Sakuru no Shakkan ... The Circle of the Shakkan

Yami: *glaring at the authoress out of the corner of his eye* You scare me.

Kestrel: *surprised* And why is that?

Yami: *still glaring* You love Kaiba.

Kestrel: *rolls eyes* So? Plenty of people love Kaiba. Jou loves Kaiba.

Joey: *mock outrage* Hey!

Kestrel: Well...

Joey: Not in this fic, I don't.

Kestrel: *grins* So you admit it.

Joey: *exasperated* No. I'm not admitting anything to you.

Kestrel: *pouts* Jus' cause Kaiba's mine now.

Joey: *getting angry now. Steam coming from his ears* Aaaarrrggh! I do NOT love Kaiba!

Yami: *chuckles* You love it when he calls you 'his little puppy dog'.

Kestrel: Guys, as much fun as this is, it has absolutely nothing to do with my fic.

Joey and Yami: *incredulous* You started it!

Kestrel: *grins* It's my fic. I can do anything I want. So now I'm gonna make Joey do the disclaimer.

Joey: *sighs* Fine. Kes doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh!, which is a good thing, because if she did and tried to write a me-slash-Kaiba yaoi, I'd have to kill myself in humiliation.

Kestrel: *rolls eyes* No appreciation for art. Anyways... on with the fic!

Chapter Five

"Tea, there you are! Where have you… what happened?" His voice took on a high pitched squeal at the end as he saw Shadi lying prostrate on the ground. He knelt, and whispered something unintelligible to Shadi, who barely nodded. Then he helped Shadi drag himself over to the edge of the field. Then he came back to me.

"What did you say?" I asked, thoroughly intrigued.

"Oh, nothing."

"Did you see what happened?"

Silence.

"Dad?"

I looked all around. He wasn't there.

"Tea, want me to walk you home?"

It was Shadi, in his teenage boy shape-change.

"Sure," I said, adopting a careless air. "By the way, wonder boy," I added just a pinch more of sarcasm, "What happened to that HOLE IN

YOUR SIDE?!"

He grinned. "When I change, new skin tissue forms and it disappears.

Flesh wounds don't carry over."

I wheeled around to face him, hands on hips. "How come my dad didn't freak out or anything when he saw the real you?"

He gave me a mock-smug smile. "That's for me to know, and you to find out," he added with a mysterious hint to his voice, "Very soon."

Shadi, or 'Sean', as he liked to be called while he was in this particular human shape, walked me home. Unusually enough, Isis actually opened the door before I got to it. She must have looked out her window, saw Shadi, and thought, Hello, opportunity! He glanced at her face, which always holds at least two pounds of foundation, blush, lipstick and rouge, and bolted, yelling good bye to me over his shoulder. Isis waltzed back to the bathroom to redo her make-up, mumbling, "What's up with him?"

"No appreciation for impressionism." I cackled at the closed door. She shrieked in rage and I sped up to my room, thoroughly exhausted. I breathed deeply as the scent of Juniper Breeze wafted around the room. A soft breeze played around the curtain, bringing into the room the fresh small of spring. I flopped on to my bed. A picture was lying on my bedside table. I turned on to my side, and picked it up, studying every ornate inch of the intricately carved frame. The portrait was that of a blond-haired woman, wearing white robes and spinning fire from her hands.

"Who's that?" Isis, munching on a carrot stick, plopped on to my bed beside me.

"So I guess you didn't put this here?"

She looked puzzled. "Nope. Did it like, just appear?"

"It was here when I came in." I stared at her, and watched in wonder, as her face took on an expression it never head before— sorrow, mixed with emptiness. I cocked my head. "Is'?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. Hey, Dad is making grilled tuna melts. They should be just about ready. Come on." I slipped the framed photo into my backpack, hoisted it on to my shoulders, and followed her down to the kitchen.

"What a great Saturday lunch, eh, girls?" My dad came into the open-air kitchen, carrying a steaming platter of perfect sandwiches. I swiped one as he twirled the platter down. "You make them every Saturday, daddy." "I know." he replied, his mouth full of tuna. Eyeing my backpack, he asked, "And where are we off to this afternoon?"

"The field." I answered, and left it at that. He shrugged, and went back to his sandwich.

After I finished my lunch, I started back out to the field. I hadn't realized what great shape I was in until I tried running. I fairly skimmed over the road.

Shadi was waiting, and he was holding a bundle. He held it out to me.

Put your hrefta so it fits over the symbol. He indicated a small emblem on the top of the bundle. I pressed it, wondering if it would blow up or something. It opened, and my eyes were dazzled by the intense white. As I adjusted to the glare, I saw a diamond headpiece, and a flowing white gown.

Shadi showed me the gown's secret. It was actually a catsuit with a kind of silk attached to it in little bunches, which could be removed if I only wanted the catsuit.

I smiled at Shadi, who looked away shyly. Then I hugged him.

Nothing special, just a sentimental squeeze, but his whole body turned a deep shade of crimson.

"Thanks, Shadi!" I called as I ran home. He waved until I couldn't see him anymore. I fingered the headpiece as I ran. This is pretty cool, I thought to myself. Way cooler than anything Bakura could ever do. I'm so glad Shadi is on my side.

"I wonder if that cute guy will be at the gathering." I remarked to my stuffed bear as I pulled on the catsuit.

"Knock, knock!" My dad's voice called through my door.

"Who's there?"

"Dad."

"Dad who?"

"I'm-coming-in-if-you-don't-open-the-door-Dad!"

I pulled the little bunches of cloth off of my catsuit and tossed one around my neck for a scarf, and tied another on my waist as a sash. When I yanked open my door, my dad's jaw dropped, then he quickly closed it.

"Okay, okay! Here I am."

"Nice catsuit."

"Thanks. What did you want to tell me?"

"That your mother is taking Isis to a movie and you will have the evening to yourself, so long as you get in by twelve. You know how your mom gets when you go out late at night. Oh, and no nightclubs. Dad's orders."

"Want to keep me all to yourself, don't you?" I teased, hugging him. I grabbed all the white pieces and flipped down the stairs. I was off to the Shakkan.

First, I had to stop back by the field. Shadi hadn't told me how to get in. He heard me coming and ran forward. He was a Guardian again. He grinned.

Want to know how to get in, don't you, Tea? he teased.

"Woof, woof." I pretended to sit and shake. "Now as a treat for being a good girl, you can give me the secret sign."

Ha, ha. He was serious again. Okay. At the doorway there are two stone figures. To open the door, you have to press your hand to one and your neck to the other. Which one doesn't matter, you just give one to one and vice versa. He paused for breath. The door will open, and two real guards will step out. On your first night, they may seem intimidating, but as you get to know them, they are really friendly. That's good, for your sake.

Next he taught me the sign. You know, Tea, when I do this I feel like either a 007 agent or a mountain guru or a mix of both. It's that weird.

Not like you care, but that's okay... He flashed me an eye—smile. Anyhow, it goes like this. You take your hrefta and place it against the guards'. He will say, 'Meja sephana' and you say 'Yasey olipha'. You hold your arms a couple feet away from your body and incline, then trace the hrefta in the air. Think you can—

"—do it?", he finished as he completed his metamorphosis.

"Yeah." I said, trying to sound braver than I felt. Whatifs kept running through my head: whatif it's a secret cult, and not a magical gathering? Now that I thought about it, both sounded a little iffy. I was used to taking chances, and I wasn't about to turn this one down. But…whatif Shadi's story is a lie?

I angrily shook my head, and, not taking any chances, dashed down the road toward the gathering, my head whirling with everything that could go wrong.