I guess I complained too loudly about the overtime I was getting. My youngest tested positive for Covid and now we have to stay home (oh no!). He's fine though. It's pretty much just like a bad cold (as opposed to when my husband got it back in November 2020 and had to be hospitalized). Besides getting some guaranteed time off, I was abled to focus on this chapter.

Big reveal!

Also TW for mentions of Death/loss. I only mention it because I know some people process loss differently, and sometimes following a similar series of events can be triggering (my mom has been gone 20 years and I still come across the occasional trigger).

Marik stared at the open doorway for what felt like forever, his brain still trying to process...everything. He slowly looked towards the Pharaoh, who was still sitting on his host's bed. Yami was sitting in his usual concentrated pose.

"Okay, time to start talking. You actually saw Bakura as a child?!" Marik asked skeptically.

Yami peeked an eye towards the blonde, a soured expression across his face. "Why didn't you tell Yugi about your vision first thing this morning?"

"Did you not see me this morning?! I could barely keep my eyes open!" Marik flung his hands up in annoyance. "Plus I thought maybe it was just my sub-conscious creating a really messed up dream after what happened! I wasn't really sure there was much of a connection until Bakura mentioned Isfet. It was then I began to wonder about the statue of Ma'at I found next to the photo in his Soul Room."

"I see. You said in the vision it contained a heart?" Both of Yami's eyes were now open, questioning the blonde.

"Half of one. Bakura confirmed that. What's strange though, is when I was in the Soul Room last night it was missing. You don't think that has anything to do with him being a bit...all over the place? Emotionally I mean. Honestly I didn't know Bakura had emotions, other than enjoying the torment of others."

Yami nodded. "It's entirely possible."

Marik sat in the chair that the Spirit of the Ring had earlier occupied. "So about why you were missing earlier, you said you saw Bakura and a small girl. He didn't seem too thrilled hearing her name."

The Pharaoh relaxed from his position, leaning forward in contemplation. "No he did not. I didn't really get to see a lot of his younger self. Most of what I saw involved the little girl." He let out a curt sigh. "I should apologize. You weren't the only one who wasn't sure if the vision was real or influenced by something else. I wondered the same thing after I encountered mine."

The Egyptian stared at him with a blank expression. "Really? Then why even bring it up in front of Bakura?"

"Because, it couldn't be coincidence that the man you described from the photo matched the boy I saw perfectly down to the scar on his face. Add the fact he was introduced to me as Bakura, and the Spirit confirmed that the photo was indeed of him...I needed him to confirm my suspicions."

"I guess that makes sense. So what exactly happened in your vision?"

"A little Egyptian girl appeared to me in the Puzzle. I was then transported back to ancient Egypt and into my old body from when I was very young. The girl kept referring to me as Sa-nesu, and bowing on her hands and knees. It was quit exhausting at first trying to get any information out of her."

Marik chuckled lightly. "What did you expect from a servant girl? She was probably terrified that she would offend you! You may not have been Pharaoh yet, but as Crowned Prince you still had the authority to have people executed."

"Yes, I eventually gathered as much." Yami commented dryly. His eyes widened slightly as he recollected something. "Was I prohibited from touching people?"

"Touching? What exactly do you mean by that?" Marik questioned warily.

"I got annoyed when she wouldn't stand up and look me in the eye, so I grabbed her hand and….forced her to." A slight blush of embarrassment crossed Yami's cheeks at the last bit.

Marik's eyes about popped out of his head. "You did what?! Are you telling me you forced a servant to treat you as an equal?! You do realize that you were considered a living God, right? Gods didn't go around touching mortals unless it was to either bless or curse them! And to make her look you in the eye?! Once again, only to bless or curse! You probably gave the poor girl a heart attack!"

"Oh...so making a promise that she wouldn't be harmed in exchange for friendship was probably a really big deal..." the Pharaoh said quietly.

The Egyptian planted his palm across his face. "You didn't...please tell me you are joking! How can you remember that you were a Pharaoh but not know anything about the rules between Royalty and commoners?!"

"To be fair, I only learned about being Pharaoh from Ishizu when she showed me the Tablet of Memories." Yami said defensibly. "My knowledge of what a Pharaoh is, or was, comes directly from Yugi. If there's something I don't know about Pharaohs in general, it's because neither of us have learned it yet."

"The Royal Family didn't make friends. They made allies. If what you saw played out exactly how it happened five-thousand years ago, you essentially took a common girl and made her someone of importance. Please tell me there weren't any witnesses?"

"Well…" Yami rubbed at the back of his neck nervously.

"Pharaoh!"

"I only met her because she wandered off, so it makes sense that someone came looking for her!" Yami held up his hands in a defensive gesture. He then recalled her searchers. "Which reminds me, did you know there were Ishtar's during my time?"

"Of course there were! You think I don't know the origins of my own clan?! We weren't always Tomb Keepers you know! We were once the Royal Family's personal guard known as the Ishtari. From the moment a male heir could stand they would begin their training so that they could protect members of the Royal Family. There would have been a boy close to you in age that would have been assigned to protect you specifically when you were born."

"So that's why the boy that looked like you didn't appear too happy to see me. He probably harbored the same feelings of resentment towards me that you once did."

Marik raised a brow in interest. "There was a boy that looked like me?"

"Yeah, the girl called him Malik. He had an older brother that looked like Odion that she called Rishid."

"Odion too?!"

Yami nodded his head. "Kaiba as well. The girl called him Set. Apparently he was her twin brother."

"And what was Bakura's part in all of this?"

"I'm led to believe that he was her adopted brother."

"Wonderful. So not only did you raise the status of a common girl, you happened to do it in front of her siblings and two Ishtari. That meant they probably spent a great deal of time trying to hide any evidence of your friendship with her. No wonder Bakura appears to loathe you."

"What do you mean?"

"Seriously? You were a living God. The hearts of men are filled with greed. Anyone who wanted power believed they could do so by killing you. Imagine if there was a way to get the power of a so called God without having to actually fight said God? Imagine if all one had to do was threaten to harm a mortal girl, knowing the God would be bound to keep his word or risk losing the faith of the kingdom."

The Pharaoh's eyes widened as the full realization of what he had done sunk in.

"Knowing that though….I wonder why Bakura appeared disturbed hearing her name. You said it was Katrina?" Marik queried.

"Yeah. I thought it was an odd name, considering she appeared very much Egyptian, unlike her twin. She mentioned that her Ama-shae, which I assume meant her mother, was from the far north."

"Katrina is a Celtic name, so she's from really far north. Wonder how her mother ended up in Egypt?"

"I didn't ask, but I know I wasn't about to judge after the fake name I gave her."

"I'm going to regret asking-"

"Yugi..." the Pharaoh hung his head sheepishly.

"You told her your name was Yugi…" Marik stared at the Pharaoh, one eye slightly twitching. "I really, really hope that the events of the past didn't happen like that."

"Why did you use my name?" Yugi questioned from the other side of the link.

"It was an accident! I had meant to say Yami...but I was thinking of you and the others...and your name kind of slipped out instead." Yami replied, extremely embarrassed.

Yugi let out a small laugh. "Well, if things did actually play out that way, it's interesting to know we once shared a name!"

Yami smiled and nodded lightly, amused at the fact that his host would find something positive out of his mistake.

Marik closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I'm getting a headache from….all of this. Between last night in the Soul Room, the stupid vision that left me super tired, Bakura's visit, and now learning that I am in service to possibly the dumbest Pharaoh ever, I am beyond exhausted. I am going to get something to eat, then I'm heading straight to bed."

Yami scowled. "There's no need for name calling. There's no evidence to suggest that's how everything actually happened."

"Whatever…" Marik waved off the Pharaoh's comment before heading downstairs.

The sun hadn't even risen the following morning when Marik crawled out of bed. Going to sleep relatively early had left him feeling refreshed though. Yugi's alarm didn't go off until he was almost fully dressed for school. Today, his roommate was the one that looked like he could use the extra rest.

"Don't tell me you had one of those visions too?" Marik said dully.

"No, just couldn't sleep in general. Too much to think about."

The Egyptian chuckled. "Tell me about it!"

Marik waited impatiently to get going. He wanted to get to school early today, as there was a ton of information to go over with the others. Yugi had barely finished prepping his toast when he began out the door.

"Wait up!" Yugi shouted after him, clutching his bag in one hand and toast in the other as he tried to catch up to the blonde.

"Sorry, but I want to get there before Bakura does. I hope you don't mind, but I think I'll leave Tea and the others to you. I have some questions I need to ask my former partner."

Yugi could see the determined look on Marik's face, and nodded. "Okay. You might get more from him anyway without me and Yami around. Just promise me you won't let him get to you like last night? I thought you were going to punch him for sure!"

Marik didn't answer. He didn't want to tell Yugi that the only reason he hadn't punched Bakura was because he had spoken up.

They were among the first few people to show up in the nearly empty schoolyard. Joey and Tristan showed up not long after, followed closely by Tea. Marik continued to watch for Bakura, wanting to catch him as he entered. As more and more people began to crowd in though, he began to wonder if the Spirit had just been messing with him again. He could hear Yugi going over the past two days worth of information with the others, occasionally turning as he was curious to see their expressions. It was during one of these moments of curiosity that he managed to spot Bakura's unmistakable white mane. He was up on the roof above, watching (and probably listening in on) the group below.

How the hell did he make it all the way up there without me even seeing him walk in?

Marik ran into the building and up the stairs to the roof as fast as his legs could carry him, only stopping to catch his breath once he reached the top.

"Wow Tomb Keeper! Had no idea you would miss me that much." Bakura teased, his back turned towards the Egyptian. He had obviously seen the Egyptian tear off from his post in the schoolyard below.

Marik gritted his teeth, but remained calm. He wouldn't let Bakura get under his skin.

"I still have some questions, and you will answer them."

Bakura turned to face him, leaning lazily against the railing. "Alright, but it all depends on the questions you ask. Don't forget, I can't exactly answer certain types of questions."

"Nothing about the Pharaoh, I know. I want to know more about the half-heart the statue held."

Bakura raised his brow. "That thing? Might I ask why you are so focused on it?"

"I'm….not entirely sure?" Why was he focused on it? While he was waiting for Yugi, some train of thought had led him to believe it was important somehow, but now had forgotten what had led him to think it.

Bakura let out a low chuckle. "I'm not even sure you would believe me if I told you."

"Have you forgotten who you're talking to? Try me."

The Spirit stared at him for a moment, contemplating, before letting out an exasperated sigh. He slid down into a sitting position, hanging his head slightly.

"One more question?"

Marik paused. "Make it a quick one." he barked.

"The woman you said was being controlled...did she...was she…"

"You want to know about after?"

Bakura nodded slowly.

"Physically she was fine. Emotionally though…" Marik didn't know how to answer. "I'll never be able to forget that scream."

"No, you won't." Bakura answered knowingly.

"Does she have anything to do with what I asked?"

"Not really. I just needed to know, especially since I've spent nearly a decade and half pissed off at the wrong person."

"A decade and a half? You mean you've only been trapped in the ring for about fifteen years?"

Bakura nodded. "You saw the photo. Ryou was still a toddler."

"Yeah, that photo still confuses me. Why would you be there with Ryou and his mom, but not his dad? Were you his godparent or something?"

"And you did so well piecing it all together last night." the Spirit sighed.

Marik narrowed his eyes. "If you are trying to suggest that you are Ryou's father, then I'm going to walk away. There's no way I'm going to believe that load of crap."

"Goodbye then." Bakura said in a sing-song pitch, waving.

Marik stared hard at Bakura. "And I thought my old man was bad."

"Tomb Keeper, I am five-fucking-thousand years old. You don't live that long without getting a bit messed up in the head."

"A bit?" Marik scoffed.

Bakura scowled at him, fury in his eyes. "How about you watch your entire village burn. Watch the woman that took you in get beheaded. Watch everyone you have ever known, ever cared about, die. Watch it over and over for five-thousand years. You eventually become numb. My mistake was I came across someone that made me feel again. Then I got trapped inside this fucking thing. Had to watch someone else play my part, with my family. I couldn't stand beside Ryou's mother as she took her last breath. I couldn't hold my daughters hand as she slipped away. I couldn't even reassure my son that he's not alone, because I was still too weak after being trapped to connect to his consciousness. I was trapped in my own mind, filled with so much pain that I went mad. I attempted to rip out my own heart just to make it stop. I half succeeded, but the agony I was in finally ceased. I was left fractured, but I didn't care. I didn't feel anymore and that was good enough for me. At least it was until the one person I had left vanished!" Bakura slammed his fist down, his body shaking while trying to hold back tears. "After that I was somehow made whole again! Years of pain, anger, hatred, everything, flooded back! I just want it to end! But I can't fucking kill myself because all I would be doing is throwing away his body! My spirit would still be stuck in this gods-forsaken relic!"

Marik didn't know what to do or say as he watched the Spirit have a major mental breakdown. Bakura looked angrily up at him with tears flowing freely down his face.

"Do you have the answers you wanted Tomb Keeper?! What now? You going to run off and tell your little friends the sad story of the Big-Bad Spirit of the Ring so they can throw their pity at me?!" Bakura's words were full of venom.

The Egyptian shook his head after a long moment. "No... It's not my story to tell. If they want to know, they can ask you themselves." He turned partway, looking back at the broken Spirit. "Class will be starting soon. If you decide not to show, I'll let everyone assume that you decided to skip again." After another long pause he continued. "But honestly I'm kind of looking forward to you correcting the teachers again." He said the last bit with a small smile.

Bakura dried his tears, staring incredulously at the blonde. He composed himself and stood, a smirk of amusement graced his face. "You know, it's pretty sad what passes for proper education in this place. It's a wonder Ryou managed to learn anything during his time here. I suppose I could stick around though, just to make sure the teachers don't keep screwing up of course."

Marik grinned wide. "Of course..."

Anyone else feel Bakura needs a big hug? Don't worry, it's coming!