Yu-Gi-Oh!
Dawn of Fate
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There won't be a Q&A this time; this chapter's long enough, though it will be well worth it as A LOT happens in this chapter. Note that I changed the ordering of the dragons a bit... oh, and expect a clifie...
::evil laugh::
Read, enjoy, and then review!
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CHAPTER FOURTEEN - THE FIRST TASK
Yami Bakura had to admit; Marik's plan for getting past his dragon was quite simplistic and original. After all, how many other champions would think to summon a dragon to combat against another dragon? Probably none of them, given where they came from and the age they lived in. However, the Egyptian's plan more or less called for a miracle as well. It was Sunday morning, almost Sunday afternoon, at the moment, and the first task would be taking place Tuesday afternoon. That was a very limited amount of time to show someone who barely knew how to use their Millennium Item how to summon monsters from the Shadow Realm. To make matters worse, that was not the only bump in their path.
"No way in HELL are you borrowing one of MY Blue Eyes White Dragons," Seto declared, the pitch of his voice, tone, and his stance stating that that was FINAL. The expression on Yami Seto's face all but said begging him for help was not going to get them anywhere either.
Marik shook an angry fist, not the least bit pleased. "C'mon, you two! How the heck else am I supposed to go up against a DRAGON?! Say, 'Please don't kill me,' and hope it'll roll over and play dead?!"
"Worth a shot," Yami Seto replied callously.
Marik looked like he was going to knock the high priest flat, not caring that he would go through him. To his surprise, however, Yami Bakura put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"Look, Gravekeeper, I think you can get away without using the card," he said, forcing the Egyptian to sit in one of the library seats. "Since Moneybags -" Seto glared - "and his deck will be in close proximity to where you'll be going up against that thing, you'll be able to summon without having the physical card in your hand. It's a hell'uva lot harder though."
Marik nodded. "I don't care; whatever it takes. I don't see what else I can do anyway."
Bakura sighed, propping his head up with his hands. "We're going to need a VERY discreet place to practice..."
~.oOOo.~
Over the small time Marik had to learn how to summon a monster from the Shadow Realm, some of the panic brought on by the daunting task had washed away. Tuesday morning, however, it came back in full force, hitting him hardest in his gut. He stared down at his food at breakfast, afraid that if he ate anything he would be sick; then again, if he were sick, then he would miss out on this MESS he had gotten himself into...
Then, Hermione chose to sit down at the table, opening up her S.P.E.W. notebook and pointedly ignoring him. He got a little bit of courage back after seeing that. It was not much, but it was enough to get him to swallow a small piece of toast.
Somehow, he had managed to get past his morning classes. Looking back, he knew he would not be able to remember what exactly happened in those classes. His first thought was that he would get whatever homework he missed off of Hermione, but then he remembered that him and Hermione were not on good terms anymore.
Sitting at lunch, forcing down a salad, he silently promised himself that he was going to ask her out to the Yule Ball as soon as he got the chance and make everything right again.
Professor McGonagall came up to their table just as he finished what little he could eat of his salad. If anything, she seemed almost as nervous as Harry was. The younger wizard was sitting across from him, looking for all the world like he would rather be anywhere else. Marik did not blame him one bit.
"Potter, Ishitar; you'll have to come down to the grounds now," the professor told them. "The champions have to get ready for the first task."
Both Harry and Marik got up, their friends wishing them luck with concerned and/or worried expressions on their faces. The two Hogwarts champions followed Professor McGonagall out to the grounds, where she motioned them into a large red tent, erected at just the right height to block the view of the dragons.
Marik felt his breakfast and his lunch hit rock bottom as he entered the tent. Fleur and Krum were already sitting down, and if their sickened expressions were any clue, they knew what they were going to be up against. Ludo Bagman was there as well, looking so absolutely cheerful that Marik wanted to go over to him and knock his flashing white teeth out.
"Well, now that we're all assembled," Bagman began brightly, "it's time to fill you in! When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering you this bag -" He held up a small purple sack - "from which you'll each take a small model of what you're about to face. There are different... varieties, you see. You're goal is to COLLECT THE GOLDEN EGG! Don't forget this."
Marik's mind was so numb, he was surprised he could even focus on remaining standing, not to mention remembering what the heck he was supposed to be doing. Harry seemed drone-like; he had not said two words since he woke up that morning. Fleur looked like she was going to be sick, judging from the slight green tinge in her cheeks. Krum was not looking at anyone or anything for that matter; he stared off into space, almost like he also would rather be anywhere else.
None too soon, they heard the sound of several hundred people passing the tent, joking and laughing as they made their way past. Marik felt like he was going to outright vomit right there; how could anyone be laughing at a time like THIS?! Then, before he even knew it, Bagman was opening the pouch and holding it out to Fleur.
"Ladies first," he said.
Fleur gave him a scathing glare, before reaching a quavering hand into the bag. She pulled out a miniature figure of the Welsh Green, which was trying to shrug off the tag around its neck that displayed the number two. Krum was next, pulling out the Swedish Short-Snout, which had a number three around its own neck.
Marik paled as Bagman swiveled around to point the bag at him. Somehow he managed to force his hand to stay steady enough to reach in and pull out... the Chinese Fireball, with the number one displayed proudly around its neck.
The Gravekeeper was surprised that he managed to keep his queasiness from exploding out of him. Of course he would get the one that looked the most like Osiris. It had to be some kind of cosmic retribution, either that, or Ra enjoyed sick jokes. Either way, Marik had a feeling he was going to be barbequed by the time this was all over...
"Well, now, Mr. Ishitar," Bagman was saying. Marik blinked, surprised at being addressed. He looked over next to him to see that Harry had already drawn out the last dragon - the Hungarian Horntail. "You'll be going first young man, so just go out into the enclosure when you hear the whistle. Now, then, Harry; might I have a word with you outside...?"
Marik almost begged Harry not to go, but his brain was too much of a pile of mush to form a coherent thought, not to mention give voice to one. His friend left, leaving him alone with the two foreign wizards. He looked at the both of them, realizing there was no way he was going to get any kind of conversation out of them even if he himself had been up for it, before heading over to the side of the tent that lead out to the enclosure.
Ra, what the hell was he thinking when he put his name in that cup...
~.oOOo.~
Up in the stands, Yugi and the others watched as the dragon handlers brought in the Chinese Fireball, surprised even though Marik and Harry had told them what they were going to be up against before hand. Draco looked slightly furious, muttering about how it was supposed to be safe this year and how dragons were anything but safe. Yami Yugi kept a tight arm around his hikari, suddenly grateful that he had not been picked as school champion. Hermione had more or less wore her nails down to the point they were bleeding, but she kept insisting she was not worried. Both Bakura and Yami Bakura seemed agitated, both silently hoping that Marik would be able to concentrate enough to pull off whatever he had to do...
Yami Seto, however, was not focused on any of this. The nest that had been set up in the enclosure distracted his gaze. It took him merely a moment to realize the purpose of it, and what it would be in relation to the dragon, and he swore violently.
Seto frowned at his other half. "What's you're problem?"
Yami Seto glanced at him. "The Blue Eyes, that's the problem."
The young CEO raised an eyebrow. "What about it?"
"It's female," the high priest replied, as if that would explain everything. It, obviously, did not.
"How do you even know?" Seto demanded.
The high priest blew out a frustrated sigh. "Because it was created from half of a woman's soul!"
Seto rolled his eyes. "Right, okay. Now, what does this have to do with the dragon down there?"
He waved toward the Chinese Fireball as his dark half gave him a scathing look.
"Do the math, hikari!" he snapped. "What does a female with a nest of young ones do when another female shows up?"
Seto paled as realization dawned on him. He opened his mouth to say something, when a sharp whistle cut him off, and Marik came out into the enclosure below. The Egyptian hesitated for a very obvious moment, before raising an arm into the air, the Millennium Ring around his neck glowing in response.
"I'm told, ladies and gentlemen," came Bagman's voice, as he was the one commentating, "that Mr. Ishitar is part of an 'Ancient Egyptian Magic' class at Hogwarts. Seems like he's trying an ancient Summoning spell, something that's very old and VERY advanced."
A black vortex leading to the Shadow Realm swirled into being behind Marik, and hush fell over the crowd, anxious to see what ancient being he was bringing to life...
Marik brought his arm down swiftly, as if urging something forward.
"Come out, BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON!"
The crowd - especially those that were Muggle-born or were a fan of Duel Monsters - erupted into ecstatic shouts as the hazy and transparent dragon emerged from its home in the Shadows. Seto groaned, hiding his face, while Yami Seto tried to massage away a growing headache.
"This is going to be bloody..." the high priest murmured.
~.oOOo.~
Right from the moment the Blue Eyes White Dragon emerged from the Shadow Realm, Marik knew something was about to go horribly wrong. The Chinese Fireball reared back, spreading out its wings and hissing at the dragon that had seeming appeared from nowhere. The Blue Eyes looked largely uninterested, but that did not stop the Fireball from perceiving it as a threat. It opened its jaws and let out a large plum of deadly fire. Flapping its wings, the Blue Eyes was able the get enough height to avoid the blast. Unfortunately, the beating of the dragon's massive wings caused some of the flames to deter from their path...
Marik did not have enough time to get fully out of harms way. He was able to dodge just enough so that one of the stray fireballs only brushed against the left side of his face. The crowd seemed to gasp as one as the nasty smell of charred flesh reached his nose. Holding the burned side of his face in pain, Marik stumbled back slightly as the dragon handlers got ready to go out into the enclosure.
"Iie!" Marik shouted, holding out his free hand. "No! I can handle this!"
The handlers seemed uncertain, but they backed off as the Egyptian felt a slight rushing of wings beside him. He turned to see the Blue Eyes settle down on the ground, resting as it stared at the Chinese Fireball with a seemingly bored look on its face. Marik narrowed his eyes, before walking right up to its enormous head, keeping his eye trained on the other dragon, which was watching them warily.
"Blue Eyes, listen to me," Marik hissed, keeping his voice low. "You have to help me here."
The Blue Eyes seemed to give him a look, as if saying, "I'm way older than you; why should I bother?"
"You have to," the Egyptian insisted. "You're the only thing that can help me out of this."
The Blue Eyes snorted, turning away from him. Marik could have sworn he felt a vein pop in his anger, but somehow he managed to keep himself from striking out at the stubborn dragon.
"Look, I may not be Seto... thank Ra," he muttered under his breath. The Blue Eyes snorted again. "BUT, we have something in common in relationship to him."
The dragon turned its head slightly toward him. If given a human face, Marik imagined it would be raising an eyebrow at him.
Marik smirked slightly. "We'd both risk our necks to help him out if he were in a jam, no matter how much of a stuck up bastard he can be sometimes."
The Blue Eyes White Dragon snorted again, though this time it seemed to be in agreement. It rose from its resting position, letting out a roar of challenge to the Chinese Fireball before taking to the air once again.
"Just draw it away from the nest!" Marik called up to it. "I'll take it from there!"
The Blue Eyes let out another roar in response, and the Chinese Fireball seemed to get the hint that its nest was going to be in danger again. It backed up, using its massive tail to protect the eggs, before letting loose another plum of fire. Dodging, the Blue Eyes returned fire in the form of a burst of lightening as Marik slunk around the edge of the enclosure, waiting for his chance to dart forward and grab the golden egg.
Meanwhile, the Fireball paused a moment, obviously confused by the attack that the Blue Eyes had countered with. It apparently had never encountered a dragon that could shoot lightening before, and it did not know how to react to it. When the Blue Eyes flew it to try to take a snap at its neck seemed to make up its mind however. The Fireball edged away from the nest a little, trying to get a better shot at the more agile Blue Eyes. Sensing an impending attack, the Blue Eyes hovered about back and forth, luring it inch by slow inch away from the nest; it beat its wings, gaining enough altitude to hover just above the Chinese Fireball...
That was when the opportunity presented itself. The Fireball uncurled its tail from around the nest, using it as balance as it attempted to fly up toward the Blue Eyes. Marik darted forward before he lost the chance, ducking under the dragon's tail and climbing into the small nest. Nestled amongst a collection of dull brown eggs was his shimmering target. He grabbed the golden egg without a thought, launching himself out of the nest and running a safe distance away before turning around.
The Chinese Fireball had almost succeeded in reaching a good angle where it could snap the Blue Eyes' neck in half, but that did not matter anymore. The dragon handlers raced out into the enclosure, subduing the dragon so they could guide it out into its own pen. Marik looked up to the Blue Eyes, nodding toward the dragon in thanks and respect, before sending the creature back to the Shadow Realm with a wave of his arm. It was then that he became fully aware of the noise of the crowd, all the students and professors watching and applauding. What he had just done also hit him square in the chest, and he suddenly felt his breakfast and lunch again. He put a hand over his mouth, wincing when he brushed up against his burnt face, trying desperately not to be sick.
"Very good indeed!" Bagman exclaimed. "And now for the score!"
Marik did not even take notice of what he got for a score; he would ask Yugi and the others later. All he wanted to do at that moment was get the hell out of that enclosure; he wanted to go back to the castle, to his bed in the Gryffindor tower, hide under the covers, and not come out for a good few weeks.
He did not know how it happened, but somehow a moment later, he ended up sitting on a seat in a different tent from what he had been earlier. Madam Pomfrey, the school nurse, was hovering over him, spreading some kind of orange paste onto his face.
"Dragons!" she exclaimed disapprovingly. "I swear! First dementors, now dragons! What's next at this school? Mr. Ishitar, are you all right?"
Marik nodded numbly, not trusting his voice enough to answer her vocally.
He remained sitting in that chair for the rest of the task, listening to the roars of the crowd as each of the other champions went up against their dragons. It seemed like hours before Harry finally entered the tent, his Firebolt broomstick slung over a wounded shoulder and his own golden egg tucked securely under his good arm. Marik looked up at him blearily, surprised to see the younger boy smiling in elation.
"Marik, you all right?" Harry asked, seeing the expression on his face.
Marik just blinked. "Harry?"
"Yeah...?"
"We dead?"
Harry frowned. "No..."
Marik nodded. "Oh. Okay."
THUD!!!
With that said, Marik finally let his queasiness and nervousness overtake him and passed out cold, tumbling out of his chair and onto the dirt floor.
~.oOOo.~
Seto followed the others at a distance as they helped a barely conscious Marik shamble into the school. It was nothing short of a miracle that the Gravekeeper had survived the first task, all things considered, especially that magnificent blunder of his at the start. He did not know what had possessed him to even think of entering such a dangerous tournament, but Seto hoped that the first task set him straight. Seriously, whoever entered the thing had to be a complete...
He cut that thought off before he could finish it, stopping dead in his tracks. Well, not EVERYONE who entered the Triwizard Tournament was a complete idiot. Looking off toward the Beauxbatons carriage, he could see a group of the blue robed students standing about, talking to one another. Seto hesitated a moment, debating whether or not he should go over and ask them if they had seen Fleur. It turned out, however, that he did not need to.
"Are you looking for me?" Fleur's accented voice came from behind him. Seto jumped, not expecting that, before turning around.
"Are you okay?" he asked in return. "It scared me for a moment when your robes caught on fire."
She frowned down at the burned fabric, picking at it slightly. "It iz nozzing. I hav' replacements."
Seto smiled gently, one of his rare genuine smiles, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm... just glad you're all right."
Fleur, however, pulled out of his grasp, her face a mixture of worry and concern. "Zeto... I... I should tell you... about..."
Seto shook his head slightly, cutting her off. "If it's about you being part veela," he began quietly, "it's okay, I know; a friend told me."
She blinked, visibly confused. "An'... zill you come for me?"
"Of course," he answered without hesitation. "You should know why. You don't have to do anything for me to care about you."
Fleur hesitated a moment, obviously not used to such an admission, before she beamed happily. "Thank you... thank you, Zeto."
Seto nodded, before he too became nervous. Since she had come to him to tell her about herself - never mind that he already knew - he should really do the same. After all, if she trusted him enough to tell him about the veela when he had no clue, then it was only fair that he would return that trust... right? He was not sure; this kind of thing was so new to him.
"Fleur... you're... not the only one who's a bit... different," he began, trying to find the right words for what he wanted to say. She waited patiently, obviously understanding, but someone else did not share the same feeling. He could feel Yami Seto backing up a bit into the shelter of his own Soul Room.
~~Hikari, what are you doing?~~ the high priest asked. ~~Why are you bringing me into this?~~
~~She has a right to know,~~ Seto replied. Yami Seto seemed to blush and shudder in nervousness at the same time.
~~Well... well... I'm not ready for her to know about me.~~
Seto mentally rolled his eyes. ~~You coward.~~
"Zeto?" Fleur asked as Yami Seto stared swearing at him. Seto just rubbed the back of his neck, ignoring his other as he started snapping out a few nasty-sounding Egyptian words.
"Sorry," he apologized, before reaching into his robes and pulling out the Millennium Rod, deciding that was the best place to start. "Fleur, this is the Millennium Rod, a... magical Item from Ancient Egypt. You might have seen that Marik has something similar - the Millennium Ring. I... admit, I don't know much about these Items, but from what I gather some of them have souls within..."
He trailed off, not sure on how the explain it from there. Fleur seemed to get the idea though, as she cocked her head to the side thoughtfully.
"Are you zaying you are... pozzezzed?" she asked.
"Yes," Seto admitted, putting the Rod back into its hiding place.
"And... iz zis spirit of yours friendly?" she inquired.
Seto resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "A little TOO friendly sometimes."
~~Well, excuuuuuuuuuse me, hikari,~~ Yami Seto grumbled.
Fleur, however, giggled. "May I zee him?"
~~No!~~
"Sure, let me kick him out," Seto replied, a bit of a smirk on his face as he retreated to the Soul Corridor within his mind. That smirk turned into a sneer when he saw his dark half clutching the frame of his Soul Door with a death grip.
~~You really are a coward.~~
Yami Seto glared. ~~Shut up,~~ he snapped. ~~I don't know about this. I mean... what if she doesn't like the fact that her boyfriend's got a five thousand year old spirit taking up residence in his head? I don't want to ruin your chances, hikari; you take so few of them with women.~~
Seto gave him a bland look. ~~Nice try. If she didn't like that, I doubt she would have asked to see you,~~ he pointed out, before grabbing his other self's arm and yanking him forcefully away from the door frame.
In the real world, Yami Seto yelped as he was suddenly forced to appear next to his hikari. He spared Seto a glare before turning his attention to Fleur, rubbing the back of his neck slightly.
"Uh... hi," he said, nervously. "Er..."
Fleur looked at him, slightly surprised to see a washed out Seto-twin, even though she had been expecting it. She observed the high priest for a long moment, carefully looking him up and down... before promptly passing out. Caught off guard, Seto barely had time to reach out and grab her before she hit the ground. Yami Seto face-palmed, not believing his luck.
"Well, that went well," he said dryly. "I tried to warn you, hikari. I just hope this doesn't -"
The high priest cut himself off as Fleur's eyes suddenly snapped open, making both of them jump slightly in surprise. She looked up at Seto... but her gaze seemed different, almost as if she did not recognize him. She turned to Yami Seto, and she smiled warmly, much to his confusion.
"Fleur, are you all right?" Seto asked.
She looked up at him again, confused, as if she could not understand what he said. Yami Seto frowned as she turned her gaze back to him again. Something seemed different about her; her manner, her face, it all seemed a bit softer... it was almost as if...
The high priest took in a sharp intake of breath as realization hit him. No... no way... it could not be...
Fleur smiled broadly when she saw he knew, before opening her mouth and saying in FLAWLESS Egyptian, "It is good to see you again, Priest Seto."
Seto looked between Fleur and his dark half, wondering what in the nine hells just happened. Yami Seto, however, did not notice his hikari's looks. The one person he never thought he would see again took up his gaze... but there was no mistake, it was definitely...
"K...Kisara..."
Dawn of Fate
.
.
There won't be a Q&A this time; this chapter's long enough, though it will be well worth it as A LOT happens in this chapter. Note that I changed the ordering of the dragons a bit... oh, and expect a clifie...
::evil laugh::
Read, enjoy, and then review!
.
.
.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - THE FIRST TASK
Yami Bakura had to admit; Marik's plan for getting past his dragon was quite simplistic and original. After all, how many other champions would think to summon a dragon to combat against another dragon? Probably none of them, given where they came from and the age they lived in. However, the Egyptian's plan more or less called for a miracle as well. It was Sunday morning, almost Sunday afternoon, at the moment, and the first task would be taking place Tuesday afternoon. That was a very limited amount of time to show someone who barely knew how to use their Millennium Item how to summon monsters from the Shadow Realm. To make matters worse, that was not the only bump in their path.
"No way in HELL are you borrowing one of MY Blue Eyes White Dragons," Seto declared, the pitch of his voice, tone, and his stance stating that that was FINAL. The expression on Yami Seto's face all but said begging him for help was not going to get them anywhere either.
Marik shook an angry fist, not the least bit pleased. "C'mon, you two! How the heck else am I supposed to go up against a DRAGON?! Say, 'Please don't kill me,' and hope it'll roll over and play dead?!"
"Worth a shot," Yami Seto replied callously.
Marik looked like he was going to knock the high priest flat, not caring that he would go through him. To his surprise, however, Yami Bakura put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"Look, Gravekeeper, I think you can get away without using the card," he said, forcing the Egyptian to sit in one of the library seats. "Since Moneybags -" Seto glared - "and his deck will be in close proximity to where you'll be going up against that thing, you'll be able to summon without having the physical card in your hand. It's a hell'uva lot harder though."
Marik nodded. "I don't care; whatever it takes. I don't see what else I can do anyway."
Bakura sighed, propping his head up with his hands. "We're going to need a VERY discreet place to practice..."
~.oOOo.~
Over the small time Marik had to learn how to summon a monster from the Shadow Realm, some of the panic brought on by the daunting task had washed away. Tuesday morning, however, it came back in full force, hitting him hardest in his gut. He stared down at his food at breakfast, afraid that if he ate anything he would be sick; then again, if he were sick, then he would miss out on this MESS he had gotten himself into...
Then, Hermione chose to sit down at the table, opening up her S.P.E.W. notebook and pointedly ignoring him. He got a little bit of courage back after seeing that. It was not much, but it was enough to get him to swallow a small piece of toast.
Somehow, he had managed to get past his morning classes. Looking back, he knew he would not be able to remember what exactly happened in those classes. His first thought was that he would get whatever homework he missed off of Hermione, but then he remembered that him and Hermione were not on good terms anymore.
Sitting at lunch, forcing down a salad, he silently promised himself that he was going to ask her out to the Yule Ball as soon as he got the chance and make everything right again.
Professor McGonagall came up to their table just as he finished what little he could eat of his salad. If anything, she seemed almost as nervous as Harry was. The younger wizard was sitting across from him, looking for all the world like he would rather be anywhere else. Marik did not blame him one bit.
"Potter, Ishitar; you'll have to come down to the grounds now," the professor told them. "The champions have to get ready for the first task."
Both Harry and Marik got up, their friends wishing them luck with concerned and/or worried expressions on their faces. The two Hogwarts champions followed Professor McGonagall out to the grounds, where she motioned them into a large red tent, erected at just the right height to block the view of the dragons.
Marik felt his breakfast and his lunch hit rock bottom as he entered the tent. Fleur and Krum were already sitting down, and if their sickened expressions were any clue, they knew what they were going to be up against. Ludo Bagman was there as well, looking so absolutely cheerful that Marik wanted to go over to him and knock his flashing white teeth out.
"Well, now that we're all assembled," Bagman began brightly, "it's time to fill you in! When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering you this bag -" He held up a small purple sack - "from which you'll each take a small model of what you're about to face. There are different... varieties, you see. You're goal is to COLLECT THE GOLDEN EGG! Don't forget this."
Marik's mind was so numb, he was surprised he could even focus on remaining standing, not to mention remembering what the heck he was supposed to be doing. Harry seemed drone-like; he had not said two words since he woke up that morning. Fleur looked like she was going to be sick, judging from the slight green tinge in her cheeks. Krum was not looking at anyone or anything for that matter; he stared off into space, almost like he also would rather be anywhere else.
None too soon, they heard the sound of several hundred people passing the tent, joking and laughing as they made their way past. Marik felt like he was going to outright vomit right there; how could anyone be laughing at a time like THIS?! Then, before he even knew it, Bagman was opening the pouch and holding it out to Fleur.
"Ladies first," he said.
Fleur gave him a scathing glare, before reaching a quavering hand into the bag. She pulled out a miniature figure of the Welsh Green, which was trying to shrug off the tag around its neck that displayed the number two. Krum was next, pulling out the Swedish Short-Snout, which had a number three around its own neck.
Marik paled as Bagman swiveled around to point the bag at him. Somehow he managed to force his hand to stay steady enough to reach in and pull out... the Chinese Fireball, with the number one displayed proudly around its neck.
The Gravekeeper was surprised that he managed to keep his queasiness from exploding out of him. Of course he would get the one that looked the most like Osiris. It had to be some kind of cosmic retribution, either that, or Ra enjoyed sick jokes. Either way, Marik had a feeling he was going to be barbequed by the time this was all over...
"Well, now, Mr. Ishitar," Bagman was saying. Marik blinked, surprised at being addressed. He looked over next to him to see that Harry had already drawn out the last dragon - the Hungarian Horntail. "You'll be going first young man, so just go out into the enclosure when you hear the whistle. Now, then, Harry; might I have a word with you outside...?"
Marik almost begged Harry not to go, but his brain was too much of a pile of mush to form a coherent thought, not to mention give voice to one. His friend left, leaving him alone with the two foreign wizards. He looked at the both of them, realizing there was no way he was going to get any kind of conversation out of them even if he himself had been up for it, before heading over to the side of the tent that lead out to the enclosure.
Ra, what the hell was he thinking when he put his name in that cup...
~.oOOo.~
Up in the stands, Yugi and the others watched as the dragon handlers brought in the Chinese Fireball, surprised even though Marik and Harry had told them what they were going to be up against before hand. Draco looked slightly furious, muttering about how it was supposed to be safe this year and how dragons were anything but safe. Yami Yugi kept a tight arm around his hikari, suddenly grateful that he had not been picked as school champion. Hermione had more or less wore her nails down to the point they were bleeding, but she kept insisting she was not worried. Both Bakura and Yami Bakura seemed agitated, both silently hoping that Marik would be able to concentrate enough to pull off whatever he had to do...
Yami Seto, however, was not focused on any of this. The nest that had been set up in the enclosure distracted his gaze. It took him merely a moment to realize the purpose of it, and what it would be in relation to the dragon, and he swore violently.
Seto frowned at his other half. "What's you're problem?"
Yami Seto glanced at him. "The Blue Eyes, that's the problem."
The young CEO raised an eyebrow. "What about it?"
"It's female," the high priest replied, as if that would explain everything. It, obviously, did not.
"How do you even know?" Seto demanded.
The high priest blew out a frustrated sigh. "Because it was created from half of a woman's soul!"
Seto rolled his eyes. "Right, okay. Now, what does this have to do with the dragon down there?"
He waved toward the Chinese Fireball as his dark half gave him a scathing look.
"Do the math, hikari!" he snapped. "What does a female with a nest of young ones do when another female shows up?"
Seto paled as realization dawned on him. He opened his mouth to say something, when a sharp whistle cut him off, and Marik came out into the enclosure below. The Egyptian hesitated for a very obvious moment, before raising an arm into the air, the Millennium Ring around his neck glowing in response.
"I'm told, ladies and gentlemen," came Bagman's voice, as he was the one commentating, "that Mr. Ishitar is part of an 'Ancient Egyptian Magic' class at Hogwarts. Seems like he's trying an ancient Summoning spell, something that's very old and VERY advanced."
A black vortex leading to the Shadow Realm swirled into being behind Marik, and hush fell over the crowd, anxious to see what ancient being he was bringing to life...
Marik brought his arm down swiftly, as if urging something forward.
"Come out, BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON!"
The crowd - especially those that were Muggle-born or were a fan of Duel Monsters - erupted into ecstatic shouts as the hazy and transparent dragon emerged from its home in the Shadows. Seto groaned, hiding his face, while Yami Seto tried to massage away a growing headache.
"This is going to be bloody..." the high priest murmured.
~.oOOo.~
Right from the moment the Blue Eyes White Dragon emerged from the Shadow Realm, Marik knew something was about to go horribly wrong. The Chinese Fireball reared back, spreading out its wings and hissing at the dragon that had seeming appeared from nowhere. The Blue Eyes looked largely uninterested, but that did not stop the Fireball from perceiving it as a threat. It opened its jaws and let out a large plum of deadly fire. Flapping its wings, the Blue Eyes was able the get enough height to avoid the blast. Unfortunately, the beating of the dragon's massive wings caused some of the flames to deter from their path...
Marik did not have enough time to get fully out of harms way. He was able to dodge just enough so that one of the stray fireballs only brushed against the left side of his face. The crowd seemed to gasp as one as the nasty smell of charred flesh reached his nose. Holding the burned side of his face in pain, Marik stumbled back slightly as the dragon handlers got ready to go out into the enclosure.
"Iie!" Marik shouted, holding out his free hand. "No! I can handle this!"
The handlers seemed uncertain, but they backed off as the Egyptian felt a slight rushing of wings beside him. He turned to see the Blue Eyes settle down on the ground, resting as it stared at the Chinese Fireball with a seemingly bored look on its face. Marik narrowed his eyes, before walking right up to its enormous head, keeping his eye trained on the other dragon, which was watching them warily.
"Blue Eyes, listen to me," Marik hissed, keeping his voice low. "You have to help me here."
The Blue Eyes seemed to give him a look, as if saying, "I'm way older than you; why should I bother?"
"You have to," the Egyptian insisted. "You're the only thing that can help me out of this."
The Blue Eyes snorted, turning away from him. Marik could have sworn he felt a vein pop in his anger, but somehow he managed to keep himself from striking out at the stubborn dragon.
"Look, I may not be Seto... thank Ra," he muttered under his breath. The Blue Eyes snorted again. "BUT, we have something in common in relationship to him."
The dragon turned its head slightly toward him. If given a human face, Marik imagined it would be raising an eyebrow at him.
Marik smirked slightly. "We'd both risk our necks to help him out if he were in a jam, no matter how much of a stuck up bastard he can be sometimes."
The Blue Eyes White Dragon snorted again, though this time it seemed to be in agreement. It rose from its resting position, letting out a roar of challenge to the Chinese Fireball before taking to the air once again.
"Just draw it away from the nest!" Marik called up to it. "I'll take it from there!"
The Blue Eyes let out another roar in response, and the Chinese Fireball seemed to get the hint that its nest was going to be in danger again. It backed up, using its massive tail to protect the eggs, before letting loose another plum of fire. Dodging, the Blue Eyes returned fire in the form of a burst of lightening as Marik slunk around the edge of the enclosure, waiting for his chance to dart forward and grab the golden egg.
Meanwhile, the Fireball paused a moment, obviously confused by the attack that the Blue Eyes had countered with. It apparently had never encountered a dragon that could shoot lightening before, and it did not know how to react to it. When the Blue Eyes flew it to try to take a snap at its neck seemed to make up its mind however. The Fireball edged away from the nest a little, trying to get a better shot at the more agile Blue Eyes. Sensing an impending attack, the Blue Eyes hovered about back and forth, luring it inch by slow inch away from the nest; it beat its wings, gaining enough altitude to hover just above the Chinese Fireball...
That was when the opportunity presented itself. The Fireball uncurled its tail from around the nest, using it as balance as it attempted to fly up toward the Blue Eyes. Marik darted forward before he lost the chance, ducking under the dragon's tail and climbing into the small nest. Nestled amongst a collection of dull brown eggs was his shimmering target. He grabbed the golden egg without a thought, launching himself out of the nest and running a safe distance away before turning around.
The Chinese Fireball had almost succeeded in reaching a good angle where it could snap the Blue Eyes' neck in half, but that did not matter anymore. The dragon handlers raced out into the enclosure, subduing the dragon so they could guide it out into its own pen. Marik looked up to the Blue Eyes, nodding toward the dragon in thanks and respect, before sending the creature back to the Shadow Realm with a wave of his arm. It was then that he became fully aware of the noise of the crowd, all the students and professors watching and applauding. What he had just done also hit him square in the chest, and he suddenly felt his breakfast and lunch again. He put a hand over his mouth, wincing when he brushed up against his burnt face, trying desperately not to be sick.
"Very good indeed!" Bagman exclaimed. "And now for the score!"
Marik did not even take notice of what he got for a score; he would ask Yugi and the others later. All he wanted to do at that moment was get the hell out of that enclosure; he wanted to go back to the castle, to his bed in the Gryffindor tower, hide under the covers, and not come out for a good few weeks.
He did not know how it happened, but somehow a moment later, he ended up sitting on a seat in a different tent from what he had been earlier. Madam Pomfrey, the school nurse, was hovering over him, spreading some kind of orange paste onto his face.
"Dragons!" she exclaimed disapprovingly. "I swear! First dementors, now dragons! What's next at this school? Mr. Ishitar, are you all right?"
Marik nodded numbly, not trusting his voice enough to answer her vocally.
He remained sitting in that chair for the rest of the task, listening to the roars of the crowd as each of the other champions went up against their dragons. It seemed like hours before Harry finally entered the tent, his Firebolt broomstick slung over a wounded shoulder and his own golden egg tucked securely under his good arm. Marik looked up at him blearily, surprised to see the younger boy smiling in elation.
"Marik, you all right?" Harry asked, seeing the expression on his face.
Marik just blinked. "Harry?"
"Yeah...?"
"We dead?"
Harry frowned. "No..."
Marik nodded. "Oh. Okay."
THUD!!!
With that said, Marik finally let his queasiness and nervousness overtake him and passed out cold, tumbling out of his chair and onto the dirt floor.
~.oOOo.~
Seto followed the others at a distance as they helped a barely conscious Marik shamble into the school. It was nothing short of a miracle that the Gravekeeper had survived the first task, all things considered, especially that magnificent blunder of his at the start. He did not know what had possessed him to even think of entering such a dangerous tournament, but Seto hoped that the first task set him straight. Seriously, whoever entered the thing had to be a complete...
He cut that thought off before he could finish it, stopping dead in his tracks. Well, not EVERYONE who entered the Triwizard Tournament was a complete idiot. Looking off toward the Beauxbatons carriage, he could see a group of the blue robed students standing about, talking to one another. Seto hesitated a moment, debating whether or not he should go over and ask them if they had seen Fleur. It turned out, however, that he did not need to.
"Are you looking for me?" Fleur's accented voice came from behind him. Seto jumped, not expecting that, before turning around.
"Are you okay?" he asked in return. "It scared me for a moment when your robes caught on fire."
She frowned down at the burned fabric, picking at it slightly. "It iz nozzing. I hav' replacements."
Seto smiled gently, one of his rare genuine smiles, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm... just glad you're all right."
Fleur, however, pulled out of his grasp, her face a mixture of worry and concern. "Zeto... I... I should tell you... about..."
Seto shook his head slightly, cutting her off. "If it's about you being part veela," he began quietly, "it's okay, I know; a friend told me."
She blinked, visibly confused. "An'... zill you come for me?"
"Of course," he answered without hesitation. "You should know why. You don't have to do anything for me to care about you."
Fleur hesitated a moment, obviously not used to such an admission, before she beamed happily. "Thank you... thank you, Zeto."
Seto nodded, before he too became nervous. Since she had come to him to tell her about herself - never mind that he already knew - he should really do the same. After all, if she trusted him enough to tell him about the veela when he had no clue, then it was only fair that he would return that trust... right? He was not sure; this kind of thing was so new to him.
"Fleur... you're... not the only one who's a bit... different," he began, trying to find the right words for what he wanted to say. She waited patiently, obviously understanding, but someone else did not share the same feeling. He could feel Yami Seto backing up a bit into the shelter of his own Soul Room.
~~Hikari, what are you doing?~~ the high priest asked. ~~Why are you bringing me into this?~~
~~She has a right to know,~~ Seto replied. Yami Seto seemed to blush and shudder in nervousness at the same time.
~~Well... well... I'm not ready for her to know about me.~~
Seto mentally rolled his eyes. ~~You coward.~~
"Zeto?" Fleur asked as Yami Seto stared swearing at him. Seto just rubbed the back of his neck, ignoring his other as he started snapping out a few nasty-sounding Egyptian words.
"Sorry," he apologized, before reaching into his robes and pulling out the Millennium Rod, deciding that was the best place to start. "Fleur, this is the Millennium Rod, a... magical Item from Ancient Egypt. You might have seen that Marik has something similar - the Millennium Ring. I... admit, I don't know much about these Items, but from what I gather some of them have souls within..."
He trailed off, not sure on how the explain it from there. Fleur seemed to get the idea though, as she cocked her head to the side thoughtfully.
"Are you zaying you are... pozzezzed?" she asked.
"Yes," Seto admitted, putting the Rod back into its hiding place.
"And... iz zis spirit of yours friendly?" she inquired.
Seto resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "A little TOO friendly sometimes."
~~Well, excuuuuuuuuuse me, hikari,~~ Yami Seto grumbled.
Fleur, however, giggled. "May I zee him?"
~~No!~~
"Sure, let me kick him out," Seto replied, a bit of a smirk on his face as he retreated to the Soul Corridor within his mind. That smirk turned into a sneer when he saw his dark half clutching the frame of his Soul Door with a death grip.
~~You really are a coward.~~
Yami Seto glared. ~~Shut up,~~ he snapped. ~~I don't know about this. I mean... what if she doesn't like the fact that her boyfriend's got a five thousand year old spirit taking up residence in his head? I don't want to ruin your chances, hikari; you take so few of them with women.~~
Seto gave him a bland look. ~~Nice try. If she didn't like that, I doubt she would have asked to see you,~~ he pointed out, before grabbing his other self's arm and yanking him forcefully away from the door frame.
In the real world, Yami Seto yelped as he was suddenly forced to appear next to his hikari. He spared Seto a glare before turning his attention to Fleur, rubbing the back of his neck slightly.
"Uh... hi," he said, nervously. "Er..."
Fleur looked at him, slightly surprised to see a washed out Seto-twin, even though she had been expecting it. She observed the high priest for a long moment, carefully looking him up and down... before promptly passing out. Caught off guard, Seto barely had time to reach out and grab her before she hit the ground. Yami Seto face-palmed, not believing his luck.
"Well, that went well," he said dryly. "I tried to warn you, hikari. I just hope this doesn't -"
The high priest cut himself off as Fleur's eyes suddenly snapped open, making both of them jump slightly in surprise. She looked up at Seto... but her gaze seemed different, almost as if she did not recognize him. She turned to Yami Seto, and she smiled warmly, much to his confusion.
"Fleur, are you all right?" Seto asked.
She looked up at him again, confused, as if she could not understand what he said. Yami Seto frowned as she turned her gaze back to him again. Something seemed different about her; her manner, her face, it all seemed a bit softer... it was almost as if...
The high priest took in a sharp intake of breath as realization hit him. No... no way... it could not be...
Fleur smiled broadly when she saw he knew, before opening her mouth and saying in FLAWLESS Egyptian, "It is good to see you again, Priest Seto."
Seto looked between Fleur and his dark half, wondering what in the nine hells just happened. Yami Seto, however, did not notice his hikari's looks. The one person he never thought he would see again took up his gaze... but there was no mistake, it was definitely...
"K...Kisara..."