--- Yay! I do not have to go to camp! Is not it wonderful. Well my brother is gone and my sister leaves soon so I will have the computer to my self so I will be able to update more. However, do not count on it. Not true! There are only three things I am working on now, this story, my Canada story, and my website. In addition, I never work on her site. I will work on it-- in ten years

ok time to continue the story now---

Chapter Seventeen

Laria Finds Out

Laria slowly trudged home. It seemed that all her energy was gone. She could not wait to get home and lay down on her nice, soft, warm... her thoughts drifted off. Her eyes closed but she kept walking... straight into a tree. This took her by surprise and she fell backwards onto the grass.

"Ow..." Laria said rubbing her forehead, which had collided right with the tree. She got up, scowling, grabbed her bag and started off again. She had to use al her strength to keep her eyes open as she walked the rest of the way home.

At the Kaiba Mansion...

Atemu sighed as he threw another book into the growing pile of useless text. He walked over the shelf of books. He looked along the shelf for a book that might help them. Yani was right when she said Kaiba had almost every book, but right now, none of them was helping.

They heard the opening and closing of a door. Atemu looked over at Yani. She sat her book down and got up to see who it was. She poked her head into the entrance hall and saw Mokuba.

"Hey Yani," he said cheerfully.

"Hi," Yani said, "Look, have you seen Laria?"

"Not since this morning," Mokuba said, taking off his shoes.

"Well if you do tell her that me and Yami need to talk to her," Yani told her hikaris brother, "We are in the library."

"Aright."

"Thanks kid," Yani said then she went back to searching for a cure. Ten minutes later Laria entered the library looking confused and tired. Yani greeted her and motioned her to sit in a very comfortable chair that made her want to sleep even more. Atemu then came over and started to examine her.

"Hikari?" Yani asked, "Are you feeling alright?"

"You to!" Laria exclaimed, Atemu was now looking at a lock of her hair.

"Just answer the question," Yani said looking down at her Aibou.

"I'm tired! I want to go up to bed! Stop touching my hair!" Laria said irritably.

"You're tired?" Yani asked, "It's only 3:30 in the afternoon."

"I know that!"

"She isn't looking very good, love," Atemu said finally removing his hand from Laria's hair, "It's getting worse at am alarming rate."

"How long do you think she has?" Yani asked, Laria was extremely confused.

"I'd give her almost a week," Atemu said sadly.

"Before she?" Yani eyes widened

"Not entirely... but very close," Atemu told her.

"Are you two going to tell me what's going on this millennia!" Laria asked impatiently.

"Oh hikari... you-you have..." Yani trailed off, she looked as if she was going to cry.

"Do you want me to tell her?" Atemu whispered in Yani's ear. She nodded.

"Laria you have something called the Death Virus," Atemu said very seriously.

"De-Death Virus?" Laria repeated. What ever it was, it did not sound good.

"It's a deadly disease that slowly drains just about every thing on a person until there's virtually nothing left." Atemu said.

"Drains?"

"Drains the color from your hair, eyes, and skin." Yani said, "It drains your energy, and then your life."

"No it can't be..." Laria said.

"Then explain your hair turning gray," Yani said

"Old age."

"Your pale skin?"

"I lost my tan."

"Tiredness?"

"I stayed up to late last night."

"Your eyes changing from bright blue to almost white?"

"Teenage hormones?"

Yani and Atemu gave her skeptical looks.

"Ok, ok, I see your point," Laria said.

"But there's something different about you," Atemu said, "Usually it takes a while for the disease to someone. But with you it's been draining at a rapid rate."

"How long does it usually take?" Laria asked staring at the floor.

"Well I believe I had it a year before it finally took my life, right Atemu," Yani gave a sideways glance at the former Pharaoh, who nodded, "We've just noticed the change little over a week ago."

"At this rate I'm afraid you won't live to see your sixteenth birthday," Atemu said.

"But that's in only two weeks!" Laria exclaimed.

"Yes I know."

"That's all we had to tell you..." Yani said, "You may go now."

Laria nodded as she got up and left. She walked slowly down the halls to her room. She could not believe what she had just heard. She entered her room and flopped down on her bed. Why me… Laria sighed and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Two hours later, down stairs...

Seto was sitting on the couch doing his English homework. He thought about the question for a second. As soon as he went to write down his answer, the phone rang. He quickly scribbled down his answer and got up to answer the phone.

"Kaiba."

"I wanted to know if Laria was there," Ryou said.

"I think, hold on..."

In Laria's room...

Laria opened her eyes and rolled over to face the door. She could swear she heard some one calling her name. Sure enough...

"LAR!"

She got up, went to her doorway, and yelled back to Seto.

"What the hell do you want!"

"Ryou's on the phone!"

"I'll get it in my room!" Laria yelled.

She picked up the phone.

"Hey Ryou," she said yawning.

"Hello, I was just wondering what you were up to?"

"Oh, nothing just woke up"

"Have you been sleeping all this time?"

"No, Atemu and Yani needed to talk to me about something."

"Really? Is everything alright?"

Should I tell him? Why not? He'd find out eventually.

"No Ryou, it's not alright..." she paused, "I'm going to die soon..."

---There you go chapter 17. Yay... only 8 more chapters to go, I might actually finish this before Christmas. Yeah, and maybe Ra will like me again. Has he ever liked me? I think he did once... I cannot remember. ---