Chapter Three: Going Under
**Now I will tell you what I've done for you
Fifty thousand tears I've cried
Screaming, deceiving, and bleeding for you
And you still won't hear me**
Luckily - or perhaps /not/ luckily - Leila ran into Bakura first. Literally.
"Oof," he said distantly as they collapsed in a tangled heap.
"Oh, Akil," she whimpered. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, the love spell went wrong - "
"It did?" he said. He pushed her off, then thoughtfully helped her up after standing himself. "That's excellent."
"What?" She looked closer at him, and found that she didn't like what she saw. The normal sadistic glow in his dark eyes was gone, replaced by a thoughtful, faraway glitter. ~He's changed,~ she thought uneasily. ~He's figured something out, and it could spell disaster for us.~ And behind those dazed eyes she caught a glimpse of something she would never identify.
Fear.
He shook his head. "Leila - that's you, yes? Whatever you do, don't try the love spell again. In fact, any plans I've ever made - don't try them. Don't listen to Shizu."
Leila backed away, a bit frightened. "I - I won't, Akil."
"Please," he said. "Call me Bakura. Everyone I care about does."
"Bakura." The name was strange on her lips. "All - all right, I suppose. I have to - do something - far from here." She took two more steps backwards, turned on her heel, and fled.
Bakura watched her go, then cast back into his newly-acquired memory. He needed a weapons room, he needed a sword - any sword would do.
Actually, he'd much rather have a gun, but there didn't seem to be any hope of that, so...
A sword was the next best thing.
As he set off for the nearest armory, he found himself wishing he'd been born a few centuries later. Honestly, these people probably still used copper...
* * *
As she dashed through the catacombs, Leila had one thing on her mind - escape.
Whatever Akil's - /Bakura's/ - reaction had been, it wasn't likely to be the same when he snapped out of his strange mental state. She wanted to be far away as possible before he sought her out. She'd just get her things, and supplies, and take off along the Nile. She'd find the sea, buy passage on a merchant ship, and sail off to - where? She had very little knowledge of geography, but anywhere that Bakura wasn't would probably work.
A hand reached out of the shadows and grabbed her. Leila bit back a scream, and sighed, half in relief, half in terror.
"Oh - Shizu. I just - "
"The spell," Shizu said, in a deadly quiet voice. "Did it work?"
"Well, I cast it. And it didn't exactly hit the High Priest. But - "
Shizu casually flung aside a fold of her robe and placed her hand on the hilt of a scimitar. "Who did it hit?"
"A - a handmaiden, Lady Shizu." The situation seemed to call for titles. "Yellow-haired, like you. She looks a lot like you, actually."
"Who did she see?"
"I don't know. I left before - "
Shizu shrugged. "Very well."
Her motions were fluid and well-practiced. The scimitar came up and around in a flash of copper. Leila crumpled before she even knew she'd been killed.
Shizu stared at the corpse for only a moment before stepping over it and going on her way. She had to clean the sword, of course. And then...
Then she would find out which would be easier to murder, the handmaiden or the object of her affection.
**Don't want your hand this time, I'll save myself
Maybe I'll wake up for once
Not tormented daily defeated by you
Just when I thought I'd reached the bottom
I'm dying again**
Mokuba discovered the catacombs by himself.
Seto had forbidden him from coming to the throne room. "We're in Egypt," he'd said. "The Shadow Games are being played. It's probably dangerous. Just don't leave this room."
Well, Mokuba had no intention of staying in the room. It was boring, and he could feel some kind of power coursing through his veins, and he wanted to use it.
First, though, he had to find out how.
He plodded down a corridor, bare feet aching, and turned randomly right, then left, then left again. There were so many priests - why weren't there any around when he wanted one?
He sighed and leaned against the wall, barely catching himself in time when it swung inwards.
"Oh, a door," he said. "Typical. There's always at least one secret entrance."
He peered into the gloom, and, almost unaware that he did it, plucked a torch from the wall and held it out. There were steps descending into blackness.
~Probably, I should wait for Seto to have time to come with me,~ he thought. ~The last time I was in a place like this, Pegasus had me chained in the dungeons.~
And then he remembered something. He hadn't had magic, then. He did now. Even though he wasn't quite sure how to use it.
Couldn't hurt to take a look.
And wouldn't it be nice to tell Seto that he'd found something, by himself?
Assuming, of course, that there was something down there to find.
* * *
Ryou sat outside, knowing that the harsh Egyptian sun was probably burning his skin badly, and not caring.
He'd gotten himself into this, after all. Bakura had warned him that the watch was evil, but he'd worn it, and now...now he didn't even know where his yami was.
And the damn watch wouldn't come off.
He glared at Sathaugula, which glinted brightly in the afternoon sun. "I hate you," he told it. "You turned me into a slave, and I don't want to be here. I have school tomorrow! I mean, in five thousand years! I mean...I don't even /know/ what I mean anymore."
He heard the soft sound of footsteps behind him, and didn't turn. Already he'd been ordered around by three nobles. It was getting irritating. This was probably some servant, come to fetch him.
"Now do you believe me?"
Ryou snapped his head around and stared in disbelief at Bakura, who stood calmly behind him, practicing moves with a sword. It swished through the air.
"You're here, and alive..."
"And you, dear hikari, are sunburnt." Whoosh, went the sword, and Bakura neatly tossed it into his other hand. "The Egyptians invented fencing, you know. Other than that, we weren't really that bloodthirsty. We didn't have to be. Who would attack us here, in the middle of the desert? Suicide, that's what it is."
Ryou scrambled to his feet. "I'm sorry - "
"Save it." Bakura smiled bitterly. "Everyone seems to say that, lately. I actually /apologized/ for losing my memory. Then Leila begged my forgiveness for doing something right."
"Who?"
Bakura shrugged and abruptly stopped swinging the sword, planting it point- first in the dust and leaning on it. "Handmaiden. One of us." He frowned, looked around, and said quietly, "Ryou, I can't be seen. I'm not sure what I've done, but I seem to be wanted around here, and I'm staying in the catacombs. The entrance is in the corridor that leads to the kitchens from the outside. You can find it, I'm sure. Bring the pharaoh - but /disguise/ him. I have to talk to him."
"Yami," Ryou said desperately. "I can't stay here. I'm a slave. I don't like it. Let me come to the catacombs."
"Too dangerous. Tell Mai that I love her. The guards will be making their rounds in a moment. I'll see you later, won't I?"
"Yes," Ryou said, and watched as his yami disappeared through a door, back into the palace.
* * *
Mai moaned and pressed a hand to her aching forehead. She couldn't see clearly - everyone around her seemed to be blurry blobs.
"Mai," said the Yami-blob. "Can you hear me?"
"Ugh," she said. "Yes, but I can't see." She rubbed at her eyes. There didn't seem to be anything /wrong/ with them - they didn't hurt or itch or anything like that. She just...couldn't see.
"Get a healer," she heard Kaiba snap. She blinked and realized that the room was resolving itself into less-fuzzy shapes.
"I think it's getting better," she ventured. She blinked several times in quick succession, shook her head, and looked up into Yugi's wide, worried eyes.
And felt something in her heart twist.
She knew what it was immediately, of course. She'd been in love before, but never like this. With Bakura and Joey, it had always been there, but not so insistent and pounding. This was longing, and wanting, and there wasn't any lust at all. It was love, plain and simple, and she knew it, wanted to hate it, but couldn't.
"Yugi," she said, appalled at the seductive tone her voice seemed to have taken all by itself. "Could you just...back up?" ~Because I'm afraid I'll try to kiss you in a moment,~ she added to herself.
What was going on?
Yugi obediently backed away, the light of confusion in his eyes, and against her will, Mai started listing all kinds of adjectives for them, like adorable, and sweet, and perfect...
She allowed Joey to help her up, staring at Yugi, unable to tear her eyes away.
"Mai," Kaiba said, and she blinked hard. Maybe it was just these odd new feelings, but he actually sounded concerned. "Do you know what happened?"
She shook her head.
"Because," he continued, "I think someone cast a spell on you - I could feel it, for a moment. But if it's getting better..."
Actually, it was getting worse. Even though something in the back of her head was screaming that she /did not/ love Yugi, the rest of her wanted to kiss him and hug him and...
"Oh, God!" she cried. "Very dark mental place there!" She looked around wildly for something to bang her head on, so she could dispel the images. Her cheeks burned; normally she would /never/ think of things like that.
Joey, Kaiba, and Yami were giving her very suspicious looks. "Sure you're all right?" Joey asked.
She nodded. "Yes. Fine." Really, though, she just wasn't comfortable telling any of them about this.
~Bakura,~ she thought. ~He'll know what's going on, if I can find him...~
And if this love thing got bad enough that she wouldn't feel the need to do something violent to him for /daring/ to cheat on her...
**I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
I'm going under**
It took Mai several minutes to convince the others that she was all right, and then she fled, casting a backward glance at Yugi.
Kaiba immediately turned to Yami. "I know what's wrong with her," he announced.
"Why didn't you tell /her/?" Yami asked.
He snorted. "There's no possible way she could not know. Didn't you feel it? She got hit with a love spell."
Joey regarded the High Priest with deep suspicion. "And how do /you/ know? You've only had magic for a few hours."
Kaiba gave Joey a withering look. "You didn't notice the looks she was giving Yugi?"
"Me?" Yugi gasped.
"Yes, you. It's my theory that someone cast a love spell on her, and the first person she saw was Yugi. I need to talk to someone who knows about this magic thing, but I'm fairly certain." He tapped his foot. "Honestly, I'm the High Priest, I thought all the others are supposed to come running..."
Joey groaned. "So now she's in love with /two people/ who aren't me? There's no justice in the world!"
A white-robed healer-mage dashed in at that point and flung himself prostrate before the dais. "You called?" he gasped.
"What do you know of love spells?" Kaiba demanded, completely ignoring the others - shell-shocked Yugi, worried Yami, despairing Joey.
The healer got to his knees, averting his eyes from the pharaoh. "They are difficult to cast, my lord. However, from the moment they take grasp, they cannot be broken, except by death."
"Everything can be countered," Kaiba snapped. "Everything! You just haven't figured it out yet!"
Scrambling to his feet, the healer shook his head. "I am sorry, my lord, but there is no possible way to reverse it. Love spells are designed that way. Pharaoh Khemsyt III himself decided that. Under law, no one can search for any counter-spell."
Kaiba stared. It was the first time anyone in the room had seen him even remotely at a loss. "But - why?"
The healer bowed hurriedly. "Pharaoh Khemsyt III fancied himself a ruthless overlord. Perhaps my lord does not remember? He decreed that love spells must be forever binding, and unbreakable by any means." The healer coughed. "I believe his actual words were, 'And if I find it shatters by that pesky old Power of True Love thing, I will cut off thy heads.'"
Yami recovered somewhat. "Well, I'm the pharaoh now, and I say that an antidote must be found. Immediately. Or...or I'll have you drawn and quartered." He looked pleased at having delivered such gruesome judgment.
The healer bowed deeply. "Yes, O Never-Dying One. Immediately." He raced off.
Kaiba sighed and turned to Yami. "In the meantime, someone has to talk to Mai. Tell her to keep away from Yugi. This is just what we don't need - I mean, if what you said is true really is."
Yami nodded. "I'm sure of it. Joey, would you?"
"Augh," Joey said weakly.
"Oh, right." Yami suddenly smiled. "You know, we could /try/ finding Bakura. That 'pesky old Power of True Love thing' might work."
It was then that Ryou entered, badly sunburnt but grinning. He ran up onto the dais, drawing gasps from the handmaidens, who had never seen such scandalous behavior in all their lives.
"I found Bakura," he said. "I know where he is, too. He said he has to talk to you, Yami."
The pharaoh stood. "Good. Joey, you ought to come, just in case it's a trap."
"What about Mai?" Yugi finally managed.
"Just stay away from her," Yami said. "It will all work out."
Ryou blinked. "What will work out?"
Yami sighed. "Well, there's quite a bit we need to tell you..."
**Blurring and stirring the truth and the lies
So I don't know what's real and what's not
Always confusing the thoughts in my head
So I can't trust myself anymore
I'm dying again**
There was one more important piece of information about love spells that the healer forgot to mention, and which Mai was already beginning to discover.
The longer Mai spent hiding from Yugi, the more she wanted him.
She wasn't sure where she was, just that it was far away from the throne room. She hadn't seen another living soul, which was good, because a blush seemed to have set up permanent residence on her cheeks.
She turned a corner and ran into Bakura.
"Ouch," he said faintly, stumbling backwards. Mai looked up, saw him rubbing his nose ruefully, and got a horrible shock.
Nothing. She felt...nothing.
No love, no hate. The love spell shut out all other emotions. There was only the ever-present desire for Yugi, nothing else.
"Mai," Bakura said. "You're here."
"Oh," she said. It was all she could think of to say.
He looked around, then grabbed her arm and dragged her into what seemed to be a closet. He pulled the door shut and stared at her. She looked around, desperate to see anything but him.
It was a small closet, apparently for random storage. Several objects adorned the shelves, mainly clay jars. The only light came from a window that was little more than a slit in the wall, letting in the soft light of the sinking sun.
"Mai..." Bakura whispered, and reached out to brush a strand of hair back from her face.
"Mm," she said, and pulled away.
"What's wrong?"
Mai bit her lip, then said, very quickly, "I-think-I'm-in-love-with-Yugi."
She knew he understood her; he always did. He didn't react though, just stared for a moment, then whispered, "You were with Kaiba a moment ago, weren't you."
She nodded.
"Damn. I'm going to kill her." He clenched his fist and kicked a jar on one of the lower shelves. It shattered. "Mai, dear, you're under a love spell. It's not real."
"Mrr," she whimpered. "I want to love you. I know I should. But - "
"Don't say it." Bakura leaned against the wall, his dark eyes holding hers captive. "Breakable by death."
"Death?"
"Yes, so they tell me. But what about - I mean, maybe strong enough love for someone else?"
"You're taking this very calmly," she said, a bit upset.
"Yes, well, I'm trying very hard not to rush out of here and strangle the young woman responsible for this." He sighed. "Anyway. You feel nothing for me?"
She shook her head, and almost immediately he lunged forward, grabbed her face, and kissed her.
His lips burned hers, she felt like her skin was bruising, lifted her hands to grip his wrists. It was so - different. She could feel all the passion and anger, and frustration, and fear - all the emotions he had ever felt, it seemed. She knew that her nails were digging into his arms, and that on any normal day this probably would have led to something that /really/ would have frightened Ryou.
And somewhere deep in her mind, a little voice screamed that she should want this...
But she couldn't.
After a moment, he pulled away, a fierce light that might have been anger shining in his eyes. "Nothing?"
Mai still clung to his wrists. "No. Sorry, so sorry, but you have that other girl...don't you?"
"Shizu? How do you...oh. Throne room." He sighed. "I loved her, once. I love you now, though." Now it was his turn to look everywhere but at her.
She might have suspected something, but became a bit preoccupied by the watch that seemed to be on his wrist. She could feel it, the edge was pressing on her hand, but she didn't see anything.
"Are you wearing a watch?"
He glanced down. "No. Why?"
She shrugged and let go, hands falling to her sides. "Well, what am I supposed to do about Yugi?"
Bakura ran a pale hand through his even paler hair, and stared resolutely at the broken jar. "I don't know. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a certain handmaiden to scream at and possibly kill." He pushed the door open and stalked off, leaving Mai to lick her lips and wish that she could have kissed back, or that he was Yugi.
**I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
So go on and scream
Scream at me, I'm so far away
I won't be broken again
I've got to breathe, I can't keep going under**
Mokuba held the torch in front of him like a weapon as he made his way through the corridors. The catacombs were a silent place, devoid of life - all life.
It was not, however, devoid of death.
He found the body not very far from the stairs, and almost dropped his torch in shock. It was a girl, lying in a crumpled heap, small and fragile, her dark hair covering her face. A dark pool of blood spread out from her neck, where the morbidly curious Mokuba located a deep cut that had severed her windpipe.
Well, he had definitely found something, but it was not something he wanted to find.
He fled back in the direction of the stairs, but soon discovered that he was lost - lost in a place where there was obviously a murderer on the loose.
Mokuba ducked into a room when he heard footsteps, waited until they passed. So, human beings did walk around down here. /Living/ human beings.
That was a relief.
As soon as he was certain the hallway was clear, he stepped back into it and looked around. Where was he, again? Usually he had such a good sense of direction...
Voices, coming toward him. He ran back into the room and pressed against the wall, trembling.
"I'm telling you, there's something seriously wrong with him..."
"Hn. Maybe you should've hit /him/ with the spell."
"Oh, please. He adores me. Of course, he doesn't know...but how could he? We've been so careful..."
"He'll start to suspect something if you don't get rid of the body."
"Yeah, I'll get someone to throw her in the Nile." The voice - female, definitely female - laughed. "How ironic is that?"
"Oh - don't forget the Ishtar boy."
"We won't be getting any problems from him..."
The voices faded. Mokuba slipped into the corridor and began walking rapidly in the opposite direction. So, those two, whoever they were, knew about the corpse he had found - or possibly another one.
One thing was seriously bothering him, though.
Ishtar. That was Isis' last name. And thus her brother's last name, as well.
Was it even possible that they were talking about Malik Ishtar? Because if they were, Yami would definitely want to know...
So lost was he in his thoughts that he did not notice that he was being followed until his pursuer grabbed his arm and yanked him into a small niche in the wall. The torch dropped from his hand and flared briefly before going out, plunging them into darkness.
**I'm dying again
I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
I'm going under
Going under
Going under**
~~
A/N: Sigh. Head hurts. Too much homework. Don't /want/ to write a paper. Mrr.
Comments for my reviewers so far:
The laughing: Hee, thank you. And yes, Mai/Bakura all the way, forever. I know it doesn't look that way, but trust me.
Night Beauty: Glad you like it! Really? Your name's Leila? Wild. Actually, I didn't have my list of Egyptian names at the time, and Leila is the most Egyptian-sounding name I know. ;)
Mori: I think Evanescence might be my favorite band, too. Or else 10,000 Maniacs. Not sure.
Rei Mayonaka: I am going to email you again in a moment, when I've put this up. Although by the time you get here, that comment will be irrelevant. Heh. Anyway, how did you find out?! (suspicious look) You didn't /read the summary/, did you? Because that's completely unheard of. :)
LiLianJieGurl: Yay Kaiba! He's so adorable, isn't he? Oh, and I'm not sure /how/ I write this way. It just happens and everyone seems to like it. Flattering, it is.
To everyone: Thanks for all the pretty reviews! I like reviews. I've never actually /done/ a thank-you section like this before, but apparently lots of other people do it. So. Thanks. Cough.
Notes on the Chapter: So. Stuff happened. Not much more to say, really.
Next Chapter: Leap Before You Look. Not an Evanescence song, because none of them seem to fit the next chapter. Not a song at all, it's actually a poem. Anyway. Will Mai succeed in avoiding Yugi? Who captured Mokuba? Will Bakura ever remember Sathaugula? And how on Earth am I going to resolve the love spell?! Actually, the answer to that last question is coming up in about...two, maybe three more chapters.
Please, someone. Force me to work on my original story. My writing schedule is all messed up. Wah. Oh! Better idea! Force me to do my homework!
**Now I will tell you what I've done for you
Fifty thousand tears I've cried
Screaming, deceiving, and bleeding for you
And you still won't hear me**
Luckily - or perhaps /not/ luckily - Leila ran into Bakura first. Literally.
"Oof," he said distantly as they collapsed in a tangled heap.
"Oh, Akil," she whimpered. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, the love spell went wrong - "
"It did?" he said. He pushed her off, then thoughtfully helped her up after standing himself. "That's excellent."
"What?" She looked closer at him, and found that she didn't like what she saw. The normal sadistic glow in his dark eyes was gone, replaced by a thoughtful, faraway glitter. ~He's changed,~ she thought uneasily. ~He's figured something out, and it could spell disaster for us.~ And behind those dazed eyes she caught a glimpse of something she would never identify.
Fear.
He shook his head. "Leila - that's you, yes? Whatever you do, don't try the love spell again. In fact, any plans I've ever made - don't try them. Don't listen to Shizu."
Leila backed away, a bit frightened. "I - I won't, Akil."
"Please," he said. "Call me Bakura. Everyone I care about does."
"Bakura." The name was strange on her lips. "All - all right, I suppose. I have to - do something - far from here." She took two more steps backwards, turned on her heel, and fled.
Bakura watched her go, then cast back into his newly-acquired memory. He needed a weapons room, he needed a sword - any sword would do.
Actually, he'd much rather have a gun, but there didn't seem to be any hope of that, so...
A sword was the next best thing.
As he set off for the nearest armory, he found himself wishing he'd been born a few centuries later. Honestly, these people probably still used copper...
* * *
As she dashed through the catacombs, Leila had one thing on her mind - escape.
Whatever Akil's - /Bakura's/ - reaction had been, it wasn't likely to be the same when he snapped out of his strange mental state. She wanted to be far away as possible before he sought her out. She'd just get her things, and supplies, and take off along the Nile. She'd find the sea, buy passage on a merchant ship, and sail off to - where? She had very little knowledge of geography, but anywhere that Bakura wasn't would probably work.
A hand reached out of the shadows and grabbed her. Leila bit back a scream, and sighed, half in relief, half in terror.
"Oh - Shizu. I just - "
"The spell," Shizu said, in a deadly quiet voice. "Did it work?"
"Well, I cast it. And it didn't exactly hit the High Priest. But - "
Shizu casually flung aside a fold of her robe and placed her hand on the hilt of a scimitar. "Who did it hit?"
"A - a handmaiden, Lady Shizu." The situation seemed to call for titles. "Yellow-haired, like you. She looks a lot like you, actually."
"Who did she see?"
"I don't know. I left before - "
Shizu shrugged. "Very well."
Her motions were fluid and well-practiced. The scimitar came up and around in a flash of copper. Leila crumpled before she even knew she'd been killed.
Shizu stared at the corpse for only a moment before stepping over it and going on her way. She had to clean the sword, of course. And then...
Then she would find out which would be easier to murder, the handmaiden or the object of her affection.
**Don't want your hand this time, I'll save myself
Maybe I'll wake up for once
Not tormented daily defeated by you
Just when I thought I'd reached the bottom
I'm dying again**
Mokuba discovered the catacombs by himself.
Seto had forbidden him from coming to the throne room. "We're in Egypt," he'd said. "The Shadow Games are being played. It's probably dangerous. Just don't leave this room."
Well, Mokuba had no intention of staying in the room. It was boring, and he could feel some kind of power coursing through his veins, and he wanted to use it.
First, though, he had to find out how.
He plodded down a corridor, bare feet aching, and turned randomly right, then left, then left again. There were so many priests - why weren't there any around when he wanted one?
He sighed and leaned against the wall, barely catching himself in time when it swung inwards.
"Oh, a door," he said. "Typical. There's always at least one secret entrance."
He peered into the gloom, and, almost unaware that he did it, plucked a torch from the wall and held it out. There were steps descending into blackness.
~Probably, I should wait for Seto to have time to come with me,~ he thought. ~The last time I was in a place like this, Pegasus had me chained in the dungeons.~
And then he remembered something. He hadn't had magic, then. He did now. Even though he wasn't quite sure how to use it.
Couldn't hurt to take a look.
And wouldn't it be nice to tell Seto that he'd found something, by himself?
Assuming, of course, that there was something down there to find.
* * *
Ryou sat outside, knowing that the harsh Egyptian sun was probably burning his skin badly, and not caring.
He'd gotten himself into this, after all. Bakura had warned him that the watch was evil, but he'd worn it, and now...now he didn't even know where his yami was.
And the damn watch wouldn't come off.
He glared at Sathaugula, which glinted brightly in the afternoon sun. "I hate you," he told it. "You turned me into a slave, and I don't want to be here. I have school tomorrow! I mean, in five thousand years! I mean...I don't even /know/ what I mean anymore."
He heard the soft sound of footsteps behind him, and didn't turn. Already he'd been ordered around by three nobles. It was getting irritating. This was probably some servant, come to fetch him.
"Now do you believe me?"
Ryou snapped his head around and stared in disbelief at Bakura, who stood calmly behind him, practicing moves with a sword. It swished through the air.
"You're here, and alive..."
"And you, dear hikari, are sunburnt." Whoosh, went the sword, and Bakura neatly tossed it into his other hand. "The Egyptians invented fencing, you know. Other than that, we weren't really that bloodthirsty. We didn't have to be. Who would attack us here, in the middle of the desert? Suicide, that's what it is."
Ryou scrambled to his feet. "I'm sorry - "
"Save it." Bakura smiled bitterly. "Everyone seems to say that, lately. I actually /apologized/ for losing my memory. Then Leila begged my forgiveness for doing something right."
"Who?"
Bakura shrugged and abruptly stopped swinging the sword, planting it point- first in the dust and leaning on it. "Handmaiden. One of us." He frowned, looked around, and said quietly, "Ryou, I can't be seen. I'm not sure what I've done, but I seem to be wanted around here, and I'm staying in the catacombs. The entrance is in the corridor that leads to the kitchens from the outside. You can find it, I'm sure. Bring the pharaoh - but /disguise/ him. I have to talk to him."
"Yami," Ryou said desperately. "I can't stay here. I'm a slave. I don't like it. Let me come to the catacombs."
"Too dangerous. Tell Mai that I love her. The guards will be making their rounds in a moment. I'll see you later, won't I?"
"Yes," Ryou said, and watched as his yami disappeared through a door, back into the palace.
* * *
Mai moaned and pressed a hand to her aching forehead. She couldn't see clearly - everyone around her seemed to be blurry blobs.
"Mai," said the Yami-blob. "Can you hear me?"
"Ugh," she said. "Yes, but I can't see." She rubbed at her eyes. There didn't seem to be anything /wrong/ with them - they didn't hurt or itch or anything like that. She just...couldn't see.
"Get a healer," she heard Kaiba snap. She blinked and realized that the room was resolving itself into less-fuzzy shapes.
"I think it's getting better," she ventured. She blinked several times in quick succession, shook her head, and looked up into Yugi's wide, worried eyes.
And felt something in her heart twist.
She knew what it was immediately, of course. She'd been in love before, but never like this. With Bakura and Joey, it had always been there, but not so insistent and pounding. This was longing, and wanting, and there wasn't any lust at all. It was love, plain and simple, and she knew it, wanted to hate it, but couldn't.
"Yugi," she said, appalled at the seductive tone her voice seemed to have taken all by itself. "Could you just...back up?" ~Because I'm afraid I'll try to kiss you in a moment,~ she added to herself.
What was going on?
Yugi obediently backed away, the light of confusion in his eyes, and against her will, Mai started listing all kinds of adjectives for them, like adorable, and sweet, and perfect...
She allowed Joey to help her up, staring at Yugi, unable to tear her eyes away.
"Mai," Kaiba said, and she blinked hard. Maybe it was just these odd new feelings, but he actually sounded concerned. "Do you know what happened?"
She shook her head.
"Because," he continued, "I think someone cast a spell on you - I could feel it, for a moment. But if it's getting better..."
Actually, it was getting worse. Even though something in the back of her head was screaming that she /did not/ love Yugi, the rest of her wanted to kiss him and hug him and...
"Oh, God!" she cried. "Very dark mental place there!" She looked around wildly for something to bang her head on, so she could dispel the images. Her cheeks burned; normally she would /never/ think of things like that.
Joey, Kaiba, and Yami were giving her very suspicious looks. "Sure you're all right?" Joey asked.
She nodded. "Yes. Fine." Really, though, she just wasn't comfortable telling any of them about this.
~Bakura,~ she thought. ~He'll know what's going on, if I can find him...~
And if this love thing got bad enough that she wouldn't feel the need to do something violent to him for /daring/ to cheat on her...
**I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
I'm going under**
It took Mai several minutes to convince the others that she was all right, and then she fled, casting a backward glance at Yugi.
Kaiba immediately turned to Yami. "I know what's wrong with her," he announced.
"Why didn't you tell /her/?" Yami asked.
He snorted. "There's no possible way she could not know. Didn't you feel it? She got hit with a love spell."
Joey regarded the High Priest with deep suspicion. "And how do /you/ know? You've only had magic for a few hours."
Kaiba gave Joey a withering look. "You didn't notice the looks she was giving Yugi?"
"Me?" Yugi gasped.
"Yes, you. It's my theory that someone cast a love spell on her, and the first person she saw was Yugi. I need to talk to someone who knows about this magic thing, but I'm fairly certain." He tapped his foot. "Honestly, I'm the High Priest, I thought all the others are supposed to come running..."
Joey groaned. "So now she's in love with /two people/ who aren't me? There's no justice in the world!"
A white-robed healer-mage dashed in at that point and flung himself prostrate before the dais. "You called?" he gasped.
"What do you know of love spells?" Kaiba demanded, completely ignoring the others - shell-shocked Yugi, worried Yami, despairing Joey.
The healer got to his knees, averting his eyes from the pharaoh. "They are difficult to cast, my lord. However, from the moment they take grasp, they cannot be broken, except by death."
"Everything can be countered," Kaiba snapped. "Everything! You just haven't figured it out yet!"
Scrambling to his feet, the healer shook his head. "I am sorry, my lord, but there is no possible way to reverse it. Love spells are designed that way. Pharaoh Khemsyt III himself decided that. Under law, no one can search for any counter-spell."
Kaiba stared. It was the first time anyone in the room had seen him even remotely at a loss. "But - why?"
The healer bowed hurriedly. "Pharaoh Khemsyt III fancied himself a ruthless overlord. Perhaps my lord does not remember? He decreed that love spells must be forever binding, and unbreakable by any means." The healer coughed. "I believe his actual words were, 'And if I find it shatters by that pesky old Power of True Love thing, I will cut off thy heads.'"
Yami recovered somewhat. "Well, I'm the pharaoh now, and I say that an antidote must be found. Immediately. Or...or I'll have you drawn and quartered." He looked pleased at having delivered such gruesome judgment.
The healer bowed deeply. "Yes, O Never-Dying One. Immediately." He raced off.
Kaiba sighed and turned to Yami. "In the meantime, someone has to talk to Mai. Tell her to keep away from Yugi. This is just what we don't need - I mean, if what you said is true really is."
Yami nodded. "I'm sure of it. Joey, would you?"
"Augh," Joey said weakly.
"Oh, right." Yami suddenly smiled. "You know, we could /try/ finding Bakura. That 'pesky old Power of True Love thing' might work."
It was then that Ryou entered, badly sunburnt but grinning. He ran up onto the dais, drawing gasps from the handmaidens, who had never seen such scandalous behavior in all their lives.
"I found Bakura," he said. "I know where he is, too. He said he has to talk to you, Yami."
The pharaoh stood. "Good. Joey, you ought to come, just in case it's a trap."
"What about Mai?" Yugi finally managed.
"Just stay away from her," Yami said. "It will all work out."
Ryou blinked. "What will work out?"
Yami sighed. "Well, there's quite a bit we need to tell you..."
**Blurring and stirring the truth and the lies
So I don't know what's real and what's not
Always confusing the thoughts in my head
So I can't trust myself anymore
I'm dying again**
There was one more important piece of information about love spells that the healer forgot to mention, and which Mai was already beginning to discover.
The longer Mai spent hiding from Yugi, the more she wanted him.
She wasn't sure where she was, just that it was far away from the throne room. She hadn't seen another living soul, which was good, because a blush seemed to have set up permanent residence on her cheeks.
She turned a corner and ran into Bakura.
"Ouch," he said faintly, stumbling backwards. Mai looked up, saw him rubbing his nose ruefully, and got a horrible shock.
Nothing. She felt...nothing.
No love, no hate. The love spell shut out all other emotions. There was only the ever-present desire for Yugi, nothing else.
"Mai," Bakura said. "You're here."
"Oh," she said. It was all she could think of to say.
He looked around, then grabbed her arm and dragged her into what seemed to be a closet. He pulled the door shut and stared at her. She looked around, desperate to see anything but him.
It was a small closet, apparently for random storage. Several objects adorned the shelves, mainly clay jars. The only light came from a window that was little more than a slit in the wall, letting in the soft light of the sinking sun.
"Mai..." Bakura whispered, and reached out to brush a strand of hair back from her face.
"Mm," she said, and pulled away.
"What's wrong?"
Mai bit her lip, then said, very quickly, "I-think-I'm-in-love-with-Yugi."
She knew he understood her; he always did. He didn't react though, just stared for a moment, then whispered, "You were with Kaiba a moment ago, weren't you."
She nodded.
"Damn. I'm going to kill her." He clenched his fist and kicked a jar on one of the lower shelves. It shattered. "Mai, dear, you're under a love spell. It's not real."
"Mrr," she whimpered. "I want to love you. I know I should. But - "
"Don't say it." Bakura leaned against the wall, his dark eyes holding hers captive. "Breakable by death."
"Death?"
"Yes, so they tell me. But what about - I mean, maybe strong enough love for someone else?"
"You're taking this very calmly," she said, a bit upset.
"Yes, well, I'm trying very hard not to rush out of here and strangle the young woman responsible for this." He sighed. "Anyway. You feel nothing for me?"
She shook her head, and almost immediately he lunged forward, grabbed her face, and kissed her.
His lips burned hers, she felt like her skin was bruising, lifted her hands to grip his wrists. It was so - different. She could feel all the passion and anger, and frustration, and fear - all the emotions he had ever felt, it seemed. She knew that her nails were digging into his arms, and that on any normal day this probably would have led to something that /really/ would have frightened Ryou.
And somewhere deep in her mind, a little voice screamed that she should want this...
But she couldn't.
After a moment, he pulled away, a fierce light that might have been anger shining in his eyes. "Nothing?"
Mai still clung to his wrists. "No. Sorry, so sorry, but you have that other girl...don't you?"
"Shizu? How do you...oh. Throne room." He sighed. "I loved her, once. I love you now, though." Now it was his turn to look everywhere but at her.
She might have suspected something, but became a bit preoccupied by the watch that seemed to be on his wrist. She could feel it, the edge was pressing on her hand, but she didn't see anything.
"Are you wearing a watch?"
He glanced down. "No. Why?"
She shrugged and let go, hands falling to her sides. "Well, what am I supposed to do about Yugi?"
Bakura ran a pale hand through his even paler hair, and stared resolutely at the broken jar. "I don't know. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a certain handmaiden to scream at and possibly kill." He pushed the door open and stalked off, leaving Mai to lick her lips and wish that she could have kissed back, or that he was Yugi.
**I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
So go on and scream
Scream at me, I'm so far away
I won't be broken again
I've got to breathe, I can't keep going under**
Mokuba held the torch in front of him like a weapon as he made his way through the corridors. The catacombs were a silent place, devoid of life - all life.
It was not, however, devoid of death.
He found the body not very far from the stairs, and almost dropped his torch in shock. It was a girl, lying in a crumpled heap, small and fragile, her dark hair covering her face. A dark pool of blood spread out from her neck, where the morbidly curious Mokuba located a deep cut that had severed her windpipe.
Well, he had definitely found something, but it was not something he wanted to find.
He fled back in the direction of the stairs, but soon discovered that he was lost - lost in a place where there was obviously a murderer on the loose.
Mokuba ducked into a room when he heard footsteps, waited until they passed. So, human beings did walk around down here. /Living/ human beings.
That was a relief.
As soon as he was certain the hallway was clear, he stepped back into it and looked around. Where was he, again? Usually he had such a good sense of direction...
Voices, coming toward him. He ran back into the room and pressed against the wall, trembling.
"I'm telling you, there's something seriously wrong with him..."
"Hn. Maybe you should've hit /him/ with the spell."
"Oh, please. He adores me. Of course, he doesn't know...but how could he? We've been so careful..."
"He'll start to suspect something if you don't get rid of the body."
"Yeah, I'll get someone to throw her in the Nile." The voice - female, definitely female - laughed. "How ironic is that?"
"Oh - don't forget the Ishtar boy."
"We won't be getting any problems from him..."
The voices faded. Mokuba slipped into the corridor and began walking rapidly in the opposite direction. So, those two, whoever they were, knew about the corpse he had found - or possibly another one.
One thing was seriously bothering him, though.
Ishtar. That was Isis' last name. And thus her brother's last name, as well.
Was it even possible that they were talking about Malik Ishtar? Because if they were, Yami would definitely want to know...
So lost was he in his thoughts that he did not notice that he was being followed until his pursuer grabbed his arm and yanked him into a small niche in the wall. The torch dropped from his hand and flared briefly before going out, plunging them into darkness.
**I'm dying again
I'm going under
Drowning in you
I'm falling forever
I've got to break through
I'm going under
Going under
Going under**
~~
A/N: Sigh. Head hurts. Too much homework. Don't /want/ to write a paper. Mrr.
Comments for my reviewers so far:
The laughing: Hee, thank you. And yes, Mai/Bakura all the way, forever. I know it doesn't look that way, but trust me.
Night Beauty: Glad you like it! Really? Your name's Leila? Wild. Actually, I didn't have my list of Egyptian names at the time, and Leila is the most Egyptian-sounding name I know. ;)
Mori: I think Evanescence might be my favorite band, too. Or else 10,000 Maniacs. Not sure.
Rei Mayonaka: I am going to email you again in a moment, when I've put this up. Although by the time you get here, that comment will be irrelevant. Heh. Anyway, how did you find out?! (suspicious look) You didn't /read the summary/, did you? Because that's completely unheard of. :)
LiLianJieGurl: Yay Kaiba! He's so adorable, isn't he? Oh, and I'm not sure /how/ I write this way. It just happens and everyone seems to like it. Flattering, it is.
To everyone: Thanks for all the pretty reviews! I like reviews. I've never actually /done/ a thank-you section like this before, but apparently lots of other people do it. So. Thanks. Cough.
Notes on the Chapter: So. Stuff happened. Not much more to say, really.
Next Chapter: Leap Before You Look. Not an Evanescence song, because none of them seem to fit the next chapter. Not a song at all, it's actually a poem. Anyway. Will Mai succeed in avoiding Yugi? Who captured Mokuba? Will Bakura ever remember Sathaugula? And how on Earth am I going to resolve the love spell?! Actually, the answer to that last question is coming up in about...two, maybe three more chapters.
Please, someone. Force me to work on my original story. My writing schedule is all messed up. Wah. Oh! Better idea! Force me to do my homework!