Disclaimer: Still don't own YGO! dammit.
Next chapter kiddes. Now it's the tomb...
/thoughts/
Chapter 2: Clouds across the Moon
Sand was getting in under their clothes and into the most unpleasant of places, and they hadn't even been walking more than a few steps.
But the light wind that was whipping at them and sending hair flying was the largest factor in this, of course. Yuugi swore softly as he felt the grains chafing in a most embarrassing, and uncomfortable, place.
How the hell did it get in there?! He was wearing pants, dammit! A chuckle to his left had him whipping his face around to glare at the culprit and met Malik's amused lavender eyes.
"Calm down, little Pharaoh. We'll get to the tomb soon enough."
The spiky-haired boy grimaced before frowning. He hadn't been called "little Pharaoh" before. Lots of other things, yes, but not that. But he guessed that was actually what he was, or at least had been, so he wasn't going to say anything.
Better than "midget" or whatever else anyone could come up with. Yuugi may not have been very conscious to the fact that he had grown a lot since that night when he had finished the Puzzle, but all of his friends (and those of his former enemies that were still alive) had noticed it.
It had been apparent already before Atemu and Yuugi had had their last duel. So indeed, why not call him for what he was? Yuugi may not have become any taller, at least not physically, but mentally he had grown taller than he had been before.
"It should be around here... oh, Ra." Isis' dark blue eyes widened as she saw the entrance to the tomb. Which should have been covered by stones and not wide open.
There was not even a trace of the stones that had fallen to cover the stairs down, only the pristine, if slightly cracked, stone steps themselves.
"Either someone thinks there's something here, and has gone to great length to carry the stones away, or we're expected." Ryou said with a raised eyebrow, pale skin covered by a light jacket and ignoring the warmth and sunlight that was already making the skin on his nose turn pink.
Malik was glaring at the cleared stairway as if it was to blame, or could answer his question to who had done it and if they were down there still.
"Nothing much to be done if we're just gonna stand around and look at it, I say we go down now." Yuugi muttered, loud enough for the others to hear, but not loud enough for the sound to carry too far and maybe alert the people that possibly were in the tomb.
Malik shrugged and Ryou nodded. They had gone here today so why go back just because it wasn't exactly as they had expected it to be?
Isis looked like she wanted to protest, but a quick look at the three young males told her they were going down, with or without her.
"Rishid, we're going down. The stones have been cleared away, so there's a chance for company down there."
"Understood, Isis-sama. I will have backup ready for you."
"Thank you Rishid." the cell phone gave a soft click as it was snapped closed and Isis walked up to the her little brother and the two Japanese boys standing at the edge of the stairway, all of them fairly vibrating with nervous energy.
Yuugi nodded once he was she was beside them and walked down first, just casting a quick look behind him to see that they were following.
It was dark and considerably cooler down here than up on the ground, their flashlights throwing a stream of light in front of them and chasing the shadows to the corners and sides of the stairs.
Despite there having been no stones coving the entrance, the air down here seemed to not have been disturbed since their rather hasty exit more than a year ago.
Small stones lay on the steps, making walking hazardous, and progress slow, but finally they were down on the floor of the tomb.
Waving their light around revealed things as being much as they had left it...stones and broken pillars with their fallen ends lying on the floor, the hole where the Items had fallen through covered by debris, and the door behind the collapsed floor still closed.
"Seems no one is around. I wonder what moved the stones?" Ryou asked no one in particular as they aimlessly walked around the trashed tomb, not really knowing what to do, or how to change what had happened here.
The four ended up in the front of the room, standing on their side of the debris-covered hole, the door on the other side.
Malik looked at his sister with a frown.
"What did we come here for anyway? Nothing's here, even if the stones have been cleared away, which is suspicious, so that we could get in."
Isis shrugged, not knowing the answer. They had all agreed it would be a good idea to check the tomb, but now that she thought about it, what reason was there, except that it was here Atemu had gone to the afterlife and the Items had fallen down...
"What is that?" Ryou had been letting his flashlight wander back and forth to look at the partly collapsed dais and the door behind, when the light had struck something that had glinted of gold.
Yuugi gasped softly and nimbly ran around the littered floor, around to the whole part of the dais and got to his knees, throwing small stones away from whatever it was he was unearthing.
"Bakura-kun! Come here!"
The albino didn't hesitate for a second; rather he just dashed around, ignoring Isis' dismayed shout to them of being careful and clambered up so he was beside his friend. What Yuugi held in his hands made Ryou's pale, sky-blue eyes go wide.
It couldn't...
His hand was shaking, but so was Yuugi's.
The second his fingers closed around the smooth, cool metal of the Ring he felt a jerk somewhere deep inside. It felt as if something had snapped into place again. He wasn't whole, not yet, but this was a beginning.
Looking up into Yuugi's purple eyes he smiled, despite feeling a little wobbly, and got a smile in return that looked just about as watery as he felt.
The hand that was gripping the Puzzle was white around the knuckles and Ryou could only agree with that feeling.
Never letting go again.
Was it just his imagination, or was it becoming lighter in here? Yuugi looked bewildered around, barely suppressing his bubbling happiness at having at least this part of himself back.
"Yuugi-kun! Ryou-kun! Behind you!" Isis' voice was breathless and they could clearly see her in the strengthening light now, one hand clasped over her chest as she stared with incredulous wide eyes at something behind them, Malik looking just as in awe and surprised as his sister.
The two holders of one Sennen Item each got up and turned around, staring dumbstruck.
The door was opening.
That was where the light was coming from. Glancing at each other they nodded.
Whatever had helped them to do all this; clearing the entrance, somehow getting their Items back, and opening the door, it wasn't hard to understand that they were getting a helping hand, or maybe more like a shove, in the right direction.
"Going?" It wasn't really a question, both of them knew they would go, but asking it seemed the right thing to do.
Ryou grinned and nodded.
"Of course. Wouldn't miss it for the world."
It seemed the Shadows were agreeing with them, the subtle flow of the magic curling around them, tugging them lightly in the direction of the door.
But not demanding, more like encouraging. A hand on his shoulder had Yuugi looking up and he smiled reassuringly at Malik.
"You have your decks, right?" The Egyptian asked curtly, not really a question.
Ryou and Yuugi nodded. They knew that hadn't been anything about their decks, it was easy to see in those lavender eyes. They may not be very close, and Malik had a little trouble with actually being friendly, but he tried. The question had simply been a cover for the real statement; stay safe.
"We will come back here every day to see if you've gotten back. I'll inform your grandfather, Yuugi-kun, and Ryou-kun..."
Ryou shook his head.
"My father isn't home, Isis-san, so you don't need to call him. But if you feel like it, leave a message on the answering machine." The white haired boy shrugged, looking down quickly.
/Not that there's gonna be anyone who has seen it. I'll erase it when I get home./
Isis embraced them both quickly, urging them to be careful and stepped back. They simply clasped hands with Malik, no words exchanged.
They didn't need to.
Then they turned around and faced the open doorway, bright light spilling through. This was it. Now they had a chance to fix this for the better.
Flashback
"Take care, Yuugi. We're counting on you!" Katsuya hugged him hard and grinned, stepping back and giving him thumbs up. Anzu was next, giving him a near bone-crushing hug.
"Be careful, Yuugi. You better get back alright!" Her large, intense blue eyes were sparkling from unshed tears. They hadn't lasted as a couple, but were still the best of friends.
"I'm going to hunt you down and hit you over the head if you don't!" She smiled through her gathering tears and Yuugi grinned and nodded, hugging her again.
"I will. If only to not get hit." he said laughingly, trying to cheer her up.
End flashback
Yuugi looked up at the pale boy beside him and both grinned at each other, nodding.
"Let's go."
Looking back once to wave at Isis and Malik they walked through the open doorway, the doors slowly scraping shut when they had disappeared, leaving the two young Egyptians with only their flashlights for light again.
But now the darkness in the tomb didn't seem too oppressive anymore, only expectant.
The two siblings stared at each other with a smile, and Malik reached out, laying an arm around her shoulders and grinning.
"Don't worry Isis, I'm sure the little Pharaoh and the fluffball can take care of it. Yuugi saved the world, and won over his other self, and Ryou did after all survive the crazy tomb robber possessed by that Zork."
Isis nodded and relaxed.
Yes, if there was any people to change the current situation, it was Yuugi and Ryou themselves. They were, after all, trying to find the other halves of their souls.
Nothing better for that than yourself.