Chapter Eleven: Competition
"The Universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world or a relationship. Everything has its time and everything ends."
-Sarah Jane Smith
The Pharaoh stood in the lot behind Yugi's apartment, leaning back against the wall with Yugi sitting on top of it. He glanced over his shoulder, shivering as he noticed the faded words that still decorated the ground in the small area behind him, reading over them before glancing up at Yugi. Dark Game; those two words that would haunt him forever. It had been because of his inability to see what was going on, too distracted by the damage that the Time War had done to him and by his companion to notice the strange repetition of the words. Of course, hindsight was always twenty-twenty. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, turning as Yugi called out a greeting to Joey.
The blonde returned the greeting, hopping up on the wall beside Yugi to talk with his friend, the Pharaoh watching the two before his gaze returned to his companion. He didn't know what to classify last night as. While he had gotten what he wanted to say out, he doubted that it was the end of that conversation. Yugi would probably want to know more about the strange thing inside his mind, as he had all the right to know. But the Pharaoh worried what that piece of the time vortex would do to his companion. For all he knew it could be killing Yugi now and he wouldn't be able to sense it, and that frustrated and panicked him, all things that he couldn't show Yugi. So they were tucked away were Yugi couldn't see them.
He looked up at the sound of a car horn, waving as he saw Ishizu in her small car. He motioned to Joey and Yugi, letting the blonde go first before dropping back to take Yugi's hand. His companion gave him a weak smile before looking up towards his apartment, the Pharaoh following his gaze. Yugi had left the TARDIS earlier that morning to talk to his mother; the Pharaoh had only assumed that it had been about the time vortex piece. But that look that Yugi gave the apartment said it all. Still, the Pharaoh had to ask, "Did you tell her?"
"How?" Yugi gave a nervous laugh. "How could I tell her that I managed to save the world and kill you? And even if I did figure that how, how was I supposed to tell her that I've also got something in my head that might kill me? It's just…" He waved his free hand about as words failed him, looking at the Pharaoh. "You know?"
"Yeah." The Pharaoh paused, glancing at Ishizu who was waving impatiently at him before pulling Yugi into a tight hug. "But I'll take care of you. I promise."
"I know. I trust you." Yugi clung to him for a moment before pulling away, a shaky smile on his face. "Let's go finish this."
He let go of Yugi's hand as the human walked over to the car, slipping into the backseat with Joey before throwing his arm over K-9, who was sitting in the middle of the cramped back seat. The Pharaoh watched as Ishizu turned around to speak to them, watching Yugi have to curb his reactions to the woman, but still laughing. It was an interesting experience to be able to see his companions together like this, without him. He swallowed harshly, feeling his hands tremble a bit before he walked over to the car. What would they have been like if he had never come and taken them from their lives? He had the horrible feeling that they would be just fine, but just like the other humans on Earth. They would never know about their hidden brilliance, the thing that made humans so fascinating.
The Pharaoh slipped into the front seat, ignoring Ishizu' impatience. He turned his attention to the road, unable to help himself from looking into the rearview mirror to check on Yugi. It wasn't like his companion was going to suddenly drop dead; it would take some time for that to happen, if it happened at all. The Pharaoh returned his gaze to the road. He wouldn't let it happen, even if it meant losing Yugi forever, he just couldn't let the human die. Damn his attachment to Yugi, it would just lead him to trouble in the end.
But didn't he want that trouble? After all, trouble with Yugi was more fun than trouble without Yugi.
He rested his head against the window, watching Domino roll past them, barely listening to the conversation between Yugi and Joey in the backseat. He just had to focus on this one event and get through it before he could dissolve into worry. Once he and Yugi were back in the TARDIS, he would figure out a way to monitor the fragment in Yugi's head. Now, it was a matter of talking to the Krillitanes who infested the school and getting them away from the children. Yugi had said something to him yesterday, just a sentence in passing in the hall before they had met Ishizu, that there were a bunch of extra classes after school, something like honors classes. He had just ignored that at the moment, too caught up in the discovery of the Krillitanes and Ishizu to even factor that in. But what if…
The Pharaoh sat up, turning around to look at Yugi, ignoring the shocked look on Joey's face. "You said something about honors courses yesterday."
"Y-yes."
"When did they start?"
"After school…Oh, you mean the program itself?" As the Pharaoh nodded, Yugi tipped his head back to think, tapping his fingers against K-9's side. "I think it was soon after the staff was replaced…"
They stared at each other for a moment, Yugi leaning forward to look at the Pharaoh. "But that means that the Krillitanes must be doing something there. They only take the smartest students and there are a lot of burn outs from it."
"That could almost explain the sudden rush of high scores…but that can't be all." The Pharaoh twisted slightly in his seat.
"The thing I want to know is why they would keep the oil in the kitchens." The Pharaoh stared at Joey, some part of him left over from the older version of him scoffed at the idea of the mutt thinking, the Pharaoh hushing that part. Joey leaned forward with a smile on his face. "The way I see it, why would I put something poisonous to me somewhere close to where I work were anything can happen."
The Pharaoh stared at Joey in shock for a long time before looking back at Yugi. "They're using the oil in the food."
"What?" Yugi's hands flew up to his throat.
"It makes sense. They must risk the oil in their presence to put it in the food, which was why it's in the kitchens."
"Pharaoh, I ate that! What's going to happen to me?"
The Pharaoh stared at Yugi for a long time, beginning to figure out the Krillitanes' plan. He sat back with a long sigh before looking up at the ceiling of the car. "What's fifty-five times seven plus twelve divided by six?"
"Twenty-five point five."
"Original names of the city Luxor?"
"Waset and Thebes."
"The furthest galaxy?"
"To Earth's knowledge? It's about thirteen billion light-years away." Yugi clapped a hand over his mouth, looking at the Pharaoh with wide eyes. None of his answers had even the slightest hint of hesitation. The Pharaoh raised an eyebrow before looking at Joey and Ishizu.
"They're using the kids for something. Why would they try to boost their intelligence otherwise?"
"Pharaoh, w-will this…"
The Pharaoh shook his head, noticing that Yugi slumped with relief. "It won't do anything to you, Yugi, aside from the intelligence boost."
He gave his companion a smile, watching as Yugi visibly relaxed. He added that to his growing to do list, to catalogue all the things that would cause that fragment to react. They wanted to keep it dormant for as long as possible. The Pharaoh sighed before turning back towards the front, realizing that they had gotten closer to Domino High School, and that Ishizu had remained silent the entire ride over. He stole a glance at her, surprised to see that she was visibly restraining herself from saying anything, something that surprised him. When she had been younger, she hadn't hesitated to speak her mind, something that had endeared her to him. Whatever it was, he was sure to find out soon enough.
Ishizu pulled into the school parking lot, the Pharaoh stepping out of the car and looking at the group he had assembled, smiling faintly before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the sonic screwdriver. "Alright, plan of attack. Joey, stay with the car."
"What?"
He looked at the blonde, trying not to laugh at the offended look on his face. "Reinforcements. We need someone to watch on the outside anyway."
Joey hugged and looked away, leaning against the car and glaring at the ground. The Time Lord ignored him, turning back to look at Ishizu and Yugi. "You two, figure out what is going on in those honor classes."
He tossed the sonic at Yugi, surprised when Ishizu intercepted it and began to walk off, giving Yugi an apologetic smile before turning to follow. His companion hung behind for a moment before rushing to catch up, reaching for the Pharaoh's hand before pulling back. "What are you going to do?"
"Issue an ultimatum. I'll join you as soon as I'm done." He didn't look back down at Yugi, surprised when Yugi gently touched his hand, drawing his attention to the human.
"Be careful, alright?"
"Yugi, it's-"
"I lost you once, Pharaoh, I don't want to again and not so soon." The Pharaoh looked down at Yugi, watching his companion smile shyly before squeezing his hand. Yugi walked away quickly after that, the Time Lord seeing the beginning of a blush on Yugi's face. He didn't quite know what to make of it. He was still struggling to maintain his promise of friendship, letting the human grieve and mourn for his former self, but then Yugi would do something like that or fall asleep in his arms and then the Pharaoh didn't know what to do. He remembered holding Yugi for hours like that after his companion had fallen asleep, fighting the urge to imagine that this was normal for them.
He rubbed a hand over his face, forcing himself to focus again, the train of thoughts so familiar that he could skim over it quickly. How long had he been forcing himself to forget about Yugi and the thoughts of what-ifs that followed him in these situations? It seemed like all of his life, the Pharaoh sighing at that thought. It hadn't been a year and he couldn't live without Yugi, couldn't imagine existing without Yugi. The Pharaoh smothered a groan as he pushed open the doors to the school, he was hopelessly in love.
The Time Lord gathered himself together as he walked into the school, carefully sticking to the edges of the crowd of students that moved through the halls. He thought that he spotted Yugi and Ishizu moving down a hall, but it was too hard to tell with all the students milling about quickly. He paid careful attention to them as he moved down the hallway, pausing when the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. The Pharaoh turned slightly, easily spotting the one who was looking at him.
The teacher leaned on the banister of the steps, her blonde hair falling around her face. He would have expected her to give him a smile and a wink, but her expression remained serious. The Pharaoh returned her steady stare, watching as she inclined her head to the side, the Pharaoh glancing up the stairs before looking back at her, the message clear. She would meet him up there. He rolled his shoulders and tuned around, striding through the flow of students.
Mentally, he prepared himself for whatever the Krillitane would do, running through the list of old forms that they could have, hating that his knowledge was outdated. He should have really kept up on some of his older enemies, but the Time War had distracted him from that and then he had been running from his own memories. He forced himself to focus again as he climbed the stairs, vaguely wondering if his age had anything to do with his thoughts' tendency to wander. He wasn't as young as he used to be.
The Pharaoh smiled briefly at that thought, the expression disappearing as he saw the teacher again, following her from a good distance as she led him into where the swimming pool was, the Pharaoh entering the room carefully and listening to the gentle lap of water against the concrete sides of the pool. He glanced around, spotting the teacher standing still on the other side of the pool. The Pharaoh shrugged his coat into a better position on his shoulders before striding towards the edge of the pool, standing directly across from her.
For a moment, the teacher seemed content to let them just stand there, the Pharaoh patiently staring at her from across the pool. Then she moved, beginning to pace down the side of the pool slowly, the Pharaoh matching her from his side. He made no move to speak first, allowing her to do so in case she revealed something that he could use. The teacher gave him a smile before pushing some of her hair over her shoulder. "I saw you last night, you and your little gang of humans and I know you now. You're not just some human, I recognized the planet you named, Gallifrey. You're a Time Lord."
"What if I am?"
"The Time Lords were just a race of stuffy senators, pompous idiots altogether. It might have been a good think that they all died." The Pharaoh stiffened at that, turning to confront her only to find that she was in front of him, staring up at him. "But you are here, and alive and I guess that you are the Pharaoh, the one that whole universes both glorify and curse in the same breath. You are not like them."
"And you are a Krillitane."
"Mm, you are smart." The Pharaoh took a step back from her as she went to touch him, ignoring her sigh of disappointment as he continued to watch her carefully. "Yes, you've found us out. I'm surprised that you could. We attacked Bessan after the last time you saw us, we've had wings for the longest time now but," she smoothed her hands over her curves, "I prefer the human form. It's much more…flattering."
The Pharaoh snorted and rolled his eyes, the Krillitane pouting for a moment before straightening up. "I assume that you are here to talk business."
"Yes. One warning, leave now and you will be spared."
The Krillitane looked at him for a long moment before laughing. "And I thought you were different. But here you are, deciding what is best for this planet, these people. We are helping them-"
"You must have a reason and I'll figure it out." The Pharaoh gave her a long look before shaking his head. "You had your warning now go and do the smart thing."
She nodded, taking dainty steps towards the door, turning around halfway. The teacher tipped her head to the side before laughing. "I used to hear stories about you, how you would try and save everyone, even your enemies? What happened to that Pharaoh?"
"I was young, I had more mercy then."
"And what about now, Pharaoh?"
"I have none."
She shook her head and laughed. "A pity. But still, I will make my offer the next time that we meet, and you will find it agreeable. In fact, I think I can knock you off that haughty Time Lord pedestal that you are on and have you join me. Until then, Time Lord."
The teacher walked out of the room, the Pharaoh standing frozen in place before following her out, slipping out of the door and look at the nearly deserted hall. He felt a smile cross his face as he saw the teacher heading for the principal's office, guessing at her identity. So, Mrs. Chono was the leader of the Krillitanes, which meant that she had been one of the ones hanging up in the office when he had looked in yesterday. The smile faded from his face as he remembered her parting words to him, shaking his head with disgust. He was too old to actually disregard the statement completely, but it did unsettle him. What could she have that made her so sure that she would be able to draw him to her side.
The Pharaoh shivered briefly before turning, intent on finding Yugi and Ishizu. Before he was even aware of what he was doing, he had turned and started to follow the faint presence in his head. The Pharaoh came to a shocked stop, tentatively analyzing the song. It was Time Lord; he knew that, but it wasn't of any Time Lord that he knew. Besides, all of them were dead. He frowned at that before walking towards it, wincing at the emotions that spiked through his head; anger, frustration and jealousy, all of them sounding loud and clear before the link was suddenly cut off, leaving him standing confused in the hallway.
Yugi nearly slammed the sonic screwdriver onto the desk in front of him, slumping to rub his temples. He had a headache coming on, and it was all Ishizu's fault. Even now he could just feel her stare on his back, trying to figure him out and, for some reason, it annoyed him. She had been like this the entire time, looking at him or sucking up to the Pharaoh. Yugi gritted his teeth at the memory of her and the Pharaoh, hating the fact that they were so right around each other. It didn't matter if they had travelled together once, it was over. Yugi was the one in the TARDIS now, the one who hadn't argued and given it all up. He was the only one who was allowed to look at the Pharaoh like that.
His eyes widened as he realized where his thoughts were going, managing to resist the urge to slam his head down against the table that he was at. He instead set it down very gently, biting into his arm to keep from screaming in frustration. Why was he thinking like this? He still had moments where he cried at the memory of his old Pharaoh, much to his embarrassment. It felt like mere days since the old Pharaoh had given his life to save him, that is crush had died right in front of him; he had no right to be thinking of another man like that.
But there was still the nagging part of his mind that said that the Pharaoh was the same man. This one wasn't as closed and cold towards him, something that Yugi found that he liked, but he still had glimpses of the other man, the one that he had fallen in love with. And there was no denying that this Pharaoh was attractive, his stomach had been performing small flips at some of the smiles that had been aimed his way and the Pharaoh speaking in a Scottish accent had done funny things to his equilibrium. That was enough of a reason to be pulling out of his grief, but it wasn't a good enough reason for Yugi.
He wanted to know that he loved this Pharaoh as much as he had loved the old and he wanted to know that he loved the Pharaoh for more than just his looks. Yugi pulled his head from the table, staring miserably at the blank computer screen in front of him, seeing himself reflected in it. He stared at himself for a moment before looking away, not sure if he liked what he saw. After traveling for so long, he had thought that he would look at least a little different, but he guessed not. After all, all the changes were on the inside.
Yugi ran a hand through his hair before picking up the sonic screwdriver again, turning it in his hands before ducking under the table again to examine the tower unit, staring at it before moving around so he could look at the back of the unit. There had to be some way to get the computer to turn on, confused as to why it hadn't in the first place; none of the computers would. So he had to assume that they were locked in some way, and there was no where else that he could go. From all his information, this was the lab that the honors classes worked in and they were the only ones who used the computers.
He extracted himself from underneath the table, staring at the back of the computer before raising the sonic to that, hoping that something would happen. From his position on the floor, he could see Ishizu making her rounds around the computers, always returning to the teacher's computer. She was probably hoping that she would be able to turn on all the computers from that place. He watched her for a moment more before returning to work, letting out a long sigh as he did so.
If he was honest with himself, he didn't quite know why he was so annoyed with Ishizu. Maybe it was because the Pharaoh had not told him about other companions. Or maybe it was that threat that he would just be dropped back home without a warning, like the time the Pharaoh had nearly left him in the past. But the Pharaoh had promised that Yugi could stay. No, he had said that Yugi couldn't leave because of the fragment of the time vortex that was still lodged in his head. Either way, he was staying with the Pharaoh for the rest of his life, something that he wanted; because he wanted the chance to see if he could fall in love with this Pharaoh.
Yugi almost dropped the screwdriver at that thought, glancing up at Ishizu to see if she had seen his slip up before shaking his head and moving on to the next computer. As much as he tried to push the thought away, it kept coming back, the memories rushing through his mind. In hindsight, it had been blissful to be in love again. He had once been like that with Miho, but it had faded quickly, pushed into the normality of his life and the never ending drudgery. And, with the Pharaoh, it had never become that, probably because they were always moving and every day was something different. But he had a gut feeling that there was more to it than that.
With Miho, much to his embarrassment, his being in love was more akin to being in lust. She had always been a pretty girl and he had been delighted when she had chosen him above all others. In hindsight, the passion had worn out quickly, probably because they had moved too fast or he hadn't been exactly what she had been looking for. Yugi would never know now, but he was strangely alright with that. Miho had always been a great friend to him and a thoughtful girlfriend. He should have known that they would have never ended up together. Miho had dreams that she wanted to follow, while Yugi had been content to plod along and forget his dreams for security. He shook his head with a smile, how that had changed.
But that still left the one question that he had yet to answer. Was he really in love with the Pharaoh as he was now?
Yugi knelt on the ground, tapping the sonic screwdriver against his hand as he thought it over, finally shaking his head. He didn't want to jump into something again, something telling him that this was one thing not to squander or rush. He would sit back and let things progress, but he had a feeling that he wouldn't be the one to draw the line. Yugi shivered at that thought, closing his eyes for a moment. Oh, that was going to lead to something very interesting.
He dropped the screwdriver, flinching at the sound of metal hitting metal. The next moment he was scrambling for the sonic, standing up and stretching out his back after he had retrieved the tool. Yugi glanced around the room with a long sigh, leaning against the table and thinking of calling Joey. Despite the blonde's protests, Joey had gotten a lot of practice working with technology. Sighing, he reached into his pocket for his cell phone, stopping as he heard Ishizu's voice.
"You know, out there, you can't just call for help whenever you're lost."
Yugi narrowed his eyes as he stared at her, jealously flaring up again. He was surprised at its strength, but a bit too far gone. All he could remember was the adoring looks that the Pharaoh had been giving Ishizu when they first met. Logic said that it was just amazement at seeing one of his old friends again, but he didn't care. "Then what do you suggest?"
"Give me that thing." Ishizu walked over, Yugi dropping the sonic into her hand before leaning back, smiling to himself as he watched her struggle with the sonic. This was a new side to himself that he had never experienced before, and he found that it frightened him a bit. Yugi straightened up, forcing the smile away. At the same moment, Ishizu glanced back at him before giving a sigh. "Yugi, could I give you some advice?"
He tipped his head to the side, surprised when Ishizu just started talking again. "I know how a relationship with the Pharaoh feels. I know how wonderful and frightening it is, but I want to warn you that it will always end." Yugi stared at her, feeling himself tense as she continued to talk. "And it's so hard to adjust to a life where there is nothing to look forward to, no planets, no danger, no running. No more TARDIS or Pharaoh."
Yugi stumbled away, shaking his head as he stared at her, Ishizu slowly standing up, her eyes fixed on a wall. He caught himself against another table slowly shaking his head as she came out over her reverie. "Yugi, no matter how wonderful it feels, you need to let it go and not pursue it. It'll be better in the end."
"What do you know?" Yugi snapped the words before he knew what he was doing. His eyes widened at his own daring, but he found that he couldn't stop once he had started. "I bet you gave up as soon as you got scared."
"Shows what you know." Ishizu gave him a steady look, Yugi shaking his head again. He knew that there must have been other versions of the Pharaoh before the two that he had known and he had probably known subconsciously that the Pharaoh had loved other companions, but actually thinking that caused his stomach to roll in revulsion. The Pharaoh was his, Yugi gasping as he felt the golden fragment react in his mind, one arm pressing against his stomach as he felt nausea roll through him. He swallowed shakily as he looked back up as Ishizu.
The woman looked at him before walking over to him and resting a hand on his shoulder. "Yugi, I'm just trying to save you from the heartbreak."
"But he said-"
"He says a lot of things, Yugi, and he means them. But that doesn't mean he can stop things from happening." She took an unsteady breath. "People have died when they travelled with him, Yugi. Do you want your mother to be waiting for you to come back forever?"
"No!" Yugi pulled away from her, needing to lash out to push the doubt away from his mind. "That was the Pharaoh that you knew, but not my Pharaoh."
"Yugi…"
"No. He promised me this and he won't break that promise."
"Yugi, I know it's hard and maybe I went about telling you this the wrong way. I should have said it so you could handle it better."
"Maybe you couldn't handle it."
That got a reaction from Ishizu, the woman standing up straight and glaring at him. "I could handle it."
"That's why he dropped you off then?" Yugi didn't know where this cruel streak was coming from, but he just wanted her to stop talking like that, to make her stop trying to get him doubt the Pharaoh.
"No. He had to leave me behind." Ishizu took a step back, crossing her arms across her chest. "I could handle all of that, probably better than you could."
"Really?"
Ishizu glared at him for a moment before rocking back onto her heels. "Mummies."
"Ghosts."
"Robots. More robots than you could think of."
"Slitheen."
"Daleks!"
"I met the Emperor." His eyes narrowed. "I defeated the Emperor."
"Anti-matter monsters!"
"Gas-mask zombies."
"Dinosaurs. Real ones!"
"Werewolf. Real one!"
Ishizu glared at him before pacing back at forth. Yugi thought he had own until Ishizu spun around to point at him. "The Loch Ness Monster!"
Yugi stared at her, his mouth working for a moment before a smile crossed his face. "Really? What did it look like?"
They stared at each other for a moment, Yugi blushing and looking down at his sneakers. He had no right to be this jealous of Ishizu, the Pharaoh wasn't his alone. The Pharaoh had existed before he was born and would exist after he died. He had no right to claim the wonderful Time Lord as his own. As much as it rankled him, he would have to just accept that. He bit his lip and gave a long sigh, glancing up at Ishizu before shaking his head. "What are we doing?"
Ishizu stared back at him, seeming to struggle with the question. "W-what?"
"We're arguing over an alien, like jealous lovers."
"If only."
Yugi stared at her in shock. "Did you?"
"No." Ishizu looked around before lowering her eyes to the floor, blushing. He almost didn't catch her next whispered words. "But I wanted to."
"Really?"
"I think everyone does." She looked up, tossing the sonic to him. Yugi caught it with a smile, shaking his head. Ishizu returned his smile, leaning back against the table and looking up at the ceiling. "He's just one of those people."
"Charismatic?"
"Yes."
"Impressive?"
"Yeah."
"Annoying?"
"Definitely." Ishizu laughed, looking back at him. She titled her head to the side for a moment. "He's changed since I've seen him. I just wonder, how many times?"
"I don't know, he's never told me. But he changed just recently before he had the whole tall and handsome thing going for him. He was a pain to deal with though." Yugi chuckled, absently pocketing the sonic. "Did he always insult humans?"
"Always."
"Good, I thought that it was just me."
"Oh no, always. He insults species when he gets stressed. I'm guessing it's a Time Lord thing. Does he still pet bits of the TARDIS?" Yugi nodded, Ishizu's smile widening. "I always wanted to just ask if he wanted to alone when he was doing that."
They stared at each other before bursting into laughter, Yugi hanging onto the table to keep from falling over. There was a lull moments later as they tried to get themselves together and get back to work, but they just fell back into laughter, Ishizu finally slipping to the floor and holding her stomach. Yugi was about to move and help her up when he saw the Pharaoh walk into the room, looking annoyed. He managed to keep control of himself for a moment more before he fell to the floor too, still laughing.
He got a glimpse of the Pharaoh's bemused face as he wandered over, looking at his two laughing companions. Yugi tipped over onto his back, one arm flung over his stomach as he tried to calm down, aware of the tears that were leaking from his eyes. He smiled up at the Pharaoh, watching as the Time Lord glanced over at Ishizu before staring at him, one eyebrow raised in a silent question. Yugi gave him a wave, his fingers tapping against his stomach as his laughter slowed to little chuckles, Yugi sucking in a deep breath to calm himself.
"What are you two doing?"
"Investigating."
The Pharaoh looked at the two of them, turning slightly to look around the room before shaking his head. "Doesn't look like it."
Yugi held up a hand, the Pharaoh grabbing hold of it and pulling him up. They held hands for a moment longer than necessary, Yugi surprised when his fingers slid against the Pharaoh's, the move bringing them close to a more intimate manner of holding hands. He blushed and stepped away, quickly pulling the sonic out of his pocket as the Pharaoh helped Ishizu up, the woman managing to smother her giggles. Yugi barely paid attention to the Pharaoh's attempt to give them a glare of disappointment, turning back to the computers.
He felt better after getting all of that off of his chest, glad that he didn't have to worry about competing with Ishizu for the Pharaoh, no matter how silly that it still sounded in his head. He glanced over at the Time Lord before bending to look at the computer. "We couldn't get them to turn on."
Yugi heard the faint buzz of the sonic screwdriver, looking up as the Pharaoh sighed, shaking his head. "All deadlocked, which means I can't get through. But what could they have in here that is so important." The Pharaoh stared at him for a moment before shaking his head. "There has to be some way to get into these things."
All three of them turned to go back to work, Yugi wondering if he was the only one who felt helpless that they were just working on a hope. He swallowed nervously, looking out toward the door before raising his hand to rest of the collar that kept him hidden from the rest of the school. He had only put it on again because he wanted to be able to blend in, plus, he felt a bit more secure knowing that only the Pharaoh, Joey and Ishizu could see him as he was; no one would call him out. Yugi shook his head and returning to work, staring at the bunch of wires in front of him and wondering how they were supposed to even start.
Joey grunted as he lifted K-9 from the car, glancing at the school and rubbing the back of his neck. He had been told to stand guard outside, but he had a bad feeling. He glanced towards the fields, watching as the girls in their uniforms played tennis. From his own high school experience, as short as that was, he knew that any chance to get out of school was taken gladly. But these girls all looked like they'd rather be back in class. He shook his head, stepping around the robot dog as it trundled into the building, all of the halls empty. Joey glanced around before moving towards the back of the school, K-9 following him closely.
Everything that he had seen today didn't make sense. For one, no one had hung around outside the school for a bit before class, everyone had rushed in. There was no one sneaking out, something that occurred regularly. And there weren't any kids staring dreamily out the windows. The classrooms that he had seen on the first floor all had extremely attentive teenagers in them, that alone making Joey worry. No one was acting normal here, the first tip off that something was going wrong. Of course the Pharaoh would figure it out, but Joey was feeling jumpy from inaction.
He pressed himself back against the wall as he heard the faint squeak that always came before an announcement, smiling as he realized that he old sound system hadn't been fixed yet. His amusement ended quickly when a soft voice came over the loudspeakers, Joey glanced over at the nearest window, muttering a soft curse when he couldn't see what was going on outside. He wanted to see the reaction to the oncoming announcement; that alone would give him what the students thought of this situation.
"Students, this is your principle Mrs. Chono, please return to your classrooms for the remainder of the day. Those who are enrolled in the honors classes will report to their assigned classrooms." The speakers gave a whine before shutting off, Joey staring at them before glancing at his watch.
By now, the Pharaoh would have had time to talk to the leader of the Krillitanes and something told him that, even if negotiations had gone sour, the Pharaoh had managed to intimidate them. Joey smiled to himself before moving again, wandering towards where the guessed that the others were, wanting to get out of the way of the incoming students. He and K-9 had to be out of the way, because the metal dog would be a dead give away about who he was with. He remembered seeing those bat things in that room, he didn't want to tempt his luck.
"K-9." He whispered the dog's name, stepping into a deserted classroom, holding the door open for the dog to come in. He didn't know how long the classroom would be empty, but it was a place to hole up for a while. Joey shut the door and turned to look at the robot dog, K-9 still staring at the door. He crouched on the ground, reaching out to place a hand on the dog's nose. "Where is the Pharaoh?"
"Searching." The dishes that served as K-9's ears twitched, Joey leaning back against the door as K-9 worked, trying not to be impatient. The Pharaoh had just fixed up the metal dog, and K-9 had been out of commission for who knows how many years. Still, it was important that they find the others quickly. He kept his hand on the cold metal of K-9's body, glancing towards the hallway as he heard the sound of the teenagers coming in, all of them sounding joyous.
Joey glanced back at the door. "Hurry up!"
"Position located."
"Lockdown initiated." Joey stumbled to his feet, staring at the speakers with his mouth open in shock. He jumped as a faint click came from the windows, his hand groping for the knob of the door.
"Show me." The blonde yanked open the door quickly, the metal dog moving slowly out of the classroom and into the hallway, Joey following after. For a moment, K-9 spun slowly in place before seeming to pick up the signal again, steadily moving off in his chosen direction. Joey began walking forward quickly, keeping up with the dog as it moved through the halls, tensing when he heard the sounds of the teenagers getting closer. "Hurry."
"Krillitanes located." K-9 paused for a moment turning slightly in one direction. Joey motioned for the robot to go ahead of him while he moved closer to the wall, peering around one of the corners to see the teachers beginning to gather in the teacher's lounge. His eyes narrowed before waving the dog on again. They would worry about the aliens later; he knew better than to just challenge the aliens on his own, he still had nightmares about the Slitheen.
He followed K-9 down the hall, making sure to keep an eye out for the flow of teenagers, surprised that they didn't seem to notice his awkward attempts at sneaking around; they were too focused on returning to their various classrooms, classrooms that didn't have teachers in them. Joey frowned, hesitating in his awkward attempt to look around a corner and remain hidden at the same time. This was all wrong.
Joey hesitated for a moment longer before kneeling down by K-9. "We need a way out."
"Doors are locked."
"I know." Joey groaned and ran his hands through his hair, messing it up. "We need a way out."
"Route of retreat?" K-9 nodded his head before turning and trundling off. Joey watched the robot dog move away, shaking his head before looking back towards the teenagers, only then realizing that he had no idea where the Pharaoh and the others were. Joey slipped into the flow of teenagers, surprised when they didn't notice him, too focused on getting to whatever class they had been asked to report to. Joey rolled his eyes, muttering about the kids of today before breaking out of the line and moving off again.
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