Author's Note: Chapter eleven was the chapter that I hadn't even realized that I needed to write until it was already written.

I have had some sort of name with 'lily' in it since I started on this site in honor of the Harry Potter series. As I've said on my profile, I'm in a different place in my life and I have grown as a writer and I want a new name to reflect that. For this reason I've changed my name from ForeverLily to TheEagerScribbler

Thanks for reading!

-The Eager Scribbler

Higher Stakes Chapter 11: Hell freezes over

It was nearly eleven, and Tea had just nodded off when his cell phone rang. At first he considered not picking up, but what if it was an emergency. Had something happened to the others? Luckily Yugi kept it in the pocket on the side that he wife was not leaning on.

"Hello?" He whispered.

"Mutou. Why are whispering like that?"

"Tea's asleep."

Before Yugi could get another word in Seto growled. "Meet me at my place." Yugi and the others rarely met Seto at his home, and nobody ever questioned it. The handful of times that they had been allowed through the gates had been out of necessity.

"Is everything okay over there?"

"The sky isn't falling yet, if that's what you're asking, but…" he could hear Seto sigh on the other end, "I just want to talk." Since when did Seto Kaiba ever 'just want to talk'. Maybe the sky really was falling.

"Sure. I'll be there in a few minutes." He gently nudged Tea awake.

"Hmm?" She muttered.

He smiled and helped her off of the couch. "You should go to bed before you hurt your back."

"You're right!" She yawned. "It's been a long day."

"Seto wants to talk to me so I need to leave now, but I promise that I'll be back soon and I'll keep my phone on at all times."

"Just be careful." She hugged him sleepily. "Promise me you won't take any unnecessary risks tonight, alright?"

"I promise."

When he arrived at Seto's house Seto was still fully dressed in his suit right down to his expertly tied tie. Yugi wondered if the man ever actually relaxed.

"Sit." Yugi obeyed. For some reason his former rival had a way of making feel as if he were a child called to the Principal's office. It was a distinctly uncomfortable feeling, and Yugi began to wonder if he did something to anger Seto, and let's face it, that was fairly easy to do with a man with pride and an ego like Seto's. "You lived with a spirit for several years?"

Yugi was beginning to become genuinely concerned for his friend. Usually he had little patience for not stating the obvious, and here he was tiptoeing around the topic. Something must have been really wrong for him to act like this. "What's all this about?" Yugi asked tentatively.

Seto began to pace. "This Egypt business is getting on my last nerve! It was supposed to be over-all of this magic nonsense was supposed to have disappeared with the collapse of his tomb. I have been forced to increase my security, take possession of an item that I don't even want, and now I'm being haunted by the ghost of some former Pharaoh and I can't get him to shut up!"

Ghost? "Are you telling me that the spirit of Priest Seto has been visiting you?"

"I don't see him, I hear him. He sounds almost like me-I thought that I was hearing things until I realized that he spoke back."

Yugi saw the darker than usual circles under his eyes and came to the sudden realization that Seto wasn't built for the shadow realm any more than him. "How many times have you…" what was the tactful way to say this..."passed out?"

It was obvious to Yugi that his old friend would try to hide any show any show of weakness. But it was pretty late for that wasn't it? Seto had called him over late at night in order to confide in him-that alone told him that hell must have frozen over. "Don't bother denying it. I know that look-I've never seen you that level of exhausted before. I've felt it myself recently too, remember? It takes time for your body to build up a tolerance to shadow magic. Priest Seto wasn't such a bad guy. Why don't you just tell him you need some space?"

"I refuse to acknowledge anyone who thinks that they can just bully me into doing what they want." Because that's your job, Yugi nearly quipped, but he thought better of it. He rarely confided in Yugi, and insulting him would ensure that it would never happen again.

"You haven't tried talking to him?" Yugi was dumbfounded at the level of stupidity that his friend was demonstrating. "He didn't seem like a bad guy. He'd probably back off if you listen to what he has to say just once, and then politely tell him to back off. I should warn you though that ordering him around probably isn't a good idea."

"I'm not afraid of him."

"Of course not, I just meant that he may have once been a priest, but he was also a Pharaoh. He won't take orders well." He's also far too much like you for that to go over well, Yugi thought.

"The Pharaoh seemed to listen to you."

Somehow Yugi doubted that the Pharaoh would have taken orders well either. The reason that he and Yugi got along so well was because treated each other as equals, despite the fact that Yugi knew that could never truly be his other self's equal even before they knew that he was Pharaoh. "That was because we were friends, and he could usually keep a cool enough head to not let his stubbornness get the best of him. Mutual respect goes a long way." Yugi reminded him. Even someone as stubborn as Seto Kaiba could see the sense in that.

"Fine, I'll talk to him. How in the hell did you manage to share a space with one for so long?"

Yugi smiled fondly. "You get used to the company."

"I suppose that's good news," Seto grimaced.

"Why do I have the feeling that you're not telling me something important?" Yugi watched his good friend carefully and noticed that something wasn't quite right about him.

"Never put all of your information in one place." He simply murmured and turned away and walked into another room. He came back and produced a bottle and two glasses. "Vodka?"

"I thought you only drink wine?"

"You'd drink hard liquor too if you had to deal with the morons that I have to put up with-I just usually only drink wine in company because it is easiest to drink socially without becoming intoxicated. Someone in my business can't afford to allow their judgment to be impaired by alcohol."

"If you say so." Yugi shrugged.

Seto poured them both some. "Just take it already."

"Thanks." He took a sip and grimaced. Yugi had never cared much for hard liquor. "Can I give you some advice Seto?"

"Fine."

Yugi stared him dead in the eyes. He needed to know that Seto realized that he was serious."Don't run from this. I know you. I know that's your instinct when it comes to this stuff. Listen to him-he knows what he's talking about better than any of us. He and the Pharaoh know things that we don't and they can't tell us, so any advice they can give us is an offer that we can't afford to refuse…"

"I don't need their help."

"Yes we do! This isn't just about you! My daughter's life is at stake, and so is the entire world! Do you really think that you have what it takes to defeat evil incarnate by yourself? We have to work together!" Yugi was getting fed up with Seto's stubbornness.

"Another friendship speech? I get it, friendship conquers all, good conquers evil, believing in yourself is the only way, heart of the cards, I've heard the speech a thousand times."

Yugi had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. "Maybe if you'd listen to it I wouldn't have to repeat it. Whether you like it or not you can't just bribe Bakura or out lawyer him. We need something else."

"If you've got any better ideas let me know."

"As soon as Mokuba and Aiko get their items we act quickly and decisively. Everyone he wants to target is here, so if we don't he'll try to pick us off individually-he's not the type for a big over dramatic offensive. A huge part of his game is playing with our heads." He thought back to the penalty game. It was obvious that was trying to make Yugi doubt himself.

"So basically you have no clue either. Vague plans won't do us any good and you know it! Is that how your precious pharaoh dealt with things? He let himself be stepped all over by Marik and Bakura!"

"No! Well, sometimes he'd let them come to us and reveal our plans, but other times we searched them out. It all really depends on the situation. What would he do now?"

"I don't know." Yugi hated it when he asked that because sometimes he got the feeling that what they really wanted was the Pharaoh and all they had was him.

"Aren't you supposed to be an expert?" he scoffed.

"We were close, but we're not the same person! Further, although he can he wise he is far from perfect and is just as capable of making mistakes as anyone else. I never thought I'd be accusing you of all people of blind faith! He doesn't have all of the answers either-he never did! He nearly killed you and lost my soul in his attempts at fixing things. I trust him, but we need to trust in ourselves too. I'm doing the best that I can Seto."

In an icy voice that could have frozen even his own brother he said, "You best clearly isn't good enough if this is the best you can do!" Seto himself was clearly struggling to contain his temper.

That was rich coming from someone like him. What was Kaiba doing about the situation besides criticizing Yugi? What about all of the times that Kaiba's best had still ended in disaster? Anger bubbled to the surface and Yugi took a deep breath to keep the situation from escalating further. "What do you propose that I do then Kaiba?" He had him trapped. "I know you well enough to guess what you tried to do.I know that tried tracking location, even though you tried to hide it from me. We can't hide, but going in public is too dangerous for Mokuba and Aiko without an item. Does that sound about right? What is there left to do?"

"Get out of my house Mutou," he growled.

"Fine, I'll talk to you later. I'll let you know if we make any progress." Yugi walked out as quickly as he could and nearly slammed the door like a petulant child on the way out.

When Yugi got home Tea was sitting on the couch wrapped in a blanket and sipping tea as she watched a movie that he didn't recognize on TV. "So you're finally back!" She exclaimed when he plopped onto the couch next to her.

"What are you doing up? I thought you were tired."

"I couldn't sleep, not that it's much of a surprise," she said dismissively. She must have seen the exhaustion written on his face because asked, "I'm guessing it didn't go well?"

"That's one way to put it. I think that he's feeling just as useless as the rest of us. He just projected that onto me. He…accused me of not doing enough. Maybe…" Yugi trailed off and sighed.

She put his hand in hers. "Don't you dare finish that sentence. We're all doing everything we can! Things will work out in the end if you just have faith."

He reacted the way that she expected him too. He smiled a little and agreed. "You're right, thanks Tea." In reality he wondered if they were being honest with themselves.

Neither of them slept for several hours, so they just put on movies to enjoy with each other's silent company. She crashed around one in the morning, but Yugi was yet again unable to sleep. When was the last time that either of them had gotten more than a few hours of sleep? He carried his wife to bed and kissed her goodnight before leaving. He was too tired, but somehow his footsteps carried him to Akari's room. He sat on her bed and examined the walls. Nothing in her room had been disturbed since she was taken. The same holo posters of boy bands and rockstar duelists were still on the walls. There was even a poster of him and Joey standing together after a tournament they had entered the year after they graduated from high school. The room still smelled like her favorite candles too. He had been in this room many times. When she was small he tucked her into bed at night and checked on her to make sure nightmares didn't keep her up, and then when she was older he and Tea sometimes entered to comfort her when she was upset about something. If he just closed his eyes he could almost pretend that she was there with him.

Never in his life had he felt like such a failure. It tore at him, made him feel as if his his heart was trying to claw it's way out of his chest. His little girl was gone. Tears began to roll down his cheeks when let his thoughts stray to her kidnapping. What would Bakura do to her in order to gain information? He thought that Bakura wanted her intact, but who could guess the thoughts of a mad man?

He knew that he wasn't alone, but for the first time in a long time he felt like he was really, truly alone.

After the tears were gone his grief gave way to new determination. He would bring his daughter home. That she had not been found after a week was unacceptable. If Bakura wasn't going to give anything away, he'd search him out himself. He had been waiting for a sign, for some sort of a miracle, as he had been paralyzed by his own indecision. Now he realized that if he was going to get her back he'd have to stop waiting for something to happen and make it happen instead. Sometimes you have to forge your own destiny.


Meanwhile in Domino Deals Motel…

"So your dearest father has yet to save you. Tell me, how does it feel to finally know his true colors?" Bakura sat in the desk chair like a throne as he looked down at Akari who was sitting cross legged on the floor eating a slice of the greasy pizza that he had picked up. She put her slice back down on the paper plate and glared at him.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

He couldn't help but be amused by her. This girl was just too easy to rile up. "You have been gone for nearly a week and your father hasn't even gone looking for you. To be honest, I am a bit surprised, considering all of the nonsense that he's spewed over the years, but that's humans for you. They're nothing but insignificant, hypocritical swine!" He picked up the newspaper that he had stolen and pointed to the picture on the front cover. The headline read: Man slaughters wife and three children after becoming unemployed. "See? How about this?" He pointed to another article: Founder of Charitable Hands Inc. accused of using funds to buy himself a five bedroom home in suburbs. "Don't you see? Your father is no better than these men. He's left you here because despite all of his talk about goodness and friendship he's glad that you're gone."

Akari was trembling with anger. "My father loves me! If he hasn't rescued me yet it isn't because of lack of trying. You keep trying to play with my head, but let me tell you Mr. Bakura that it's not going to work because I know that my family loves me! There are some things that just can't be faked!" She shouted. "They will save me!"

"Yes, well, we'll see." Yugi Mutou was playing right into his hands. Perhaps the great King of Games wasn't so great after all. "It's a good thing I have plenty of these. We may be here awhile longer. It wouldn't do to rush the game would it?" He held up four different stolen credit cards. He had come to love the plastic cards of the twenty first century. They gave him nearly unlimited funds to buy anything he wanted. He had always planned to hold the girl as bait until Yugi found his location so it was good that he had additional funds. He needed her in good condition in case he needed another pawn.

"I don't think so. It'll be any day now!" She shouted.

"Your faith is truly refreshing, but trust me when I say that it will take your father a great deal of time to find our location if he is searching for you at all."

"Bastard." She spat. If he were honest with himself he'd have to admit that he was surprised that the mild mannered Yugi Mutou and Tea Gardner had produced such a spitfire.

"Curse me all you want little girl, the outcome will be the same. We'll just see who predicts whose move first."

Author's Note:

Well...that escalated quickly. That was a fairly emotional chapter wasn't it? I kind of liked it. Yugi and Tea have been struggling to cope in their own ways, and Yugi had to break down eventually. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter despite the short length. Next chapter is going to be interesting, so I hope you'll stick around. Please review if you are able and let me know what you think!

-TheEagerScribbler