FW: ALOHA! *shot down*
Yami: Oy, what the hell is wrong with her now?
Bardock: Who said anything was wrong?
Yami: o_O; You mean she acts like this 24/7?
Una: Yup yup. Unless it is her Time of the…well you know..
Bardock: *shudders* She must be really scary then…
Yami: Her what? Time of the wha-? What's that?
FW, Una, Bardo: o_o; Ummm….oh dear…
Yami: Uhh, I'll say the disclaimer while you try and figure out how to tell me what is going on. They do not own Yu-Gi-Oh, but all characters are owned by Una or the Female Writer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 2: Come Out And Play
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The horses and carrier arrived, and the pharaoh with his oldest son waited by the doors. The riders carried the small carrier up the long stairway and placed it down before the king. He kneeled down, so he could be eye level with the boy. His son peered from behind his father, not fully visible over the large king.
"Ah come on now young one," Akunamukanon said gently. "Do not fear, I won't hurt you."
There was no response. The pharaoh kept talking but got no response. "Hmm, shy are you? Well, if you want to be strong you can't be shy now can you, little-" as the pharaoh pulled the curtains back, he saw no one in there. Only a small, untidily scrawled note.
The note read:
"To mister pharaoh man: I am sorry to leave. I jumped off the back into a jungle coz the only friend I made that came along with me jumped out saying he didn't wanna go here coz it was a bad place. I really sorry I couldn't meet you."
The pharaoh crumpled the note. "Spread out and search for the boy, at once!"
Little did they know how short it would be until someone found her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Seto heard men going through the garden, calling out to each other to look for a small boy named Rei. Whoever he was, this "Rei" person wasn't here, because all he could see from his vantage point in a tree was a girl hiding by the river. She had cut of her golden hair, in order to uphold a male appearance.
Seto smirked, reading her emotions through her aura. She didn't even know what was going on and she didn't want to be here. Seto jumped down. He brushed a few reeds from his vision and he watched her. Although she couldn't speak properly just yet, her voice was still beautiful.
He heard some of the guards running towards them. Silently, he snuck up behind her, covered her mouth, and hid her under a river bank. The men turned around and went back to searching.
"So, you are the supposed boy they are looking for, hm?"
"Whaddya mean by that," asked Kei, attempting to sound more masculine.
"Look, I know you're a girl, I can read your aura, and so can a lot of people once you get inside the palace." He softened his voice slightly. "You need to listen to me. The minute you step in there, twenty or so people are going to figure out that you are a girl. If they figure that out, you are finished! Now, I can cover your aura by using mine. But you have to trust me. Got that?"
The boy's hurried words confused the poor young blonde so much she felt dizzy. Kei fell over into his lap crying.
"I can't do it! I dunno anything no more! I'm scared, I really am…even though my daddy told me to be before he went to sleep forever that I shouldn't be afraid but I am…you're not gonna give me up are ya?"
Seto looked deeply into the girl's tear filled eyes. He remembered crying when his mother left him. He normally would not act so nicely to a stray girl, but for some reason, he felt he had to help this one. "Just say you'll trust me and I will do the rest."
Kei looked at him, but then looked behind him. Seto turned round but he saw no one. Yet Kei was still staring into space. She looked as if she was in a trance. Her eyes filled with tears as she reached out, but as it looked as if she was going to grab something, she was immediately snapped out of it.
She smiled at Seto's baffled face. "They said I can trust you, so I will."
"Who's they?" Seto asked.
"The little girl and boy that have been following me, silly! The girl looks a bit like me, and the boy looks a bit like my dad I guess…."
Seto took a deep breath. He sensed it. He was barely four, but he knew what a shaman was. And this girl was a year younger than he was and held such extreme powers. He took her into his arms, held her until he couldn't tell the difference in their auras, then let her go. "Don't act so weird, and the spell won't wear off." It was the only one he knew and he hoped it worked.
"My name's Kei," she said brightly. "What's your name? Wanna be my friend?"
Seto stood there, amazed. No one had asked him that before, not even his own cousin. "My name is Seto. I am the cousin of the man you were supposed to marry. And - uh - well, I've never had any friends…"
"That's okay, I still wanna be your friend!" she said with an adorable smile. Seto found himself turning a light red, and then he was picked up, as was she.
"There you are," one of the guards exclaimed. "You both are in a lot of trouble, running off like that! The Pharaoh isn't pleased with your behavior."
Seto didn't care, he was used to it. In fact, his uncle had just given up chasing after him ever since Naeem was born. He was now much like Atem [1] in the sense that he could run around and get little more than a slap on the wrist for punishment. Not that he wanted to. He just wanted to be alone.
[Bardock: man, talk about your temperamental four year olds]
Kei looked up at the guard holding her and asked, "So do I get a talking to and sit in the corner?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[1] - Atem is Yami's real name, just so you all know X3
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kei stared up at the ceiling of her room in despair. The Pharaoh had ordered she stay locked in with no meals for three days. Today was the second day. She pondered to herself if she had revealed she was a girl if she would be eating right about now.
She jumped when she heard a noise from the wall. She scurried under the bed, holding her sword close to her body for the intruder. To her shock, the wall itself opened, and two pairs of golden sandals crept through.
"I thought you said this was his room," a familiar voice said.
"It is," insisted another young boy. "Father taught me the route of the palace perfectly! I'm positive this is his room!"
Kei realized she was in the right position for an awesome joke. Quickly, she grabbed one leg of each boy.
The result was hysterical! Seto tried to scramble backwards, but fell over in sitting position. His accomplice yelled "Ra's Blood!!," spun in the air, and landed face down, out like a candle!
Kei dove back under the bed giggling, but Seto grabbed her arm and dragged her out. "YOU!! What in the name of Osiris are you doing!?!"
"Tryin' ta have some fun!" She glomped onto his torso. "Miss me, friend?"
He pushed her down. Frantically, he warned her to be quiet and pointed at the small, groaning boy. "That's the prince!!"
Kei's eyes widened. The prince squeezed his eyes in pain and rubbed his chin, making sure it didn't break. He wore a simple white tunic, gold sandals, and a crown with the Eye of Horus in the center. "What were you doing under the bed," he asked.
"Uh … I heard … footsteps and …" Kei gulped. Not only had she tripped her newest friend, but she assaulted the prince!
The boy, however, did not look too angry. Instead, he stuck his nose in the air and folded his arms imperiously. "So, you're Rei of the shaman village?"
"Uh… Rei is my name." 'Is this the guy Daddy wanted me to marry?'
The prince scanned her up and down, then circled around, as if inspecting very closely. He finally ended nose to nose with her. "Can you really use that thing?"
"What thing?"
"Your sword."
"Kinda."
"Any experience with magic?"
"Y-yeah…" His ruby red eyes were starting to freak her out.
The prince stepped back, still looking closely at her. Seto asked him, "Well?"
He paused, then smiled. "He looks okay. Kind of small, but he'll grow. And if he can use a sword now, he'll use it like another arm by the time he joins Father's forces!" He bowed. "I am the High Prince Atem, Pharaoh Akunamukanon's oldest son and heir to the throne of Kemet!" He waved his hand haughtily. "No need to bow!"
Seto rolled his eyes. 'Spoiled brat!'
Atem folded his arms. "So, why'd you run away, Rei?" Kei did not respond, forgetting momentarily her supposed name. She kept staring at him, her head cocked. "Something the matter," asked Atem.
"What's up with yer hair?"
Atem sweat dropped. "My hair?"
Before Seto could stop her, Kei grabbed one of the large spikes. "Why's it three colors? Is it real? How can it stand up like that? Is a pharaoh's hair made of something different?"
"Rei!" Seto grabbed her hard and to pull her off the prince. He need not have bothered, because her stomach gave a horrible growling noise, and Kei collapsed hanging on to Atem. In her delusion, his stomach smelled like bread.
Both boys helped her to the bed to sit down. "So hungry," Kei moaned.
"Well then," said Atem, "it's a good thing we brought these with us!" He went into his tunic and brought out a stuffed loaf of bread.
Kei saw the bread. Her eyes turned into swirls and she drooled. For his own safety, Atem threw the bread to her, and she caught it in her mouth. By then, Kei decided to like the future pharaoh, but not "like like" him.
Atem also brought out a bottle of goats milk, and Seto revealed that he'd smuggled some fruit. They sat and watched her eat with amazing speed, then talked with her for a while after that. Kei did her best to answer to the name "Rei," and started to get used to being a boy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kei became very attached to Atem and Seto. They were rarely seen apart, except for the different lessons and teachers they had to take. Naeem, Atem's little brother, followed them around once he was able, and Kei took a special interest in the happy, optimistic youth.
Days turned to weeks, weeks to months, months to years. Time had gone by quickly, and slowly. Nothing changed much, but the children were getting older. Kei and Atem were now eight, Seto was nine, and Naeem was five.
Atem talked about how his lessons revolved around economics and government. Seto loathed learning all about being a priest. Kei didn't mind her lessons too much. She had sword fighting and hand to hand combat with Seto and Atem as Naeem watched from under the shade of a tree, even mimicking them sometimes. Then she went to learn magic from a young man named Mahado. She studied alongside a girl much like herself, but Mana was learning to be his apprentice, not to be a master at healing or being a shaman.
Kei responded more and more to Rei, and the only reason she hadn't forgotten her real name were her two little secrets: Seto and Bakura. Every week, she would sneak out twice or three times to find Bakura. She found his hiding place, not to far from the palace, and stayed up playing games with him, or stealing from greedy stall owners who shortchanged people or sold rotten products. He always called her Kei, as did Seto when they were alone.
Seto was the entire reason she still had a cover. Whenever it came to Seto, she just couldn't figure out this feeling she had. She would blush whenever he was close, she would often wonder about him when she was learning from Mahado. There times together always made her feel better, no matter what her mood was.
She loved to sneak in on the conversations between Atem and Naeem's mind link. Naeem was almost too easy to frighten, and Atem's temper always got the better of him.
((/Naeem/, //Atem//, ///Kei "Rei"///))
/Honored Brother?/
//Yes?//
/Are you asleep?/
//No. You're afraid of the dark again?//
/I can't help it! Father might have missed sealing up some monsters, and they could be after me!!/
Atem sighed inwardly. His brother may be very bright, but he could sometimes be a coward. //At this rate, you'll never become a priest or warrior, Little Brother! You are the son of a brave pharaoh, so you have the potential to become great!//
/I'm sorry, Honored Brother…/
//Its alright, Partner. I guess you'll be stronger once you've grown. Just like Rei.//
/Don't ya think Rei is a bit strange?/
//What do you mean by a bit? When the instructor wasn't looking he was doing strange faces and strange dances in fighting class today//
///HEY THAT'S MY SPECIAL DANCE! HOW DARE YOU CALL IT STRANGE!!!///
//GODS DAMN YOU REI!!!//
/AHHHHHH!! SCARRRYYY!!!!!!!/
///Oops…I gotta remember to warn you guys before I pop in huh?///
//IT WOULD HELP IF YOU DIDN'T COME AT ALL!!//
At that point she would leave and try and talk to Seto, who she loved to annoy by singing with their mind link. Sometimes she would sing beautifully, but when she felt annoying, she sang completely off key to wake him up. On one particular night Seto had something important to talk to her about: What she was going to do in a few years when it would be obvious to anyone she was a girl.
/Seto? You awake?/
//Yes. I am thinking about something important.//
/Good cause I didn't wanna sing all off key and stuff tonight/
//Thank the Gods…//
/And what exactly does that mean?!/
//You sing like an angel, unless you decide to wake me by blowing out my eardrums//
/Awwww, you're a sweetie! I wish I could hug you right now/
Seto could hear her laughter and it made him feel very guilty about the subject at hand. He strengthened the link and he saw her holding a blanket around herself, freezing. He wrapped his arms around her and explained the new problem.
"Kei, in a few short years, you are going to need to figure out a way to keep the fact that you are a girl under wraps."
"Wot's gonna happen in a few years Seto? Somethin bad?"
Seto said he would sneak into her room and tell her. This made Kei extremely nervous, and worried if he got caught. Seto arrived in her room a few minutes later, and sat next to her on her bed. She threw the blanket around him so they could be warm. "So what's this you want to tell me Seto? What's gonna happen to me in a few years? Did you predict my death or something?"
"No, but I know something that is going to happen. You are going to start developing like a woman in a year or so. For a while you can still go unnoticed, but soon, you are going to have something most men don't. Understand?"
Kei nodded. This meant she would have to leave her only friends. Well, she definitely would never see Bakura again. Seto would be in the court, but it wouldn't be the same. And Naeem may never have proper standing. Atem was brought up firmly in the ancient beliefs, so she could not have much power on her own as his wife. In a few years all would be lost and she would have to go through with the promise her father made.
Kei curled up in Seto's lap and cried. She now understood how she felt about him. She remembered how she always got flustered about any of the priests. Mahado had told her she didn't love them all in that way, but was attracted to the aura. If she focused she would understand who she really liked. It hit her right then. The person she wanted to be with seemed painfully obvious. She wanted to be with Seto, and no one else.
"Seto?"
"Yes Kei?"
"I have something to tell you."
"I do too. But we shouldn't tell each other what we have to say, until we are sure of it." He gently smiled and stroked her face. Kei nodded, even though she had made up her mind. Seto left just as the first lights of the dawn were coming across the sky. Kei dried the tears from her eyes and wished that Seto could watch the same sunrise with her. It was a new dawn, a dawn for them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi everyone! I'm Naeem! The next chapter will feature Keiko getting discovered! What's gonna happen to her!? And who is tht magenta-haired street-rat she runs into again?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bardock: Oh Goddess!
Una: What?
Bardock: You gave away who Naeem is in present time!! You ruined the surprise for your sequal!
Yami: When? When did she?
FW: When she sent you and Yugi away to get us drinks.
Yugi/Yami: WHAT?!?!
Yami: No fair, Una!!
Yugi: Why'd you send me out?
Una: erm..... Because you'd tell Yami for sure!
FW: Nice save! Read and Review!
Yami: Oy, what the hell is wrong with her now?
Bardock: Who said anything was wrong?
Yami: o_O; You mean she acts like this 24/7?
Una: Yup yup. Unless it is her Time of the…well you know..
Bardock: *shudders* She must be really scary then…
Yami: Her what? Time of the wha-? What's that?
FW, Una, Bardo: o_o; Ummm….oh dear…
Yami: Uhh, I'll say the disclaimer while you try and figure out how to tell me what is going on. They do not own Yu-Gi-Oh, but all characters are owned by Una or the Female Writer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 2: Come Out And Play
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The horses and carrier arrived, and the pharaoh with his oldest son waited by the doors. The riders carried the small carrier up the long stairway and placed it down before the king. He kneeled down, so he could be eye level with the boy. His son peered from behind his father, not fully visible over the large king.
"Ah come on now young one," Akunamukanon said gently. "Do not fear, I won't hurt you."
There was no response. The pharaoh kept talking but got no response. "Hmm, shy are you? Well, if you want to be strong you can't be shy now can you, little-" as the pharaoh pulled the curtains back, he saw no one in there. Only a small, untidily scrawled note.
The note read:
"To mister pharaoh man: I am sorry to leave. I jumped off the back into a jungle coz the only friend I made that came along with me jumped out saying he didn't wanna go here coz it was a bad place. I really sorry I couldn't meet you."
The pharaoh crumpled the note. "Spread out and search for the boy, at once!"
Little did they know how short it would be until someone found her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Seto heard men going through the garden, calling out to each other to look for a small boy named Rei. Whoever he was, this "Rei" person wasn't here, because all he could see from his vantage point in a tree was a girl hiding by the river. She had cut of her golden hair, in order to uphold a male appearance.
Seto smirked, reading her emotions through her aura. She didn't even know what was going on and she didn't want to be here. Seto jumped down. He brushed a few reeds from his vision and he watched her. Although she couldn't speak properly just yet, her voice was still beautiful.
He heard some of the guards running towards them. Silently, he snuck up behind her, covered her mouth, and hid her under a river bank. The men turned around and went back to searching.
"So, you are the supposed boy they are looking for, hm?"
"Whaddya mean by that," asked Kei, attempting to sound more masculine.
"Look, I know you're a girl, I can read your aura, and so can a lot of people once you get inside the palace." He softened his voice slightly. "You need to listen to me. The minute you step in there, twenty or so people are going to figure out that you are a girl. If they figure that out, you are finished! Now, I can cover your aura by using mine. But you have to trust me. Got that?"
The boy's hurried words confused the poor young blonde so much she felt dizzy. Kei fell over into his lap crying.
"I can't do it! I dunno anything no more! I'm scared, I really am…even though my daddy told me to be before he went to sleep forever that I shouldn't be afraid but I am…you're not gonna give me up are ya?"
Seto looked deeply into the girl's tear filled eyes. He remembered crying when his mother left him. He normally would not act so nicely to a stray girl, but for some reason, he felt he had to help this one. "Just say you'll trust me and I will do the rest."
Kei looked at him, but then looked behind him. Seto turned round but he saw no one. Yet Kei was still staring into space. She looked as if she was in a trance. Her eyes filled with tears as she reached out, but as it looked as if she was going to grab something, she was immediately snapped out of it.
She smiled at Seto's baffled face. "They said I can trust you, so I will."
"Who's they?" Seto asked.
"The little girl and boy that have been following me, silly! The girl looks a bit like me, and the boy looks a bit like my dad I guess…."
Seto took a deep breath. He sensed it. He was barely four, but he knew what a shaman was. And this girl was a year younger than he was and held such extreme powers. He took her into his arms, held her until he couldn't tell the difference in their auras, then let her go. "Don't act so weird, and the spell won't wear off." It was the only one he knew and he hoped it worked.
"My name's Kei," she said brightly. "What's your name? Wanna be my friend?"
Seto stood there, amazed. No one had asked him that before, not even his own cousin. "My name is Seto. I am the cousin of the man you were supposed to marry. And - uh - well, I've never had any friends…"
"That's okay, I still wanna be your friend!" she said with an adorable smile. Seto found himself turning a light red, and then he was picked up, as was she.
"There you are," one of the guards exclaimed. "You both are in a lot of trouble, running off like that! The Pharaoh isn't pleased with your behavior."
Seto didn't care, he was used to it. In fact, his uncle had just given up chasing after him ever since Naeem was born. He was now much like Atem [1] in the sense that he could run around and get little more than a slap on the wrist for punishment. Not that he wanted to. He just wanted to be alone.
[Bardock: man, talk about your temperamental four year olds]
Kei looked up at the guard holding her and asked, "So do I get a talking to and sit in the corner?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[1] - Atem is Yami's real name, just so you all know X3
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kei stared up at the ceiling of her room in despair. The Pharaoh had ordered she stay locked in with no meals for three days. Today was the second day. She pondered to herself if she had revealed she was a girl if she would be eating right about now.
She jumped when she heard a noise from the wall. She scurried under the bed, holding her sword close to her body for the intruder. To her shock, the wall itself opened, and two pairs of golden sandals crept through.
"I thought you said this was his room," a familiar voice said.
"It is," insisted another young boy. "Father taught me the route of the palace perfectly! I'm positive this is his room!"
Kei realized she was in the right position for an awesome joke. Quickly, she grabbed one leg of each boy.
The result was hysterical! Seto tried to scramble backwards, but fell over in sitting position. His accomplice yelled "Ra's Blood!!," spun in the air, and landed face down, out like a candle!
Kei dove back under the bed giggling, but Seto grabbed her arm and dragged her out. "YOU!! What in the name of Osiris are you doing!?!"
"Tryin' ta have some fun!" She glomped onto his torso. "Miss me, friend?"
He pushed her down. Frantically, he warned her to be quiet and pointed at the small, groaning boy. "That's the prince!!"
Kei's eyes widened. The prince squeezed his eyes in pain and rubbed his chin, making sure it didn't break. He wore a simple white tunic, gold sandals, and a crown with the Eye of Horus in the center. "What were you doing under the bed," he asked.
"Uh … I heard … footsteps and …" Kei gulped. Not only had she tripped her newest friend, but she assaulted the prince!
The boy, however, did not look too angry. Instead, he stuck his nose in the air and folded his arms imperiously. "So, you're Rei of the shaman village?"
"Uh… Rei is my name." 'Is this the guy Daddy wanted me to marry?'
The prince scanned her up and down, then circled around, as if inspecting very closely. He finally ended nose to nose with her. "Can you really use that thing?"
"What thing?"
"Your sword."
"Kinda."
"Any experience with magic?"
"Y-yeah…" His ruby red eyes were starting to freak her out.
The prince stepped back, still looking closely at her. Seto asked him, "Well?"
He paused, then smiled. "He looks okay. Kind of small, but he'll grow. And if he can use a sword now, he'll use it like another arm by the time he joins Father's forces!" He bowed. "I am the High Prince Atem, Pharaoh Akunamukanon's oldest son and heir to the throne of Kemet!" He waved his hand haughtily. "No need to bow!"
Seto rolled his eyes. 'Spoiled brat!'
Atem folded his arms. "So, why'd you run away, Rei?" Kei did not respond, forgetting momentarily her supposed name. She kept staring at him, her head cocked. "Something the matter," asked Atem.
"What's up with yer hair?"
Atem sweat dropped. "My hair?"
Before Seto could stop her, Kei grabbed one of the large spikes. "Why's it three colors? Is it real? How can it stand up like that? Is a pharaoh's hair made of something different?"
"Rei!" Seto grabbed her hard and to pull her off the prince. He need not have bothered, because her stomach gave a horrible growling noise, and Kei collapsed hanging on to Atem. In her delusion, his stomach smelled like bread.
Both boys helped her to the bed to sit down. "So hungry," Kei moaned.
"Well then," said Atem, "it's a good thing we brought these with us!" He went into his tunic and brought out a stuffed loaf of bread.
Kei saw the bread. Her eyes turned into swirls and she drooled. For his own safety, Atem threw the bread to her, and she caught it in her mouth. By then, Kei decided to like the future pharaoh, but not "like like" him.
Atem also brought out a bottle of goats milk, and Seto revealed that he'd smuggled some fruit. They sat and watched her eat with amazing speed, then talked with her for a while after that. Kei did her best to answer to the name "Rei," and started to get used to being a boy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kei became very attached to Atem and Seto. They were rarely seen apart, except for the different lessons and teachers they had to take. Naeem, Atem's little brother, followed them around once he was able, and Kei took a special interest in the happy, optimistic youth.
Days turned to weeks, weeks to months, months to years. Time had gone by quickly, and slowly. Nothing changed much, but the children were getting older. Kei and Atem were now eight, Seto was nine, and Naeem was five.
Atem talked about how his lessons revolved around economics and government. Seto loathed learning all about being a priest. Kei didn't mind her lessons too much. She had sword fighting and hand to hand combat with Seto and Atem as Naeem watched from under the shade of a tree, even mimicking them sometimes. Then she went to learn magic from a young man named Mahado. She studied alongside a girl much like herself, but Mana was learning to be his apprentice, not to be a master at healing or being a shaman.
Kei responded more and more to Rei, and the only reason she hadn't forgotten her real name were her two little secrets: Seto and Bakura. Every week, she would sneak out twice or three times to find Bakura. She found his hiding place, not to far from the palace, and stayed up playing games with him, or stealing from greedy stall owners who shortchanged people or sold rotten products. He always called her Kei, as did Seto when they were alone.
Seto was the entire reason she still had a cover. Whenever it came to Seto, she just couldn't figure out this feeling she had. She would blush whenever he was close, she would often wonder about him when she was learning from Mahado. There times together always made her feel better, no matter what her mood was.
She loved to sneak in on the conversations between Atem and Naeem's mind link. Naeem was almost too easy to frighten, and Atem's temper always got the better of him.
((/Naeem/, //Atem//, ///Kei "Rei"///))
/Honored Brother?/
//Yes?//
/Are you asleep?/
//No. You're afraid of the dark again?//
/I can't help it! Father might have missed sealing up some monsters, and they could be after me!!/
Atem sighed inwardly. His brother may be very bright, but he could sometimes be a coward. //At this rate, you'll never become a priest or warrior, Little Brother! You are the son of a brave pharaoh, so you have the potential to become great!//
/I'm sorry, Honored Brother…/
//Its alright, Partner. I guess you'll be stronger once you've grown. Just like Rei.//
/Don't ya think Rei is a bit strange?/
//What do you mean by a bit? When the instructor wasn't looking he was doing strange faces and strange dances in fighting class today//
///HEY THAT'S MY SPECIAL DANCE! HOW DARE YOU CALL IT STRANGE!!!///
//GODS DAMN YOU REI!!!//
/AHHHHHH!! SCARRRYYY!!!!!!!/
///Oops…I gotta remember to warn you guys before I pop in huh?///
//IT WOULD HELP IF YOU DIDN'T COME AT ALL!!//
At that point she would leave and try and talk to Seto, who she loved to annoy by singing with their mind link. Sometimes she would sing beautifully, but when she felt annoying, she sang completely off key to wake him up. On one particular night Seto had something important to talk to her about: What she was going to do in a few years when it would be obvious to anyone she was a girl.
/Seto? You awake?/
//Yes. I am thinking about something important.//
/Good cause I didn't wanna sing all off key and stuff tonight/
//Thank the Gods…//
/And what exactly does that mean?!/
//You sing like an angel, unless you decide to wake me by blowing out my eardrums//
/Awwww, you're a sweetie! I wish I could hug you right now/
Seto could hear her laughter and it made him feel very guilty about the subject at hand. He strengthened the link and he saw her holding a blanket around herself, freezing. He wrapped his arms around her and explained the new problem.
"Kei, in a few short years, you are going to need to figure out a way to keep the fact that you are a girl under wraps."
"Wot's gonna happen in a few years Seto? Somethin bad?"
Seto said he would sneak into her room and tell her. This made Kei extremely nervous, and worried if he got caught. Seto arrived in her room a few minutes later, and sat next to her on her bed. She threw the blanket around him so they could be warm. "So what's this you want to tell me Seto? What's gonna happen to me in a few years? Did you predict my death or something?"
"No, but I know something that is going to happen. You are going to start developing like a woman in a year or so. For a while you can still go unnoticed, but soon, you are going to have something most men don't. Understand?"
Kei nodded. This meant she would have to leave her only friends. Well, she definitely would never see Bakura again. Seto would be in the court, but it wouldn't be the same. And Naeem may never have proper standing. Atem was brought up firmly in the ancient beliefs, so she could not have much power on her own as his wife. In a few years all would be lost and she would have to go through with the promise her father made.
Kei curled up in Seto's lap and cried. She now understood how she felt about him. She remembered how she always got flustered about any of the priests. Mahado had told her she didn't love them all in that way, but was attracted to the aura. If she focused she would understand who she really liked. It hit her right then. The person she wanted to be with seemed painfully obvious. She wanted to be with Seto, and no one else.
"Seto?"
"Yes Kei?"
"I have something to tell you."
"I do too. But we shouldn't tell each other what we have to say, until we are sure of it." He gently smiled and stroked her face. Kei nodded, even though she had made up her mind. Seto left just as the first lights of the dawn were coming across the sky. Kei dried the tears from her eyes and wished that Seto could watch the same sunrise with her. It was a new dawn, a dawn for them.
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Hi everyone! I'm Naeem! The next chapter will feature Keiko getting discovered! What's gonna happen to her!? And who is tht magenta-haired street-rat she runs into again?
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Bardock: Oh Goddess!
Una: What?
Bardock: You gave away who Naeem is in present time!! You ruined the surprise for your sequal!
Yami: When? When did she?
FW: When she sent you and Yugi away to get us drinks.
Yugi/Yami: WHAT?!?!
Yami: No fair, Una!!
Yugi: Why'd you send me out?
Una: erm..... Because you'd tell Yami for sure!
FW: Nice save! Read and Review!