A/N: I'm so tired, but I feel the need to write this. The little voice at the back of my mind won't stop nagging me. Plus, it's also Not Psychology, which is very important as I don't think I could read Psych if I wanted to. Another chapter, another opener: Your Eyes from Rent (OBC). And nearly forgot: Happy Tenth Chapter!

"Talk"

'Thought'

"Duel Monster Language"

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! but this fic is so my idea!

Karim dealt with his grief and priest duties at the same time. Sometimes it was difficult, but he managed. He found his father's cloak in the boat. The cloak was green with a pair of white lines running around the hem. His sorrow faded after a letter from his wife. Meret wrote to tell Karim she was pregnant with their child. Their correspondence rapidly increased with the news of wife and unborn child. A few months later, he receive a message that his son had been born. He raced over immediately in the boat, catching the wind along the way. Everyone was there to greet him. He entered his house and saw his wife holding their small son. He greeted her with a kiss and held the babe. They named him Ani. Karim happily stayed with his family for a few days before returning to the palace.

When he returned, it didn't take long to notice people were on edge. He quickly looked around and spotted Isis. However, she didn't see him and when he tapped her on the shoulder Karim was suddenly on the ground with his arm behind his back. "Ow. Hi, Isis, nice to see you too."

She quickly released him, "Oh, Karim, I'm so sorry, but you scared me."

He got up and rubbed his sore arm, "Will you tell me what's going on so I don't end up on the floor again."

She bit her lip, "There was another message on the from the killer. He said he had his next victim in mind. The message was on the floor in our hallway, so everyone thinks it's one of us."

Karim sighed and put a hand on her shoulder, "Well, I guess I'm gonna have a long night then, aren't I?" He winked at her. "Maybe the fair lady will get some sleep while the men protect her."

"Men? Since when did I sign up for another sleepless night?" Mahad asked coming from the corridor.

Karim smiled as he approached, "Shadah, you, and I are sworn to a duty of protection," then he whispered so Isis wouldn't hear, "And if all three of us don't, she'll stay up all night and nag us the next day, at least."

Mahad thought for a second, "You know, you're right. I'll go tell Shadah then." He whispered back, "I hat it when you're right," then left.

Karim turned back to Isis, "Feel better?"

She smiled, "Yes, thank you, Karim. Tell the other two I said thanks."

That night, the three boys sat in their doorways, bored out of their minds.

"Karim, why are you staring at the ceiling?" Shadah asked after noticing Karim had been staring at the ceiling for quite some time.

"Counting blocks," he simply answered

Mahad got a wicked grin on his face, "14, 27, 56, 133, 22, 76, 69."

"Dammit, lost count." The three laughed, then heard a scream. Shadah and Mahad stood up, but Karim told stopped them, "Sit. We'll have a messenger if it's something important." A young girl came running shortly. She was panting and was frightened to tears. Karim sat her down, "Take deep breaths." She did as he said and calmed down. "What happened?"

"It was worse than the other. Blood was everywhere. This time two were dead, a priest and court magician."

Mahad stood up and ran down the hall.

Karim sighed, "Thank you, miss. Sit here for a bit. Hey Shadah, should we wake up Miss Paranoid-Keep-The-Men-Sleepless."

He smirked, "Nope."

Karim was confused, "She's want to know."

"I know"

"Then why don't we get her?"

"Because she's right behind you."

He turned and saw an angry Isis, "Hi." She looked like she was going to hit him. "You know, you're kinda cute when your mad, but even prettier when you're not."

She stopped and asked, "You think I'm pretty?"

"I cannot deny it."

"Aww, you're sweet."

Shadah rolled his eyes, "I think we should go find Mahad."

Karim nodded, "Let's go. Don't come if you can't handle grisly scenes." Isis raised her eyebrow. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

They came upon a portion of hallway now decorated red. The two bodies had been decapitated. The Ring was nailed to the wall next to the words:

The Darkness is Watching

Mahad was standing, dumbstruck and pale as a lotus. Isis went up to him first, avoiding looking at the scene, "Mahad, why don't you come away from there? Come sit by me."

Shadah came up beside Mahad, "She's right. Come on." Mahad stood like a stone.

Karim looked at the court magician's severed head. He thought he recognized him as the one called Shu. He didn't know how attached Mahad was to the magician, but he knew Mahad liked him better than the priest. "Mahad,I know this hurts. But standing there is not helping. Trust me, you need to get away." Karim touched Mahad's shoulder and received no response. He closed his eyes and silently asked a question. Ma'at responded that he was panicking mentally according to Heka, but wouldn't elaborate further.

Karim saw the Pharaoh enter. He went over, passing a window in the process. He smelled smoke outside and quickly looked out. Another message was there, burning near the river:

The True Heir Will Ascend The Throne Even If This Kingdom Must Burn

The Pharaoh came over to the window. Karim asked him, "Do you know what this mean, sir?"

The Pharaoh thought for a minute, "I honestly have no idea." He then called over some guards to go put out the flames. Karim turned and saw Mahad still in shock. Now he could see his face better. He was absolutely white and his eyes were clouded with fear.

The Pharaoh followed Karim's sight to Mahad. He went over and made Mahad look up to his face. Tears started flowing down Mahad's face. The Pharaoh led him away. Everyone stared after them. They had known Mahad was close to the Prince, but they didn't realize the Pharaoh was close to Mahad as well.

Mahad was inducted the next day. A few hours after the ceremony, the court was dismissed. Karim went looking for Mahad after this. He had disappeared. He asked everyone where he had gone, but no one knew. Mahad turned up a few hours later, smiling broadly. "Well, I guess you feel better. What happened?'

Mahad said still smiling, "I've finally met my brother."

"Hold on. What do you mean met? Haven't you always known?"

"I better explain."

----Flashback-----

Mahad was five. He lived far from the palace with his mother, father, and older brother. The whole family was spell casters, and were one of the few families with access to the training grounds near the palace.

One day, men in hoods came to the door. Their mother whispered to the boys, "Kage, take Mahad and hide out in the cellar. Wait until they leave."

Kage nodded and took Mahad downstairs. He was five years older than Mahad. Kage chose to hide in the corner. There was a hidden exit in the corner.

Kage tried to listen to the adults' words, but couldn't hear anything. Then he heard screaming. He recognized their parents' voices as the screams. He grabbed Mahad close to him and waited. The cellar door opened. A man growled, "Hurry and find that blessed one. He needs to be eliminated before he becomes a threat to our master." Kage quietly opened the exit and crawled through with Mahad and just as quietly closed it.

When they had made it to the next town Mahad asked Kage, "What did they mean by the blessed one?"

Kage sighed, "The meant me." He pulled down his shirt so Mahad could see the mark of Heka. "This mark means the god Heka decided to give me a gift and help protect me. Keep this a secret, Mahad."

"I will, big brother." He hugged him. "Where are Mommy and Daddy?"

Kage shook his head, "They're not coming."

"Did they go see Ma'at and Osiris?"

"Yeah."

"Then they're happy."

"I hope so," the blonde boy hid his tears from the younger boy.

They were wandering around the village, trying to find their next job. Doing odd jobs earned them a living. A man with his arm in a sling came up to them, "Excuse me, boys. I hear you help out around town, so maybe you'll help me. I injured my arm at work and need some help moving some things."

"Sure. Just show us the way," Kage said, hoping this would be enough to afford dinner.

The man led them into an alley and back behind a group of houses. Kage noticed there was nothing back there, but before he could do anything the man quickly took Kage down to the ground and delivered multiple blows.

"Mahad, run!"

Mahad stood frightened, unsure of what to do. He wanted to help his brother, but didn't know what he could do. "Mahad, go! Go now!"

The boy started running, but there were other men around, quickly surrounding the boy. One grabbed Mahad.

Kage saw through a break in the beating what happened, "No! Put him down!" He felt a surge of energy and broke out from underneath the man. He fired a powerful thunder spell at the group. However, the man that led them back found a large stick. He hit Kage in the head hard. Kage fell, and whispered his brother's name before losing consciousness.

The men took Mahad to an outskirt of the royal city. They locked him in a room. He sat on the mat, crying.

A few days later, palace soldiers came to investigate the house. Someone reported a murder earlier, on top of other crimes. They broke down the door to the room Mahad was in. Mahad was scared and didn't recognize the uniforms. He used a basic thunder spell on them. It stunned them for a few seconds, then they saw the boy curled into a corner, crying.

One of the soldiers tried to coax him out of the corner, "Hey, kid. It's alright. We aren't gonna hurt you. Come out, it's alright."

Mahad shook his head, "No. You're lying. You're gonna hurt me like they hurt my brother."

The other soldier spoke up, "No, kid, we won't do that. Come here, it's gonne be okay. We'll help you find your brother."

"Go away!"

The commander came in, "What's going on back here?" He saw Mahad, "Is this their kid?"

"No, sir. They kidnapped this one. He won't trust us. He says they hurt his brother, probably hurt him too."

The commander frowned, "Guess we can't blame him, but how do we get him out of here."

"Maybe if he sees another kid he'll trust us."

"He might trust the Pharaoh."

The commander nodded, "I'll go inform the Pharaoh. You two stay here and make sure the kid doesn't hurt himself."

A half hour later, the Pharaoh came in with the three year old Prince holding his hand. The soldiers warned the Pharaoh about the boy's magic. He looked at Mahad, "Excuse me, young one, may I know your name?"

Mahad looked up at the king and saw the younger boy holding his hand. He finally responded, "My name's Mahad. Who's that?"

The Pharaoh smiled, "This is my son, Atem. Why don't you come over here so we can talk better?"

Mahad slowly got up, still cautious. He smiled at Atem and got a shy smile in response. The Pharaoh started questioning Mahad, "Where are you from?"

"The little town out that way," he pointed toward the West.

"What's your brother's name?"

"His name's Kage. He's ten and blonde and..." Mahad stopped. "Can you keep a secret?" The Pharaoh nodded and leaned close to the boy. "He's a blessed one." Mahad whispered in his ear. The Pharaoh nodded and Mahad continued in a normal tone, "He was trying to make money for us because out parents went to the other side."

"Mahad, will you come with me?"

"Okay."

He took Mahad's hand and led him to the home of one of his court magicians. The young man opened the door and saw the Pharaoh and Mahad. He allowed Mahad and Atem to go play in another room together.

The magician sat across from the Pharaoh, "Who's that kid?"

"He's an orphan, Shu. He says his brother had to support them, but didn't have a steady job. The kid's named Mahad and his brother's name is Kage. We're going to try to find his brother. Would you take them in? Both of them have magic and his brother is blessed."

"Say no more, sir. I'll gladly help them. Let's hope we find his brother."

For years, Mahad stayed there, becoming friends with Prince Atem and another magician's daughter, Mana. The Pharaoh never found Kage.

The day Mahad was inducted, he went to the training grounds to be alone. Shu's death and the new responsibilities were almost too much. Mahad was typically the only one who used the training grounds.

When he arrived, he saw a cloaked man already there. 'Damn. Who else uses this place?' Mahad then thought of this man as the perfect stress release, 'Let's just see how good you are.' Mahad activated the traps. With a motion of his hand, the man deactivated the traps. He stared at the priest. "Mahad?" He pulled back the hood.

Mahad gasped, "Kage." He ran over and embraced his brother. "You're alive," he sobbed into the older man's shoulders.

"Oh, Mahad. I missed you so much." Kage cried out of happiness.

"Where were you? The Pharaoh tried to find you."

"The cat lady and her daughter fixed me up. Then I left to look for you. I couldn't get too close to the palace until recently. I knew you'd come here." He sighed, "Now, when did you become a blessed?"

"It was after I moved into the court magician's house. You would have liked him."

The two spent the next couple hours catching up. Mahad suddenly became aware of the time again. "I have to go. I'm a priest now, they're probably looking for me. Please come again."

"I will, Mahad. Don't worry."

----End Flashback----

Karim smiled, "I'm happy for you, Mahad."

"Thanks, Karim. Oh, don't bother looking for me next weekend. I'm going to Kage's wedding. He's marrying a woman named Vai. She sounds nice."

"Umm, could I come, too?" Karim chuckled, nervously.

"Let me guess. Your wife."

"Yeah, she wants to be more involved in that kind of stuff."

Mahad laughed, "Sure. I'm sure Kage won't mind."

Kage didn't mind. He was rather pleased to meet a friend of Mahad, especially another blessed. It was a beautiful day.

A/N: DC: 106. And then I have a wedding. This is like the games of Settler of Catan I play (I play Knights and Cities). (Brownie points to whoever gets it.) Probably won't be another chapter for a couple days, but should be updating again by the end of the week. I have to pack and move back home. Ending Theme: Like a Sunshower by Journey