A/N: ... Nothing to say, really. XD
Borath: I had been waiting soooooo long to mess with Seto and Yami. And yes, they'll be looking at each other oddly now. *Giggles and rubs hands together* Glad you think that Mokuba was in character. ^_^ Now Yami, Sugoroku, Yuugi, Seto, and Mokuba are one big family. XD
Yesyes, you're right, my explanation is a little lacking. XD I had an idea, a long time ago... Eh, well, I make another to go into the rewrite. *Scribbles down on her list of things to add to the chapter's new version*
Hm... Your ideas about the cure are good. You're right, it shouldn't be something cliche... I'll have to try to think up something. ^_^ And I don't mind the criticism. It was helpful. ^_^
Heh, well, I've been itching to call Bekhura... Bekhura. Ever since I started using it. XD But it's not too different, just a different pronunciation. Not like in, say, Negative Chaos by High Crystal Guardian (I love that story. ^_^) where some of the names are totally different (Or in Hikari no Yuugi by Trinity Girls, which is also good mind you, where Yami B is called Kherik).
Thanks for the review. ^_^
Ryuujin Dragon King: Well, Bekhura is only a different pronunciation. ^_^
Well, Bekhura seemed older I thought, but then again, I've never been a great judge of age. XD So he could be Seth's age, I suppose. And as for Yami's name, well, it sure as heck ain't Bel Um Fal. XD That's only the Forbidden Memories name anyway... And apparently, the name itself isn't Egyptian. The 'Um' is supposed to mean 'Son of', I'm pretty sure, and well, Yami's father isn't named Fal. So it doesn't really work. ^_^ Don't worry, it's not gonna be Bel Um Fal.
Glad you like Pegasus and Shaadii, and that I included the cousins thing. It was fuuuuuun. And as for Ahondra, she's sort of there to tie into the storylines between Eien and Itsumo. You'll see waaaaaaay off in Itsumo. XD Glad you thought she was cute though. ^_^ Heh, I may have to include Malik's past with camels...
^_^ *Flattered* Sankyuu for the compliments. ^_^
ShadowSpirits: I found a good song for a darkship fic, but when I'm going to write it is to be decided. XD Eien, Itsumo, and Fumetsu are gonna take up all my chapter story time. Yuujou no Pazuru has almost been abandoned. XD And I'm in the NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month where you write a 50,000 word story in a month) contest-y thingy, so I'll be very busy for awhile. O.o
*Giggles* I'm not sure if the reason Bekhura's in the palace so often'll be revealed here in Eien, or in Itsumo. Oh well.
I mentioned to my friends about that you're working on a Bakura*Yami*Mariku story, and they all freaked out and wanted to read it. XD Thanks for the review. ^_^
Wingleader Sora Jade: Yay, glad you don't mind. And my Email sometimes is evil. >
Pegasus soooo counts as a bishounen. XD *Waves Pegasus flag*
Ooh, thanks for the info on the Valley. I knew it was a long ways south, but had no idea exactly how far. *Nodnod* Sankyuu, that helps a lot.
*Cough* Kill Yami? Wouldn't dream of it. It's not like I have before or anything. Though... Well, I dunno. Whether I do something to him or not *Evil smirk* he's in Fumetsu. So... Yeah. Don't ya' love out of character knowledge? ^_^ Thanks for the review.
bast4: Heh, not telling anything about Yami. Um... That's sorta' because I haven't decided everything yet. O.o So... Yeah.
Someone's actually interested in Ahondra? ^_^ *Happily spins in circles* Er... Well, yes, she has magic of her own. It's very different from the magic the others use, since it deals with something entirely separate. I just didn't want to include it for fear of turning her into a Mary Sue. XD A detailed bio thingy will be written of Ahondra soon for anyone who wants to read more about her.
Pegsy the nut is here because I wanted some more characters. XD No, actually, I wanted him here because he's a tie-in to so many different things, and he's a capable adult with a lot of background of everything they're doing.
Glad you like Mahaado and Mana in here. Sadly, I'd forgotten about Mahaado being in the story earlier for quite awhile. XD In the rewrite, he may show his face a little more. The duo'll be in the rest of the story, by the way. Now I just have to remember to include Mafdet all the time. XD
I was quite surprised when Yami and Seto being cousins was revealed in the manga. O.o I spent a few days running around and telling everyone who had any inkling about Yugioh, 'Ya know the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle that looks like Yuugi? Well, that's Yami. And ya' know Seto? Well, turns out, in their past lives they were cousins!'
Thanks for the review. ^_^
C.A: Shall do this response in parts. XD
19.) *Giggles* Glad you liked the sillyness of the chapter. I always wanted Yami to make puppy eyes at people. He'd be either oddly scary or oddly good at them. XD
20.) Yami, king of the stubborn is back in action. XD And Shaadii's here to stay, unless he pulls a 'Poof' and disappears. O.o
*Grin* Glad you liked the different parts in that chapter. I was amused by writing it. Especially the first scene with the old lady. XD And you're quite talented with the ands. XD
21.) Coolies, good you think Shaadii's in character. He's evil to write. XD And yeah, Ahondra as a little girl is WAY less loud and annoying as Ahondra as a teen. Silly brat. XD
*Laughs nervously* Mai always hides. >
Warnings: Cursing.
Disclaimer: Oh, come on. I don't own Yugioh. Happy, you silly lawyer-people?
Summary of Last time: There was much explaining. Hurray. XD
Preview of this Time: The group sets off.
Anyway, hope you enjoy. ^_^
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Eien; part 22
by: Amiasha
Isis looked at her map. "Alright, the Valley of the kings is about 150 miles away. We should get as close as possible before breaking off to head into the valley on camel and horseback." She said, and Shaadii, who was leaning over her shoulder, nodded his agreement.
The Egyptian man turned around to face Pegasus. "Pegasus, do you have anyway to get us close to the Valley?" He asked.
Pegasus shrugged. "I could probably rent us some cars or something." He said casually. "They may be the best choice." Pegasus shot a glance toward Yami, who was getting in a nap curled up in Yuugi's arms before they had to leave. Mafdet was curled up against Yami's side. "We want the least strenuous method. Does anything advance the poison?" The silvery haired American asked, catching Yuugi's attention who raised his head to listen.
Shaadii nodded. "Excessive stress, or use of magic will speed up the effects of the poison."
Pegasus pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. "Alright then. We'll need four cars, since there of 18 of us not including Ahondra, Mana, or Mahaado." He decided. He dialed a few numbers and put the phone up so he could talk.
"Malik." Isis called, drawing her brother's attention and causing the blond to trot over to her. "Please pack as much nonperishable food as possible, along with a lot of water. We don't know how long we'll be away from the house."
Malik nodded and beckoned toward Serenity, who was doing nothing, to follow and help him. The redhead obediently walked into the kitchen to help pack.
Sugoroku looked over at Yuugi. "Are you and Yami packed?" He asked, sitting down on the couch and brushing Yami's long bangs back.
"Yeah." Yuugi replied, glancing down at his dark for a moment before closing his eyes and taking a slow, deliberate breath.
"Yuugi?" Sugoroku asked. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"
Yuugi shook his head rapidly, blinking back tears. "No. Not anything new." He replied, softly running his fingers over Yami's cheek.
Sugoroku looked at him sadly. "Yuugi, have faith. Shaadii and Isis are optimistic. As long as we're very careful, there's a good chance we'll be able to save him. None of us will give up." He reassured his youngest grandson. "I even heard Bekhura talking to Malik about some sort of backup plan. Everyone's doing their best. Yami's never failed us, and we're not going to let him down either."
Yuugi smiled sadly, his spirits slightly lifted. "You're right." The boy said, nodding firmly. "Even with all the hopeless situations before, we're still here." He added. "Yet another man with a grudge that came out of nowhere isn't going to get the best of my yami, or any of the rest of us."
Sugoroku grinned. "That's what I like to hear, Yuugi."
Seto, silently listening to the conversation along with Mokuba, looked at his younger brother. "Well." He muttered. "What's your take?"
Mokuba grinned. "Aw, Seto, you know you're in." The raven haired boy giggled mischievously. "They're all family too, remember."
Seto frowned. "Please don't remind me." He said in annoyance, groaning and looking at the ceiling as if someone would hear him if he talked upward. "This is the worst day of my life."
Mokuba raised an eyebrow, smirking. "You lie. The worst day ever was that time you woke up and Joey had put gum in your hair. And Yami had drawn on your face. Speaking of which, he's a pretty good artist." The boy added thoughtfully.
The older blue eyed boy twitched, looking back at his brother. "I admit defeat. You're right. That was the worst day of my life."
Bekhura yawned, folding his arms and watching Ryou double-check their bags. "You already got the hairdryer." The dark muttered. "It's in the other bag."
"Oh." Ryou said. "Well, I guess it is." He paused for a moment. "Wait.... I was looking for that thing this morning and you knew it! You're such a.... A...."
"You can say it." Bekhura muttered, rolling his eyes. "Jackass, you were searching for?" He said, grinning sideways at his other.
Ryou glared. "It's not polite to swear, and you know it." He chastised. "And that was most certainly not the word I was looking for."
Bekhura tapped the side of his head with a long finger. "I'm psychic. At least about you. Remember?" He said, grinning.
Ryou looked at the spirit, and simply flipped him off before going back to packing.
Bekhura stared, dumbfounded.
Mahaado twirled his staff idly, watching his Pharaoh sleep quietly in Yuugi's arms. The blue eyed magician sighed and glanced over at Mana, who was sitting sidesaddle on her staff, bouncing up and down, staring put the window and humming to herself.
"Mana." Mahaado said.
The blond girl looked up. "Yeah-huh?" She asked cutely, kicking her legs.
Mahaado opened his mouth to tell her to stop humming, and found that he couldn't bring himself to. He just shook his head. "Sorry. Nothing." He said.
Mana smiled at him, but her smile was soft and somewhat sad. Mahaado could tell the girl was covering her worry under her happy face.
Mana jumped off her staff and floated over to Mahaado. She gave him a hug around the waist and then bounded off into the kitchen, leaving Mahaado to blink after her.
Mai twisted her hair on one finger as she searched her bag for cooler clothes. "Perfect." She said cheerfully, pulling out the white spaghetti strap tank top she'd bought on her shopping excursion a few days before. She ran off into the bathroom to change.
Ryuuji threw a die up and down, watching it spin in the air lazily before catching it. He yawned, both bored and anxious, and looked over at Tristan, who was next to him. The brown haired boy was nervously nibbling on the end of what seemed to be a cookie or cracker. Ryuuji didn't really care. He sighed and decided to go help Malik and Serenity in the kitchen. After all, while they were in a bad position, a girl was a girl.
Tristan noticing what Ryuuji was doing and apparently reading his mind, sprang up and ran after the black haired teen.
Tea sat on the armchair, deep in thought, and Joey sat crosslegged on the floor. The two exchanged glances for a moment, before both looking away and sighing. Tea, very depressed by the recent events, blinked back a few tears and put her face in her hands, sighing again softly. Joey lifted his head at the sound, and glanced back up at Tea. "Hey, it'll be okay. Don't worry 'bout it, Tea." He said, smiling. "In about fifteen minutes or so, we're gonna get going, and hopefully have Yami well again by tonight."
"Yeah, you're right." Tea responded, returning Joey's smile. "We can do it."
Joey gave her the thumbs up.
Isis stepped out into the center of the room, and clapped her hands together softly, trying to gain everyone's attention without waking Yami. "Everyone, we're going to be leaving for the Valley as soon as the jeeps Pegasus called get here. You all need to be ready to go."
The group nodded, putting on shoes and making last minute runs to the bathroom. Yuugi carefully shook his dark's shoulder. /Yami? Wake up, we're gonna' have to go./ He said softly.
After a few seconds of waiting, Yami's eyes opened slightly and he looked up at Yuugi, somewhat annoyed. Sitting up weakly, he steadied himself with the help of Yuugi and the two stood up. Yami glanced around the room, reorienting himself and accounting for everyone. Mafdet swished her tail, annoyed that her comfy spot had been disrupted, and stalked off to ride on Tristan's shoulder.
An annoying ringtone singing a tune that sounded suspiciously like a cartoon theme song made everyone jump in surprise.
"Pegasus!" Joey said in annoyance as the white haired man grinned and pulled out his cell phone again, flipping it open. After a few moments of talking, Pegasus looked up at the whole group.
"The cars are waiting outside." He announced cheerily. "Let's get this going." And with that, he skipped out the front door without a care in the world.
"He is a really strange guy." Malik remarked, rolling his eyes.
"Very much so." Bekhura agreed, turning and walking over toward Yuugi and Yami. "Well, we're off." He commented to the other spirit.
Yami nodded his head, and smirked. "Whether that's a good thing or we'll all die in the desert will be seen." He replied dryly, taking a few shaky steps toward the door as Yuugi chased after him worriedly.
"Uh-uh." Joey chastised the older of the Motou boys, stalking over to join the trio.
Yami gave him a bored look. "What?" He asked exasperatedly.
"Weren't ya' evesdroppin' on Pegasus and Shaadii? No, wait, you were asleep." Joey said, looking contemplative. He snapped out of his state of thought a moment later. "You ain't supposed to do too much."
Yami just looked at him, tilting his head with an expression that screamed, 'And your point...?'
"And," Joey added, catching the look the spirit was giving him. "I don't think you should really be walkin' any more 'den you have to."
The shorter teen sighed. "I'll be FINE, Joey." He said, fixing his eyes onto the blond's brown ones and trying to look determined while he was barely strong enough to stand up.
After a few seconds, Yami realized that must not have worked since Joey simply picked him up around the knees and slung him over his shoulder, carrying him out to the cars with much loud protesting.
Yuugi giggled, feeling a little better. He looked at Bekhura who was smirking, and Sugoroku who was also looking amused from over by the couch.
"We're going back into the Shadow Realm." Mana told the group, floating up and down on her staff. "We'll come back out once we're near the Valley."
Yuugi nodded to her and Mahaado to show that he'd heard and the magicians disappeared, Mahaado without a trace and Mana with a swirl of glitter.
The remaining group that hadn't already gone to the cars grabbed up their bags and headed out. Shaadii turned to Ahondra. "I trust you'll guard the other tombs while we're at the Valley?"
Ahondra grinned. "Of course Shaadii." She said cheerfully. "You can count on me." The blond girl gave the thumbs up and disappeared in a cloud of mist.
Shaadii just smiled and shook his head, and walked out the door.
****************
"I'm bored."
"I'm tired."
"I'm hot."
"I'm dying. So all of you shut the hell up."
Yuugi sighed and buried his face in his hands. He, Joey, Yami, Ryuuji, and Tristan were all in the car together, plus Mafdet who was free of her cat carrier. Tristan was driving, since he was the only one the other boys trusted behind the wheel of a car. Joey was a bad driver. And Ryuuji was a speed demon.
Yami was to Yuugi's left, sleepily looking out the window. Joey in the passenger' seat, bouncing hyperly in place. Ryuuji was to Yuugi's right, yapping incessantly. Tristan, thankfully, was paying attention to the road.
The spirit gave an annoyed look at the others. "We really should have swapped Joey and Ryuuji out for the tomb robber and Bakura. They're quieter." He muttered.
"Yeah, but Yami B gets motion sick." Joey remarked. "'Dat's why he's wit' Kaiba. Let Kaiba deal wit' it." The blond said devilishly.
Yami sighed and laid his head against the window. It'd be at least two and half hours before they were close enough to switch to camels and horses. Two and a half hours of Joey, Tristan, and Ryuuji, all in the car. Together. 'Why do you hate me so?' Yami asked any god that was listening, pulling his jacket tighter around his shoulders.
Yuugi leaned against the back of the seat, thinking along the same lines as his dark. He loved his friends, but there was only so much a boy could take. The stress of the past few days had been affecting Yuugi harder than anyone seemed to realized. Attacks by a new enemy, traveling, and being informed that the person he loved like his brother was most likely going to die were not really good for his mental health, Yuugi figured. Then again, he had a long way to go to be as insane as a few members of the group. Though it probably wasn't too far if his train of thought was devolving in the way it was.
Over in the next car, Bekhura was having similar problems. Only, oddly enough, his problems were named Seto, Pegasus, and Shaadii.
Pegasus was annoying. He talked. A lot. About everything, but mostly Funny Bunny. That made Seto want to strangle him in his sleep.
Every time Seto would reach to kill Pegasus, while driving, Shaadii would stop him, and give a lecture. That sent Pegasus inevitably into another conversation. And brought the circle around.
The only person in the car Bekhura didn't want to kill at the moment was Mokuba; he was squished between the white haired spirit and Pegasus. The black haired boy was sweatdropping, and he and Bekhura kept exchanging sympathetic glances.
//Ryou, I'm going to kill everyone in the car besides Mokuba. He'll be the only survivor.// Bekhura muttered through the link to his other. //Next time we stop for one of the girls to go to the bathroom, which shouldn't be too long knowing girls, I'm switching with you. You get stuck with these idiots.//
/You don't want to be in my car, either./ Ryou responded. /Malik and Sugoroku are arguing, and poor Rishid looks like he's going to keel over./
//What's wrong with Rishid?// Bekhura asked.
/Oh, I just don't think he can stand Malik's screeching in an enclosed space for a long period of time./ Ryou answered casually. /Your friend really does sound annoying when he gets mad. His voice gets all high pitched and whiny, a lot like Joey's did when you stepped on his foot a few weeks ago./
Bekhura grinned. //That was funny.//
Back in his car, Ryou sighed loudly.
Over with the girls, Isis was driving because Serenity had told her that Mai had nearly run her and Ryuuji over once. So Serenity was in the passenger seat, and Tea and Mai were in the back.
"It's good being one of the girls." Mai said cheerfully. "We're not all packed in like the boys' cars."
The golden blond and Tea exchanged high fives as Serenity giggled.
Isis smiled and spared a glance at the other girls. "Remember," She said, "This'll probably be your last chance to get any sleep or anything else like that. It'll be a few hours until we're close to the Valley of the Kings. We'll pass through Luxor and cross over the Nile, then once we get into Thebes we'll switch to camels to get into the Valley itself."
Tea nodded. "Great. Thanks." She said, smiling. "In that case, I'm sleeping some more. Who knows what we'll have to deal with, and I'm NOT interesting in sitting here awake for the two hours or so It'll take to get to Thebes." The brunette leaned back and shut her eyes.
"Ditto." Mai added, doing the same. Serenity however seemed interested in watching the scenery and talking to Isis more than sleeping.
"Egypt is so beautiful." The redhead commented, staring in awe out the window. "Everything's so gold."
"Yes, Egypt is very stunning." Isis agreed, smiling. "The Nile is lovely too. You'll get a chance to see it later."
Serenity grinned at her then returned her attention out the window.
In Ryou's car, the white haired boy was desperately wishing he'd brought some headphones and a CD player. The constant bickering was driving him nuts. He didn't even know what the original argument was about. All he could hear now was the incoherent screech of Malik's voice.
Rishid, meanwhile, seemed almost drunk, the car swerving back and forth on the road uncertainly. 'You'd think he'd be used to Malik by now...' Ryou thought in annoyance. 'I, for one, would rather not be killed for any reason by any member of the Ishtar family... But what can I do to stop this?'
All of a sudden, Malik shut up. Everyone looked at him as the blond started coughing. A few minutes later, Malik gave them all a shaky grin and said plainly, "I swallowed a bug."
Ryou sighed loudly.
*************
"D'aww, they're so cute." Joey remarked, grinning as he looked at Yuugi and Yami who were both asleep, heads against each others and Yuugi with his arms around his dark.
Tristan glanced into the rearview mirror and laughed. "Ever let them hear you say that and they'll both kill you, ill or not." He commented, earning a grin from Ryuuji and a fake pout from Joey.
The blond let his gaze linger on the nearly identical boys for another moment and sighed, turning his attention back out the windshield. Now somewhat subdued, Joey looked over at Tristan. "What time's it?" He asked.
Tristan glared at him for a second. "There's a clock on the dashboard, Joey." He reminded in annoyance, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, right." Joey said, laughing nervously. He checked aforementioned clock, which read 11:43am. Doing some quick math, Joey yawned in boredom. "Damn, these drives take foreva'. Still another 45 minutes before we even get to... Where was it Isis said? Luxor?"
"Yeah." Ryuuji spoke up, petting Mafdet who was curled up on his lap. "We'll cross from Luxor to Thebes, which may actually be one big city, I think." The black haired boy look confused for a moment. "I thought that Luxor and Thebes were pretty much the same city, just split by the Nile. The Valley of the Kings is around Thebes... Somewhere."
Joey turned around in his gray leather seat again. "How do ya' know 'dis stuff?" He asked.
Ryuuji shrugged. "I'm just more worldly than you." He answered casually.
"Ha." Joey responded, rolling his eyes. "I'd take a swing at ya' if I weren't worried I'd hit Yuug'."
Ryuuji cocked an eyebrow. "Where'd that nickname come from anyway? Too lazy to say his full name or something? And if so, how come you don't shorted Yami's name to something annoying?"
Joey smirked at him. "Actually, I have called Yami 'Annoying' before. He hit me afterwards." The blond added, looking pensive.
Ryuuji snorted in amusement, and so did Tristan.
"Oh, I remember that." The spiky haired brunette commented. "Even Kaiba was laughing."
That sent Joey into another thought. "Ya' know... It's kinda' creepy thinkin' Yami and Kaiba are RELATED. And not distantly, eitha'..." He mused.
"Yeah, I know what you mean." Tristan agreed. "It's almost like a bad soap opera; long-lost cousins. I bet we could get onto that American talk show... What was it? Montel?" He asked, laughing. "That's so strange... All that time we all knew each other..."
"Mokuba sure was happy." Ryuuji added. "Must've been nice for him. He didn't have any family besides his brother."
Joey nodded. "Yeah." He said. "Yuugi was happy too. He's always liked Mokuba, and for some odd reason Kaiba too." The teen put his hands behind his head and turned back forward, leaning back against the seat. "That'll be weird, back at home."
Ryuuji snorted. "Assuming any of us ever get to go home, let alone all of us." He muttered, leaning back as well.
Joey yet again turned around, glaring at the black haired boy. "Yer such a pessimist." He said, more of a hiss than anything else.
"I am not." Ryuuji countered, sitting back up straight. "I'm just being realistic. Assuming any of us survive this endeavor, Yami may not be coming back with us anyway."
Joey growled loudly. "Stop the damn car, Tristan." He ordered. "I don't want us to crash when I strangle 'dis jerk."
Tristan raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You're SERIOUS!?" He asked. "Joey, he's not done anything worth seriously fighting over. It's not as if he's wishing any harm to anyone, he's just stating a possibility."
"I don't care." Joey spat, his temper flaring up from the implications of Ryuuji's earlier statement. The blond knew it was a possibility something would happen to them, and even more possible they wouldn't find a cure for Yuugi's other, but hearing it actually said caused him to get very upset.
Seemingly sensing the negative emotions swirling in the small area, Yami stirred. His large indigo eyes fluttered open, and he looked around dazedly at the angry faces of Joey and Ryuuji. Straightening slowly, Yami put a hand to his head and gave a sound akin to a whimper.
Joey's attention immediately went to the spirit, earlier animosity towards Ryuuji forgotten. "Yami?" He asked worriedly. "You okay? What's wrong?"
Leaning against the seat and letting his head fall back, Yami took a shuddering breath and pressed his fingers harder into his forehead. "Dizzy..." He said faintly.
At his dark's movements, Yuugi also stirred. Waking much faster than the spirit, Yuugi opened his eyes and blinked rapidly to reorient himself. Noticing his yami next to him, Yuugi got concerned again. "Yami?" He asked.
Yami didn't seem to hear him, his eyes having shut tightly again and apparently trying to drive the fingers of his left hand through his head as if self inflicted pain would cause the other pain to go away. His other arm was wrapped around his stomach, and the spirit's breathing had become rapid and heavy.
This time, Tristan did stop the car. He pulled over to the side of the road, knowing that Seto, who's car was behind them, would stop as well and the CEO would call the girls' car with his cell phone to tell them to stop and turn around.
"What's wrong?" Yuugi asked his dark frantically, scooting into Ryuuji's now empty seat and carefully pulling the spirit down to lay across the seats.
"Dizzy..." Yami repeated, his voice weak and laced with heavy breaths. "Gods..." He murmured as Yuugi gently took his hand away from his forehead. "Why does it hurt so badly so suddenly...?"
"I-I don't know." Yuugi stammered, near tears again.
Seto got out of his car, slamming the driver's door shut. "What the hell's going on?" He snapped in annoyance. "Why are you stopped?"
Bekhura followed shortly afterward, looking a little pale from the car ride but otherwise just confused.
Joey shook his head. "Waiting for Isis to get here. Called her, I assume?" He asked Seto, oddly enough his accent becoming less prominent in his worry.
"Yes." Seto answered. "Why?" He repeated.
The blond shook his head again. "Don't know. Yami's worse again." He replied shortly, glancing back over his shoulder where Tristan was hovering by Ryuuji, who seemed to be cursing near the car.
A few seconds later, the girls' car pulled up and stopped. Isis stepped out in confusion. "What's wrong?" She asked.
Joey lead her towards their car, where Yuugi looked up when he noticed the Egyptian woman. "Isis!" Yuugi exclaimed. "Please be able to help..." He half prayed and half pleaded.
Isis furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Yami, reaching out and touching him on the forehead. He expression changed from fear to slight relief as she did so.
"What?" Yuugi asked, his tone hopeful at Isis's expression.
"Here, let's get him out of the car. His fever's gone up, that's the problem, not the poison itself. That's good news." Isis explained, motioning for Yuugi to get out of the car. He did so, and the Egyptian woman simply gathered Yami in her arms and carried him out of the car, the alarmed spirit opening his eyes and clinging to her nervously. Yuugi almost laughed at his dark's bug eyed expression, a sharp contrast to the spirit's previous one, had he not been so worried.
Isis set Yami down in her lap, the last car having arrived and it's occupants piling out. "You really shouldn't be wearing all this leather." She chastised gently, pulling off the blue jacket the boy had wrapped tightly around himself. "And it's all black, too."
Yuugi sat down next to her, reassured by how casual the woman was acting. The teen smiled gently at his yami and stroked his long hair.
Sugoroku joined them, sitting down next to his grandchildren and turning toward Isis. "What's wrong?" He asked, having not been informed yet. Noticing the red flush across his oldest grandson's face, he frowned and laid a hand on the boy's forehead. "Fever?"
"Yes." Isis confirmed. "Not the poison itself." Motioning for her brother to come over, Isis buried the annoying voice in her head telling her, 'Yes, but that doesn't really mean anything since the fever will speed up the effects of the poison...'
Malik walked obediently over and knelt down. "Yes?" He asked his sister.
"Get the water, will you?" Isis asked him, the blond Egyptian nodding at her words and standing back up to go fetch the requested item. A moment later he was back with it, and Isis poured a little onto a scarf and laid it across Yami's forehead.
/...Yami?/ Yuugi asked tentatively, feeling his dark's swirling emotions through their shared connection.
Yami opened his eyes again and turned his head slightly to make eye contact with his aibou, giving a weak smile. //I'm alright...// He assured, his mental voice soft but no longer pained as his physical one had been.
Yuugi pressed his lips together and blinked back tears. /... I'm sorry, Yami.../ He said softly. /I wish there was something I could do.../
//Don't be sorry, aibou...// Yami replied, reaching his hand up so Yuugi could take it. //This isn't your fault at all... And just being here helps.// The spirit added, smiling and look up into his other's eyes. After a few seconds, the smile slowly faded and he looked away. //... You're not going anywhere, are you?// He asked uncertainly.
Yuugi, surprised and shocked, tightened his grip on his yami's hand. /No, of course not!/ He exclaimed. /Yami, I'm not going anywhere, I promise! Why do you...?/
There was silence for a few seconds, until Yami finally spoke again, his voice quiet and sad. //...I'm just... I... I'm a little scared...//
Yuugi sniffled as tears ran down his face. He knew the others must be confused as to what was going on, but he didn't care. The boy put his arms around his dark, pulling him into his lap with no protest from Isis and neither Motou caring when the cloth slipped off Yami's head. /It's okay.../ Yuugi murmured softly. /It's going to be okay, don't be scared.../ The teen hugged his other close to him, rocking back and forth slowly. /It's okay.../
Tears fell from Yuugi's cheeks and landed on Yami's face, and Yuugi realized that his tears weren't the only being shed. His dark was crying too.
Giving a stifled sob, Yuugi spoke through their link again. /Yami... Don't cry... Don't cry... It'll be alright... Please don't cry.../ Yuugi sniffled and touched his forehead gently to his dark's. /Please don't cry.../
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: ... That wasn't how that was supposed to happen. *Hides under rock* Wah! I don't know what came over me with the angst! O.o
Anyway, please review and tell me how much you hated the chapter. XD
Borath: I had been waiting soooooo long to mess with Seto and Yami. And yes, they'll be looking at each other oddly now. *Giggles and rubs hands together* Glad you think that Mokuba was in character. ^_^ Now Yami, Sugoroku, Yuugi, Seto, and Mokuba are one big family. XD
Yesyes, you're right, my explanation is a little lacking. XD I had an idea, a long time ago... Eh, well, I make another to go into the rewrite. *Scribbles down on her list of things to add to the chapter's new version*
Hm... Your ideas about the cure are good. You're right, it shouldn't be something cliche... I'll have to try to think up something. ^_^ And I don't mind the criticism. It was helpful. ^_^
Heh, well, I've been itching to call Bekhura... Bekhura. Ever since I started using it. XD But it's not too different, just a different pronunciation. Not like in, say, Negative Chaos by High Crystal Guardian (I love that story. ^_^) where some of the names are totally different (Or in Hikari no Yuugi by Trinity Girls, which is also good mind you, where Yami B is called Kherik).
Thanks for the review. ^_^
Ryuujin Dragon King: Well, Bekhura is only a different pronunciation. ^_^
Well, Bekhura seemed older I thought, but then again, I've never been a great judge of age. XD So he could be Seth's age, I suppose. And as for Yami's name, well, it sure as heck ain't Bel Um Fal. XD That's only the Forbidden Memories name anyway... And apparently, the name itself isn't Egyptian. The 'Um' is supposed to mean 'Son of', I'm pretty sure, and well, Yami's father isn't named Fal. So it doesn't really work. ^_^ Don't worry, it's not gonna be Bel Um Fal.
Glad you like Pegasus and Shaadii, and that I included the cousins thing. It was fuuuuuun. And as for Ahondra, she's sort of there to tie into the storylines between Eien and Itsumo. You'll see waaaaaaay off in Itsumo. XD Glad you thought she was cute though. ^_^ Heh, I may have to include Malik's past with camels...
^_^ *Flattered* Sankyuu for the compliments. ^_^
ShadowSpirits: I found a good song for a darkship fic, but when I'm going to write it is to be decided. XD Eien, Itsumo, and Fumetsu are gonna take up all my chapter story time. Yuujou no Pazuru has almost been abandoned. XD And I'm in the NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month where you write a 50,000 word story in a month) contest-y thingy, so I'll be very busy for awhile. O.o
*Giggles* I'm not sure if the reason Bekhura's in the palace so often'll be revealed here in Eien, or in Itsumo. Oh well.
I mentioned to my friends about that you're working on a Bakura*Yami*Mariku story, and they all freaked out and wanted to read it. XD Thanks for the review. ^_^
Wingleader Sora Jade: Yay, glad you don't mind. And my Email sometimes is evil. >
Pegasus soooo counts as a bishounen. XD *Waves Pegasus flag*
Ooh, thanks for the info on the Valley. I knew it was a long ways south, but had no idea exactly how far. *Nodnod* Sankyuu, that helps a lot.
*Cough* Kill Yami? Wouldn't dream of it. It's not like I have before or anything. Though... Well, I dunno. Whether I do something to him or not *Evil smirk* he's in Fumetsu. So... Yeah. Don't ya' love out of character knowledge? ^_^ Thanks for the review.
bast4: Heh, not telling anything about Yami. Um... That's sorta' because I haven't decided everything yet. O.o So... Yeah.
Someone's actually interested in Ahondra? ^_^ *Happily spins in circles* Er... Well, yes, she has magic of her own. It's very different from the magic the others use, since it deals with something entirely separate. I just didn't want to include it for fear of turning her into a Mary Sue. XD A detailed bio thingy will be written of Ahondra soon for anyone who wants to read more about her.
Pegsy the nut is here because I wanted some more characters. XD No, actually, I wanted him here because he's a tie-in to so many different things, and he's a capable adult with a lot of background of everything they're doing.
Glad you like Mahaado and Mana in here. Sadly, I'd forgotten about Mahaado being in the story earlier for quite awhile. XD In the rewrite, he may show his face a little more. The duo'll be in the rest of the story, by the way. Now I just have to remember to include Mafdet all the time. XD
I was quite surprised when Yami and Seto being cousins was revealed in the manga. O.o I spent a few days running around and telling everyone who had any inkling about Yugioh, 'Ya know the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle that looks like Yuugi? Well, that's Yami. And ya' know Seto? Well, turns out, in their past lives they were cousins!'
Thanks for the review. ^_^
C.A: Shall do this response in parts. XD
19.) *Giggles* Glad you liked the sillyness of the chapter. I always wanted Yami to make puppy eyes at people. He'd be either oddly scary or oddly good at them. XD
20.) Yami, king of the stubborn is back in action. XD And Shaadii's here to stay, unless he pulls a 'Poof' and disappears. O.o
*Grin* Glad you liked the different parts in that chapter. I was amused by writing it. Especially the first scene with the old lady. XD And you're quite talented with the ands. XD
21.) Coolies, good you think Shaadii's in character. He's evil to write. XD And yeah, Ahondra as a little girl is WAY less loud and annoying as Ahondra as a teen. Silly brat. XD
*Laughs nervously* Mai always hides. >
Warnings: Cursing.
Disclaimer: Oh, come on. I don't own Yugioh. Happy, you silly lawyer-people?
Summary of Last time: There was much explaining. Hurray. XD
Preview of this Time: The group sets off.
Anyway, hope you enjoy. ^_^
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Eien; part 22
by: Amiasha
Isis looked at her map. "Alright, the Valley of the kings is about 150 miles away. We should get as close as possible before breaking off to head into the valley on camel and horseback." She said, and Shaadii, who was leaning over her shoulder, nodded his agreement.
The Egyptian man turned around to face Pegasus. "Pegasus, do you have anyway to get us close to the Valley?" He asked.
Pegasus shrugged. "I could probably rent us some cars or something." He said casually. "They may be the best choice." Pegasus shot a glance toward Yami, who was getting in a nap curled up in Yuugi's arms before they had to leave. Mafdet was curled up against Yami's side. "We want the least strenuous method. Does anything advance the poison?" The silvery haired American asked, catching Yuugi's attention who raised his head to listen.
Shaadii nodded. "Excessive stress, or use of magic will speed up the effects of the poison."
Pegasus pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. "Alright then. We'll need four cars, since there of 18 of us not including Ahondra, Mana, or Mahaado." He decided. He dialed a few numbers and put the phone up so he could talk.
"Malik." Isis called, drawing her brother's attention and causing the blond to trot over to her. "Please pack as much nonperishable food as possible, along with a lot of water. We don't know how long we'll be away from the house."
Malik nodded and beckoned toward Serenity, who was doing nothing, to follow and help him. The redhead obediently walked into the kitchen to help pack.
Sugoroku looked over at Yuugi. "Are you and Yami packed?" He asked, sitting down on the couch and brushing Yami's long bangs back.
"Yeah." Yuugi replied, glancing down at his dark for a moment before closing his eyes and taking a slow, deliberate breath.
"Yuugi?" Sugoroku asked. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"
Yuugi shook his head rapidly, blinking back tears. "No. Not anything new." He replied, softly running his fingers over Yami's cheek.
Sugoroku looked at him sadly. "Yuugi, have faith. Shaadii and Isis are optimistic. As long as we're very careful, there's a good chance we'll be able to save him. None of us will give up." He reassured his youngest grandson. "I even heard Bekhura talking to Malik about some sort of backup plan. Everyone's doing their best. Yami's never failed us, and we're not going to let him down either."
Yuugi smiled sadly, his spirits slightly lifted. "You're right." The boy said, nodding firmly. "Even with all the hopeless situations before, we're still here." He added. "Yet another man with a grudge that came out of nowhere isn't going to get the best of my yami, or any of the rest of us."
Sugoroku grinned. "That's what I like to hear, Yuugi."
Seto, silently listening to the conversation along with Mokuba, looked at his younger brother. "Well." He muttered. "What's your take?"
Mokuba grinned. "Aw, Seto, you know you're in." The raven haired boy giggled mischievously. "They're all family too, remember."
Seto frowned. "Please don't remind me." He said in annoyance, groaning and looking at the ceiling as if someone would hear him if he talked upward. "This is the worst day of my life."
Mokuba raised an eyebrow, smirking. "You lie. The worst day ever was that time you woke up and Joey had put gum in your hair. And Yami had drawn on your face. Speaking of which, he's a pretty good artist." The boy added thoughtfully.
The older blue eyed boy twitched, looking back at his brother. "I admit defeat. You're right. That was the worst day of my life."
Bekhura yawned, folding his arms and watching Ryou double-check their bags. "You already got the hairdryer." The dark muttered. "It's in the other bag."
"Oh." Ryou said. "Well, I guess it is." He paused for a moment. "Wait.... I was looking for that thing this morning and you knew it! You're such a.... A...."
"You can say it." Bekhura muttered, rolling his eyes. "Jackass, you were searching for?" He said, grinning sideways at his other.
Ryou glared. "It's not polite to swear, and you know it." He chastised. "And that was most certainly not the word I was looking for."
Bekhura tapped the side of his head with a long finger. "I'm psychic. At least about you. Remember?" He said, grinning.
Ryou looked at the spirit, and simply flipped him off before going back to packing.
Bekhura stared, dumbfounded.
Mahaado twirled his staff idly, watching his Pharaoh sleep quietly in Yuugi's arms. The blue eyed magician sighed and glanced over at Mana, who was sitting sidesaddle on her staff, bouncing up and down, staring put the window and humming to herself.
"Mana." Mahaado said.
The blond girl looked up. "Yeah-huh?" She asked cutely, kicking her legs.
Mahaado opened his mouth to tell her to stop humming, and found that he couldn't bring himself to. He just shook his head. "Sorry. Nothing." He said.
Mana smiled at him, but her smile was soft and somewhat sad. Mahaado could tell the girl was covering her worry under her happy face.
Mana jumped off her staff and floated over to Mahaado. She gave him a hug around the waist and then bounded off into the kitchen, leaving Mahaado to blink after her.
Mai twisted her hair on one finger as she searched her bag for cooler clothes. "Perfect." She said cheerfully, pulling out the white spaghetti strap tank top she'd bought on her shopping excursion a few days before. She ran off into the bathroom to change.
Ryuuji threw a die up and down, watching it spin in the air lazily before catching it. He yawned, both bored and anxious, and looked over at Tristan, who was next to him. The brown haired boy was nervously nibbling on the end of what seemed to be a cookie or cracker. Ryuuji didn't really care. He sighed and decided to go help Malik and Serenity in the kitchen. After all, while they were in a bad position, a girl was a girl.
Tristan noticing what Ryuuji was doing and apparently reading his mind, sprang up and ran after the black haired teen.
Tea sat on the armchair, deep in thought, and Joey sat crosslegged on the floor. The two exchanged glances for a moment, before both looking away and sighing. Tea, very depressed by the recent events, blinked back a few tears and put her face in her hands, sighing again softly. Joey lifted his head at the sound, and glanced back up at Tea. "Hey, it'll be okay. Don't worry 'bout it, Tea." He said, smiling. "In about fifteen minutes or so, we're gonna get going, and hopefully have Yami well again by tonight."
"Yeah, you're right." Tea responded, returning Joey's smile. "We can do it."
Joey gave her the thumbs up.
Isis stepped out into the center of the room, and clapped her hands together softly, trying to gain everyone's attention without waking Yami. "Everyone, we're going to be leaving for the Valley as soon as the jeeps Pegasus called get here. You all need to be ready to go."
The group nodded, putting on shoes and making last minute runs to the bathroom. Yuugi carefully shook his dark's shoulder. /Yami? Wake up, we're gonna' have to go./ He said softly.
After a few seconds of waiting, Yami's eyes opened slightly and he looked up at Yuugi, somewhat annoyed. Sitting up weakly, he steadied himself with the help of Yuugi and the two stood up. Yami glanced around the room, reorienting himself and accounting for everyone. Mafdet swished her tail, annoyed that her comfy spot had been disrupted, and stalked off to ride on Tristan's shoulder.
An annoying ringtone singing a tune that sounded suspiciously like a cartoon theme song made everyone jump in surprise.
"Pegasus!" Joey said in annoyance as the white haired man grinned and pulled out his cell phone again, flipping it open. After a few moments of talking, Pegasus looked up at the whole group.
"The cars are waiting outside." He announced cheerily. "Let's get this going." And with that, he skipped out the front door without a care in the world.
"He is a really strange guy." Malik remarked, rolling his eyes.
"Very much so." Bekhura agreed, turning and walking over toward Yuugi and Yami. "Well, we're off." He commented to the other spirit.
Yami nodded his head, and smirked. "Whether that's a good thing or we'll all die in the desert will be seen." He replied dryly, taking a few shaky steps toward the door as Yuugi chased after him worriedly.
"Uh-uh." Joey chastised the older of the Motou boys, stalking over to join the trio.
Yami gave him a bored look. "What?" He asked exasperatedly.
"Weren't ya' evesdroppin' on Pegasus and Shaadii? No, wait, you were asleep." Joey said, looking contemplative. He snapped out of his state of thought a moment later. "You ain't supposed to do too much."
Yami just looked at him, tilting his head with an expression that screamed, 'And your point...?'
"And," Joey added, catching the look the spirit was giving him. "I don't think you should really be walkin' any more 'den you have to."
The shorter teen sighed. "I'll be FINE, Joey." He said, fixing his eyes onto the blond's brown ones and trying to look determined while he was barely strong enough to stand up.
After a few seconds, Yami realized that must not have worked since Joey simply picked him up around the knees and slung him over his shoulder, carrying him out to the cars with much loud protesting.
Yuugi giggled, feeling a little better. He looked at Bekhura who was smirking, and Sugoroku who was also looking amused from over by the couch.
"We're going back into the Shadow Realm." Mana told the group, floating up and down on her staff. "We'll come back out once we're near the Valley."
Yuugi nodded to her and Mahaado to show that he'd heard and the magicians disappeared, Mahaado without a trace and Mana with a swirl of glitter.
The remaining group that hadn't already gone to the cars grabbed up their bags and headed out. Shaadii turned to Ahondra. "I trust you'll guard the other tombs while we're at the Valley?"
Ahondra grinned. "Of course Shaadii." She said cheerfully. "You can count on me." The blond girl gave the thumbs up and disappeared in a cloud of mist.
Shaadii just smiled and shook his head, and walked out the door.
****************
"I'm bored."
"I'm tired."
"I'm hot."
"I'm dying. So all of you shut the hell up."
Yuugi sighed and buried his face in his hands. He, Joey, Yami, Ryuuji, and Tristan were all in the car together, plus Mafdet who was free of her cat carrier. Tristan was driving, since he was the only one the other boys trusted behind the wheel of a car. Joey was a bad driver. And Ryuuji was a speed demon.
Yami was to Yuugi's left, sleepily looking out the window. Joey in the passenger' seat, bouncing hyperly in place. Ryuuji was to Yuugi's right, yapping incessantly. Tristan, thankfully, was paying attention to the road.
The spirit gave an annoyed look at the others. "We really should have swapped Joey and Ryuuji out for the tomb robber and Bakura. They're quieter." He muttered.
"Yeah, but Yami B gets motion sick." Joey remarked. "'Dat's why he's wit' Kaiba. Let Kaiba deal wit' it." The blond said devilishly.
Yami sighed and laid his head against the window. It'd be at least two and half hours before they were close enough to switch to camels and horses. Two and a half hours of Joey, Tristan, and Ryuuji, all in the car. Together. 'Why do you hate me so?' Yami asked any god that was listening, pulling his jacket tighter around his shoulders.
Yuugi leaned against the back of the seat, thinking along the same lines as his dark. He loved his friends, but there was only so much a boy could take. The stress of the past few days had been affecting Yuugi harder than anyone seemed to realized. Attacks by a new enemy, traveling, and being informed that the person he loved like his brother was most likely going to die were not really good for his mental health, Yuugi figured. Then again, he had a long way to go to be as insane as a few members of the group. Though it probably wasn't too far if his train of thought was devolving in the way it was.
Over in the next car, Bekhura was having similar problems. Only, oddly enough, his problems were named Seto, Pegasus, and Shaadii.
Pegasus was annoying. He talked. A lot. About everything, but mostly Funny Bunny. That made Seto want to strangle him in his sleep.
Every time Seto would reach to kill Pegasus, while driving, Shaadii would stop him, and give a lecture. That sent Pegasus inevitably into another conversation. And brought the circle around.
The only person in the car Bekhura didn't want to kill at the moment was Mokuba; he was squished between the white haired spirit and Pegasus. The black haired boy was sweatdropping, and he and Bekhura kept exchanging sympathetic glances.
//Ryou, I'm going to kill everyone in the car besides Mokuba. He'll be the only survivor.// Bekhura muttered through the link to his other. //Next time we stop for one of the girls to go to the bathroom, which shouldn't be too long knowing girls, I'm switching with you. You get stuck with these idiots.//
/You don't want to be in my car, either./ Ryou responded. /Malik and Sugoroku are arguing, and poor Rishid looks like he's going to keel over./
//What's wrong with Rishid?// Bekhura asked.
/Oh, I just don't think he can stand Malik's screeching in an enclosed space for a long period of time./ Ryou answered casually. /Your friend really does sound annoying when he gets mad. His voice gets all high pitched and whiny, a lot like Joey's did when you stepped on his foot a few weeks ago./
Bekhura grinned. //That was funny.//
Back in his car, Ryou sighed loudly.
Over with the girls, Isis was driving because Serenity had told her that Mai had nearly run her and Ryuuji over once. So Serenity was in the passenger seat, and Tea and Mai were in the back.
"It's good being one of the girls." Mai said cheerfully. "We're not all packed in like the boys' cars."
The golden blond and Tea exchanged high fives as Serenity giggled.
Isis smiled and spared a glance at the other girls. "Remember," She said, "This'll probably be your last chance to get any sleep or anything else like that. It'll be a few hours until we're close to the Valley of the Kings. We'll pass through Luxor and cross over the Nile, then once we get into Thebes we'll switch to camels to get into the Valley itself."
Tea nodded. "Great. Thanks." She said, smiling. "In that case, I'm sleeping some more. Who knows what we'll have to deal with, and I'm NOT interesting in sitting here awake for the two hours or so It'll take to get to Thebes." The brunette leaned back and shut her eyes.
"Ditto." Mai added, doing the same. Serenity however seemed interested in watching the scenery and talking to Isis more than sleeping.
"Egypt is so beautiful." The redhead commented, staring in awe out the window. "Everything's so gold."
"Yes, Egypt is very stunning." Isis agreed, smiling. "The Nile is lovely too. You'll get a chance to see it later."
Serenity grinned at her then returned her attention out the window.
In Ryou's car, the white haired boy was desperately wishing he'd brought some headphones and a CD player. The constant bickering was driving him nuts. He didn't even know what the original argument was about. All he could hear now was the incoherent screech of Malik's voice.
Rishid, meanwhile, seemed almost drunk, the car swerving back and forth on the road uncertainly. 'You'd think he'd be used to Malik by now...' Ryou thought in annoyance. 'I, for one, would rather not be killed for any reason by any member of the Ishtar family... But what can I do to stop this?'
All of a sudden, Malik shut up. Everyone looked at him as the blond started coughing. A few minutes later, Malik gave them all a shaky grin and said plainly, "I swallowed a bug."
Ryou sighed loudly.
*************
"D'aww, they're so cute." Joey remarked, grinning as he looked at Yuugi and Yami who were both asleep, heads against each others and Yuugi with his arms around his dark.
Tristan glanced into the rearview mirror and laughed. "Ever let them hear you say that and they'll both kill you, ill or not." He commented, earning a grin from Ryuuji and a fake pout from Joey.
The blond let his gaze linger on the nearly identical boys for another moment and sighed, turning his attention back out the windshield. Now somewhat subdued, Joey looked over at Tristan. "What time's it?" He asked.
Tristan glared at him for a second. "There's a clock on the dashboard, Joey." He reminded in annoyance, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, right." Joey said, laughing nervously. He checked aforementioned clock, which read 11:43am. Doing some quick math, Joey yawned in boredom. "Damn, these drives take foreva'. Still another 45 minutes before we even get to... Where was it Isis said? Luxor?"
"Yeah." Ryuuji spoke up, petting Mafdet who was curled up on his lap. "We'll cross from Luxor to Thebes, which may actually be one big city, I think." The black haired boy look confused for a moment. "I thought that Luxor and Thebes were pretty much the same city, just split by the Nile. The Valley of the Kings is around Thebes... Somewhere."
Joey turned around in his gray leather seat again. "How do ya' know 'dis stuff?" He asked.
Ryuuji shrugged. "I'm just more worldly than you." He answered casually.
"Ha." Joey responded, rolling his eyes. "I'd take a swing at ya' if I weren't worried I'd hit Yuug'."
Ryuuji cocked an eyebrow. "Where'd that nickname come from anyway? Too lazy to say his full name or something? And if so, how come you don't shorted Yami's name to something annoying?"
Joey smirked at him. "Actually, I have called Yami 'Annoying' before. He hit me afterwards." The blond added, looking pensive.
Ryuuji snorted in amusement, and so did Tristan.
"Oh, I remember that." The spiky haired brunette commented. "Even Kaiba was laughing."
That sent Joey into another thought. "Ya' know... It's kinda' creepy thinkin' Yami and Kaiba are RELATED. And not distantly, eitha'..." He mused.
"Yeah, I know what you mean." Tristan agreed. "It's almost like a bad soap opera; long-lost cousins. I bet we could get onto that American talk show... What was it? Montel?" He asked, laughing. "That's so strange... All that time we all knew each other..."
"Mokuba sure was happy." Ryuuji added. "Must've been nice for him. He didn't have any family besides his brother."
Joey nodded. "Yeah." He said. "Yuugi was happy too. He's always liked Mokuba, and for some odd reason Kaiba too." The teen put his hands behind his head and turned back forward, leaning back against the seat. "That'll be weird, back at home."
Ryuuji snorted. "Assuming any of us ever get to go home, let alone all of us." He muttered, leaning back as well.
Joey yet again turned around, glaring at the black haired boy. "Yer such a pessimist." He said, more of a hiss than anything else.
"I am not." Ryuuji countered, sitting back up straight. "I'm just being realistic. Assuming any of us survive this endeavor, Yami may not be coming back with us anyway."
Joey growled loudly. "Stop the damn car, Tristan." He ordered. "I don't want us to crash when I strangle 'dis jerk."
Tristan raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You're SERIOUS!?" He asked. "Joey, he's not done anything worth seriously fighting over. It's not as if he's wishing any harm to anyone, he's just stating a possibility."
"I don't care." Joey spat, his temper flaring up from the implications of Ryuuji's earlier statement. The blond knew it was a possibility something would happen to them, and even more possible they wouldn't find a cure for Yuugi's other, but hearing it actually said caused him to get very upset.
Seemingly sensing the negative emotions swirling in the small area, Yami stirred. His large indigo eyes fluttered open, and he looked around dazedly at the angry faces of Joey and Ryuuji. Straightening slowly, Yami put a hand to his head and gave a sound akin to a whimper.
Joey's attention immediately went to the spirit, earlier animosity towards Ryuuji forgotten. "Yami?" He asked worriedly. "You okay? What's wrong?"
Leaning against the seat and letting his head fall back, Yami took a shuddering breath and pressed his fingers harder into his forehead. "Dizzy..." He said faintly.
At his dark's movements, Yuugi also stirred. Waking much faster than the spirit, Yuugi opened his eyes and blinked rapidly to reorient himself. Noticing his yami next to him, Yuugi got concerned again. "Yami?" He asked.
Yami didn't seem to hear him, his eyes having shut tightly again and apparently trying to drive the fingers of his left hand through his head as if self inflicted pain would cause the other pain to go away. His other arm was wrapped around his stomach, and the spirit's breathing had become rapid and heavy.
This time, Tristan did stop the car. He pulled over to the side of the road, knowing that Seto, who's car was behind them, would stop as well and the CEO would call the girls' car with his cell phone to tell them to stop and turn around.
"What's wrong?" Yuugi asked his dark frantically, scooting into Ryuuji's now empty seat and carefully pulling the spirit down to lay across the seats.
"Dizzy..." Yami repeated, his voice weak and laced with heavy breaths. "Gods..." He murmured as Yuugi gently took his hand away from his forehead. "Why does it hurt so badly so suddenly...?"
"I-I don't know." Yuugi stammered, near tears again.
Seto got out of his car, slamming the driver's door shut. "What the hell's going on?" He snapped in annoyance. "Why are you stopped?"
Bekhura followed shortly afterward, looking a little pale from the car ride but otherwise just confused.
Joey shook his head. "Waiting for Isis to get here. Called her, I assume?" He asked Seto, oddly enough his accent becoming less prominent in his worry.
"Yes." Seto answered. "Why?" He repeated.
The blond shook his head again. "Don't know. Yami's worse again." He replied shortly, glancing back over his shoulder where Tristan was hovering by Ryuuji, who seemed to be cursing near the car.
A few seconds later, the girls' car pulled up and stopped. Isis stepped out in confusion. "What's wrong?" She asked.
Joey lead her towards their car, where Yuugi looked up when he noticed the Egyptian woman. "Isis!" Yuugi exclaimed. "Please be able to help..." He half prayed and half pleaded.
Isis furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Yami, reaching out and touching him on the forehead. He expression changed from fear to slight relief as she did so.
"What?" Yuugi asked, his tone hopeful at Isis's expression.
"Here, let's get him out of the car. His fever's gone up, that's the problem, not the poison itself. That's good news." Isis explained, motioning for Yuugi to get out of the car. He did so, and the Egyptian woman simply gathered Yami in her arms and carried him out of the car, the alarmed spirit opening his eyes and clinging to her nervously. Yuugi almost laughed at his dark's bug eyed expression, a sharp contrast to the spirit's previous one, had he not been so worried.
Isis set Yami down in her lap, the last car having arrived and it's occupants piling out. "You really shouldn't be wearing all this leather." She chastised gently, pulling off the blue jacket the boy had wrapped tightly around himself. "And it's all black, too."
Yuugi sat down next to her, reassured by how casual the woman was acting. The teen smiled gently at his yami and stroked his long hair.
Sugoroku joined them, sitting down next to his grandchildren and turning toward Isis. "What's wrong?" He asked, having not been informed yet. Noticing the red flush across his oldest grandson's face, he frowned and laid a hand on the boy's forehead. "Fever?"
"Yes." Isis confirmed. "Not the poison itself." Motioning for her brother to come over, Isis buried the annoying voice in her head telling her, 'Yes, but that doesn't really mean anything since the fever will speed up the effects of the poison...'
Malik walked obediently over and knelt down. "Yes?" He asked his sister.
"Get the water, will you?" Isis asked him, the blond Egyptian nodding at her words and standing back up to go fetch the requested item. A moment later he was back with it, and Isis poured a little onto a scarf and laid it across Yami's forehead.
/...Yami?/ Yuugi asked tentatively, feeling his dark's swirling emotions through their shared connection.
Yami opened his eyes again and turned his head slightly to make eye contact with his aibou, giving a weak smile. //I'm alright...// He assured, his mental voice soft but no longer pained as his physical one had been.
Yuugi pressed his lips together and blinked back tears. /... I'm sorry, Yami.../ He said softly. /I wish there was something I could do.../
//Don't be sorry, aibou...// Yami replied, reaching his hand up so Yuugi could take it. //This isn't your fault at all... And just being here helps.// The spirit added, smiling and look up into his other's eyes. After a few seconds, the smile slowly faded and he looked away. //... You're not going anywhere, are you?// He asked uncertainly.
Yuugi, surprised and shocked, tightened his grip on his yami's hand. /No, of course not!/ He exclaimed. /Yami, I'm not going anywhere, I promise! Why do you...?/
There was silence for a few seconds, until Yami finally spoke again, his voice quiet and sad. //...I'm just... I... I'm a little scared...//
Yuugi sniffled as tears ran down his face. He knew the others must be confused as to what was going on, but he didn't care. The boy put his arms around his dark, pulling him into his lap with no protest from Isis and neither Motou caring when the cloth slipped off Yami's head. /It's okay.../ Yuugi murmured softly. /It's going to be okay, don't be scared.../ The teen hugged his other close to him, rocking back and forth slowly. /It's okay.../
Tears fell from Yuugi's cheeks and landed on Yami's face, and Yuugi realized that his tears weren't the only being shed. His dark was crying too.
Giving a stifled sob, Yuugi spoke through their link again. /Yami... Don't cry... Don't cry... It'll be alright... Please don't cry.../ Yuugi sniffled and touched his forehead gently to his dark's. /Please don't cry.../
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: ... That wasn't how that was supposed to happen. *Hides under rock* Wah! I don't know what came over me with the angst! O.o
Anyway, please review and tell me how much you hated the chapter. XD