Chapter Ten folks, we hit double digits! Hooray for America! Land that I
love! Anyshizit, Rena and Seto are back with more demon dueling madness!
Seto: Shut up!
Oh yeah, you guys weren't supposed to know that! Oh well. But hey, I feel
like a spokesperson, so I'm going to advertise the story, Silver Lilacs by
Tears of Pluto. Ya know why? Because my beautiful Rena is in it! (And
also the fact that Tears of Pluto is a wonderfully talented author with
expertise varying from writing to poetry.) But yes, Rena is making her way
into the world! And Silver Lilacs is a good story, I say this in sooth.
(In sooth, that sounds so cool.)
But yeah, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!
+~+~+~+~
"They hadn't really spoken to each other for a while, that much was obvious," Yuugi decided to himself. Rena was sprawled across his couch, her nose buried in a book by a "colleague" friend of hers. It was about the female pharaohs, Nefertari, Nefertiti, Hatshepsut, and Cleopatra. She had been reading for six hours straight. The rest of them were busy doing homework, and every so often Honda would poke Jou in the ribs and ask him a question that neither of them really had an answer to. Then, Rena would sigh and sit up and help them along with the answer, then turn back to her book and continue reading. Yuugi sighed, a flashback of yesterday crawling into his mind.
+~+~+~+~
A blue Mercedes-Benz screeching up to the driveway with Rena behind the wheel, a radio or CD wailing at full volume. She cut the transmission, sliding out of the car into the shop. It was about six o'clock, and the whole gang had come over for dinner at his house. She had politely declined the invitation to eat with them, declaring that she had had enough testosterone intakes to last her a thousand lives in a single afternoon. They all pretty much had a clue who she was talking about, and didn't press the issue. However, she did stay the night with them, sleeping on the couch in the clothes she had wore that evening. Anzu lent her some of her own clothes, but being a little taller than Anzu, the shirt rose just a little above her stomach, and the pants hung low (she had pulled them down so they wouldn't ride up in the back).
+~+~+~+~
And now here they were, sitting in the living room, while Sugoroku swept the house, when the doorbell rang.
Rena looked at it, glowering at the prospect of just who it might be, when Sugoroku opened the door cheerfully.
"Hello-Edward!" he cried, stepping back to let the Professor in the room. Rena and the Professor exchanged a glance, curious as to the other's presence. Yuugi and his friends just looked confused.
"Professor!" Rena shouted, wrapping him in a friendly hug, "I'm so glad to see you!"
"We certainly do bump into each other don't we?" He chuckled. She turned to the group introducing everyone to the Professor. Even Yuugi was a little bewildered.
"Grandpa, I didn't know you had connections with archaeologists," he gawped.
Sugoroku chortled a bit, "Yuugi, I have connections all over the place."
"Why didn't I know about them?"
"Your old grandpa's entitled to his little secrets isn't he?" Yuugi frowned on that last statement, and sat down, scowling into his book. The two old friends walked to the back of the store, already starting to engage in a conversation centered mainly on Egypt and its history.
Yuugi walked to the front of the store, overtly disgruntled at what his grandpa had said about secrets, and sighed when Seto Kaiba walked in the door, a look of distaste plastered onto his face.
He sighed to himself, "The day just keeps getting better."
Seto looked down at Yuugi, "Is Rena here?"
"She's been here since last night."
"I'd be grateful if you got her for me."
Yuugi stopped, turned, and stared at Kaiba, who was just sitting there, a genuine smile playing at his face. His jaw dropped, that man wasn't grateful for anything; Yuugi doubted he had any sense of appreciation at all. But he refrained from saying anything, and went in to get Rena.
"Rena."
The only acknowledgement he received was her ears pricking up, a funny trait that made her seem more human. The book lowered, revealing her twin amethyst eyes. "Um-hum?"
"You have a visitor."
"Oh really?" She sat up and stretched her arms over her head, arching her back a little as she did so. She stood up and sauntered to the door, hesitating as she laid her hand on the table. "Well.oh, screw it." She opened the door and strode into the shop itself.
Seto was sitting in a chair, examining a new Tribute rulebook when she walked in. He looked up and smiled at her. "Hey, you ever going to come home?"
"I'll think about it." She looked at him, something creeping into her mind. He stood and embraced her fully in his arms, and laughed.
"Are you okay?" She held him back at arm's length and examined him. He certainly didn't look all right. He was paler than usual; his eyes didn't seem as calculating or lonely, they were just.empty.
"I'm fine," he brought her back into his arms. "Now, can we go home?"
"I wanted to hang around with Yuugi and his friends for a little while longer," she looked at him again, noticing something flash behind those cold eyes.
"I'd rather you went home with me. Now," he added.
"Now you at least sound like yourself," she chuckled, but still stepped away uncertainly. He didn't seem right; maybe he'd been drinking. "No, that can't be it," she thought, "He's twice as sarcastic drunk."
The sky darkened over outside and she began to see a light drizzle sprinkle onto the sidewalk.
"Of course I'm myself, and I want to go home." He looked at her, "It's been a long day."
"Obviously," the rain started to come down harder, pelting passersby, forcing them to shelter. Several people rushed into the shop, and Rena recognized one of them as the woman she nearly ran over earlier. She felt Megami stir. Seto gripped her arm a little too tightly, "Let's go!"
She looked at him; fear clouding over her eyes in black dots as both she and Megami realized just what was going on. "Oh. My. God."
She looked out the window and saw a familiar limousine pulling up to the shop, and an all too familiar man step out of it. Seto walked in the store, accompanied by Mokuba, shaking water from his hair. He looked at Rena, then his twin, and back at Rena, a look of panic sweeping his features before going cool and knowing.
"So, the Daughter of Set is all too willing to make the same mistake twice." He shrugged his shoulders, "All right." But he fell to the floor with a thud as the red-haired woman smacked him down with her bag.
"Lousy human," she spat. She picked him up and drop kicked him through the main display window as if he were a rag doll.
Everything went to chaos after that. People ran screaming in a state of hysteria, flooding out the store into the street and anywhere else to escape this terror.
Yuugi raced out the door, caught in the tide of people with Rena. Jou, Honda, and even Yami sprinted as well to Seto's side, just as the two demons stepped out.
The red-haired woman smirked, and threw up her hands. A shadow came over both her and Seto's twin, molding the shapes so that when it dispersed, the two that withdrew were completely different people.
"Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Noriyuki," the woman pointed to herself. She still resembled a human, but her hair had gone long and silver, and her eyes remained the same shade of misty green. She was cloaked in thick, black robes, trailing to her feet, an emerald diadem holding them in place. She carried a small crook, with a tiny crystal at the end, and pointed to her demon companion. "This is Jaaku, my sweet little pet."
"Pet?" Jou croaked, "What do you mean pet?" Rena couldn't help but agree. The monster was five feet tall with hide the color of yellow bile, several olive green stripes running jagged down its back. Its eyes were dark and rimmed in red, bloodshot and thirsty, saliva dripping from it long jowl. It supported itself on two strong hind legs, and stood erect. It would have a resembled tyrannosaurus if its front arms hadn't dragged down to its waist. The creature swung them brutally, knocking over anyone who managed to get into its path. It laughed coarsely, and the demon witch gave it a gentle pat on the head.
"Of course he's my pet. Isn't he precious?" she laughed, "Now Jaaku, let's get our bounty." She pointed at Rena with her staff, "Kill the goddess and all her companions!"
Jounochi, Honda, and Yami stood up in front of Rena, shielding both her and Seto.
Noriyuki held her crook pointed at Yami's head, "Kenjet dusorium." A ball of golden energy emerged from the top of her wand and let it go at Yami. Jou and Honda jumped to the side, but Yami crossed his arms over his head. "Shield of Sekhmet," he cried.
A thin, crystalline shield visualized in front of him, deflecting the attack to the heavens. "We won't let you come near our goddess!" He shouted. The rain poured in sheets, drenching everyone; Rena stood up, striding beside him.
She laid a hand on his shoulder, "I will take care of Noriyuki, you, Jounochi, and Honda take care of the demon."
"Goddess I cannot." He protested, but she silenced him.
"Yes, you will." She let Megami take over her body, letting the coat fall to the ground and saw her hair dripping to her feet like water. The mark of Horus glimmered on her forehead, signifying the transformation's completion. She turned to face Noriyuki, who was preparing for another blast. "I am your new opponent, and you will not fare so well with me!" Pearl blue wings sprouted from her back, and with a swift beat, she was airborne above the demon witch.
"Oh, this will be fun," Noriyuki cackled, growing her own black dragon wings and meeting Rena in the air.
On the ground, Jounochi and Honda had picked themselves up and were standing face to face with the demon Jaaku. Jou and Honda charged first and like lightning Jaaku swung his powerful arms, throwing them both back. Honda picked himself up first and rushed at Jaaku, dodging the first arm as it came for his head, and kicking away the second, but wasn't expecting the monster to bring up one of its legs and swipe him across the face. He flew back, three long rakes down his cheek. He lay prone, until he sat up, coughing blood.
"Honda!" Yami cried, running over to his companion. He was twisting in convulsions, sputtering blood over himself. Yami helped him to roll over, to which he promptly threw up on the ground.
Coughing, he sputtered, "That thing.it's so powerful. We can't beat it."
"Yes, we can," Yami said assuredly, "If we work together."
/Yes, use your feeble powers of friendship to defeat me./
Yami looked over to the demon, which was smiling insanely, "So you can speak."
/Through the mind./ The demon let out a husky cough, which Yami figured to be a laugh. It lumbered toward them, arms swinging viciously. Yami put up his arms as the Sekhmet Shield appeared in front of him. Jaaku's arms pounded on it relentlessly but the immortal safeguard kept. Yami smirked from behind it. As one of Jaaku's arms ricocheted off the shield again, he called for it to disperse and dodged Jaaku's arms, landing his fist in the demon's belly. He called, "Dark Devastation!" His hand lit up, and a black orb launched from it, piercing the demon's gut.
Jaaku lurched back, holding his abdomen, green blood dripping from the wound.
Jou curled his face in repugnance, "Now that is just nauseous." But despite his disgust, he ran at the demon, swinging his left leg around in a mighty blow to the demon's skull. "Take that, you lump of snot!"
Yami snickered, "It looks as though the tables have turned."
Fear flashed in Jaaku's eyes, /No!/
Jounochi grinned, "Oh yeah, me and Yuugi, er, Yami are gonna wipe the floor wit ya."
Honda stood up, "And I'm not being left out of the picture either."
The three stood up, Jounochi and Honda on either side of Yami. Both of the boys laid a hand on Yami's shoulder, and the mark of Horus shone on all three of their foreheads. "Now you will witness all our strengths!" Yami shouted. "Dark Annihilation!"
An orb of dark energy formed, growing in size, aimed straight at Jaaku. Jounochi and Honda threw up a hand, directing their own attacks into Yami's, increasing its power. It glowed a bright mix of gold, black, and violet. It launched with all the power of a streamline train for Jaaku. The demon was swallowed in its light, dying before he even had a chance to scream his farewell, all that remained a smothering pile of lifeless ash.
Noriyuki looked down from her battle with Rena, and watched her companion die. "Jaaku, no!" she screamed.
"It looks like your pet wasn't as strapping as you had previously imagined," Rena taunted.
"You and all your associates will die," she spat.
"Like yours?" she asked innocently.
Noriyuki let out a bloodcurdling scream, and charged for Rena. Rena swept out of the way on her pearl blue wings, and spun to meet Noriyuki, who was advancing again.
Watch this, she said to Rena who was watching from the inside, and threw her hands in the air. "Dark Shadow Sniper!" An ebony bow appeared in her hand, a garnet arrow forming in the other. "Take this!" She cried, pulling the bow taut and letting the arrow fly at the charging Noriyuki. The arrow struck the imp through the heart and with a scream that could have matched the call of a furious siren, fell hurtling to the ground. There was a crunch as her wings broke from the impact and retracted back into her body. She struggled to her knees, while Rena descended to the earth as well, her pale blue wings fluttering softly as they slid into her back. Noriyuki coughed as she stood up to her full height, wrenching the arrow from her chest, spitting blood onto the pavement. Fully standing, she launched a vicious assault, thousands of dark energy waves coming from her staff in dark ripples. Several caught Rena before she provided her own shield. Yami surrounded his shield to everyone else, covering them in its glass-like case.
"Megami, stop! That's enough!" he cried. The ground crumbled beneath her feet, erupting in an earthquake line for Noriyuki. The sorceress put her arms up as the wave knocked her flat into the ground with no room for breath. Yami was struggling to keep the shield contained around everyone as Rena, no not Rena, but Megami continued her pursuit. Her eyes darted from her friends to Noriyuki, and then suddenly pulled back her berserk attack all at once. Everything stopped, the only sound being the drumming of the rain on the ground.
"I see you have no will left to fight," Noriyuki crowed. Her staff was pointed at Ryou's head; who was standing by the window, looking to join the fight. "No," he whispered.
"You can't do this!" Yami shouted above the rain.
"Watch me," she screeched. Her crystal glowed a dark green, and fired an emerald blast at Ryou, who threw up his hands over his head, screaming, "NO!"
"Ryou!" Rena cried, taking their body back, as she ran up to face Noriyuki. Without Megami to give her the extra height, she was a full six inches shorter. "You can't do this!"
"Oh really?" She said, amused, "Whatever makes you say that?"
"I'll kill you!"
"Will you little goddess? Or will you run into a corner of your head, and let someone else fight your battles for you?"
"No, I won't let you chastise me anymore!" She pulled the stone tablet from out of the air, "Horus Damnation! Nach anket rew geter hesf, beshest rechterty, Ma'at geth benun onisu preshyu! Amun Re werty!" This time the immortal fire burst from the tablet in the form of a hawk, swooping down on Noriyuki. No magic would save her this time as she became engulfed in the fire, her skin sweltering and scorching. With one burning hand, she grabbed Ryou by the collar of his sweater, dragging him into the flame, and then the two fell through a pit Noriyuki had sprung from the ground.
The two disappeared, leaving the flames to disperse.
"No! No! No!" Rena screamed and cried, pounding on the ground with her fists, yelling and cursing Set's name. "You won't get away with this. I won't let you hurt him! I swear to Isis I'll save you Ryou! I swear." She sniffled, then stood, turning back to the group.
Jounochi and Honda were supporting themselves, and starting to make their way inside, and Yuugi was trying to help pry a limp Yami off the ground. Seto was beginning to wake up, dizzy still from Noriyuki's attack. He grabbed his head, and turned to her.
"What happened?" he asked. "Where'd she go?"
"She's gone," Rena sighed, "As well Ryou Bakura with her." She balled her fists and bit her lip, bending down to help him up.
Yuugi had brought Yami back into partial consciousness and was taking him inside as well.
The store was a mess. The havoc of the attacks and onrushing people left racks splayed across the floor, books lying scattered, their pages torn and tattered, the windows lying in broken shards along the floor. Duel Monsters cards were everywhere, and the doors were blown open, and everything was soaked or torn or damaged beyond repair. Turtle Game Shop was ruined.
Anzu was lying on the floor in a faint, Mokuba sitting beside her, brushing pieces of glass off her body.
"She was hit by the broken glass," he reported, "And when she saw the demon, she fell. Like this," he threw his hands over his forehead in a dramatic gesture, pretending to fall to the ground.
"Anzu," Yuugi gasped, but refrained from helping her, for fear Yami would fall. Jounochi picked her up and laid her on the couch in the opposite room. They all sat there, unwilling to speak, until Rena just stood up and looked at all of them.
"The game has begun. Seto and I leave tomorrow for Egypt. Set's Daughter is willing to take any life, at any cost. She may have already." Her fists balled into her sides, her knuckles going white. "And then all of us will go to Egypt. Everyone. There is something we must investigate."
The tomb of the unknown pharaoh. Megami murmured, and then slipped away underneath an ocean of emotion.
Megami! Rena cried, but as well was drug underneath the waves of their abyss. She fell sprawled across the floor, the last thing she heard being, Seto. "Strange," she murmured.
+~+~+~+~
"Megami," she cried, searching through her mind. She had created a pretty realistic image of an engulfing fog, and it was clouding up into her lungs, making it hard for her to breathe. "Megami!" she choked.
She heard a faint rustle, a soft lapping as she neared the edge of the fog. It grew louder every step she took, until the roar of it rung in her ears. It was an ocean, vast and expansive, looming before the cliff she was on. She knew Megami was out there in that ocean, but had no clue where. She saw a dot of light ahead, a lighthouse! She thought to run to it, before realizing if she did, it'd be the same thing as signing her own death certificate.
But a voice crooned, "Jump, jump into that abyss. It's so much better to be alone. Jump, you can do it, and you'll be so much happier."
"But if I jump," she thought, "And I'm alone, what will happen to all my friends."
"They will be alone."
"I don't want to abandon them!" she cried.
"You're not, you never will. You swore to Isis that. But isn't better to be alone? Jump.jump."
She edged nearer the cliff's edge, the voice grew, "Yes, come on, you're so much closer to freedom! Jump."
Her feet were on the very edge, and still it encouraged her to leap from the verge into that ocean. The light flickered, burning into a dark green, and it came toward her. The voice called from the light, "Jump.alone is where you must be.
Jump.jump." echoed off the swells, even the waves were encouraging her descent.
She stepped off the cliff, thinking, "Maybe Megami is below."
But suddenly she stopped, looking up. It was like looking into a mirror, Megami leaned over the edge of the cliff, "Come on, Rena. My beautiful Akhten, you can't leave me! Not now, not after this. You can't!"
"Megami?" she asked.
"Oh Rena, I want to do this with you. We can beat Set's Daughter together!"
"Really?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Rena allowed herself to be pulled back onto the edge, "I'll never leave you. I'll never be alone. Not when I have so many to live for!"
"That's right," a tear slipped down Megami's cheek. She brushed it away quickly, "We're not alone. We're going to do this, and we're going to do it together." She grabbed Rena, pulling her into a tight hug.
She felt a warm caress on her cheek, a soothing voice calling to her; she looked up at the sky, hearing his voice.
"Seto," she whispered.
"That's right, we have Seto to help us too," Megami said.
"How can we lose?" Rena giggled.
+~+~+~+~
"She's out cold," Yami concluded.
"She must be so exhausted," Anzu whispered.
"She is," Yuugi muttered. "She can only deal with it in this way. She's drained completely of her energy. Sleep is probably the best think for her. For both of them," he added.
Seto fell into a chair beside Rena, his gaze never shifting from the sleeping goddess. They all took respective seats, and gave Rena their most sympathetic glances.
Yami looked at Kaiba wearily, each sharing the same thoughts. A few hours later, Rena's eyelids fluttered open and she blinked rather stupidly. "Huh?" was essentially all she said.
"We're glad you're awake," Yami immediately started when he was suddenly interrupted by a bright,
"Hi everyone!" The blonde that spoke examined the situation, and then did a double take. "What the heck happened here?"
She crossed the room to Rena and demanded, "Who are you?"
"Huh?" was Rena's blatant reply.
"Whoa, Mai, calm down! I'm glad you're back. I was beginning to worry I'd never see my credit card again!" Jounochi laughed, pushing her down into a seat. "Let me introduce you to Rena Campbelle."
"You guys look like you were in the middle of a preferred customer spring release with sales up to eighty percent," Mai cried, looking at the bruised and bloody gang that stared back at her. "Your shop looks like it too," she jerked a thumb to the storefront behind her.
"Leave it to Mai to make an analogy like that!" Anzu laughed, and pretty soon it was spreading around the room like wildfire.
"I guess we are pretty battered," Yuugi admitted.
"None as much as you honey," Mai got up and walked over to Rena, guiding her by the elbow to the bathroom.
"Huh?" she said again.
"Really, is that all you say?" Mai asked.
"Huh?"
Mai made a shrill noise in the back of her throat, indicating her aggravation, to which the only reply was, "Huh?"
At this, Mai slapped Rena across the face, bringing her out of her stupor. Seto bolted up out of his chair, but Mai pushed him back down. His jaw locked, and his throat rumbled in a growl.
Mai rolled her eyes, "Don't be such a bear. She needed a jolt back to reality, and since none of you would supply it, I took matters into my own hands." Seto relaxed a little as Rena came back to life and promptly started babbling.
Exasperated, Mai turned around to her and smiled, "Girl, don't make you hit you again."
To this, Rena stopped talking, and held up a hand, "Wait. Who are you?"
"Name's Mai Valentine," she said, grabbing a few bags from the pile of twenty or so on the floor. How one woman could carry so much weight at once astounded her. Mai went through the bags meticulously, pulling out a daisy yellow sundress, and tossing it to Anzu, muttering something along the lines of, "Take advantage of the warm weather, summer is your color."
"Summer?" Anzu asked incredulously, "It's raining out!"
Mai rolled her eyes, "You have sight, use it."
Everyone looked outside, the sky was a crisp blue, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The sun had already begun to dry up the standing water on the ground, and the air was gathering humidity.
Mai moved to another bag, setting out a dark, clingy skirt, and navy top. She rummaged through another bag, and found a white silk wrap. For a quick second, she thought about placing it back in the bag and keeping it, but instead tentatively lay on top of the rest of the ensemble. She gathered the girls together and ushered them into the bathroom. For a while, the only sounds heard from behind the door was Mai's fussing and commanding. Approximately an hour later, they stepped out of the bathroom and Mai cried triumphantly, "We're done!"
Rena and Anzu stepped into the room, and every male jaw dropped. All with the exception of Yami, who diverted his attention closely to the floor.
Anzu's dress was sprinkled with tiny roses, and hugged the curves of her dancer's figure. Her cheeks were rosy, and Mai had accentuated her features in earthy tones with soft pale blues around the eyes and subtle chocolate brown mascara, her lips were glossed in a frosty pink. The only demurs on her person were a few band-aids on her forehead, arms and legs. She had fairy-esque quality as she made her way hesitantly to sit by Yuugi. Jounochi, Honda, and Yuugi couldn't take their eyes off her for a second. Anzu had never looked this good before, and they weren't going to forget it.
Rena was just as beautiful, though her outfit was more contemporary than Anzu's wood nymph look. The long skirt clung to her hips flirtatiously, and hid her torn and scratched up legs. The top had a low scoop neck, though most of what showed was hidden by the wrap, which Mai had implemented as a modern shawl. The wrap covered up the deep scratch along her chest, which there was a long gauze strip band-aid on. Her hair was put in a neat bun, but wisps and tendrils framed her face, giving it angles that had before gone unnoticed.
Mai had done herself up a little as well. She braided her long, golden hair down her back, letting her bangs and stray hairs lay for a windblown look, and had thrown on a little red halter top, and tight knee length skirt, sporting black spiked pumps. She paraded around the two, waving her hands, showing them off, and accenting everything.
Finally, she stopped, and glared at the guys expectantly, "Well?" She stamped her foot, "Aren't they beautiful?"
"Sure they are Mai," Yuugi said, breaking the reverie, "But they were beautiful to begin with." Anzu and Rena blushed, while Mai gave a pouty look, making it a little too obvious this was not the answer she wanted.
But Jounochi supplied it the second he saw her mouth twitch, "You're a genius, Mai." The others slowly caught on, and nodded their agreement.
She brightened considerably, "Of course I am," she playfully pecked Jou on the cheek, "but that doesn't mean you have to stop saying it." He melted on the spot, his face gone a deep crimson.
"So, you want to tell me what's going on with this Rena chick and ten mil of taxpayer's damage outside?" Mai asked, looking pointedly out the window.
"Kaiba Corporation will pay for everything," Seto sighed. "After all, my employee's responsible for half the damage."
"Oh really?" Mai asked, gaining curiosity, "Who?"
"You spent an hour playing dress up with her."
"Rena?" Mai cried. She looked at Rena, who was sitting on a corner of the couch, her hands fixed firmly in her lap. She stifled a laugh, "Can someone please tell me what's going on here?"
"It's a long story."
"Well then, either make it as short as you can, or tell me later. I've got a hair appointment in two hours," Mai tapped her watch.
"We'd better tell you now," Rena said, looking up from her lap, "Because you're going on the field trip too."
"What?"
"Yami, you start," Rena sighed, "This is going to take a while."
He proceeded to tell the story of Set's Daughter, and her revenge for the descendants of Horus, and the patron goddess of the pharaoh. Then Rena told of her times at Mando Nashti'ora. The others added where they could, and pretty soon, Mai had missed her hair appointment, and was instead clutching Jounochi's shoulder, gasping for breath.
"I can't believe this," she breathed. She stood up, spinning around in her designer class heels, "It's an adventure. This will be bigger than the Duel Monsters Tournament, bigger than storewide clearance. Isn't it exciting?" she squealed. Everyone stared at her, until slowly, they each began laughing.
"Do you think I'm funny?" Mai huffed. She stuck out her tongue, "This is so unfair!" Her bottom lip quivered, and immediately she started to pout. Unfortunately it had a reverse effect and everyone ended up laughing at her harder.
+~+~+~+~
"Rena, are you sure you want to leave tomorrow?" Seto asked her when they were in the limo on the way home that night. She had left her Mercedes at Turtle Game Shop for the "Katsuya Jounochi overhaul." She honestly doubted whether or not she would ever see it again as she had left it. But in that case, she'd have Seto buy her a new one. She could really get used to having a rich friend. She grinned to herself.
"Seto, I'm positive of what I'm doing. The search needs to be picked up. We've allowed ourselves to fall behind, and it's my entire fault. I'm to blame for Ryou's kidnapping," she sighed, and turned to look out the window.
Seto wanted to press her a little further, but decided against it, and stared out his own window.
She remembered what Megami had told her, "We're not alone. We're going to do this, and we're going to do it together." How right was she? How much would they do together? How much would she be forced to do on her own? What was waiting for her? Was Ryou dead? Was the Rapier safe? Questions buzzed in her mind, muddling her thoughts, confusing her emotions.
"This won't happen tomorrow. I'll be in my Egypt. I'll be in my home, our home. I won't let my feelings get in the way of my pursuit, my mission. The Rapier will be mine, and I will save my friends and I will save what is left of my life," she told herself, glaring out the window. "I'm coming for you."
+~+~+~+~
"Oh no," she laughed, "It is I who am coming for you."
+~+~+~+~
~Fushi Tankyuu, Kage Arashi! _________________________________________________________
How's this for like the shortest chapter ever? Oh well, comments and reviews are always accepted. Does anyone know Mai's Japanese surname? But, oh! Here's a fun poll:
Which real life actors would play the cast of Yu-Gi-Oh best if it were made into a movie? Here's one: Yuugi can be played by.(pauses to burst out laughing) Elijah Wood with a wig! AAH!
I can't think of one for Seto though.
See ya.
But yeah, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!
+~+~+~+~
"They hadn't really spoken to each other for a while, that much was obvious," Yuugi decided to himself. Rena was sprawled across his couch, her nose buried in a book by a "colleague" friend of hers. It was about the female pharaohs, Nefertari, Nefertiti, Hatshepsut, and Cleopatra. She had been reading for six hours straight. The rest of them were busy doing homework, and every so often Honda would poke Jou in the ribs and ask him a question that neither of them really had an answer to. Then, Rena would sigh and sit up and help them along with the answer, then turn back to her book and continue reading. Yuugi sighed, a flashback of yesterday crawling into his mind.
+~+~+~+~
A blue Mercedes-Benz screeching up to the driveway with Rena behind the wheel, a radio or CD wailing at full volume. She cut the transmission, sliding out of the car into the shop. It was about six o'clock, and the whole gang had come over for dinner at his house. She had politely declined the invitation to eat with them, declaring that she had had enough testosterone intakes to last her a thousand lives in a single afternoon. They all pretty much had a clue who she was talking about, and didn't press the issue. However, she did stay the night with them, sleeping on the couch in the clothes she had wore that evening. Anzu lent her some of her own clothes, but being a little taller than Anzu, the shirt rose just a little above her stomach, and the pants hung low (she had pulled them down so they wouldn't ride up in the back).
+~+~+~+~
And now here they were, sitting in the living room, while Sugoroku swept the house, when the doorbell rang.
Rena looked at it, glowering at the prospect of just who it might be, when Sugoroku opened the door cheerfully.
"Hello-Edward!" he cried, stepping back to let the Professor in the room. Rena and the Professor exchanged a glance, curious as to the other's presence. Yuugi and his friends just looked confused.
"Professor!" Rena shouted, wrapping him in a friendly hug, "I'm so glad to see you!"
"We certainly do bump into each other don't we?" He chuckled. She turned to the group introducing everyone to the Professor. Even Yuugi was a little bewildered.
"Grandpa, I didn't know you had connections with archaeologists," he gawped.
Sugoroku chortled a bit, "Yuugi, I have connections all over the place."
"Why didn't I know about them?"
"Your old grandpa's entitled to his little secrets isn't he?" Yuugi frowned on that last statement, and sat down, scowling into his book. The two old friends walked to the back of the store, already starting to engage in a conversation centered mainly on Egypt and its history.
Yuugi walked to the front of the store, overtly disgruntled at what his grandpa had said about secrets, and sighed when Seto Kaiba walked in the door, a look of distaste plastered onto his face.
He sighed to himself, "The day just keeps getting better."
Seto looked down at Yuugi, "Is Rena here?"
"She's been here since last night."
"I'd be grateful if you got her for me."
Yuugi stopped, turned, and stared at Kaiba, who was just sitting there, a genuine smile playing at his face. His jaw dropped, that man wasn't grateful for anything; Yuugi doubted he had any sense of appreciation at all. But he refrained from saying anything, and went in to get Rena.
"Rena."
The only acknowledgement he received was her ears pricking up, a funny trait that made her seem more human. The book lowered, revealing her twin amethyst eyes. "Um-hum?"
"You have a visitor."
"Oh really?" She sat up and stretched her arms over her head, arching her back a little as she did so. She stood up and sauntered to the door, hesitating as she laid her hand on the table. "Well.oh, screw it." She opened the door and strode into the shop itself.
Seto was sitting in a chair, examining a new Tribute rulebook when she walked in. He looked up and smiled at her. "Hey, you ever going to come home?"
"I'll think about it." She looked at him, something creeping into her mind. He stood and embraced her fully in his arms, and laughed.
"Are you okay?" She held him back at arm's length and examined him. He certainly didn't look all right. He was paler than usual; his eyes didn't seem as calculating or lonely, they were just.empty.
"I'm fine," he brought her back into his arms. "Now, can we go home?"
"I wanted to hang around with Yuugi and his friends for a little while longer," she looked at him again, noticing something flash behind those cold eyes.
"I'd rather you went home with me. Now," he added.
"Now you at least sound like yourself," she chuckled, but still stepped away uncertainly. He didn't seem right; maybe he'd been drinking. "No, that can't be it," she thought, "He's twice as sarcastic drunk."
The sky darkened over outside and she began to see a light drizzle sprinkle onto the sidewalk.
"Of course I'm myself, and I want to go home." He looked at her, "It's been a long day."
"Obviously," the rain started to come down harder, pelting passersby, forcing them to shelter. Several people rushed into the shop, and Rena recognized one of them as the woman she nearly ran over earlier. She felt Megami stir. Seto gripped her arm a little too tightly, "Let's go!"
She looked at him; fear clouding over her eyes in black dots as both she and Megami realized just what was going on. "Oh. My. God."
She looked out the window and saw a familiar limousine pulling up to the shop, and an all too familiar man step out of it. Seto walked in the store, accompanied by Mokuba, shaking water from his hair. He looked at Rena, then his twin, and back at Rena, a look of panic sweeping his features before going cool and knowing.
"So, the Daughter of Set is all too willing to make the same mistake twice." He shrugged his shoulders, "All right." But he fell to the floor with a thud as the red-haired woman smacked him down with her bag.
"Lousy human," she spat. She picked him up and drop kicked him through the main display window as if he were a rag doll.
Everything went to chaos after that. People ran screaming in a state of hysteria, flooding out the store into the street and anywhere else to escape this terror.
Yuugi raced out the door, caught in the tide of people with Rena. Jou, Honda, and even Yami sprinted as well to Seto's side, just as the two demons stepped out.
The red-haired woman smirked, and threw up her hands. A shadow came over both her and Seto's twin, molding the shapes so that when it dispersed, the two that withdrew were completely different people.
"Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Noriyuki," the woman pointed to herself. She still resembled a human, but her hair had gone long and silver, and her eyes remained the same shade of misty green. She was cloaked in thick, black robes, trailing to her feet, an emerald diadem holding them in place. She carried a small crook, with a tiny crystal at the end, and pointed to her demon companion. "This is Jaaku, my sweet little pet."
"Pet?" Jou croaked, "What do you mean pet?" Rena couldn't help but agree. The monster was five feet tall with hide the color of yellow bile, several olive green stripes running jagged down its back. Its eyes were dark and rimmed in red, bloodshot and thirsty, saliva dripping from it long jowl. It supported itself on two strong hind legs, and stood erect. It would have a resembled tyrannosaurus if its front arms hadn't dragged down to its waist. The creature swung them brutally, knocking over anyone who managed to get into its path. It laughed coarsely, and the demon witch gave it a gentle pat on the head.
"Of course he's my pet. Isn't he precious?" she laughed, "Now Jaaku, let's get our bounty." She pointed at Rena with her staff, "Kill the goddess and all her companions!"
Jounochi, Honda, and Yami stood up in front of Rena, shielding both her and Seto.
Noriyuki held her crook pointed at Yami's head, "Kenjet dusorium." A ball of golden energy emerged from the top of her wand and let it go at Yami. Jou and Honda jumped to the side, but Yami crossed his arms over his head. "Shield of Sekhmet," he cried.
A thin, crystalline shield visualized in front of him, deflecting the attack to the heavens. "We won't let you come near our goddess!" He shouted. The rain poured in sheets, drenching everyone; Rena stood up, striding beside him.
She laid a hand on his shoulder, "I will take care of Noriyuki, you, Jounochi, and Honda take care of the demon."
"Goddess I cannot." He protested, but she silenced him.
"Yes, you will." She let Megami take over her body, letting the coat fall to the ground and saw her hair dripping to her feet like water. The mark of Horus glimmered on her forehead, signifying the transformation's completion. She turned to face Noriyuki, who was preparing for another blast. "I am your new opponent, and you will not fare so well with me!" Pearl blue wings sprouted from her back, and with a swift beat, she was airborne above the demon witch.
"Oh, this will be fun," Noriyuki cackled, growing her own black dragon wings and meeting Rena in the air.
On the ground, Jounochi and Honda had picked themselves up and were standing face to face with the demon Jaaku. Jou and Honda charged first and like lightning Jaaku swung his powerful arms, throwing them both back. Honda picked himself up first and rushed at Jaaku, dodging the first arm as it came for his head, and kicking away the second, but wasn't expecting the monster to bring up one of its legs and swipe him across the face. He flew back, three long rakes down his cheek. He lay prone, until he sat up, coughing blood.
"Honda!" Yami cried, running over to his companion. He was twisting in convulsions, sputtering blood over himself. Yami helped him to roll over, to which he promptly threw up on the ground.
Coughing, he sputtered, "That thing.it's so powerful. We can't beat it."
"Yes, we can," Yami said assuredly, "If we work together."
/Yes, use your feeble powers of friendship to defeat me./
Yami looked over to the demon, which was smiling insanely, "So you can speak."
/Through the mind./ The demon let out a husky cough, which Yami figured to be a laugh. It lumbered toward them, arms swinging viciously. Yami put up his arms as the Sekhmet Shield appeared in front of him. Jaaku's arms pounded on it relentlessly but the immortal safeguard kept. Yami smirked from behind it. As one of Jaaku's arms ricocheted off the shield again, he called for it to disperse and dodged Jaaku's arms, landing his fist in the demon's belly. He called, "Dark Devastation!" His hand lit up, and a black orb launched from it, piercing the demon's gut.
Jaaku lurched back, holding his abdomen, green blood dripping from the wound.
Jou curled his face in repugnance, "Now that is just nauseous." But despite his disgust, he ran at the demon, swinging his left leg around in a mighty blow to the demon's skull. "Take that, you lump of snot!"
Yami snickered, "It looks as though the tables have turned."
Fear flashed in Jaaku's eyes, /No!/
Jounochi grinned, "Oh yeah, me and Yuugi, er, Yami are gonna wipe the floor wit ya."
Honda stood up, "And I'm not being left out of the picture either."
The three stood up, Jounochi and Honda on either side of Yami. Both of the boys laid a hand on Yami's shoulder, and the mark of Horus shone on all three of their foreheads. "Now you will witness all our strengths!" Yami shouted. "Dark Annihilation!"
An orb of dark energy formed, growing in size, aimed straight at Jaaku. Jounochi and Honda threw up a hand, directing their own attacks into Yami's, increasing its power. It glowed a bright mix of gold, black, and violet. It launched with all the power of a streamline train for Jaaku. The demon was swallowed in its light, dying before he even had a chance to scream his farewell, all that remained a smothering pile of lifeless ash.
Noriyuki looked down from her battle with Rena, and watched her companion die. "Jaaku, no!" she screamed.
"It looks like your pet wasn't as strapping as you had previously imagined," Rena taunted.
"You and all your associates will die," she spat.
"Like yours?" she asked innocently.
Noriyuki let out a bloodcurdling scream, and charged for Rena. Rena swept out of the way on her pearl blue wings, and spun to meet Noriyuki, who was advancing again.
Watch this, she said to Rena who was watching from the inside, and threw her hands in the air. "Dark Shadow Sniper!" An ebony bow appeared in her hand, a garnet arrow forming in the other. "Take this!" She cried, pulling the bow taut and letting the arrow fly at the charging Noriyuki. The arrow struck the imp through the heart and with a scream that could have matched the call of a furious siren, fell hurtling to the ground. There was a crunch as her wings broke from the impact and retracted back into her body. She struggled to her knees, while Rena descended to the earth as well, her pale blue wings fluttering softly as they slid into her back. Noriyuki coughed as she stood up to her full height, wrenching the arrow from her chest, spitting blood onto the pavement. Fully standing, she launched a vicious assault, thousands of dark energy waves coming from her staff in dark ripples. Several caught Rena before she provided her own shield. Yami surrounded his shield to everyone else, covering them in its glass-like case.
"Megami, stop! That's enough!" he cried. The ground crumbled beneath her feet, erupting in an earthquake line for Noriyuki. The sorceress put her arms up as the wave knocked her flat into the ground with no room for breath. Yami was struggling to keep the shield contained around everyone as Rena, no not Rena, but Megami continued her pursuit. Her eyes darted from her friends to Noriyuki, and then suddenly pulled back her berserk attack all at once. Everything stopped, the only sound being the drumming of the rain on the ground.
"I see you have no will left to fight," Noriyuki crowed. Her staff was pointed at Ryou's head; who was standing by the window, looking to join the fight. "No," he whispered.
"You can't do this!" Yami shouted above the rain.
"Watch me," she screeched. Her crystal glowed a dark green, and fired an emerald blast at Ryou, who threw up his hands over his head, screaming, "NO!"
"Ryou!" Rena cried, taking their body back, as she ran up to face Noriyuki. Without Megami to give her the extra height, she was a full six inches shorter. "You can't do this!"
"Oh really?" She said, amused, "Whatever makes you say that?"
"I'll kill you!"
"Will you little goddess? Or will you run into a corner of your head, and let someone else fight your battles for you?"
"No, I won't let you chastise me anymore!" She pulled the stone tablet from out of the air, "Horus Damnation! Nach anket rew geter hesf, beshest rechterty, Ma'at geth benun onisu preshyu! Amun Re werty!" This time the immortal fire burst from the tablet in the form of a hawk, swooping down on Noriyuki. No magic would save her this time as she became engulfed in the fire, her skin sweltering and scorching. With one burning hand, she grabbed Ryou by the collar of his sweater, dragging him into the flame, and then the two fell through a pit Noriyuki had sprung from the ground.
The two disappeared, leaving the flames to disperse.
"No! No! No!" Rena screamed and cried, pounding on the ground with her fists, yelling and cursing Set's name. "You won't get away with this. I won't let you hurt him! I swear to Isis I'll save you Ryou! I swear." She sniffled, then stood, turning back to the group.
Jounochi and Honda were supporting themselves, and starting to make their way inside, and Yuugi was trying to help pry a limp Yami off the ground. Seto was beginning to wake up, dizzy still from Noriyuki's attack. He grabbed his head, and turned to her.
"What happened?" he asked. "Where'd she go?"
"She's gone," Rena sighed, "As well Ryou Bakura with her." She balled her fists and bit her lip, bending down to help him up.
Yuugi had brought Yami back into partial consciousness and was taking him inside as well.
The store was a mess. The havoc of the attacks and onrushing people left racks splayed across the floor, books lying scattered, their pages torn and tattered, the windows lying in broken shards along the floor. Duel Monsters cards were everywhere, and the doors were blown open, and everything was soaked or torn or damaged beyond repair. Turtle Game Shop was ruined.
Anzu was lying on the floor in a faint, Mokuba sitting beside her, brushing pieces of glass off her body.
"She was hit by the broken glass," he reported, "And when she saw the demon, she fell. Like this," he threw his hands over his forehead in a dramatic gesture, pretending to fall to the ground.
"Anzu," Yuugi gasped, but refrained from helping her, for fear Yami would fall. Jounochi picked her up and laid her on the couch in the opposite room. They all sat there, unwilling to speak, until Rena just stood up and looked at all of them.
"The game has begun. Seto and I leave tomorrow for Egypt. Set's Daughter is willing to take any life, at any cost. She may have already." Her fists balled into her sides, her knuckles going white. "And then all of us will go to Egypt. Everyone. There is something we must investigate."
The tomb of the unknown pharaoh. Megami murmured, and then slipped away underneath an ocean of emotion.
Megami! Rena cried, but as well was drug underneath the waves of their abyss. She fell sprawled across the floor, the last thing she heard being, Seto. "Strange," she murmured.
+~+~+~+~
"Megami," she cried, searching through her mind. She had created a pretty realistic image of an engulfing fog, and it was clouding up into her lungs, making it hard for her to breathe. "Megami!" she choked.
She heard a faint rustle, a soft lapping as she neared the edge of the fog. It grew louder every step she took, until the roar of it rung in her ears. It was an ocean, vast and expansive, looming before the cliff she was on. She knew Megami was out there in that ocean, but had no clue where. She saw a dot of light ahead, a lighthouse! She thought to run to it, before realizing if she did, it'd be the same thing as signing her own death certificate.
But a voice crooned, "Jump, jump into that abyss. It's so much better to be alone. Jump, you can do it, and you'll be so much happier."
"But if I jump," she thought, "And I'm alone, what will happen to all my friends."
"They will be alone."
"I don't want to abandon them!" she cried.
"You're not, you never will. You swore to Isis that. But isn't better to be alone? Jump.jump."
She edged nearer the cliff's edge, the voice grew, "Yes, come on, you're so much closer to freedom! Jump."
Her feet were on the very edge, and still it encouraged her to leap from the verge into that ocean. The light flickered, burning into a dark green, and it came toward her. The voice called from the light, "Jump.alone is where you must be.
Jump.jump." echoed off the swells, even the waves were encouraging her descent.
She stepped off the cliff, thinking, "Maybe Megami is below."
But suddenly she stopped, looking up. It was like looking into a mirror, Megami leaned over the edge of the cliff, "Come on, Rena. My beautiful Akhten, you can't leave me! Not now, not after this. You can't!"
"Megami?" she asked.
"Oh Rena, I want to do this with you. We can beat Set's Daughter together!"
"Really?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Rena allowed herself to be pulled back onto the edge, "I'll never leave you. I'll never be alone. Not when I have so many to live for!"
"That's right," a tear slipped down Megami's cheek. She brushed it away quickly, "We're not alone. We're going to do this, and we're going to do it together." She grabbed Rena, pulling her into a tight hug.
She felt a warm caress on her cheek, a soothing voice calling to her; she looked up at the sky, hearing his voice.
"Seto," she whispered.
"That's right, we have Seto to help us too," Megami said.
"How can we lose?" Rena giggled.
+~+~+~+~
"She's out cold," Yami concluded.
"She must be so exhausted," Anzu whispered.
"She is," Yuugi muttered. "She can only deal with it in this way. She's drained completely of her energy. Sleep is probably the best think for her. For both of them," he added.
Seto fell into a chair beside Rena, his gaze never shifting from the sleeping goddess. They all took respective seats, and gave Rena their most sympathetic glances.
Yami looked at Kaiba wearily, each sharing the same thoughts. A few hours later, Rena's eyelids fluttered open and she blinked rather stupidly. "Huh?" was essentially all she said.
"We're glad you're awake," Yami immediately started when he was suddenly interrupted by a bright,
"Hi everyone!" The blonde that spoke examined the situation, and then did a double take. "What the heck happened here?"
She crossed the room to Rena and demanded, "Who are you?"
"Huh?" was Rena's blatant reply.
"Whoa, Mai, calm down! I'm glad you're back. I was beginning to worry I'd never see my credit card again!" Jounochi laughed, pushing her down into a seat. "Let me introduce you to Rena Campbelle."
"You guys look like you were in the middle of a preferred customer spring release with sales up to eighty percent," Mai cried, looking at the bruised and bloody gang that stared back at her. "Your shop looks like it too," she jerked a thumb to the storefront behind her.
"Leave it to Mai to make an analogy like that!" Anzu laughed, and pretty soon it was spreading around the room like wildfire.
"I guess we are pretty battered," Yuugi admitted.
"None as much as you honey," Mai got up and walked over to Rena, guiding her by the elbow to the bathroom.
"Huh?" she said again.
"Really, is that all you say?" Mai asked.
"Huh?"
Mai made a shrill noise in the back of her throat, indicating her aggravation, to which the only reply was, "Huh?"
At this, Mai slapped Rena across the face, bringing her out of her stupor. Seto bolted up out of his chair, but Mai pushed him back down. His jaw locked, and his throat rumbled in a growl.
Mai rolled her eyes, "Don't be such a bear. She needed a jolt back to reality, and since none of you would supply it, I took matters into my own hands." Seto relaxed a little as Rena came back to life and promptly started babbling.
Exasperated, Mai turned around to her and smiled, "Girl, don't make you hit you again."
To this, Rena stopped talking, and held up a hand, "Wait. Who are you?"
"Name's Mai Valentine," she said, grabbing a few bags from the pile of twenty or so on the floor. How one woman could carry so much weight at once astounded her. Mai went through the bags meticulously, pulling out a daisy yellow sundress, and tossing it to Anzu, muttering something along the lines of, "Take advantage of the warm weather, summer is your color."
"Summer?" Anzu asked incredulously, "It's raining out!"
Mai rolled her eyes, "You have sight, use it."
Everyone looked outside, the sky was a crisp blue, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The sun had already begun to dry up the standing water on the ground, and the air was gathering humidity.
Mai moved to another bag, setting out a dark, clingy skirt, and navy top. She rummaged through another bag, and found a white silk wrap. For a quick second, she thought about placing it back in the bag and keeping it, but instead tentatively lay on top of the rest of the ensemble. She gathered the girls together and ushered them into the bathroom. For a while, the only sounds heard from behind the door was Mai's fussing and commanding. Approximately an hour later, they stepped out of the bathroom and Mai cried triumphantly, "We're done!"
Rena and Anzu stepped into the room, and every male jaw dropped. All with the exception of Yami, who diverted his attention closely to the floor.
Anzu's dress was sprinkled with tiny roses, and hugged the curves of her dancer's figure. Her cheeks were rosy, and Mai had accentuated her features in earthy tones with soft pale blues around the eyes and subtle chocolate brown mascara, her lips were glossed in a frosty pink. The only demurs on her person were a few band-aids on her forehead, arms and legs. She had fairy-esque quality as she made her way hesitantly to sit by Yuugi. Jounochi, Honda, and Yuugi couldn't take their eyes off her for a second. Anzu had never looked this good before, and they weren't going to forget it.
Rena was just as beautiful, though her outfit was more contemporary than Anzu's wood nymph look. The long skirt clung to her hips flirtatiously, and hid her torn and scratched up legs. The top had a low scoop neck, though most of what showed was hidden by the wrap, which Mai had implemented as a modern shawl. The wrap covered up the deep scratch along her chest, which there was a long gauze strip band-aid on. Her hair was put in a neat bun, but wisps and tendrils framed her face, giving it angles that had before gone unnoticed.
Mai had done herself up a little as well. She braided her long, golden hair down her back, letting her bangs and stray hairs lay for a windblown look, and had thrown on a little red halter top, and tight knee length skirt, sporting black spiked pumps. She paraded around the two, waving her hands, showing them off, and accenting everything.
Finally, she stopped, and glared at the guys expectantly, "Well?" She stamped her foot, "Aren't they beautiful?"
"Sure they are Mai," Yuugi said, breaking the reverie, "But they were beautiful to begin with." Anzu and Rena blushed, while Mai gave a pouty look, making it a little too obvious this was not the answer she wanted.
But Jounochi supplied it the second he saw her mouth twitch, "You're a genius, Mai." The others slowly caught on, and nodded their agreement.
She brightened considerably, "Of course I am," she playfully pecked Jou on the cheek, "but that doesn't mean you have to stop saying it." He melted on the spot, his face gone a deep crimson.
"So, you want to tell me what's going on with this Rena chick and ten mil of taxpayer's damage outside?" Mai asked, looking pointedly out the window.
"Kaiba Corporation will pay for everything," Seto sighed. "After all, my employee's responsible for half the damage."
"Oh really?" Mai asked, gaining curiosity, "Who?"
"You spent an hour playing dress up with her."
"Rena?" Mai cried. She looked at Rena, who was sitting on a corner of the couch, her hands fixed firmly in her lap. She stifled a laugh, "Can someone please tell me what's going on here?"
"It's a long story."
"Well then, either make it as short as you can, or tell me later. I've got a hair appointment in two hours," Mai tapped her watch.
"We'd better tell you now," Rena said, looking up from her lap, "Because you're going on the field trip too."
"What?"
"Yami, you start," Rena sighed, "This is going to take a while."
He proceeded to tell the story of Set's Daughter, and her revenge for the descendants of Horus, and the patron goddess of the pharaoh. Then Rena told of her times at Mando Nashti'ora. The others added where they could, and pretty soon, Mai had missed her hair appointment, and was instead clutching Jounochi's shoulder, gasping for breath.
"I can't believe this," she breathed. She stood up, spinning around in her designer class heels, "It's an adventure. This will be bigger than the Duel Monsters Tournament, bigger than storewide clearance. Isn't it exciting?" she squealed. Everyone stared at her, until slowly, they each began laughing.
"Do you think I'm funny?" Mai huffed. She stuck out her tongue, "This is so unfair!" Her bottom lip quivered, and immediately she started to pout. Unfortunately it had a reverse effect and everyone ended up laughing at her harder.
+~+~+~+~
"Rena, are you sure you want to leave tomorrow?" Seto asked her when they were in the limo on the way home that night. She had left her Mercedes at Turtle Game Shop for the "Katsuya Jounochi overhaul." She honestly doubted whether or not she would ever see it again as she had left it. But in that case, she'd have Seto buy her a new one. She could really get used to having a rich friend. She grinned to herself.
"Seto, I'm positive of what I'm doing. The search needs to be picked up. We've allowed ourselves to fall behind, and it's my entire fault. I'm to blame for Ryou's kidnapping," she sighed, and turned to look out the window.
Seto wanted to press her a little further, but decided against it, and stared out his own window.
She remembered what Megami had told her, "We're not alone. We're going to do this, and we're going to do it together." How right was she? How much would they do together? How much would she be forced to do on her own? What was waiting for her? Was Ryou dead? Was the Rapier safe? Questions buzzed in her mind, muddling her thoughts, confusing her emotions.
"This won't happen tomorrow. I'll be in my Egypt. I'll be in my home, our home. I won't let my feelings get in the way of my pursuit, my mission. The Rapier will be mine, and I will save my friends and I will save what is left of my life," she told herself, glaring out the window. "I'm coming for you."
+~+~+~+~
"Oh no," she laughed, "It is I who am coming for you."
+~+~+~+~
~Fushi Tankyuu, Kage Arashi! _________________________________________________________
How's this for like the shortest chapter ever? Oh well, comments and reviews are always accepted. Does anyone know Mai's Japanese surname? But, oh! Here's a fun poll:
Which real life actors would play the cast of Yu-Gi-Oh best if it were made into a movie? Here's one: Yuugi can be played by.(pauses to burst out laughing) Elijah Wood with a wig! AAH!
I can't think of one for Seto though.
See ya.