The Millennium Guard

Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed that little prologue. Here is the next chapter. Hope you enjoy!

~* Yin and Yan *~

"I have heard that you possess the unstoppable Exodia cards... may I see them?" Weevil asked, a treacherous glow in his eyes.

"Exodia?!" A hidden face gasped as the conversation wafted to over-curious ears. 'Don't do it. Not if you want to keep the only cards that can defeat the little worm...' A silent will punctuated the air. Such a pity nobody would pay it heed.

"Uhm... alright I suppose... but be careful with them." Yugi said hesitantly as he removed his prized cards from the deck and passed them to the shorter boy.

In the corner the girl with tri-colored hair gritted her teeth. 'Don't do it... Don't..." A golden armlet clothing her right hand in its sheath began to glow malevolently. Few knew this, but this particular item was no ordinary piece of jewelry. It was something altogether unique, charmed with the ancient magic's of her ancestor's, and at that particular moment, her ancestor's were flashing a major warning light her way. She would have to do something, soon, before Weevil fixed those Exodia cards real good.

"You know. I have been trying for ages to discover strategy that I could use to defeat Exodia. But it was not till this very moment that I could think of anything..." Weevil grinned maliciously. His intent was all too clear now. All to clear...

Yugi felt a stab of panic rush through his body. Joey also was suddenly aware of how hazardously close Weevil was to the railing. "Say goodbye to-- "Weevil's words caught in his throat as he felt his wrist enclosed in an ironclad grip. Joey and Yugi stood wide eyed as they stared at the back of the new arrival.

"That wasn't very nice... Underwood!" A voice said coldly, as the cards were snatched from his wretched grip. Yugi's breath suddenly caught as he stared his savior in the eyes. And Joey it seemed was also dumbstruck.

The girl regarded them, a small, cynical smile across her thin lips. Hair cut below chin length caught the fading sunlight, sending a shimmer of white, violet and silver dancing across their vision, while crimson and maroon eyes sparkled like polished gemstones.

For Yugi it was like looking in a mirror that showed the perfect opposite of a person. Her hair was white while his was black, streaked with violet while his was red, and her fringe was silver as opposed to the feeble gold fringe. True her hair did not stand up in spikes like his, but then again, she was a girl. Spiky hair would look rather odd on a girl, wouldn't it? And in any case, the opposite of spiked hair would have been hair that hung down toward the pull of gravity. She wore a navy jacket and jeans, beneath which was a black tank top that did little to conceal the perfect curve of her breasts, nor the ideally flat stomach peeking from beneath her shirt. Yugi could feel himself redden, as an altogether unfamiliar warmth pooled within himself, and an uncomfortable tightness in his trousers that was swiftly becoming hard to deny.

"Woah Yugi... Did'ya see that? She caught Weevil just before he threw you're cards overboard." Joey spluttered, suddenly returning to reality. He couldn't help but wonder who this girl was... and if she perhaps wasn't single.

"Yeah.. I wonder how she..." Yugi stopped mid sentence, his eyes focused on her right arm, on which sat an odd looking gold piece of jewelry. At first he would have called it a bracelet, but upon further examination her realized that it was more like some sort of protective armor which ended in a perfect triangle, it's end just below touching the middle finger. Could it possibly be a Millennium item? After all it would explain how she had appeared almost out of nowhere like that. Just in the nick of time he should say. He couldn't see it properly though since half of it was concealed by her jacket sleeve.

"I believe these are yours," she said, passing the cards to Yugi, who took them gratefully. She was careful not to let Weevil go, despite his earnest struggles to the contrary. Not only was she fast, she was exceptionally strong it seemed.

"T-thank you so much Miss.." Yugi murmured as he took the cards from her hand. "K.. K Bedhyr..." She smiled, her other hand still gripped tightly around Weevil's wrist. "K? "Yugi exclaimed, a bit confused. He'd never met anyone with a name like hers before.

"Yes. Now I know Underwood, here, but I'm afraid I don't know whom you two gentlemen are." Her tone wasn't mocking, which surprised Joey somewhat. Nobody had ever called him a gentleman before, not even Téa, whom he'd known for ages.

Yugi blushed slightly, scratching the back of his head in an effort to mask his embarrassment , and well... other things too. "I'm Yugi Motou, and this is my friend Joey Wheeler." Yugi said, nudging the blonde whom could only stare at the pretty girl in front of him. Not there ever really was much change in that. However he couldn't deny the stab of jealousy he felt , as his older, and taller friend seemed to hold her enrapt.

"Run along Underwood. And be sure you behave yourself, or the next thing that'll be going overboard will be you." K threatened, releasing Weevil from her death grip. The boy squeaked, staring at the mark across his wrist. His hand was blue, from the veins being starved of precious blood, and his bones ached terribly. When she had held him so close he was completely torn between fear, anger and complete jubilation. Something about this girl sent shivers down his spine. Her scent was so crisp, like the aroma of some foreign desert flower. And she was tough too. Weevil exhaled, releasing her smell from his nostrils. So full of fire.

"Did you perhaps not hear the lady, bugo?" Joey hissed. "Get going!" He kicked at the air with his sneaker, deliberately missing Weevil but landing close enough to make his point. While Weevil quickly made himself scarce, Joey turned his attention back to K. "So K.. What are you doing on this little boat ride?" Joey asked, completely oblivious to the stupidity of his question. K only smiled, shaking her head slightly. "I should think that would be obvious, wouldn't you? "She asked, brow raised in bemusement.

"Aah.. what?" Joey burbled. Yugi fought the urge to slap his forehead. This was honestly one of the few times in the last few years of knowing Joey that he was actually embarrassed to call him his friend.

"I'm here to participate in the tournament. "K said, folding her arms, making sure to conceal her armlet. Her voice was calm, though not quite monotone. Joey's face brightened somewhat. "Oh yeah? Well Yugi and me are also competin... you after the three mil?" He asked with folded arms, staring straight at her in an attempt to be casual.

"No actually I'm not." K stated in a rather matter -of-factly tone. It was true after all. But of course they probably wouldn't understand that. The concept of simply playing the game, for the game. It had become so much about the money, hadn't it?

Joey's mouth dropped. Had she just said she wasn't after the money? The very substantial prize money. Was she completely insane? K could perceive the dismay at her answer. "I want to play the game, and hopefully be challenged. In any case, I already have quiet a substantial amount of money, and three million dollars really won't make that much difference. Though I suppose I can see the attraction of it as a prize. Not everyone in the world is rich."

Yugi stared at her face as the fading light played against her creamy skin, her hair, falling across her face, blocking her one eye from view. She looked so beautiful then, so beautiful and yet so familiar.

'Will I see you again, my Pharaoh?' A voice invaded his thoughts as he stared at K. It was as though he were staring through the eyes of someone else, for this K had obscure markings tattooed along the width of her face, just below her eyes. A pattern of black dots not quite words or symbols in fact. Her hair braided slightly, and a golden ankh hanging down between her eyes. Blinking this vision was banished. Leaving him to return to the real world.

"Hey Yug... "Joey shook him softly. "W-what?" "You were gone there for a minute bud.. What's up?" Joey asked, unable to keep the concern from his voice.

"He's right. You looked.. very far away." K said, stepping into the light again. "Perhaps we should go inside. Would you two care to join me in my suite?" She asked, turning slightly, sending the tri-colour cascade flying against her face.

"Would we?! Yeah.." Joey practically exploded. "The accommodation is hardly pleasant for us lowly , common duelists." The blonde commented with flamboyant hand gestures and almost sending himself flying over the edge of the boat. K couldn't help but smile as it took all her effort not to scream with laughter at the blonde's antics. Joey really was hilarious, by far the most entertaining person she'd ever met. He must have been some sort of clown in his past life, she concluded.

"Great then, follow me." She said, making the gesture for them to follow. Both were all to pleased to oblige. After all, how many times had a pretty girl offered to let them stay in a luxury suite?