Title: Gambling With Destiny
Author: Phoebe Delos
Series: Yu-Gi-Oh! DM
Story Summary: A twist of fate during the Ceremonial Duel leaves everyone saying goodbye to the Yuugi they didn't expect to lose. The pharaoh, lost and alone, places his trust in a mysterious stranger in hopes of winning his partner back from an old enemy.
Story Rating: Teen for Language, Violence, Dark Tones, Incestuous Themes, & Suggestive Themes.
Spoilers: The end of the series, and anything prior. That includes a certain spirit's real name. Expect some mixing of anime and manga facts.
Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! isn't mine.
Notes: Well, I LIVE! After the start of a new job, first time move, and a few months of high stress and wandering interests, DSoD managed to drag me back! THAT MOVIE WAS AWESOME. And, I plan to backtrack and answer all messages I left hanging from the last chapter/year- Thank you everyone for the support in the interim! I'm glad to be back.

Thirty-Eighth Year in the Reign of Akhenamkhanen

"Beware of making enmity by your words"
~ The Maxims of Ptahhotep

:: Chapter Thirty-Four ::

"My most heartfelt congratulations on your return, dear prince."

"-thank you," Sawheru replied with a start, only to stumble into awkward silence as he stared down at the bowed head of the noble... Slowly coming to the realization that the man wasn't going to rise on his own.

The young royal turned to his brother, expression practically screaming for help.

Atem fought back a grin at the sight, fighting to hide his amusement. Even if the answer was elementary, he had little room to talk. He was no better when it came to facing these social necessities, after all. But he at least knew what to do, and so motioned upwards with his fingers- Where the bowed man could not see. Sawheru, ignorant but perceptive as he was, took his meaning with ease and slowly mimicked the gesture before the noble's face, prompting him to rise and bow again before backing away.

"By your leave, my princes."

"Go with the gods," Atem drawled, watching the man retreat before turning his gaze on the boy sitting beside him. One look at his brother, slumped over in the chair, and the prince could hide his smile no longer. "Did you not know we have to dismiss them before they can leave?"

"No, I forgot-" Sawheru sighed, rubbing the ball of his palm into his eye, and Atem's humor could not survive the sight. Before he could speak though - insist that there was no shame in the slip - the younger royal jolted upright in his seat, smashing his back flat against the chair as a warm pink spread over his cheeks. The reaction was so sudden and silent that Atem could only blink blankly and follow Sawheru's stare- To the serving girl kneeling at his feet.

There was... Nothing really shocking about her. She bowed as deferentially as any servant, dark eyes focused on their sandaled feet as she offered them a tray of freshly filled cups of wine.

Yet it took no genius to see what caught the younger prince's eye.

Atem would have paid the girl and her bare, oiled flesh no more than a passing glance in any other situation, but he was not blind. He could see that she was pretty- Prettier than most passing faces in the palace at that, if his brother's reaction was anything to judge by.

Sawheru took the offering with the shaky care due a delicate relic - or a poisonous asp – as he averted his eyes, muttering a thanks more cough than gratitude as the woman stood- Revealing more of her slim figure. And all the while Atem watched Sawheru, bewildered by how easily the younger prince was flustered by the naturally bare skin of a servant girl. Pretty as this one was, servants passed in and out of their mutual presence like air, night and day. What was so disconcerting about this one? Was the attraction due to her beauty, truly random, or-

"Perhaps you have had enough wine for tonight?" Atem's eyes narrowed, even as Sawheru blinked his own gaze off the retreating lady to shot him a baffled frown.

"Why? This is just my second cup."

Atem said nothing, sensing the weak protest was spawned more by true confusion than any irritation or defensiveness. If he pressed the point Sawheru would likely capitulate and leave off the drink... But what was truly the harm? Sawheru was likely as used to wine as he was… Any priest would be exposed to the headier drink on a regular basis, as the temples accepted the spirits as currency over all else, and not just for use as trade goods.

And if the wine really did go to his head- Well. Atem was watching over him.

He had really made quite a habit of that- Watching Sawheru.

True, there was little else to do when the pair had been denied their usual daily activities. They had been rather cooped up since the younger prince's arrival, and necessity kept them close to the palace and one another. And being critical of all about him and near him came as naturally to Atem as breathing… But, that was a learned behavior. A necessity. It didn't mean it came easily. It was an impulsive, but constant strain on his mind.

Watching Sawheru though? That was, oddly relaxing. Looking on as their conversations naturally dwindled away and the boy stared thoughtfully across the garden, or leaned over a papyrus assigned by Siamun in their daily lessons, or worked at the broken Pendant. Yes, Atem had to watch that- Lest he miss some critical sign of his brother falling into the Pendant's maze. But the prince could no longer wonder at Sawheru's odd willingness to watch him on the day the prince arrived, and Father broke the Item before their eyes. Atem rarely grew restless when he was focusing on Sawheru's bent brow- His furrowed features and unblinking focus and sudden outbursts of frustration or triumph as he tackled the simple, monumental challenge.

It was a puzzle of its own, trying to read his brother's thoughts. One just as difficult, and just as intriguing as the Pendant.

They had made little progress with the Item over the last few days, taking turns, each struggling with it until the spells tried to drag them in or frustration grew too strong, and the passed it on to the other. And they had so little to show for their efforts... Yet Atem had not felt the long days- Not as he had expected he would. He could not truly consider them lost, for he had spent that time puzzling out his brother.

And it seemed he wasn't the only one- Sawheru's wide eyes hung on him, glazed but unblinking, gaze far too thoughtful to mark confusion. He read something in Atem's silence, or face, or who knew what, but Atem had to stifle the urge to chuckle and draw nearby attention. "It is nothing- You are fine. Ignore me."

"Something must have made you say it..." Sawheru mused, but the clear reluctance to fight in his voice only softened Atem's smile further... But whether he would have reassured his brother or given into the urge to tease, he did not know- For a hand fell upon his shoulder before he could find out.

"What are you two doing here?" Melinia asked, bending down between their chairs to turn an incredulous, but cheery glare on one boy and then the other. "You haven't moved all night!"

"-are we supposed to?" Sawheru turned uncertain plum eyes on Atem, prompting the crown prince to shake his head behind Melinia and her counter-answer.

"Of course! How else are you supposed to interact with the court?"

"Those who wish to speak to us have approached us," Atem assured, but his sister merely snorted.

"Most who would wish to speak to you are too intimidated to approach."

Atem could only blink against such a claim, baffled at the very idea. But when he turned to Sawheru for confirmation the boy was frowning at his drink, as though he was actually considering the claim- And without surprise!

"Are you saying the nobles are frightened of me?" he finally managed, a scoff clearly painted across his voice even as he kept all shock and confusion from his face- Features schooled into ease as he stared blindly at an acrobatics display being put on by a pair of men in nothing but golden bands and short kilts, dancing to the rhythm of drums and castanets.

"The nobles do not know you- You are so rarely here, and you have done nothing to try and breach the distance." Melinia was... Probably right, but Atem did not say so, continuing to frown at the blur of movement the dancers' kicks and flips and dancing became before his unseeing eyes. He had certainly not gone out of his way to mingle with the court, it was true... And he knew it was unwise. He could never open himself to overly favor any subject- It would be so easy to be lenient with a friend, and he could not have a soft heart for anyone who may be brought before him for justice one day. It was a crime against the gods to show partiality in judgment... But neither could he allow himself to be ignorant of those he would rule.

But when he thought of actually getting up, approach those who whispered behind his back every day with a smile and open hand...

"Do you wish to speak to them, Sawheru?" he asked, tongue bitter with the taste of wine and half-measures. He would not move, but he would not drag his brother into his intransigence- Sawheru might well feel lonely, separated from his friends, his guard still in training, and only him for company.

There was no answer, though, and when Atem looked to his brother he found him staring at the dancers, as he himself had just been... But there was no frown upon his face. His gaze was dazed, but considering, and when the crown prince followed his stare to the bounding, leaping men and back, he could not swear if Sawheru was truly seeing them or not.

"-Sawheru," he repeated, and the more pointed call jolted visibly through the boy, making him jump like someone has slapped him on the back before he turned to blink mutely, eyes stuck wide and cheeks stained with, Atem assumed, the effects of the wine. "-do you want to go with Melinia?"

"I... Yes?" He more asked than answered, and as their sister ushered him out of his chair his expression said he regretted his thoughtless reply. But Atem could not rescue him, too busy dismissing Melinia's efforts to get him to join them to rescue Sawheru from his own words- And to a degree, too amused by the boy's soggy expression to bother.

After watching them walk away, though, the prince's gaze strayed to the dancers, frowning in wonder of what could have been in Sawheru's mind, looking at them... When a voice quietly rose up from his elbow.

"My prince."

Atem blinked away from his brother's back to peer down upon bowed head of the priest. "Mahaad- Were you waiting to speak with me?"

"I did not wish to interrupt your time with the prince, your highness."

A kind, but needless consideration. Who knew how long Mahaad had already hesitated, waiting for a slim opening in his time with Sawheru. Atem was certain neither would have minded the interruption. He did not say so, though, instead giving a small beckoning gesture with his hand. "Something is troubling you. What is it?"

Mahaad raised his head just enough for the prince to read the anxiety in his silence- But the priest did not speak, jaw tensing with withheld words. And Atem... He could not reassure him. Not as he would like to. He would like to smile, draw the man from his knee, dismiss all formalities as needless. But he could not... Not while half of the court looked on.

But- Those eyes could not follow them everywhere.

"Come- The room is stifling and I would have some air. Walk with me." Moving from his chair, Atem stalled only long enough to be sure of Sawheru's position - still beneath their sister's arm, surrounded by her own circle – before he slipped away. Every eye might have followed the move, and seen Mahaad trailing him, but none dared follow.

Soon enough the prince and priest stood in relative isolation, at the same stone balcony they had spoken at less than a fortnight ago when Atem shared his decision to seek out his estranged brother.

Looking out over the same dark horizon, Atem waved a hand towards the bowed man, half-hidden in the shadow of the palace wall. "Now, out with it. I would hear what you do not say- My friend, what are you hiding?"

It was impossible to miss the catch in the priest's breath in the near-silence of the night air, but Atem chose not to acknowledge it. Their absence would grow suspicious sooner rather than later, and he would not have them interrupted before Mahaad spoke his mind.

Unfortunately, the priest did not share his antipathy for hesitance, and it was all Atem could do to keep his calm, blank countenance in check until the priest finally found his voice with a slow, uncertain confession. "I have heard tell of whispers, my prince... There is no known source, but many speak of the high priests of Karnak- They say they have been fighting amongst themselves since they came to deliver your royal brother to the pharaoh."

Atem turned to eye the named temple, mind turning the little tidbit of news over and about for consideration as he slowly mused aloud. "Yes… I cannot say I am shocked. After the High Priest of Ptah gainsaid the High Priest of Amun, right before my father and all of the court no less, I had half-expected to hear of a coup within a month."

"Indeed…" His friend agreed, with no greater show of concern for the subject than Atem himself. Squabbles for power within the temple were common affairs. Whether it was an open pull for a higher, wealthier position, or metaphorical knives in the dark seeking a monopoly on quiet, but crucial influence, the priests were ever keen to fight amongst themselves with smiles and words and lies- Just as the nobles did in the royal court.

But the expectancy of this development was its own hint that there was more to the Ring Priest's concern, and so the prince felt no surprise when he spoke on… At least at first.

"But, the fighting… There are some who say that the High Priest of Ptah has an ally in the royal court, who will help him gain favor not only with the priests of Karnak, but with the royal family… Specifically with you, my prince."

"What?" Atem turned to face the man, but he could find no further comprehension from his friend's face, or his explanation. "Many seem to think that your brother has been told to ingratiate himself to his family in order to promote the priests, to the detriment of the court… and the crown… And that Prince Sawheru saw that you already disfavor the nobles, and so he focused his efforts solely on you."

"That's absurd-" The words hissed out of Atem where they might have roared, smothered only by an instinctual distrust of his surroundings. Indeed, he looked about as he spoke, only to shake his head at an utter loss. "Where would they get this idea? Do they dislike the priests and our family so much that they would spin such tales from nothing but the fact of his absence all of these years?"

"…I believe, your highness, that they are largely drawing from the fact that you have spent much of your time of late hidden together in your chambers."

"That is on the king's orders." He hit the heel of his hand against the stone rail, but dared not slam it outright- Dared not yell. Dared not speak of why he and Sawheru had been ordered to isolate themselves… And the fact that he could not speak of it only burned his blood the hotter. The one truth that would stifle all rumors, and they could not share it.

To any who might not know, the matter might seem nothing but a mere aggravation… But Atem knew better, and it made him clench his fingers together as he glared out over the sands.

That court… If any one whisper grew too loud, focused too precisely on one soul, no matter who they were…

"…perhaps, I have spoken out of turn," suggested the priest, and Atem shut his eyes and teeth against the irritation that wished to speak up- To say that he knew better than that.

Instead he waited, and the patience to coat the same thought in a little more sweetness slowly came to him. "No, it is better that I know what is being said. Ignorance makes us vulnerable- You are only seeking to protect us."

As Mahaad always did- Always had done, from the very first day they had met… Though, that night was the first time Atem could ever recall there being an 'us' in the picture, rather than a 'me'.

"…I will keep it in mind." Pushing himself away from the wall, Atem turned to face his friend. "Hopefully these rumors will prove fruitless, when Sawheru and I complete our task and rejoin the court." Just as the nobles would have an opportunity to act, their reason for complaint would pass.

Something dark, conflicted passed over Mahaad's face, but he ducked his head without a word, and though he noticed it Atem did not linger to question him- Simply moved to retrace his steps without pause. "I believe we have attended the banquet long enough. I shall retire early- Once I find my brother."

Yes, the less time they spent among the nobles until the Puzzle was solved between them, the better.

When Atem reached his royal seat and discovered the one beside it empty, he looked out across the room in search of sharp, brightly tinged black locks… And found nothing.

"…where is he?"

It should have been a passing question- Should have been a simple inquiry easily explained.

And yet, his skin was crawling with itching nerves well before Melinia sidled up to him and gave a cursory bow with an easy, but confused smile at her lips. "Ah, there you are! Honestly, you didn't have to disappear like that, we would have left you be… Did our royal brother find you?"

"-find me?" Atem parroted, the hollow tone of his echo draining away yet more of his sister's confidence and good cheer.

"Yes- Prince Sawheru watched me play dice with my friends for a bit, but he said he was feeling a little sick, so I encouraged him to return to you. I had assumed you had both retired for the night already… Did he never come back here?"

Atem said nothing, frozen stiff as he stared passed his sister, mind racing with nothing concrete and everything imaginable.

"-Mahaad." He turned with the call, not even stopping to question or bless his fortune to find him there, expression severe and alert with understanding already in his eyes. "Have the guards search the halls- The banquet, all of the rooms surrounding- I need to know where he is. Bring him to our chambers when you find him."

"Of course, my prince." The priest barely stalled long enough for a bow before he was gone.

"-what's wrong? Why are you- He likely just returned to his rooms…"

Melinia's baffled, concerned confusion was nothing but wind in Atem's ear as he passed her by, the attention and curiosity on every face he passed less than nothing as he rushed for the hall that led to the royal apartments- And their own rooms.

Perhaps it was nothing. Perhaps Sawheru had simply gone to bed when he could not find him! Perhaps Atem was making everything out of nothing.

But, if not-

He had his answer only two turns down the hallway.

The thinning crowd of the feast suddenly turned to a thick, excited gathering of bodies around the entry of a side room, all eyes fixed on the doorway.

"What happened to him? Is he ill?"

"Hah- You think he was walking with that servant girl because he was sick?"m

"Gods, what a mess…"

"Would you look at him, he's too drunk to stand!"

"Has anyone called a doctor?"

"Move."

With one word the entire crowd jolted- And then tripped over itself to part, the moment they turned and saw who it was… Saw Atem's face.

He looked at none of them- Simply dove forward into the confusion and guilty retreat to find, what he knew he would.

His brother, on his hands and knees, back shaking with each breath as he strained to rise, only to collapse again- in a pool of his own bile.

"Sawheru!" Atem dropped instantly to his side, reaching around to support his weight- His alarm only spiking when the boy all but dropped his weight against him, so suddenly that for a breath, Atem feared he had fainted.

"…sorry…" It was nothing more than a whisper, and Atem couldn't swear to what he heard, yet his heart still twisted in his chest to hear the shame in that one, weak word.

Alas, he could not comfort him- Not there.

"All of you, disperse! Go back to the feast!" He ordered with hardest, fiercest look he could muster. The crowded hesitated, looked to one another for guidance, or the courage to ignore the prince… And in the end, Atem was grateful he did not have to see if his words alone would have been enough.

"Make way! Make way!"

It was Mahaad, with a crowd of guards… And Set.

"My prince-" Mahaad dove forward to help lift the boy as the many guards pressed back the crowds, making room for the princes and the priest to move away-

"We need the physician, Mahaad!" Atem hissed as they retreated, mind buzzing with the effort to make sense of what he didn't have time to stop and consider. "I was just with him- There is no way he ended up like this, this quickly-"

"Prince Atem."

Atem jerked his head back at the call, ready to snap a quick not now when he realized it was Priest Set. That might not have been enough to stall him, but Set held a cup, clearly picked up from the ground near the doorway, and as the prince watched he dipped a finger into the lingering liquid and tasted it- Only to ask, "Do you know what the prince drank this evening?"

"-nothing but the same wine I did, why does that matter?"

But no, though he did not want to consider it, the likely truth was already running through his veins like a fire-

And when he read the confirmation in Set's eyes, they went ablaze.

Ancient Egyptian Terms
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Original Egyptian Incarnations
Sawheru – Yuugi
Melinia – Mai
Shukura – Shizuka
Kasiya – Jounouchi
Hondo – Honda
Azizi – Anzu
Userhet – ?
Priest of Ptah – ?
Priest of Montu – ?

Summoners & Spirits Seen
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