the other's grip and pointed outside. "Can't you see were having a big problem here?!" Marik looked outside before turning back to him. "Yeah, that is a problem. And in this case, we're the only ones who can calm down the people at this time. We're in charge of the medical team for the afternoon." Marik stated. Li groaned and was about to run off when Marik grabbed hold of the back of his shirt, preventing him from leaving. Marik grinned. "I may not look it, but I'm stronger than you think. You know the rules. We have to stay just in case someone gets hurt." Li growled and struggled, trying to free himself. "Let me go! I have to get the Clow card!" he hissed but Marik held fast. Back outside, the courtyard was knee deep in flower petals and was still raining with them. "S-She still going?!" Yugi asked, stunned at the sight. "Kaa-san hates to lose I'm guess." Diamond replied, equally stunned. The height of the flower petals accumulating the courtyard continued to rise, soon causing Sonomi to literally swim her way through in hopes to catch up with Fujitaka before he reached the finished line. At said place, Myrrh and Malik were trying to keep themselves from being buried in the petals. "I'm going to drown in flower petals. Not the best way I want to die if that actually happens." Malik whined. Yugi knew this was going to get out of hand real soon and reached into his shirt, removing the Key from its hidden confines.

Ryou looked to him and questioned about using his magic out in the open. "No one's watching so I should be alright." he replied before whispering the chant and the Key grew out into the Sealing Staff. Yugi looked up, spotting something long and dark soaring through the skies. Knowing it was Yami who likely saw the disturbance from afar, he pulled out the Fly card and quickly released its magic, the wings growing out on the staff before flying up towards where Yami was waiting for him with Ryou while Diamond flew upon her own wings. They looked down to see the damage done by the petals and saw it was starting to cover the area more and more as seconds ticked away. Yugi looked to Yami and he nodded, confirming his thoughts. "So it is a Clow card. Now we just need to find it." Yugi said, knowing Yami couldn't help since his eyes were opaque, indicating his blindness until nightfall. /Since the petals are raining over your school, that means its somewhere nearby and high up./ Yami said and Yugi nodded. Back down on the track, Sonomi was still trying to reach Fujitaka who was still ahead of her. "I won't lose! I never ever lose!" she growled, swimming through the petals as fast as possible to reach the other adult.

"I can't take it! It's getting too high!" Malik shouted as he and Myrrh struggled to still hold the line for the finish up but the petals were up to their necks and not be long before it was over their heads. Aqua and Seth ran over to them and took the line from them. "We got this. You two get to higher ground." Aqua spoke and they nodded as they did as they were told while Aqua and Seth waited for either Fujitaka or Sonomi to finish the race. Aqua took a glance over to where Yugi, Ryou, Diamond and Yami were and hoped they will find the card soon before things get worse. Diamond soon spotted a glowing pink orb on the school rooftop and pointed over in that direction. "Over there!" she called and Yugi looked over as well. "I guess that's our target." he replied as they flew over, Diamond leading Yami before they landed on the roof. Yugi and Ryou hopped off the staff and the wings shrunk back to their original size. "So, that's the card." The card in question was a young, pale woman in a bright pink dress that resembled a blooming flower. She twirled and danced around without a care in the world, spreading petals all around which rained onto the courtyard below. /You shouldn't waste any more time, small one. Soon the place will be covered in petals if you don't seal her away./ Yami spoke. Yugi nodded and stepped forward, catching the Flower card's attention. She smiled brightly, prancing forward and grabbing Yugi gently. She caressed a cheek softly before twirling him around with her. "Eep! I'm not a really good dancer!" Yugi squeaked. "Well, I think we got ourselves into a bigger mess." Diamond chuckled. "Yugi, you need to seal her away!" Yugi nodded and planted his feet to the ground, causing the card to stop as well and looked down to him. "Sorry but it has to be done." he whispered before giving the card a small hug and backed away, raising the staff.

"Return to the guise you were meant to be! Clow card!"

The visage of the card appeared and soon, the Flower was assimilated inside, her image and name appearing on it once the deed was completed. Yugi grabbed the card as it floated to him and turned to the others, smiling. A thought then popped into mind. "Hey, Yami. You're blind so how did you know about the petals if you didn't see them?" he questioned. The dragon chuckled softly before speaking. /We dragons do have a good sense of smell. Once I caught the fragrance of flowers which was kinda uncommon due to the weather, I knew it had to be the Flower card./ Yugi slapped his forehead playfully. "Of course, I should've guessed that." he commented and they all got a laugh from that. "But what I want to know is why she appeared here of all places?"

/Well, from the sounds of it, you were having some sort of festival and the Flower loves to come to festivals and celebrations. She must've been trying to cheer all of you up by raining a few flowers onto the field./

"Well, I think she was a little eccentric with that." replied Diamond and Yugi nodded. Back on the track, Fujitaka made it past the finish line and Aqua congratulated him, giving him the first-place flag that he was handed by one of the teachers. Fujitaka turned his gaze over to the panting and very angry Sonomi and grinned sheepishly. Later on, everyone was helping out with cleaning up the petals. Around a corner of the school, Fujitaka and Sonomi were talking once more. "I'm so...SO frustrated right now!" she spat, looking to Fujitaka. "It's just like in high school! I didn't want to give up my darling Nadeshiko to a teacher so I kept challenging him over and over again but every time I lose!" Fujitaka sighed softly. "Well, it would be plain rude of me if I was to lose on purpose, Sonomi-san." he replied. "I know you deeply cared for her and so did I. That's why I know you tried your hardest to win." From behind some bushes, Ryou, Yugi and Diamond watched, Yami going over to Yugi's to wait for him. Sonomi huffed. "I still remember what kind of home you subjected Nadeshiko to! Living all by yourself in a tiny apartment..." Soon, she went into a small rant about everything that Nadeshiko and Fujitaka did when she was still alive. Diamond got an idea, seeing as it looked like the two were arguing, and whispered her idea to Yugi. He nodded and took out his newly acquired card. "Grant those two over there some flowers. Flower!" he whispered, tapping the card. Sonomi still glared at Fujitaka but looked up as two flowers floated down and both caught them. "It's...it's a nadeshiko flower..." she whispered. They spoke for a while longer as the three teens left them alone. "Well, that would explain why kaa-san wished for me to grow my hair out." Diamond said, fingering one of the silver strands lightly. "She spoke so much to us about Nadeshiko and I guess after what happened really took a blow on her."

"Yeah. A lot of things supposedly happen with otou-san and the people around him but hopefully he will tell us one day." Diamond and Ryou nodded. "Yugi! They're about to do the closing ceremonies!" Aqua called when he spotted them and he nodded. "Well, we better get going." They nodded and they ran off to where Aqua waited before they left to where they were holding the ceremonies.

0

Zypher: And that shall be all for this chapter. If I can, I will attempt to get the next chapter for The Demon King Saga up. So look out for it. Thanks for reading and I'll see you later.