A Past and Future Pharaoh

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

Original Beta: WhiteSwan

A/N: Sooo fixed up this chapter, put Catherine in an Apartment since houses would be impossible considering where they live.

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The lady stopped talking to the detective and the pair turned their attention to her.

"Yes?" The young lady was bilingual apparently as she spoke Japanese despite her exotic appearance. She stood there in a sheath type dress of off white and a single gold headpiece. Despite her age she stood with the poise and grace, her eyes spoke of experience and confidence.

"Do you know someone who plays something…" She slipped her hand into her purse and pulled out a Duel Monster card and presented it to the lady.

"The Dark Magician? Yes, I know someone but…" The exotic woman replied, taking the card in her hand briefly to study it. It was hard to smile with the nostalgia that came from seeing the Magician, so much was wrapped around said card. From duels to battles for the world, and there he was, always faithful to their Pharaoh.

The blonde exchanged the card for the book with a smile, "this needs to go to him. There was well, I can't explain it, you wouldn't believe me. But…" suddenly she was cut off as the exotic lady turned her attention to the detective standing by their side. Essentially being snubbed by this strange turn of a conversation.

"Sir? I'll be leaving now, thank you for your time. When I get the lines translated I will let you know," the young Egyptian lady said formally to the detective. Freeing the man up to go back to his work and it would have been foolish to ignore his relief at it. As he turned and walked off the exotic lady took a step towards the door. "Let us talk than."

They walked back outside the station into bright sunshine when Catherine heard a shout causing her to look at the source of said voice. Her eyes falling upon a rather unique trio approaching them, an exotic young man with surprising blond hair

"Those two are my brothers, the older is Rashid, the younger Malik and the white haired teen with them is a friend, his name is Bakura Ryou." The young lady explained as the trio approached, then she spoke to them. "She had a pair of items I find intriguing, the Dark Magician duel monster card and a strange book."

The trio looked at her, though Malik, after closer inspection, suddenly paled slightly before stepping a bit into Rashids' shadow.

"Hello, my name is Catherine, I used to be an assistant to a Magician named Pandora."

Rashid recalled the man, the one that Malik dispatched to try and get Yugi's Dark Magician. The man not only failed, but also opted on a duel where the loser would have his legs cut off. If not for Yugi's compassion he would have lost his legs, however after the duel Malik had punished him the same way he punished others. Apparently, without the Rod in this world anymore, people were coming back to their senses, though how they continued their lives was another question.

"I do not want to take up much if any of your time so I'll be brief… Pandora was a magician some time ago and I served as his assistant. We were young in love, I thought with each other. But after a terrible accident I came to realize he loved himself more then me. I was just eye candy for him, a beautiful assistant to serve a handsome magician. After the accident I tried to stay by his side and be supportive as I had through all the shows, but I came to realize that he cared more for his own life then for me. So one day I took back my life and left… Until last Sunday."

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Something tugged her from her deep sleep, a chill she couldn't define that penetrated her sleep. She sluggishly reached for the blanket, only to feel something hold down her arm firmly.

"Honey… I'm cold…" She complained sleepily, tugging on her arm to get it free.

"I am sorry, but I have been ordered to bring you back to Master Pandora," the voice was firm, calm yet remorseful… and it wasn't that of her husband, which got her adrenaline working to wake her in an instant. The bedroom was too dark; all she could see from the faint light peeking from between the curtains was a white sheet and a few flecks of gold. The hand pulled her out of the bed firmly though she noted, not roughly. "Also I have used a spell on your family, they will not be waking up till the morning. Though for their own safety, please don't speak of them as though they are alive."

"What?!"

"Master Pandora has ordered me to bring you back to him…" The figure repeated as he pulled her along.

There was something about the way he spoke, the resigned tone along with the implication that she couldn't refer to her family as among the living. Did… did Pandora want them dead? She began to struggle hard against him, but he merely covered her mouth with his hand and held her still with the other one. "If I must subdue you than so be it, please believe me when I say I do not desire these events any more than yourself."

He took his hand from her mouth as she started to tremble, it occurred to her that this wasn't a joke. Her husband knew better and he was the only one who knew of her past relationship with Pandora, "why would he do this?"

He didn't answer; he merely turned and pulled her along into the darkness of the apartment. Yet she felt something, as though a deeper chill over took her body before something dropped over her face. Startled, she reached out her hand to touch it even as it slipped away in the darkness, just before she was blinded by firelight. Only for a moment though, then she could see again that she was in a large cavern filled with mostly large, blank stone slabs. She didn't understand where or why so many slabs were in the room, yet now with more light she was able to see who had grabbed her.

He was taller than her, dressed all in white with the exception of gold armbands, wristbands and headdress. The robes were long and flowing though sleeveless, topped off with a cloak. She couldn't see his face, from her pace slightly behind him, as well as the white cloth he wore over his head that hid his hair. His skin was darker than normal for the area so he couldn't have been from Japan, yet as she pondered where this stranger could have come from he suddenly turned to face her.

"Please be careful. Master Pandora is no longer what can be considered fully stable," the stranger warned. "I was ordered to kill your family, but I could not bring myself to do it. The me that he wronged still craves vengeance hence my ability to do this much against my master's will, but I ask that you do not tell the Master that your family lives. I…will not be able to resist his order again…" He had these blue eyes that the color seemed mixed with dull silver. The rest of his face was hidden under the same type of cloth he wore.

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"Anyways I managed to get away with this book… That spirit told me that since I had the book I was now his master so I asked him if there was someone he was looking for. He said he wished to return to his true master so I told him to go to that person." She gestured to the book no longer in her possession.

"But that isn't the end of what happened. I don't understand why you're stopping so suddenly," Isis replied in concern, only to watch Catherine gesture to her watch.

"I have to go to work soon, so I have to leave now," she apologized as she started to turn away from the group.

"Is there a way we can reach you? This isn't something that we can only know half of," Isis pointed out as Catherine walked away.

"It's in the letter, I left it in the book… You can read it when that master returns!" She called out as she began to jog away.

"Or we can just read it now and put it in another envelope, Yugi doesn't need to know," Bakura suggested from the back of the group. He blinked as the others turned to look at him in mild shock. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Nice and sneaky… thanks Bakura we'll do just that!" Malik replied with a smirk.

Stunned, Bakura looked about in shock that he naturally suggested a duplicitous action without any thought. Standing to the side was the lady who was smiling and nodding in approval of his suggestion. Just behind her was another man who seemed rather proud.

"It is strange is it not? That she met a ghost who dressed like a priest with ties to Yugi's Dark Magician," Rashid noted as Isis led the group away with the book now in her arms. "While at the same time Bakura sees ghosts all about him."

"Yes, but she saw 'that' ghost and so did Pandora, no one else has seen the ghosts that Bakura's talking about," Malik pointed out as they walked along. There was a few more people wandering around now, the scare of the bomb slowly draining from the public.

"I am also curious about why she would bring a Dark Magician card aside from Pandora being a magician himself. What would that monster card represent?" Isis thought aloud as she walked along.

"What did the officer say? Since we can't deal with the letter out in the open, we can at least know about the message in the game shop," Bakura asked, bringing Isis out of her thoughts.

"There are two messages: one in the store itself that you saw, but also another one that rests on the wall above Yugi's bed," Isis replied. "I looked at both and while the message you saw I can read easily, the other I can not completely read. Though there was a piece of good news from the officer, Yugi and his group have been found."

"Really?!" Malik caught up with his sister so that they could walk side by side.

"Yes, they're in Canada right now while the governments work on their passage home. It is slightly complicated, since their leaving Japan was by kidnapping and smuggling the four of them out of the country."

"Can we call them and see how they're doing?" Rashid asked as they stopped at a crosswalk.

"I'm afraid not, he was willing to tell me what country they were in, however where or the number to reach them is another story." Isis held out the book and looked it over. "What is so special about this one book? What ties it to the Dark Magician?" One would have assumed it to be old, yet it wasn't. The cover was made of leather and did have the appearance of having been used, yet it lacked the cracks and lines that accompanied old age. If not for the feeling that the book held she was inclined to dismiss the woman. "This book does not look old, however it does have some type of aura… a sensation that I do not understand know how to put into words."

"Great, just stockpile it along with the rest of the stuff labeled as 'Doing what it shouldn't', otherwise known as Bakura's place," Malik said with a sigh and a shake of his head.

'!Poke!'

Malik whirled around to see who had impudently poked him in the back of his head… Only finding Bakura walking directly behind him, shamelessly keeping his hand in the post poke position.

"Can I hurt Bakura?" Malik asked Isis.

"May you hurt Bakura," she corrected.

"May I hurt Bakura," he replied dutifully.

"You may not hurt our host," Isis replied with a patience that seemed eternal.

"Hey Bakura want to visit my boat?" Malik asked narrowing his eyes as he looked at the white haired teen.

"Children…" Rashid put Bakura on one side of him and Malik on the other as he tried his best to keep the pair from each other.

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When had it happened? Yugi didn't know when the kidnappers came into the palace and taken him away. All he knew was that during the night as he slept in his crib someone came and took him away. Now he was quite put upon. The sun was too bright, the horses making too much noise as whoever these people were rode to wherever and he was 'hungry'. So the prince did what the prince always did when he wanted something… He cried, screamed and tossed a tantrum until he got what he wanted. The words the men used were garbled he didn't understand the rough person as he squinted at the man through the bright sunlight that bore down on his tender eyes.

After a while he was jostled even more unpleasantly, causing a squawk of discontent to erupt from the prince. He couldn't see, yet he recognized that there was a change of who held him. Suddenly the arms were smaller, less masculine: a child Yugi could only assume as he sat back, watching. The other person fumbled with him a bit, working to get the prince in a comfortable hold while trying to shield the small prince's eyes from the glare of the sun. For a moment his blanket was removed, but then rewrapped about him this time affording his head some cover. His eyes now shielded from the bright sun blinked the tears away, happy that the stinging pain was gone. Now if only his tummy was full…

Yugi couldn't help but smile at the feelings that came from the baby. So pure yet personal selfishness at the same time; it was the only time someone could be so demanding and still perceived as being cute.

The prince continued to cry for food now, when suddenly something soft was pressed to his mouth. Startled, he realized it was nipple, which to him said food. So he greedily closed his mouth over it and began to suck, while from his vantage point, Yugi realized it was a crude baby bottle. It wasn't milk, but water; all the same the prince drank it down eager for something in his stomach. He suckled on the bottle till he felt partially ok, though he had to burp. Yugi couldn't help but think that whoever it was that was taking care of him had only limited knowledge of how to raise babies... Which only made Yugi wish all the harder he could see this from the third person and not the first. This just screamed cute in so many languages. Content now, the infant prince began to settle in for some sleep, Yugi smiling as he realized that the baby him felt safe in this person's arms.

What did a baby dream? Perhaps for Yugi it had been his past life, once forgotten now returning. But 3,000 years ago, who knew? Perhaps that was why he dreamed of nothing, just allowing himself to sink into darkness and let it be the balm of his life. Here in these dreams of the past he could, for a moment at least, forget that his grandpa and mom had died while he was away. He saw his grandpa in his dreams, it was as though the old man was still alive. He wanted to get lost in dreams, just find a way to avoid the waking world where people told him his grandpa was dead.

But he couldn't hide away anymore, not in dreams or in games. His grandfather had indulged him for years, now…

Now his past self was waking up. The prince's eyes opened and he peered up at the person carrying him, whose arms were still too small to be an adult. He could see the tan skin of any Egyptian, along with light brown hair that fell about the boy's shoulders. Yugi reached up with his tiny hands, wanting to touch the other boy. He wanted attention and to play. His cooing and gestures got the older boy's attention, causing the older boy to look down at him with a smile on his face. Yugi blinked in surprise…he knew those eyes! That shade of blue, the shape; granted the eyes weren't filled with the same amount of wisdom or mysteries… But those were the eyes!

"Mahaado!" Sitting up in a rush, Yugi cried out the name, while his eyes scanned the room for the Spirit.

"Pharaoh!" Mahaado appeared before Yugi, already on his knees his voice filled with concern.

"I saw you! I was a baby and you were holding me," Yugi's eagerly blurted out as he dropped his legs over the side of the bed. Mahaado had grown compared to what little he remembered seeing in his dream. The child had been thin, almost frail looking, but the teen that knelt before him was not the least bit frail. Though he wasn't as big as Rashid, Mahaado was actually more muscular than Kaiba. It was amusing to think that Yugi's Magician was physically more powerful than the CEO.

"I don't understand," Mahaado replied, though he couldn't help but wonder why the Pharaoh made it sound like he was being attacked. He scared Mahaado doing such a thing!

"I've been dreaming of ancient Egypt for a short time now, but today I fell asleep and remembered you!" Yugi exclaimed out of excitement, only to see Mahaado shut his eyes. "Am I boring you?"

"No. Not at all, I just find it somewhat touching that you care so for that past," Mahaado replied with a faint smile that couldn't be seen and only partly heard.

"Well I know the past will have a sad ending, but for now… What happened that day? How did I meet you?"

"My master and his followers kidnapped you, then you were placed in my care when you wouldn't stop crying," Mahaado replied.

"Why would your master kidnap me?" Yugi asked as he pushed his bangs back from his face.

"Why does any criminal do what they do? I was merely a slave so I don't know his reasons for his actions." Mahaado replied.

"A slave? But you were a child!" Yugi protested as a strong protective urge overtook him. Granted his Magician always protected him in duels, but knowing now there was a person behind the Magician made it impossible to 'not' be protective.

"No, I am a demon so being enslaved is natural," Mahaado corrected gently. "A demon can be a slave at any age."

"A demon?" Yugi echoed the words feeling strangely hurt that the Magician he considered best in the world would be thought of such.

"When did you wake up? What was going on in your dreams before you called out to me?" Mahaado asked politely as he knelt there.

"Uh… I wanted to play with you, so I reached up and you looked down at me. When you did, I noticed your eyes so I woke up out of surprise and well," Yugi recalled for Mahaado, shrugging at how stupid it sounded, now that he was fully awake.

"Than Pharaoh is very close to finding out why I say I'm a demon," Mahaado replied calmly.

"Hey Yugi!" Mokuba's voice came through the door as the dark haired kid came bounding into the room. "Oh hey Mahaado! We're going out to have dinner want to come to?"

"Why would a ghost need food?" Kaiba asked sarcastically, appearing next behind Mokuba, with his arms folded.

There seemed to be some sort of simmering anger in Kaiba as he looked at Mahaado that Yugi didn't understand. He couldn't understand why Kaiba would be angry at the mere sight of someone who he probably didn't even know… Oh wait… those memories. Did Kaiba recall Mahaado from the past? Obviously Mahaado was around when Yugi was, as was Kaiba himself. Yugi knew Kaiba hated his past… so perhaps...?

"Pharoah need not sleep his life away. The memories will return sooner or later, so Pharaoh should go and have a good meal," Mahaado gently encouraged as he turned his gaze back to Yugi.

"You don't mind?" Yugi asked as he got up from the bed.

Mahaado shook his head before fading out of sight, leaving Yugi to turn his attention to the Kaiba brothers and leave the room.