Angel: "So la la la la live out loud! Live out loud, yeah!" I'm listening to Steven Curtis Chapman: Declaration again! "And if we have been filled with living hope we're gonna over flow!"
The place called Ryúnade is from my doujinshi. It's the magical place where the creatures from Duel Monsters live.
YAY!!! WE FINALLY GOT A NEW YUGIOH EPISODE!!!! IT'S SOOOOOOOOOOO COOL!!! I loved the kawaii chant... "Realm of darkness in this twilight hour, accept these souls and grant us power..." OK, so it's not that kawaii but it added color! AND WE GOT TO SEE YAMI BAKURA! HIP HIP HOORAY!
Um, just to clear something up... Bakura's not being a sissy. There's a reason for his sudden unconsciousness. So, yeah.
Hee hee... a plot twist! Who will win Hikaru's heart, Yugi or Bakura? How can she choose?
To Liashi: Thanks! Yeah, it's hard writing about so many characters. I don't know what I was thinking, it's terrifically hard... but boy is it fun! ::giggles:: I'll try my best to make it interesting. And I entirely understand what you meant about the first couple chapters being a bit of a bore... I didn't enjoy writing them much so I decided to leave them in cliffhangers just to keep people reading. The rest of the story I hope will be very gripping! PS: Me loves your penname!
To Teoshime-chan: Thanx 4 the gr8 review! Konshin 4 Ever! IM me! C YA on the 31!
One more thing: Sakura Fujishima's name has been changed to Makimura Fujishima. The reason why will be explained later on. *Much* later on. Like in book 2.
*Sobs* I NEED MORE FEEBACK! I'm desperate and so are my sisters! *sniffles* Nobody likes our writing...
Disclaimer: Bladdie bladdie blah... NO SHOUNEN OR SHOUJO AI!!! It just makes me feel better to tell you that, especially cuz there's a little bit of a mushy part between Ahmose and Yami, but it's just friendship, not shounen ai. KK? And I'll be reminding you of that constantly, just to annoy you...
This is part 1 of chap 6 cuz this chapter was too long so it wouldn't upload on ff.net so I had to split it into two parts. FYI ~ Angel
" " - talking
' ' - thinking
/ - Any Hikari talking to his or her Yami in his or her mind
// - Any Yami talking to his or her Hikari in his or her mind
Hikari No Yuugi
Play of Light
by Angel
Chapter Six Part One: Chuukin Omoide
Casting Memories
Hikaru yawned softly as she crept out of her bed in the room Kaiba had provided the girls at his mansion in Atami, which was right near his work. It was half-past five in the morning, and she just woke up feeling thirsty. Slowly she slipped her feet out from under the covers and placed them gingerly on the floor.
Kiara was sleeping in the same bed as Hikaru, flat and straight as a stick. Hikaru tried to be quiet and not disturb her, but the princess' senses were keen. As Hikaru stepped out of bed, Kiara rolled over and gave a quiet moan. Hikaru froze in her position, trying not to wake her. Finally she risked a glance in her direction.
The princess was still lying flat on her back, but her head was now turned slightly to the side, one arm bent underneath it. Her other arm was placed on top of the covers, and she had finally taken out her braid to reveal her long, wavy brown hair which was spread over the pillows, framing her delicate face. The moonlight shone through the white gossamer curtains and its soft glow beautified her skin.
"She really is beautiful," Hikaru whispered. "She does look just like a princess." Slowly she reached out her hand, hesitated, then stroked the strands of rich brown hair stretched across the pillows. She then reached out with her index finger and touched Kiara's smooth, unblemished skin, long-tanned by Egyptian sun. Moonbeams seemed to dance on her beauty, highlighting traces of sorrow and regret Hikaru hadn't noticed in the light. Frowning slightly at her new observations, she wondered why her yami's face appeared that way. Kiara seemed different from the other yamis. She was brighter. Her light shone like a star. She glowed. When you were near her, you had to be happy...
... at least that was how Hikaru felt. It was the same way with the others. She seemed like one of the kids... like five thousand years of entrapment in a pendant hadn't even fazed her personality. And yet, the sorrow remained. Somehow, Hikaru sensed the sadness in all the yamis, much as they tried to hide it. Was it all because of the Shadow Games?
If it was...
... she didn't want to end up the same.
Hikaru pulled her hand away from Kiara's face, choking back tears. She hadn't realized until then how much the adventure had already changed her. She could look in a mirror and see her face... describe it... every aspect of her outside appearance was clear as daylight. Inside, she had forgotten. Maybe... she hoped... this journey would cure that. She wanted to discover who she was. Hikaru was a deep thinker, and her heart was crafted of gold. The same went for Kiara, a lost soul, searching for her purpose.
"Someday, we'll know..." Hikaru muttered.
Sighing, Hikaru walked lightly past Kiara and made her way past the beds inhabited by Ai, Setsuna, Misaki, Himoko, Tali, Taidu, and Makimura. They were all deeply asleep; Hikaru stopped for a moment to tuck the covers back around Makimura's shoulders. Then she quietly slipped out of the room to the bathroom.
The bathroom was quite large. Hikaru yanked a plastic cup out of the cup compartment and filled it with cold faucet water. She gulped it down, then threw the empty cup in the wastebasket.
She yawned again as she tiptoed out of the bathroom and down the hallway, back to her room. As she passed the boys' room, she heard a faint coo come through the door, followed by a series of soft sobs. Curious, she turned the doorknob and entered the darkened room.
Everything was still. Yugi and Yami, who had been feeling very uncomfortable about sharing a bed (Yugi because of his courtesy, Yami because of his love of privacy), were (ironically) snuggled together under the sheets, the covers kicked to the end of the bed. Dajan and Ay were facing opposite sides of their bed; the same went for Takehiko and Ahmose. Mokuba, unsurprisingly, was sleeping upside-down.
But the bed Kerihk and Bakura were supposed to be sharing was occupied only by the yami. The hikari was nowhere to be seen. This puzzled Hikaru greatly because Bakura had fainted six hours earlier and had missed dinner. It hadn't looked like he'd be waking up any time soon.
The weeping had stopped for a moment when Hikaru had entered the room, but now a bit of a choking sob sounded throughout the room. It sounded like it was coming from the dark corner opposite the beds.
"Hello?" Hikaru whispered. "Is someone there?"
"Erm... yes... Go back to bed, Hikaru, I'm all right," Bakura's voice whispered back, slightly shaky.
"Ryou-chan?" Hikaru said softly, wandering over to his side. He was sitting on the floor, hair a tangled mess, face pressed against his knees. "Douka shita no?"
'My gosh, I feel like an idiot,' Bakura thought, wiping tears from his amber eyes. 'It was only a dream. Only a dream.' Out loud, he replied, "Daijobu desu. Don't worry, Hikaru-san. I'm okay. Go back to bed..."
"I will if you tell me what's wrong," Hikaru whispered. She sat down beside him and looked at his face. "Won't you? Onegai?"
Bakura hugged his knees. "Please, Hikaru-chan, I'm sure it's just my nerves about leaving tomorrow. I'm not trying to be a baby or anything."
"I know that. Why were you crying?"
"I wasn't."
"Yes, you were. You just fainted. What woke you up?"
"Kerihk's snoring."
"He's not snoring."
"He was before."
Hikaru's lavender eyes shifted to the ceiling. She blinked, and looked back at the silver-haired boy. "Did you have the dream again?"
"... Hai, hai."
Hikaru blew some hair out of her face and leaned close to him. He smelled really good, she noticed. Kind of like ivory soap or something.
Unlike Takehiko, who constantly smelled like sweat because of all his sports activity.
Hikaru's eyes seemed to look straight into Bakura's soul. He felt like he was drowning in them. She was genuinely concerned about him.
"Ryou-chan," she breathed in his ear. "It's going to be okay. I promise. I don't understand what's going on with you, but we'll back you up all the way. Really."
Bakura felt the tears prick his eyes again. "It... hurts," he choked out.
"What hurts?"
"The - the images... It's so dark... and evil... I'm sorry, I'm just so scared. I'm afraid... of being alone."
Like a mother trying to comfort her injured child, Hikaru reached her arms around Bakura's neck and leaned herself on him. "I'm so sorry," she muttered. "It'll be okay. It will."
It felt so good being with her, like everything was right. Just by being there for him, Bakura felt the tenseness leave him. Of all things, he didn't want to be alone in the dark. He was afraid to be alone with his thoughts. She was bringing peace to him, bringing hope. For now, it was all that helped... but he had a feeling everything wouldn't be okay after all.
***
"Hey, Setsuna! Would you give me a hand with this box?"
"Yo, Ahmose and Ay! Stop goofing off and help out!"
"Keep it steady, Yami. Alright, put it down there."
"Do you need help? I can do that."
Ai yawned as she followed Yugi, Takehiko, and Dajan outside and onto the harbor where their ship was docked. The calls of the yamis (a/n: see above) echoed throughout the land. It was nice to see them all working together like that, but Ai's mind was on something other than the loading of the ship.
Bakura and Hikaru had been found awake at six-thirty in the morning by early-birds Kiara and Kerihk (Yami was up by then too, but he decided to remain in bed with Yugi [a/n: don't get any ideas, you sick-minded peoples!] so he didn't get up right away). The other yamis had awoken shortly afterwards, their normal waking time being when the sun rises. Most of the hikaris had managed to sleep through the noise the yamis made when they began packing, but Ai was already one-fourth awake and couldn't ignore the sounds. She pulled on her slippers and headed out to get something to eat. As she was heading down the stairs of Kaiba's mansion, she heard a few people laughing down the hall. Curious, she peeked around the corner.
There were Kiara and Kerihk standing above their hikaris who were playing a game of Duel Monsters on the floor. Kerihk was teasing because they had gotten up so early and Kiara was asking why that was so. Ai gasped when she heard Bakura - or "Ryou-chan" as Hikaru called him, and as Ai called him in her thoughts - admit that he had been having trouble sleeping and Hikaru had offered to help him get his mind off of whatever was bothering him, so they had spent a long time talking outside on the front steps before coming back inside to play Duel Monsters (they were on their third game). Hikaru giggled, turning red. Kerihk looked like he was about to make a rude comment that might hurt Bakura's feelings, but somehow Kiara's finger found its way to his lips. One hopeful look from those pink eyes of hers destroyed any anger in his heart at the moment. She smiled gently. Ai couldn't help but feel a little jealous as Hikaru and Bakura sat side-by-side, watching their yamis have a staring contest.
It had seemed that Kiara and Kerihk were playing with each other, the way his hand subconsciously made its way to her back, trying to pull her toward him. Kiara's smile was wider now, and she looked breathless, as did he...
At that moment Setsuna walked in sleepily. Kerihk gave a small moan of disappointment, but as soon as Setsuna asked what they were doing they stopped acting so strangely and decided to wake up Yami to start loading the ship. For the rest of the day, they had been pretty much normal, except Kerihk had been avoiding Kiara and looked a little confused.
Bakura and Hikaru, however, had remained by each other's side the rest of the day. Ai's only comfort was Yugi, who looked almost as disappointed as she did, except he didn't seem the least bit jealous. Ai had noticed from the beginning that the small boy seemed to like Hikaru a lot, the way he had been looking at her while they waited for Seto Kaiba to talk to them, and then at dinner when they were sitting next to each other. Ai had taken it as a good sign that Hikaru seemed to like Yugi more than Bakura, but now she wasn't so sure.
Now, Ai took a seat by Tali and Misaki, watching her yami walk lightly up the platform to the boat though loaded down with supplies. It had recently been discovered that Setsuna's power was super-strength (which Ai thought was awfully ironic, as Setsuna was very skinny and not all that tall; then again, she was quite a tough girl). This was a benefit for the Shadow Gamers as they now called themselves - the loading went twice as fast.
Kerihk jumped down the platform to grab another box. He, Yami, Ahmose, and Ay had formed an assembly line to pack the boxes on the ship. From the deck of the ship, Yami called out for him to send up more food supplies. Kerihk looked around for the pile of rations.
"Yo, Setsuna!" he yelled. "Hand me one of those boxes, will ya?" He gestured towards the food rations near Setsuna's feet.
Setsuna bent down to pick up the box. She balanced it on her shoulders and skipped over to Kerihk, handing it to him. But she dropped it before he was ready and it slid out of his grip. He winced as it landed on his toes.
"ITAI! WHAT WAS THAT FOR, BAKAMONO?" he screamed at Setsuna as he shoved the box off his feet, giving her the Evil Eye Look.
"Gomen, my bad! Sometimes I forget my own strength," Setsuna apologized, slightly angered by his attitude.
"Forget it? You're stupider than you look! Get outta my face, dodo!"
Taidu sighed and muttered something in Egyptian which Himoko took to mean "Oh Taweret, why do you torment me with such quick-tempered children?"
Setsuna turned red and puffed up her chest. "All right, then! Two can play that game!" She made a growling noise like a cat in her throat and said, "You are so full of it! I'll get out of your face when you get out of my hair, 'fellah'!"
For some reason, this Egyptian comment seemed to really aggravate Kerihk's already over-reactive rage. He cursed something in Egyptian; Setsuna responded by sticking out her tongue. Yami said something in Egyptian to his sister that made her laugh, and she ran down the platform to interrupt the argument.
"You two sound like my brothers," she giggled. Yami turned bright red and ducked down behind the ship's railings. Kiara continued, "One day Yami and our half-brother, Pentaware, were playing around in the Temple of Ra and they decided to play a trick on the priests. There was a bowl for purification by the Temple's entrance, and they poured some juice into the bowl. The priests were a sticky mess!" She laughed harder. "When Father found out he wasn't happy and punished them. I was there when Pentaware yelled at Yami that it was all his fault, and he responded, 'MY fault? YOU were the one who decided to test father's patience like that!' Pentaware was all excited and he went, "You are SUCH a miserable excuse for a prince! What a 'FELLAH'!" That got Yami mad and they rambled off - I can't remember exactly what they said, but - but - it was so funny when Yami pushed Pentaware into the pond!"
Everyone but Yami and Yugi laughed at this. Kerihk and Setsuna seemed to forget to be angry at each other as they started again to load the ship.
Yugi looked up a Yami questioningly, as if he couldn't believe his yami would be so foolish, especially in a "holy" place like the Temple of Ra. Yami stared emotionlessly at Yugi for a second; then, to Yugi's surprise, he grinned and winked, making the Loser-Seven-Days-A-Week sign on his forehead.
At that, even Yugi laughed.
"All right! All aboard the St. Kaiba!" Kaiba called when everything was packed on the ship.
Misaki rolled her eyes as she came up with her yami, Himoko. "The St. Kaiba? You're kidding, right?"
"Not at all. If not for my generosity, you wouldn't be going on this quest."
"How about shutting your trap before you start attracting flies?"
Kaiba blinked in surprise. Misaki blew hair out of her face, thinking, 'If I flirt, I've got to do it right.'
Himoko gave her a questioning look.
Misaki made it a point to keep Yami and Kaiba far away from each other. From what she had heard, the two didn't get along very well. Misaki couldn't understand why; she found them both to be very nice and interesting. (A/N: Not to mention Kaiba had been Yami's high priest in his past life, but he doesn't figure that out till later in the story. I named Kaiba's past self Semaret; interesting name, iie? Heh heh, I may hate Kaiba but I luv writing Yami/Kaiba friendship fics!) They were a lot like each other.
But she guessed it had a lot to do with math. Two positives always make a negative. So she'd play it safe and make sure they didn't get the chance to kill each other.
Mokuba and Makimura came screaming up the platform, Ro and Ai not far behind. The kids began a game of hide-and-seek among the sails, giggling and shrieking when they were discovered by the other.
Mokuba ran up to Kaiba. "Seto, can I sit in the crow's nest?" he asked. "Please?"
"It's awfully high, Mokuba."
"Oh, that's okay! I'll bring a telescope."
"That's not... what I meant..."
Kerihk, who had been standing by Kaiba pushing some boxes out of the walkway, watched the scene before him. Mokuba's request reminded him of some distant memory. One name came to his mind: Ismose.
//Ismose?// Kerihk wondered. //Who is Ismose?//
/Kerihk?/ came the voice of Kerihk's hikari through their mental link.
//Um... yeah?//
/Who... uh... who IS Ismose?/
Kerihk mentally slapped himself. He hadn't been paying attention and his thoughts traveled from his mind to Bakura's. Now he had to give the kid an answer, and he wasn't even sure himself who "Ismose" was. He thought for a moment.
/Y-Yami?/ Bakura inquired timidly, forgetting to call Kerihk by his true name for once.
//Ismose was... um... a girl I knew back in Egypt,// Kerihk lied. //I - uh - didn't remember her right away.//
/Oh.../
Kerihk let his hikari cut off the mental link, then he turned back to the situation at hand. Now both Mokuba and Makimura were begging their brothers to let them sit in the crow's nest. Kerihk gave something of a laugh and said, "Hey Mokuba, I have an idea. Why don't you and Makimura go give Ay and Taidu a hand with the steering? I'm sure they'd love some help, and I think you're just the man for the job. And woman," he added, nodding at Makimura.
Mokuba's grin lit up his whole face and he called out, "C'mon, Makimura! Let's go help Ay and Taidu! This will be so fun!" The two children dashed off in laughter.
Kerihk returned to business with a flushed face but a satisfied smile. Kaiba, Misaki, Ai, and Ro stared at him, unable to believe what they had just seen. Bakura, who had been watching the whole thing, nudged Yugi.
"Did you see that, Yugi?" he asked.
"Yeah," Yugi replied. "How did Kerihk know what to do with Mokuba and Makimura?"
"Beats me," Bakura answered. Maybe there was more to his yami than he let on.
***
(A/N: Now I'm listening to Ave Maria sung by Celine Dion! Christmas music always makes me feel a whole lot cooler in the summer. Wait... the song just changed. Now it's Adeste Fideles which means O Come All Ye Faithful, but I'm skipping to The Prayer, duet with Andrea Bocelli. Ahh, music is so beautiful when it's sung in Italian... PS: Hi there, Snow-bunny!)
The great pharaoh leaned on the side of the boat, watching the waves crash about him. It looked like a storm might be approaching. Right now, land was out of sight. Nothing but big, beautiful ocean for miles around. 'Ay must be in heaven,' Yami thought, looking toward his blue-haired companion. True, Ay had been a sailor in Egypt, a merchant by sea trade. His green eyes sparkled and he looked like he was having the time of his life as the salty sea air whipped his hair around.
Except that upcoming storm probably had him uneasy, too. Yami could swear he sensed a familiar aura coming their way.
Yami knew it would only take about twenty-nine hours to reach Duelist Kingdom, so he figured they would be there by midday tomorrow if luck was on their side. This was a comforting thought - maybe they'd miss the storm if it took a while to blow in. He was anxious to save his friends before something happened to them. Yet, part of him hoped it would take longer. The sooner they reached Duelist Kingdom, the sooner they faced Pegasus/Zhur. Yami knew from experience that Zhur was extremely powerful - too powerful, in fact. That power was what led to his destruction, and it would be the same for Pegasus if he could not collect all thirteen Millennium Items. Only then could he harness the great power of darkness. Yami was a powerful Priest of Light, but was he strong enough to take on Zhur.... again?
Yami mentally slapped himself and bent over the edge of the ship a bit, as if trying to see his reflection in the water. Of all the times to be doubting himself! He COULD do it, and he WOULD. He had all but four of the old gang with him. They would stand by him. Kerihk may be an idiot but Yami thought he would still fight for their cause; he seemed to have given up on Operation Collect All Millennium Items At Any Cost. And then there were the hikaris. Sure, they were young, oblivious, reckless, unfocused, and inexperienced... but they would still be of help! And even that moron Kaiba would fight for the right... even though every time he saw Kaiba, Yami wanted to beat him down to size one more time. No matter how many times he was beaten, he would always remain the same arrogant creep... like Zhur.
"AARRRGGGHH! STOP THINKING ABOUT ZHUR!" Yami kicked the ship in frustration. "OW!"
***
Ahmose had been a great warrior in Egypt, and also a close friend of Pharaoh Ramses III. He had led his troops with wisdom and vigor and always emerged victorious. It had been no surprise to the other members of the Shadow Gamers when he had been asked to learn the Shadow Games.
Ahmose had never been a romantic. He had no desire for love or marriage or to raise a family. All he wanted was to fight for his kingdom, feel the heat of battle, return dirty and exhausted yet victorious, and honored for his bravery by the pharaoh.
Yet Ahmose had found himself in the odd position of being a Shadow Gamer to a Priest and Priestess of Light, Prince Yami and Princess Kiara, the only children of Pharaoh Ramses III's most beloved wife, Nefertari. Ahmose understood the importance of their mission and resolved to protect them with everything he had left in him, and when Pharaoh Ramses passed away making Yami the uncrowned pharaoh, Ahmose worked to uphold his vow even harder in honor of Ramses' memory, not only as a pharaoh but also as a friend. He was even there the day Yami had been crowned at the age of sixteen. He fought along side the young pharaoh and found him to be quite a wonder, so young and naive (a/n: could that be said of Yami? Wau!). Though he was pharaoh, the son of the gods, he still treated everyone with respect, even lowly peasants and Hebrews. His own life meant nothing to him; he cared only for others (a/n: *sobs* sorry... I just love him so much, I can't stop listing his good traits! Lessee how many more I can come up with) and though he was so young and small, he stayed strong and never gave up. Slowly, Ahmose began to think of the new pharaoh as a friend, one closer than even Ramses. The Priestess, too. Kiara was like a fairy of light; she came and went like the wind.
One day, Yami and another Shadow Gamer, Shaadi, had decided it best to leave the rest of the group and journey to Zhur's territory themselves. The others needed to remain on the road they had already been taking - the road to Ryúnade, the world the creatures from the Duel Monsters game roamed. Ahmose and Yami had had a talk, and Yami made him promise to protect Kiara.
"With my life, I will guard her, to the death and beyond," Ahmose had replied.
True to his word, Ahmose made sure no harm came to the princess who was now a very young queen (it was custom back then for the pharaoh to marry his sister as his first wife because she was the only one worthy to marry the son of the gods, a/n: so it's not a sick plot, people!). But Kiara didn't seem to need that much protecting. When Hiroshi, one of Zhur's lead Shadow Gamers, and Suzuka, Zhur's own priestess of darkness, had led an assault on Egypt, Kiara had taken her brother's place and put together an army with her influential speeches and bravery. She went as far as to dress in her brother's war clothing, saying he was within her, fighting with her. Even though she was scared stiff at Hiroshi's threat to destroy Egypt if she didn't give up her quest to Ryúnade, land of the Shadow Creatures, she still fought on.
*AHMOSE REPLAY MODE*
"Your time is up, Your Highness. Have you decided what to do?" a Shadow Gamer called Osona asked, coming up beside the young queen.
Kiara didn't move for a moment, then she stood up and looked at Osona, Taidu, Himoko, Ay, and Ahmose, all of whom were awaiting her decision.
"We will go to Ryúnade," she said slowly, "not for war, but to discover the truth. We should - no, we MUST know the truth of the Shadow Powers. It is essential that we make the covenant to fix the balance in Ryúnade. We will have to fight, but we are ready. We cannot back down like - like - scared little puppy dogs in front of Hiroshi and Suzuka.
"We do not want war, but in order to win, we must fight. Our people, and possibly the whole world, depend on us. We cannot let them down." She hesitated a moment, and looked at Taidu. "Have I made the right decision?"
"You're getting wiser," Taidu replied with a smile. She patted Kiara on the head and motioned to the others to follow her out of the room. Only Kiara and Ahmose remained.
Kiara at first didn't seem to acknowledge Ahmose's presence. Suddenly she shifted her cherry blossom gaze and looked straight into his sky blue eyes. "Ahmose..." she whispered. "I'm so worried. I'm trying to make the decisions my brother would if he were here, and I know he'd want to continue to Ryúnade... yet... I am afraid that if we go to war, we will lose too many innocent lives. I'm not as sure of myself as Taidu believes I am."
"I think your decision is the right one, Queen Kiara," Ahmose answered. "You must have faith in your people. We will only be able to win if you believe in us. And you are right, we must go on to Ryúnade."
"Ahmose, if I do not come out of this battle alive and you do, please... please finish the journey to Ryúnade and make the covenant over my body," Kiara begged, eyes glistening with tears. "My spirit will live as long as my Millennium Item exists. All that is needed to complete the covenant is a single soul, which I can easily give if my body is too weak to go on. And then... give my pendant to my brother as a reminder that I will always be with him, even in death we shall not be parted."
Ahmose kneeled in front of her and took her hands. "I will do as you ask, my queen," he replied earnestly. "But I assure you, you shall come out of this battle alive. I shall die before I let your life end. You are ever so much younger than me, yet you are so wise. You will make a great queen for our nation. You heart MUST go on. I will protect you to the death and beyond."
"Ahmose... thank you."
*AHMOSE REPLAY MODE END*
Ahmose was still beating himself up because he had been unable to fulfill part of his vow. He had come out of the battle unscathed, but Kiara's life had ended there and then, and though his friends tried to convince him he hadn't done anything wrong, he couldn't help believing he had broken his word... to a trusting friend.
He loved his king and queen more than anything. He respected and honored them even though they were so much younger than he. He never wanted to break their friendship; he wanted to protect them through eternity.
Ahmose was sitting on deck as he reminisced on the past, a sincere frown on his lips. Now was the time he could fulfill his wish. The pharaoh and his sister were now right in his grasp and he would hold on to them as long as possible. This time, THEY would come out unscathed. He would NOT make the same mistakes.
Ahmose's eyes burned with fire and passion as he dreamed of his destiny. He was, after all, a warrior at heart.
(A/N: grrr... this is already 9 pages long and we're not even half-way done!!! Sorry, peeps, that this is so long. -_-' Heh heh! Now I'm listening to A*Teens: Pop till you Drop which White Rider/Truth Holder so kindly leant me.)
"AARRRGGGHH! STOP THINKING ABOUT ZHUR!" someone shouted, jolting Ahmose back to the present. "OW!"
Ahmose knew that voice anywhere. It belonged to his beloved pharaoh. Ahmose got up from his seat and looked around, scanning the area for Yami. He finally found him leaning over the edge of the boat, taking slow, deep breaths as if trying to calm himself.
The warrior gazed at the small man in front of him. He had the most beautiful eyes, he observed. They were like to great rubies shining in the darkness, glittering like gems.
(A/N: no.... no shounen ai!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just really warm friendship. o.O)
After a moment's pause, Ahmose reached out his hand and laid it gently on Yami's shoulder. The former pharaoh stiffened, then his body relaxed and he closed his eyes. Ahmose knew this look all too well - Yami was suffering like the rest of them, possibly more so because his weight was heavier. All he wanted was a rest...
He didn't even hesitate to put his arms around his friend, thinking of old times when warrior and pharaoh would spend nights planning out the next day, and whenever Yami began to nod off over his work, Ahmose knew it was time to quit and he would help Yami get his troubles off his mind by holding him close until he drifted to sleep. Something about the warm way Ahmose held people calmed them and helped them forget their worries. Yami found this happening to him now.
(A/N: "Wise men say only fools rush in... but I can't help falling in love with you..." La di da!!! Readers: SHUT UP!!! THAT'S THE THIRD NOTE IN LESS THAN TEN PARAGRAPHS! WRITE THE STORY FOR GOODNESS' SAKE!)
How long it had been since he had been held? Yami wondered. Probably five thousand years. Nowadays he usually did the holding, comforting his young hikari when something troubled him. He himself was comforted by the serene smile playing on Yugi's lips at these times; all the same, Ahmose's touch seemed to be the cure for the longing his body had been feeling lately. He gave a shuddering sigh, prayed to Ra that Kaiba wasn't watching, and let himself fall asleep in the warrior's arms.
(A/N: "Now we're only hi and good-bye-" Readers: SHUT IT!!! Me: Heh heh...)
Ahmose played lovingly with some of his beloved pharaoh's hair. Yami had fallen into a content sleep in his strong arms. It was just like old times...
Angel: That was part one! ::grumbles:: I can't believe I have to do this is parts... stupid ff.net "double-space everything" policy...
Kaiba: I know exactly how you feel. Computer software is rubbish.
Misaki: Come now, you don't mean that.
Kaiba: Suuuuuure I don't...
From the Desk of Seto Kaiba:
Douka shita no - what's wrong?
daijobu des - I am all right
onegai - please
hai - yes
itai - hurts
bakamono - stupid person
gomen - sorry
Taweret - Egyptian goddess of mothers and babies
fellah - Egyptian for "peasant," plural: fellahin
Ra - Egyptian God of the Sun (if you don't know this you need to pay more attention in social studies)
wau - wow
Ryúnade - I made this name up for the place where the creatures from Duel Monsters abide. I didn't like the whole Shadow Realm thing, ya know... pron. ree-OO-nuh-day
CHARACTER OF THE DAY:
Today's Character of the Day is Ahmose the Warrior of Egypt, age 5000 and something. Ahmose is the spirit sealed inside of the Millennium Sword belonging to Takehiko Midori. Ahmose can create fire with his hands and shoot fiery arrows. In Egypt he and two others, Jono and Tyren (bet'cha know who the first is at least, they come in much later on), were close friends of the pharaoh. Ahmose, being the oldest, was especially protective of him and the princess. His overprotectiveness lasted to the death and beyond, just as he promised. Now that Ahmose is reunited with his pharaoh and queen, what extent will he go to be sure they make the journey "unscathed?"
Ahmose's main trait is his courage and his heart of gold. He gives of himself selflessly and loves his friends dearly. Just as he is willing to give his life for his pharaoh, he will also sacrifice himself for his hikari, Takehiko. Although he seems to be the mature type, when he gets comfortable around someone he can be very playful and even mischievous. He is skilled in battle and a bit quick-tempered but his reasons for violence are always righteous and brave. He never had a lover and doesn't intend to get one. Maybe this is for the best, for his attention is most needed on the battlefield during our great adventure.
Next time: Chapter Six Part Two, Chuukin Omoide! Go read, go read!
The place called Ryúnade is from my doujinshi. It's the magical place where the creatures from Duel Monsters live.
YAY!!! WE FINALLY GOT A NEW YUGIOH EPISODE!!!! IT'S SOOOOOOOOOOO COOL!!! I loved the kawaii chant... "Realm of darkness in this twilight hour, accept these souls and grant us power..." OK, so it's not that kawaii but it added color! AND WE GOT TO SEE YAMI BAKURA! HIP HIP HOORAY!
Um, just to clear something up... Bakura's not being a sissy. There's a reason for his sudden unconsciousness. So, yeah.
Hee hee... a plot twist! Who will win Hikaru's heart, Yugi or Bakura? How can she choose?
To Liashi: Thanks! Yeah, it's hard writing about so many characters. I don't know what I was thinking, it's terrifically hard... but boy is it fun! ::giggles:: I'll try my best to make it interesting. And I entirely understand what you meant about the first couple chapters being a bit of a bore... I didn't enjoy writing them much so I decided to leave them in cliffhangers just to keep people reading. The rest of the story I hope will be very gripping! PS: Me loves your penname!
To Teoshime-chan: Thanx 4 the gr8 review! Konshin 4 Ever! IM me! C YA on the 31!
One more thing: Sakura Fujishima's name has been changed to Makimura Fujishima. The reason why will be explained later on. *Much* later on. Like in book 2.
*Sobs* I NEED MORE FEEBACK! I'm desperate and so are my sisters! *sniffles* Nobody likes our writing...
Disclaimer: Bladdie bladdie blah... NO SHOUNEN OR SHOUJO AI!!! It just makes me feel better to tell you that, especially cuz there's a little bit of a mushy part between Ahmose and Yami, but it's just friendship, not shounen ai. KK? And I'll be reminding you of that constantly, just to annoy you...
This is part 1 of chap 6 cuz this chapter was too long so it wouldn't upload on ff.net so I had to split it into two parts. FYI ~ Angel
" " - talking
' ' - thinking
/ - Any Hikari talking to his or her Yami in his or her mind
// - Any Yami talking to his or her Hikari in his or her mind
Hikari No Yuugi
Play of Light
by Angel
Chapter Six Part One: Chuukin Omoide
Casting Memories
Hikaru yawned softly as she crept out of her bed in the room Kaiba had provided the girls at his mansion in Atami, which was right near his work. It was half-past five in the morning, and she just woke up feeling thirsty. Slowly she slipped her feet out from under the covers and placed them gingerly on the floor.
Kiara was sleeping in the same bed as Hikaru, flat and straight as a stick. Hikaru tried to be quiet and not disturb her, but the princess' senses were keen. As Hikaru stepped out of bed, Kiara rolled over and gave a quiet moan. Hikaru froze in her position, trying not to wake her. Finally she risked a glance in her direction.
The princess was still lying flat on her back, but her head was now turned slightly to the side, one arm bent underneath it. Her other arm was placed on top of the covers, and she had finally taken out her braid to reveal her long, wavy brown hair which was spread over the pillows, framing her delicate face. The moonlight shone through the white gossamer curtains and its soft glow beautified her skin.
"She really is beautiful," Hikaru whispered. "She does look just like a princess." Slowly she reached out her hand, hesitated, then stroked the strands of rich brown hair stretched across the pillows. She then reached out with her index finger and touched Kiara's smooth, unblemished skin, long-tanned by Egyptian sun. Moonbeams seemed to dance on her beauty, highlighting traces of sorrow and regret Hikaru hadn't noticed in the light. Frowning slightly at her new observations, she wondered why her yami's face appeared that way. Kiara seemed different from the other yamis. She was brighter. Her light shone like a star. She glowed. When you were near her, you had to be happy...
... at least that was how Hikaru felt. It was the same way with the others. She seemed like one of the kids... like five thousand years of entrapment in a pendant hadn't even fazed her personality. And yet, the sorrow remained. Somehow, Hikaru sensed the sadness in all the yamis, much as they tried to hide it. Was it all because of the Shadow Games?
If it was...
... she didn't want to end up the same.
Hikaru pulled her hand away from Kiara's face, choking back tears. She hadn't realized until then how much the adventure had already changed her. She could look in a mirror and see her face... describe it... every aspect of her outside appearance was clear as daylight. Inside, she had forgotten. Maybe... she hoped... this journey would cure that. She wanted to discover who she was. Hikaru was a deep thinker, and her heart was crafted of gold. The same went for Kiara, a lost soul, searching for her purpose.
"Someday, we'll know..." Hikaru muttered.
Sighing, Hikaru walked lightly past Kiara and made her way past the beds inhabited by Ai, Setsuna, Misaki, Himoko, Tali, Taidu, and Makimura. They were all deeply asleep; Hikaru stopped for a moment to tuck the covers back around Makimura's shoulders. Then she quietly slipped out of the room to the bathroom.
The bathroom was quite large. Hikaru yanked a plastic cup out of the cup compartment and filled it with cold faucet water. She gulped it down, then threw the empty cup in the wastebasket.
She yawned again as she tiptoed out of the bathroom and down the hallway, back to her room. As she passed the boys' room, she heard a faint coo come through the door, followed by a series of soft sobs. Curious, she turned the doorknob and entered the darkened room.
Everything was still. Yugi and Yami, who had been feeling very uncomfortable about sharing a bed (Yugi because of his courtesy, Yami because of his love of privacy), were (ironically) snuggled together under the sheets, the covers kicked to the end of the bed. Dajan and Ay were facing opposite sides of their bed; the same went for Takehiko and Ahmose. Mokuba, unsurprisingly, was sleeping upside-down.
But the bed Kerihk and Bakura were supposed to be sharing was occupied only by the yami. The hikari was nowhere to be seen. This puzzled Hikaru greatly because Bakura had fainted six hours earlier and had missed dinner. It hadn't looked like he'd be waking up any time soon.
The weeping had stopped for a moment when Hikaru had entered the room, but now a bit of a choking sob sounded throughout the room. It sounded like it was coming from the dark corner opposite the beds.
"Hello?" Hikaru whispered. "Is someone there?"
"Erm... yes... Go back to bed, Hikaru, I'm all right," Bakura's voice whispered back, slightly shaky.
"Ryou-chan?" Hikaru said softly, wandering over to his side. He was sitting on the floor, hair a tangled mess, face pressed against his knees. "Douka shita no?"
'My gosh, I feel like an idiot,' Bakura thought, wiping tears from his amber eyes. 'It was only a dream. Only a dream.' Out loud, he replied, "Daijobu desu. Don't worry, Hikaru-san. I'm okay. Go back to bed..."
"I will if you tell me what's wrong," Hikaru whispered. She sat down beside him and looked at his face. "Won't you? Onegai?"
Bakura hugged his knees. "Please, Hikaru-chan, I'm sure it's just my nerves about leaving tomorrow. I'm not trying to be a baby or anything."
"I know that. Why were you crying?"
"I wasn't."
"Yes, you were. You just fainted. What woke you up?"
"Kerihk's snoring."
"He's not snoring."
"He was before."
Hikaru's lavender eyes shifted to the ceiling. She blinked, and looked back at the silver-haired boy. "Did you have the dream again?"
"... Hai, hai."
Hikaru blew some hair out of her face and leaned close to him. He smelled really good, she noticed. Kind of like ivory soap or something.
Unlike Takehiko, who constantly smelled like sweat because of all his sports activity.
Hikaru's eyes seemed to look straight into Bakura's soul. He felt like he was drowning in them. She was genuinely concerned about him.
"Ryou-chan," she breathed in his ear. "It's going to be okay. I promise. I don't understand what's going on with you, but we'll back you up all the way. Really."
Bakura felt the tears prick his eyes again. "It... hurts," he choked out.
"What hurts?"
"The - the images... It's so dark... and evil... I'm sorry, I'm just so scared. I'm afraid... of being alone."
Like a mother trying to comfort her injured child, Hikaru reached her arms around Bakura's neck and leaned herself on him. "I'm so sorry," she muttered. "It'll be okay. It will."
It felt so good being with her, like everything was right. Just by being there for him, Bakura felt the tenseness leave him. Of all things, he didn't want to be alone in the dark. He was afraid to be alone with his thoughts. She was bringing peace to him, bringing hope. For now, it was all that helped... but he had a feeling everything wouldn't be okay after all.
***
"Hey, Setsuna! Would you give me a hand with this box?"
"Yo, Ahmose and Ay! Stop goofing off and help out!"
"Keep it steady, Yami. Alright, put it down there."
"Do you need help? I can do that."
Ai yawned as she followed Yugi, Takehiko, and Dajan outside and onto the harbor where their ship was docked. The calls of the yamis (a/n: see above) echoed throughout the land. It was nice to see them all working together like that, but Ai's mind was on something other than the loading of the ship.
Bakura and Hikaru had been found awake at six-thirty in the morning by early-birds Kiara and Kerihk (Yami was up by then too, but he decided to remain in bed with Yugi [a/n: don't get any ideas, you sick-minded peoples!] so he didn't get up right away). The other yamis had awoken shortly afterwards, their normal waking time being when the sun rises. Most of the hikaris had managed to sleep through the noise the yamis made when they began packing, but Ai was already one-fourth awake and couldn't ignore the sounds. She pulled on her slippers and headed out to get something to eat. As she was heading down the stairs of Kaiba's mansion, she heard a few people laughing down the hall. Curious, she peeked around the corner.
There were Kiara and Kerihk standing above their hikaris who were playing a game of Duel Monsters on the floor. Kerihk was teasing because they had gotten up so early and Kiara was asking why that was so. Ai gasped when she heard Bakura - or "Ryou-chan" as Hikaru called him, and as Ai called him in her thoughts - admit that he had been having trouble sleeping and Hikaru had offered to help him get his mind off of whatever was bothering him, so they had spent a long time talking outside on the front steps before coming back inside to play Duel Monsters (they were on their third game). Hikaru giggled, turning red. Kerihk looked like he was about to make a rude comment that might hurt Bakura's feelings, but somehow Kiara's finger found its way to his lips. One hopeful look from those pink eyes of hers destroyed any anger in his heart at the moment. She smiled gently. Ai couldn't help but feel a little jealous as Hikaru and Bakura sat side-by-side, watching their yamis have a staring contest.
It had seemed that Kiara and Kerihk were playing with each other, the way his hand subconsciously made its way to her back, trying to pull her toward him. Kiara's smile was wider now, and she looked breathless, as did he...
At that moment Setsuna walked in sleepily. Kerihk gave a small moan of disappointment, but as soon as Setsuna asked what they were doing they stopped acting so strangely and decided to wake up Yami to start loading the ship. For the rest of the day, they had been pretty much normal, except Kerihk had been avoiding Kiara and looked a little confused.
Bakura and Hikaru, however, had remained by each other's side the rest of the day. Ai's only comfort was Yugi, who looked almost as disappointed as she did, except he didn't seem the least bit jealous. Ai had noticed from the beginning that the small boy seemed to like Hikaru a lot, the way he had been looking at her while they waited for Seto Kaiba to talk to them, and then at dinner when they were sitting next to each other. Ai had taken it as a good sign that Hikaru seemed to like Yugi more than Bakura, but now she wasn't so sure.
Now, Ai took a seat by Tali and Misaki, watching her yami walk lightly up the platform to the boat though loaded down with supplies. It had recently been discovered that Setsuna's power was super-strength (which Ai thought was awfully ironic, as Setsuna was very skinny and not all that tall; then again, she was quite a tough girl). This was a benefit for the Shadow Gamers as they now called themselves - the loading went twice as fast.
Kerihk jumped down the platform to grab another box. He, Yami, Ahmose, and Ay had formed an assembly line to pack the boxes on the ship. From the deck of the ship, Yami called out for him to send up more food supplies. Kerihk looked around for the pile of rations.
"Yo, Setsuna!" he yelled. "Hand me one of those boxes, will ya?" He gestured towards the food rations near Setsuna's feet.
Setsuna bent down to pick up the box. She balanced it on her shoulders and skipped over to Kerihk, handing it to him. But she dropped it before he was ready and it slid out of his grip. He winced as it landed on his toes.
"ITAI! WHAT WAS THAT FOR, BAKAMONO?" he screamed at Setsuna as he shoved the box off his feet, giving her the Evil Eye Look.
"Gomen, my bad! Sometimes I forget my own strength," Setsuna apologized, slightly angered by his attitude.
"Forget it? You're stupider than you look! Get outta my face, dodo!"
Taidu sighed and muttered something in Egyptian which Himoko took to mean "Oh Taweret, why do you torment me with such quick-tempered children?"
Setsuna turned red and puffed up her chest. "All right, then! Two can play that game!" She made a growling noise like a cat in her throat and said, "You are so full of it! I'll get out of your face when you get out of my hair, 'fellah'!"
For some reason, this Egyptian comment seemed to really aggravate Kerihk's already over-reactive rage. He cursed something in Egyptian; Setsuna responded by sticking out her tongue. Yami said something in Egyptian to his sister that made her laugh, and she ran down the platform to interrupt the argument.
"You two sound like my brothers," she giggled. Yami turned bright red and ducked down behind the ship's railings. Kiara continued, "One day Yami and our half-brother, Pentaware, were playing around in the Temple of Ra and they decided to play a trick on the priests. There was a bowl for purification by the Temple's entrance, and they poured some juice into the bowl. The priests were a sticky mess!" She laughed harder. "When Father found out he wasn't happy and punished them. I was there when Pentaware yelled at Yami that it was all his fault, and he responded, 'MY fault? YOU were the one who decided to test father's patience like that!' Pentaware was all excited and he went, "You are SUCH a miserable excuse for a prince! What a 'FELLAH'!" That got Yami mad and they rambled off - I can't remember exactly what they said, but - but - it was so funny when Yami pushed Pentaware into the pond!"
Everyone but Yami and Yugi laughed at this. Kerihk and Setsuna seemed to forget to be angry at each other as they started again to load the ship.
Yugi looked up a Yami questioningly, as if he couldn't believe his yami would be so foolish, especially in a "holy" place like the Temple of Ra. Yami stared emotionlessly at Yugi for a second; then, to Yugi's surprise, he grinned and winked, making the Loser-Seven-Days-A-Week sign on his forehead.
At that, even Yugi laughed.
"All right! All aboard the St. Kaiba!" Kaiba called when everything was packed on the ship.
Misaki rolled her eyes as she came up with her yami, Himoko. "The St. Kaiba? You're kidding, right?"
"Not at all. If not for my generosity, you wouldn't be going on this quest."
"How about shutting your trap before you start attracting flies?"
Kaiba blinked in surprise. Misaki blew hair out of her face, thinking, 'If I flirt, I've got to do it right.'
Himoko gave her a questioning look.
Misaki made it a point to keep Yami and Kaiba far away from each other. From what she had heard, the two didn't get along very well. Misaki couldn't understand why; she found them both to be very nice and interesting. (A/N: Not to mention Kaiba had been Yami's high priest in his past life, but he doesn't figure that out till later in the story. I named Kaiba's past self Semaret; interesting name, iie? Heh heh, I may hate Kaiba but I luv writing Yami/Kaiba friendship fics!) They were a lot like each other.
But she guessed it had a lot to do with math. Two positives always make a negative. So she'd play it safe and make sure they didn't get the chance to kill each other.
Mokuba and Makimura came screaming up the platform, Ro and Ai not far behind. The kids began a game of hide-and-seek among the sails, giggling and shrieking when they were discovered by the other.
Mokuba ran up to Kaiba. "Seto, can I sit in the crow's nest?" he asked. "Please?"
"It's awfully high, Mokuba."
"Oh, that's okay! I'll bring a telescope."
"That's not... what I meant..."
Kerihk, who had been standing by Kaiba pushing some boxes out of the walkway, watched the scene before him. Mokuba's request reminded him of some distant memory. One name came to his mind: Ismose.
//Ismose?// Kerihk wondered. //Who is Ismose?//
/Kerihk?/ came the voice of Kerihk's hikari through their mental link.
//Um... yeah?//
/Who... uh... who IS Ismose?/
Kerihk mentally slapped himself. He hadn't been paying attention and his thoughts traveled from his mind to Bakura's. Now he had to give the kid an answer, and he wasn't even sure himself who "Ismose" was. He thought for a moment.
/Y-Yami?/ Bakura inquired timidly, forgetting to call Kerihk by his true name for once.
//Ismose was... um... a girl I knew back in Egypt,// Kerihk lied. //I - uh - didn't remember her right away.//
/Oh.../
Kerihk let his hikari cut off the mental link, then he turned back to the situation at hand. Now both Mokuba and Makimura were begging their brothers to let them sit in the crow's nest. Kerihk gave something of a laugh and said, "Hey Mokuba, I have an idea. Why don't you and Makimura go give Ay and Taidu a hand with the steering? I'm sure they'd love some help, and I think you're just the man for the job. And woman," he added, nodding at Makimura.
Mokuba's grin lit up his whole face and he called out, "C'mon, Makimura! Let's go help Ay and Taidu! This will be so fun!" The two children dashed off in laughter.
Kerihk returned to business with a flushed face but a satisfied smile. Kaiba, Misaki, Ai, and Ro stared at him, unable to believe what they had just seen. Bakura, who had been watching the whole thing, nudged Yugi.
"Did you see that, Yugi?" he asked.
"Yeah," Yugi replied. "How did Kerihk know what to do with Mokuba and Makimura?"
"Beats me," Bakura answered. Maybe there was more to his yami than he let on.
***
(A/N: Now I'm listening to Ave Maria sung by Celine Dion! Christmas music always makes me feel a whole lot cooler in the summer. Wait... the song just changed. Now it's Adeste Fideles which means O Come All Ye Faithful, but I'm skipping to The Prayer, duet with Andrea Bocelli. Ahh, music is so beautiful when it's sung in Italian... PS: Hi there, Snow-bunny!)
The great pharaoh leaned on the side of the boat, watching the waves crash about him. It looked like a storm might be approaching. Right now, land was out of sight. Nothing but big, beautiful ocean for miles around. 'Ay must be in heaven,' Yami thought, looking toward his blue-haired companion. True, Ay had been a sailor in Egypt, a merchant by sea trade. His green eyes sparkled and he looked like he was having the time of his life as the salty sea air whipped his hair around.
Except that upcoming storm probably had him uneasy, too. Yami could swear he sensed a familiar aura coming their way.
Yami knew it would only take about twenty-nine hours to reach Duelist Kingdom, so he figured they would be there by midday tomorrow if luck was on their side. This was a comforting thought - maybe they'd miss the storm if it took a while to blow in. He was anxious to save his friends before something happened to them. Yet, part of him hoped it would take longer. The sooner they reached Duelist Kingdom, the sooner they faced Pegasus/Zhur. Yami knew from experience that Zhur was extremely powerful - too powerful, in fact. That power was what led to his destruction, and it would be the same for Pegasus if he could not collect all thirteen Millennium Items. Only then could he harness the great power of darkness. Yami was a powerful Priest of Light, but was he strong enough to take on Zhur.... again?
Yami mentally slapped himself and bent over the edge of the ship a bit, as if trying to see his reflection in the water. Of all the times to be doubting himself! He COULD do it, and he WOULD. He had all but four of the old gang with him. They would stand by him. Kerihk may be an idiot but Yami thought he would still fight for their cause; he seemed to have given up on Operation Collect All Millennium Items At Any Cost. And then there were the hikaris. Sure, they were young, oblivious, reckless, unfocused, and inexperienced... but they would still be of help! And even that moron Kaiba would fight for the right... even though every time he saw Kaiba, Yami wanted to beat him down to size one more time. No matter how many times he was beaten, he would always remain the same arrogant creep... like Zhur.
"AARRRGGGHH! STOP THINKING ABOUT ZHUR!" Yami kicked the ship in frustration. "OW!"
***
Ahmose had been a great warrior in Egypt, and also a close friend of Pharaoh Ramses III. He had led his troops with wisdom and vigor and always emerged victorious. It had been no surprise to the other members of the Shadow Gamers when he had been asked to learn the Shadow Games.
Ahmose had never been a romantic. He had no desire for love or marriage or to raise a family. All he wanted was to fight for his kingdom, feel the heat of battle, return dirty and exhausted yet victorious, and honored for his bravery by the pharaoh.
Yet Ahmose had found himself in the odd position of being a Shadow Gamer to a Priest and Priestess of Light, Prince Yami and Princess Kiara, the only children of Pharaoh Ramses III's most beloved wife, Nefertari. Ahmose understood the importance of their mission and resolved to protect them with everything he had left in him, and when Pharaoh Ramses passed away making Yami the uncrowned pharaoh, Ahmose worked to uphold his vow even harder in honor of Ramses' memory, not only as a pharaoh but also as a friend. He was even there the day Yami had been crowned at the age of sixteen. He fought along side the young pharaoh and found him to be quite a wonder, so young and naive (a/n: could that be said of Yami? Wau!). Though he was pharaoh, the son of the gods, he still treated everyone with respect, even lowly peasants and Hebrews. His own life meant nothing to him; he cared only for others (a/n: *sobs* sorry... I just love him so much, I can't stop listing his good traits! Lessee how many more I can come up with) and though he was so young and small, he stayed strong and never gave up. Slowly, Ahmose began to think of the new pharaoh as a friend, one closer than even Ramses. The Priestess, too. Kiara was like a fairy of light; she came and went like the wind.
One day, Yami and another Shadow Gamer, Shaadi, had decided it best to leave the rest of the group and journey to Zhur's territory themselves. The others needed to remain on the road they had already been taking - the road to Ryúnade, the world the creatures from the Duel Monsters game roamed. Ahmose and Yami had had a talk, and Yami made him promise to protect Kiara.
"With my life, I will guard her, to the death and beyond," Ahmose had replied.
True to his word, Ahmose made sure no harm came to the princess who was now a very young queen (it was custom back then for the pharaoh to marry his sister as his first wife because she was the only one worthy to marry the son of the gods, a/n: so it's not a sick plot, people!). But Kiara didn't seem to need that much protecting. When Hiroshi, one of Zhur's lead Shadow Gamers, and Suzuka, Zhur's own priestess of darkness, had led an assault on Egypt, Kiara had taken her brother's place and put together an army with her influential speeches and bravery. She went as far as to dress in her brother's war clothing, saying he was within her, fighting with her. Even though she was scared stiff at Hiroshi's threat to destroy Egypt if she didn't give up her quest to Ryúnade, land of the Shadow Creatures, she still fought on.
*AHMOSE REPLAY MODE*
"Your time is up, Your Highness. Have you decided what to do?" a Shadow Gamer called Osona asked, coming up beside the young queen.
Kiara didn't move for a moment, then she stood up and looked at Osona, Taidu, Himoko, Ay, and Ahmose, all of whom were awaiting her decision.
"We will go to Ryúnade," she said slowly, "not for war, but to discover the truth. We should - no, we MUST know the truth of the Shadow Powers. It is essential that we make the covenant to fix the balance in Ryúnade. We will have to fight, but we are ready. We cannot back down like - like - scared little puppy dogs in front of Hiroshi and Suzuka.
"We do not want war, but in order to win, we must fight. Our people, and possibly the whole world, depend on us. We cannot let them down." She hesitated a moment, and looked at Taidu. "Have I made the right decision?"
"You're getting wiser," Taidu replied with a smile. She patted Kiara on the head and motioned to the others to follow her out of the room. Only Kiara and Ahmose remained.
Kiara at first didn't seem to acknowledge Ahmose's presence. Suddenly she shifted her cherry blossom gaze and looked straight into his sky blue eyes. "Ahmose..." she whispered. "I'm so worried. I'm trying to make the decisions my brother would if he were here, and I know he'd want to continue to Ryúnade... yet... I am afraid that if we go to war, we will lose too many innocent lives. I'm not as sure of myself as Taidu believes I am."
"I think your decision is the right one, Queen Kiara," Ahmose answered. "You must have faith in your people. We will only be able to win if you believe in us. And you are right, we must go on to Ryúnade."
"Ahmose, if I do not come out of this battle alive and you do, please... please finish the journey to Ryúnade and make the covenant over my body," Kiara begged, eyes glistening with tears. "My spirit will live as long as my Millennium Item exists. All that is needed to complete the covenant is a single soul, which I can easily give if my body is too weak to go on. And then... give my pendant to my brother as a reminder that I will always be with him, even in death we shall not be parted."
Ahmose kneeled in front of her and took her hands. "I will do as you ask, my queen," he replied earnestly. "But I assure you, you shall come out of this battle alive. I shall die before I let your life end. You are ever so much younger than me, yet you are so wise. You will make a great queen for our nation. You heart MUST go on. I will protect you to the death and beyond."
"Ahmose... thank you."
*AHMOSE REPLAY MODE END*
Ahmose was still beating himself up because he had been unable to fulfill part of his vow. He had come out of the battle unscathed, but Kiara's life had ended there and then, and though his friends tried to convince him he hadn't done anything wrong, he couldn't help believing he had broken his word... to a trusting friend.
He loved his king and queen more than anything. He respected and honored them even though they were so much younger than he. He never wanted to break their friendship; he wanted to protect them through eternity.
Ahmose was sitting on deck as he reminisced on the past, a sincere frown on his lips. Now was the time he could fulfill his wish. The pharaoh and his sister were now right in his grasp and he would hold on to them as long as possible. This time, THEY would come out unscathed. He would NOT make the same mistakes.
Ahmose's eyes burned with fire and passion as he dreamed of his destiny. He was, after all, a warrior at heart.
(A/N: grrr... this is already 9 pages long and we're not even half-way done!!! Sorry, peeps, that this is so long. -_-' Heh heh! Now I'm listening to A*Teens: Pop till you Drop which White Rider/Truth Holder so kindly leant me.)
"AARRRGGGHH! STOP THINKING ABOUT ZHUR!" someone shouted, jolting Ahmose back to the present. "OW!"
Ahmose knew that voice anywhere. It belonged to his beloved pharaoh. Ahmose got up from his seat and looked around, scanning the area for Yami. He finally found him leaning over the edge of the boat, taking slow, deep breaths as if trying to calm himself.
The warrior gazed at the small man in front of him. He had the most beautiful eyes, he observed. They were like to great rubies shining in the darkness, glittering like gems.
(A/N: no.... no shounen ai!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just really warm friendship. o.O)
After a moment's pause, Ahmose reached out his hand and laid it gently on Yami's shoulder. The former pharaoh stiffened, then his body relaxed and he closed his eyes. Ahmose knew this look all too well - Yami was suffering like the rest of them, possibly more so because his weight was heavier. All he wanted was a rest...
He didn't even hesitate to put his arms around his friend, thinking of old times when warrior and pharaoh would spend nights planning out the next day, and whenever Yami began to nod off over his work, Ahmose knew it was time to quit and he would help Yami get his troubles off his mind by holding him close until he drifted to sleep. Something about the warm way Ahmose held people calmed them and helped them forget their worries. Yami found this happening to him now.
(A/N: "Wise men say only fools rush in... but I can't help falling in love with you..." La di da!!! Readers: SHUT UP!!! THAT'S THE THIRD NOTE IN LESS THAN TEN PARAGRAPHS! WRITE THE STORY FOR GOODNESS' SAKE!)
How long it had been since he had been held? Yami wondered. Probably five thousand years. Nowadays he usually did the holding, comforting his young hikari when something troubled him. He himself was comforted by the serene smile playing on Yugi's lips at these times; all the same, Ahmose's touch seemed to be the cure for the longing his body had been feeling lately. He gave a shuddering sigh, prayed to Ra that Kaiba wasn't watching, and let himself fall asleep in the warrior's arms.
(A/N: "Now we're only hi and good-bye-" Readers: SHUT IT!!! Me: Heh heh...)
Ahmose played lovingly with some of his beloved pharaoh's hair. Yami had fallen into a content sleep in his strong arms. It was just like old times...
Angel: That was part one! ::grumbles:: I can't believe I have to do this is parts... stupid ff.net "double-space everything" policy...
Kaiba: I know exactly how you feel. Computer software is rubbish.
Misaki: Come now, you don't mean that.
Kaiba: Suuuuuure I don't...
From the Desk of Seto Kaiba:
Douka shita no - what's wrong?
daijobu des - I am all right
onegai - please
hai - yes
itai - hurts
bakamono - stupid person
gomen - sorry
Taweret - Egyptian goddess of mothers and babies
fellah - Egyptian for "peasant," plural: fellahin
Ra - Egyptian God of the Sun (if you don't know this you need to pay more attention in social studies)
wau - wow
Ryúnade - I made this name up for the place where the creatures from Duel Monsters abide. I didn't like the whole Shadow Realm thing, ya know... pron. ree-OO-nuh-day
CHARACTER OF THE DAY:
Today's Character of the Day is Ahmose the Warrior of Egypt, age 5000 and something. Ahmose is the spirit sealed inside of the Millennium Sword belonging to Takehiko Midori. Ahmose can create fire with his hands and shoot fiery arrows. In Egypt he and two others, Jono and Tyren (bet'cha know who the first is at least, they come in much later on), were close friends of the pharaoh. Ahmose, being the oldest, was especially protective of him and the princess. His overprotectiveness lasted to the death and beyond, just as he promised. Now that Ahmose is reunited with his pharaoh and queen, what extent will he go to be sure they make the journey "unscathed?"
Ahmose's main trait is his courage and his heart of gold. He gives of himself selflessly and loves his friends dearly. Just as he is willing to give his life for his pharaoh, he will also sacrifice himself for his hikari, Takehiko. Although he seems to be the mature type, when he gets comfortable around someone he can be very playful and even mischievous. He is skilled in battle and a bit quick-tempered but his reasons for violence are always righteous and brave. He never had a lover and doesn't intend to get one. Maybe this is for the best, for his attention is most needed on the battlefield during our great adventure.
Next time: Chapter Six Part Two, Chuukin Omoide! Go read, go read!