Disclaimer: Nope! It don't belong to me! And it probably doesn't belong to you, either! ...But if you DO own Yugioh, feel free... Use my ideas anytime! ;)
Hi! I am so excited to be writing this story, because it's the one thing I've always really wanted to write but never got around to! I have already written the entire story, but checking it for errors and the like is what prevents me from putting it all out at one time.
So, if you like the story, feel free to review! I have never really gotten a flame, and I thank the kind reviewers for that, but any feedback or comments are welcome, and I hope people like this fic. If not, it's no biggie for me; I write to please my inner muses and demons, like the rest of you! Smile!
Oh, one more thing! I did some small amount of research on Babylon and their religious, linguistic, and governmental customs, but most of this has been slightly twisted.
The emissaries were coming.
The emissaries were coming today!
In the capital city of Egypt, everyone was abuzz. After all, it wasn't every day the Babylonians came! Over the marketplace, hushed voices spoke of noble monarchs, of breathtaking princesses, of even lovelier princes!
...But, of course, one particular subject was heard over and over again. "Is it true?" Some asked curiously. "Is he truly of the royal lineage?!" But listeners scoffed. "Of course not!" Growled one stubble-faced trader. "Exotic as she might be, no pale-faced milksop could ever replace the Royal Consort, crown jewel of the former Pharaoh!"
And so they believed. Surely no Pharaoh of THEIRS would love a foreigner when he could have all the delights his concubines had to offer!
While the dusty streets were lively and active, the palace was anything but. Brick and mud walls were replaced by cold stone, immaculate marble. Soft voices echoed, revealing snippets of conversation between meek-faced servants.
Alabaster statues and jade carvings sat resplendent in wall niches, everything clean and fresh. Today the emissaries were coming, and that meant cleaning for the slaves and servants. Lots and lots of cleaning!
However, the calm almost-silence was interrupted by loud voices, coming nearer. "...But, my Pharaoh! You must sit through negotiations, or the Babylonians will be insulted!" That voice, easily recognized by the denizens of all Egypt, belonged to the High Priest Set, advisor (and sometimes friend) of the Pharaoh.
"Yes, I know!" Interrupted a commanding tone, harsh with knowledge. "Honestly, Set! Do you think I care about the Babylonians, or their paltry promises? Babylon may be a mighty kingdom, but the nerve! They are bringing all the princesses for me to 'inspect'!"
Two figures came into view, both darkened by the Egyptian sun. One was tall, with dark brown hair, and blue eyes that seemed sharp enough to cause physical pain. He wore expensive linen, dyed immaculately white, with a golden rod hooked into his belt. The other had a shock of tri-colored hair, red and gold and black all at once, a living ball of fire. This hair was a mark of Pharaohs, passed from ruler to son. Crimson eyes glanced up at Set, arms gesturing in annoyance, golden bracelets and anklets chinging and bangling together.
Around his neck the Pharaoh had hung a brilliant pyramid, also called the Millennium Puzzle, one of the feared Millennium Items.
Set barked a laugh. "Well, they will be here in a few hours; the least you can do is smile and nod when they present their ladies. Last time King Pygisius came, he left without signing a treaty. This time around, they cannot afford to anger you. There have been small uprisings all throughout Babylon, and they need the stability an agreement with Egypt would provide..."
Pharaoh Yami's darkened purple cloak shifted as he shrugged. "Yes, I was well briefed on that very fact at the council meeting this morning. But that doesn't excuse those barbarians!"
The pair whisked through hallways, arriving at last at a huge oaken door, intricately carved with hieroglyphs, proclaiming the entrance to a room of the Almighty Pharaoh.
"Besides..." Set spoke in a sly tone, "I got you a present! Happy eighteenth birthday." Yami smiled. "I didn't think you would remember, old friend. What did you buy me?" In response, Set merely gestured towards the wooden door, and Yami eagerly stepped through, for a small moment resembling the little boy he had been, so long ago.
A few miles from the outskirts of Egypt, a line of caravans rolled along, richly draped with black cloth to hide the people within. Inside one in particular, women giggled among themselves. "I can simply not wait to meet the Pharaoh! Everyone says he is terribly handsome!" Squealed a slim brunette, cerulean eyes shining in anticipation. But another shook her auburn hair disapprovingly. "Oh, Ahnsu, what he looks like doesn't matter half as much as what kind of person he is!"
"That's right, Shyzika! After all, Yugi says that Pharaoh Yami is cruel to his people! Isn't that right, Yugi?" Piped up a girl in long, sky blue robes, clutching a teddy bear. "...Yugi?"
Girls turned around, staring at a slim figure that was peering out of the caravan to gaze at the bleak desert all around them. All together, they chorused, "YUGI!!!" Startled, the boy jumped and turned. Huge, enchanting amethyst eyes captured the Princesses for a moment, stilling them to silence. "What's wrong?" Asked Ahnsu worriedly when the spell had worn off. "Do you not feel well, brother?!" Yugi absently ran a hand through his tri-colored hair, which stood straight up, as if it had been sculpted into shape by the finest artisan in all of Babylon.
"I did not wish to come here." He said simply.
Grimacing, Shyzika nodded. "I'm sorry we convinced Father to bring you, but a trip is never a fun trip without you!" Everyone present agreed, but Yugi still wasn't mollified. "Sister, I would rather have stayed home with Bakura." He whispered. But he felt a twinge of guilt at the downcast faces of his sisters. They had meant well, when they begged King Pygisius to let him come. "Oh, you needn't worry about it!" He finally burst out. "Let me tell you of the Pharaoh."
Amid the pillows and blankets where four girls were resting, a story was begun, laying an enchanted veil over Princesses, a story fit for the Pharaoh himself...
"For, you see, the Pharaoh's father was a hard ruler. He knew not much else but the whip and the sword. And when the man died, his son, Pharaoh Yami, was not yet prepared for such duties. Yami had expected his father to live for much longer. And when he was made Pharaoh, the people wept, expecting an even harsher hand from the boy-ruler, not even past his fifteenth birthday."
Collectively, Anhsu, Shyzika, and Bekka sighed, mourning the Pharaoh's loss, and in the process jostling their slumbering sister, Mwai. She sat up, turning a mischievous eye to Yugi. "Talking about the Pharaoh?" She drawled. "Have you told them he is said to prefer pretty boys to naïve Princesses?"
As one, Yugi and his sisters choked.
Three hours later, the delegation from Babylon made a grand entrance into the city. From a high balcony surrounded by Imperial Guards, Yami and Set watched, not yet aware of how drastically their fate would be changed from that day forward.
A.N. Thank you for reading! I worked pretty hard on this ficcie, but it DOES seem a little dry... Hang in there please! Expect future appearances by other random characters!