So I would like to start out by apologizing about the comment in my last chapter about how I hate when writing Yugi. I don't really 'hate' it really, but I find it frustrating as he's such a hopeful and optimistic character. As thor94 pointed out, I don't need to keep him as 'super naive incarnated jesus innoncence boy'. Honestly, I'm not trying to. The future chapter that I have been stuck on for over a week just has me beating my head against the keyboard (seriously, go check out 'Talking with Myself' over on AO3...I added to it and you'll see my level of frustration).

Normally I blame my favorite Thief when things do go right, but lately it's been Yugi not playing nice with the plot. How hard is it to get overly-optimistic teen to flip the switch and start screaming at people?!

The first half of the day went better than expected. Imhotep was introduced to the class with the story that he and Yugi had been separated at birth, and that Imhotep had found Yugi and his grandfather after years of searching due to Yugi's televised appearance during Battle City. A few classmates wanted to inquire further, but the teacher skipped the questions and moved onto the day's lesson plans. After that, the day proceeded just like any other until the bell sounded for the lunch period. As usual, the group headed to their favorite spot on the roof.

Imhotep joined Joey and Tristan to see who could reach the top first, with Imhotep beating everyone else by vanishing into a shadow on the stairs once he knew he was out of sight of the other students.

"Hey! Dat's cheating!" Joey called out once he reached the roof.

"I'm shorter than the both of you. I used my own advantage," Imhotep stated casually.

"It's still cheating…" Joey chastised, standing close and looming over the dark teen with an intense aura of 'doom'.

Imhotep swallowed hard and took a step back. "R-right…got it. No using magae for stuff like that."

"Joey, stop scaring him," Téa rebuked.

"But he cheated?" Joey said defensively.

Téa gave Joey the same look of 'doom' that he had given Imhotep, causing Joey to run and hide behind Yugi. "Yug, can ya help me out here?"

"Sorry, Joey," Yugi said while shaking his head. "You know how Téa can get."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Téa said while glaring down at Yugi.

"N-nothing!" Yugi squeaked out.

Marik had taken to avoiding Imhotep as much as possible, knowing how the dark teen felt towards him. He had followed the group onto the roof just like every day at this time, but instead of sitting over by everyone else, he took to sitting off to the side where he had sat the week prior with Bakura.

"Mind if I join you?"

Marik didn't even look up as he nodded.

Bakura plopped down beside him, looking even more ragged than when he had first arrived.

"Looks like we're back to square one," he commented while looking over towards the others.

"Looks like it," Marik said in agreement. "So, want to explain why you look even more like shit than earlier?"

Bakura ran his fingers through his hair, pulling out several loose strands and tossing them aside. "I shed when I'm stressed," he mumbled.

"I'm guessing it's a dog thing?"

"Wolf-dog, but whatever. Same-diff," Bakura replied with a casual shrug.

Marik gave him a puzzled look.

"I'm half Kemetic Godaeshan and half Akkadian mortal…or at least I was. I guess you could say I'm what's called a 'mixed-breed'," Bakura stated unenthusiastically.

A small look of realization formed across Marik's face. "That's why she called you a mutt…"

Bakura scowled. "Kat called me a mutt? When?"

"When you sent Mkhai to wake her up."

Bakura appeared disheartened to hear this. "Oh…" He then looked over to the Tomb Keeper's hands. "What's on the menu for today?"

Marik glanced down at the bento box in his hand. "Not a clue. I'm pretty sure I left without it today, but here it is."

Bakura scrunched up his nose. "If you like, I can check if it's safe for consumption. I really hope Kat hasn't decided to try her hand at cooking again. Last time she set several city blocks on fire."

Marik looked at the box in his hand for a moment, then quickly handed it over to Bakura. The elemental lifted the box to his nose, closed his eyes, then breathed in deep. He then opened his eyes and stared curiously at the box.

"So far it doesn't smell burnt or poisoned…"

He gingerly lifted the lid, peering inside.

"Looks harmless enough…"

Bakura finished lifting the lid, his face immediately falling once he spotted the note on top. He quickly shoved the box back into the Tomb Keeper's hands, looking away with an annoyed expression.

"How the fuck does she do that?! Five-fucking-thousand years and I still can't figure it out!"

Marik looked down at the piece of paper on top.

Kura, I'm not stupid. Give Marik back his lunch and fuck off. ~Kat

There was also a short note written just below that in Arabic telling Marik to enjoy his meal, followed by a drawing of a smiley face blowing a kiss.

"How did she-"

"That's what I'd like to know!" Bakura interrupted while throwing his hands up in the air.

Marik took out one of the falafel pita sandwiches that had been neatly placed inside, took a bite, and shrugged. "I guess I can't complain. At least I have my lunch."

Bakura's face fell. "Hooray for you…" he grumbled.

"What's wrong? Don't tell me you forgot yours?"

"I had a rough night. It wasn't exactly at the forefront of my mind this morning…"

Marik held the box out in offering. "There's plenty here if you want to share. I don't mind."

Bakura turned up his nose. "I think I'll manage without your rabbit food."

Marik paused in the bite he was about to take. "Well, sorry…didn't realize my 'rabbit food' was so offensive," he commented bitterly while retracting the box he had offered.

Bakura simply growled in irritation then stood, presumably to sit elsewhere. He stopped once he was fully upright, glaring at one of the nearby trees.

Marik stopped eating, wondering what Bakura had suddenly become so focused on.

The elemental continued to stare as a golden falcon flew out of the tree and landed on a railing opposite from where everyone was sitting. Bakura summoned a small throwing dagger, tossing it casually a few times in the air before flinging it at the golden bird. The falcon spread its wings and ducked low, avoiding the dagger. It then returned to an upright position, opening its beak slightly while making a sound that made it appear as though it were laughing at the elemental.

The other group had taken notice by now of both Bakura's glare and the bird that sat mocking him. Imhotep stepped forward, glaring at the falcon in the same manner as the pale elemental.

"Looking for a rematch?" he asked in a dark tone.

The bird stopped its mocking, breathing deeply as it studied the darker teen.

"He won't do anything. He's only here to observe," Bakura said bitterly.

"How do you know?"

"This is Amaterasu's domain. He's not even supposed to be here."

"But Anubis was able to come here?"

"Anubis was permitted because the soul he had claimed resided here. Ra has no such excuse."

"Wait, that's Ra?!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Yup," Imhotep replied nonchalantly.

"Isn't Ra supposed to be a benevolent god?" Téa asked.

"Honestly, that's what I used to think too," Marik replied. "Turns out he's a really big dick with a massive superiority complex."

"Sounds like how ya used ta be," Joey commented dryly.

"Surprisingly, Ra's worse," Marik stated with a shrug, not bothered one bit by Joey's comment. "He's even worse than Kaiba."

"Worse than KAIBA!?" Joey shouted in extreme shock. "I didn't think dat anyone could be more full of themselves than him!"

The falcon appeared to become agitated, puffing up and lowering its head as if scowling.

"Would you look at that," Bakura said in amusement. "Looks like you managed to ruffle a few of his feathers," he chuckled.

"If he doesn't leave, I'll do more than just 'ruffle' his feathers," Imhotep stated bitterly. "I haven't forgotten what he tried to do."

"Don't. If you attack without reason, he can have you hauled before the Tribunal. Kat has enough to deal with already."

Imhotep growled in irritation. "Fine…but only because I know that you're right." He looked away with his jaw clenched. "Shae would be furious if I had to go before the Tribunal too."

"So…are we supposed to just pretend Ra isn't here?" Marik questioned.

"Unfortunately, that's pretty much all we can do." A devilish grin formed across Bakura's face. "But that also means he's forced to sit by and do nothing, unless he wants to give us a reason to defend ourselves." He glanced off to the side towards Marik. "Hey, Tomb Keeper…wanna see me piss off a god?"

Marik raised a brow in interest. "Well, now that you've said something, absolutely."

Bakura looked back towards the falcon, chuckled darkly, then vanished. Moments later a small boy reappeared in his place.

The boy's skin was deeply bronzed and covered in dirt and ash. The uncombed silver-white hair on his head fell just below his chin. One of his eyes was swollen shut and covered in a layer of dried blood from the gash that stitched down the right side of his face. The other eye, ash-violet in color, was surrounded by a dark ring, indicating that the child most likely hadn't slept in a very long time. His body was covered in a torn linen tunic, dried blood and ash layered sporadically across.

The boy struggled to extend his arm, reaching out towards the falcon. "Why…" he croaked out in his tiny voice. "Why did you do it?"

The falcon became agitated, flapping its wings frantically while screeching loudly.

"Hehehe…" the child laughed darkly, grinning while doing so. "Still can't stand the sight of me? Five-thousand years, and I'm still here as a reminder of what you did…"

The falcon lifted off and dove with talons extended towards the child. The small boy simply continued to grin as he vanished just before the falcon made contact.

An older version of the boy appeared not far away, standing casual and aloof against a nearby railing. This time he was much more muscular, and the gash across his face had formed into a scar. He wore a simple dark schenti and nothing else.

The falcon perched above the door to the roof, screeching at the new figure.

"I don't die that easily. Even when I was mortal you still couldn't get rid of me. Just shows how pathetic of a GOD you really are," the figure stated in a familiar growled voice.

The falcon made another dive attempt, and as before, its target vanished. It became even more agitated, puffing up and screeching even louder than before.

"What's wrong, Ra? Can't stand the sight of your mistakes?" said a Malik-like voice.

Marik turned, surprised to see the Ishtari standing not far away with the same sadistic grin Bakura had been wearing.

Malik vanished, just like the other two figures had.

"It's a pity that the one that claims to be perfection, is capable of so many mistakes," came a Marik-like voice from behind the group.

Marik and the others quickly turned to see a Marik-replica sitting on one of the railings, wearing Bakura's traditional grin.

The replica vanished, and Bakura re-appeared in his current body, still grinning devilishly.

The falcon screeched one last time before raising its wings and vanishing in a blinding flash as it brought them down.

"That's right, little birdie…run away," Bakura said with a dark chuckle. He then grabbed at his chest while falling to his knees. He covered his mouth as he coughed up a small amount of blood.

"Bakura! Are you alright?!" Marik asked as he rushed to the elemental's side.

"I'm fine, Tomb Keeper. I just pressed the boundaries of my new body a little too soon," the elemental replied, sounding a bit winded.

"Too soon? More like too many transformations in such a short period of time," stated Imhotep, appearing somewhat impressed.

"Maybe for you…"

Imhotep looked away sheepishly while fidgeting with his hands. "Can I-...can I ask how you were able to do that?"

"Which part?" Bakura questioned while wiping away the blood he had coughed up with a napkin that had been handed to him.

Imhotep turned his gaze towards Bakura, keeping his chin low. "Well, you were able to change your voice and somehow hide the Ring."

"Hiding the relic is actually the hard part," Bakura stated casually. "And two of the faces were mine…so those were easy."

"What about when you became the Tomb Keeper and the Ishtari?"

Bakura smirked his signature smirk. "Make you a deal, I'll consider telling you if you can explain what you meant earlier when you said 'I could somewhat understand if it was your old appearance, he liked that one'?"

Pink formed across Imhotep's face. He looked away again, mumbling something under his breath.

Bakura appeared to have heard it. "I see. So that means Judgment wasn't lying…" he said quietly to himself while appearing to mull over the information.

"So, are you going to tell me how to do it?" Imhotep asked impatiently as he quickly returned his gaze to the elemental.

Bakura glanced at him, still thinking. "Maybe some other time, kid. The lunch period is almost over. Might want to finish your meal."

"How can ya expect us ta finish eatin' after seein' somethin' like dat?!" Joey exclaimed.

"Simple, just put the food in your mouth and chew," Bakura replied sarcastically. He then looked towards Marik. "Still up for sharing? After that, I'm a bit starved."

"You would willingly eat 'rabbit food'?" Marik questioned with a raised brow.

"I'd eat the rabbit," Bakura smirked.

Marik rolled his eyes. "Of course you would." He sat back down and offered the box to the elemental. "Help yourself," he added with a smirk of his own.

Sooo...good news, bad news.

Good news: Next chapter has Kaiba encounter. Yay!

Bad news: Next week I will be posting both 52 and 53. They will be the last chapters posted THIS YEAR.

It is now November. Mariah Carey has returned. US retail has entered non-stop sales because the jolly fat man will soon be here. It is the time of year where retail employees have every ounce of their souls sucked out of them as they are forced to be 'extra nice' and 'jolly' to the level of stupidity I swear only exists on the retail level. Where my brain cells slowly commit suicide with every 'It's not scanning, it must be free!' comment.

I haven't come up with an exact ETA return date, but I'm shooting for sometime in January. I have a few WiP chapters already started, but between holidays and work, both my sister and I need to have extra time for editing. This will give us both the opportunity to do that.