Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own my OC, Akunriou / Tory and Kishtoh / Lucca, plus the storyline.

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING NOTICES!

MidnightBallad: Thanks for everyone who has been reviewing. I'll try and make things more interesting. Let the pairings begin...ever so slowly.

Note: As of now, chapters will be longer. Haha! And I apologize for the slow update, but the site's been down.

Important: If you see 'present' at the start of the chapter, then that means the story is set in 'the now'. If it says 'past', then it is set 3, 000 years ago, back in Egypt.

Past / Present: My Tears

Present:

Now back in his original body, Yugi went to school the next day – and, as soon as he arrived, he saw Joey yelling in the face of someone. Joey wasn't really going off his head: he seemed to be nagging. Stepping through the crowd that had surrounded Joey and the poor person he was annoying, Yugi came to Tristan's side.

'Well, hey Yugi!' Tristan exclaimed loudly. 'You're late this morning.'

'Yeah – Joey usually doesn't start his feuding until lunch. What's going on?' Yugi asked. Tristan sighed. 'Tory forgot that she had to duel Joey today, so he's not very happy about it.'

Yugi pushed past other people and popped out of the crowd. Sure enough, Joey was arguing with Tory. The girl appeared a little stressed.

'Well, Tory? Are you too scared to face up to me?' Joey said, grinning and poking himself with his thumb. Tory was giving him one of those 'you over-reacting, over-confident moron' looks, and when she saw Yugi, she mouthed, 'Help me!'

Yugi stepped up next to Joey. 'Hey, Joey: leave her alone!'

Joey pouted his lip angrily. 'But Tory owes me a duel, and I'm not letting her go until I get one.'

'I can't duel you without my deck! I told you!' Tory argued.

'You told me you lost your deck! What a stupid thing to do: stash your cards for en excuse not to duel me?' Joey snapped. Yugi reached into his pocket.

'Actually, Joey, I have Tory's deck. We duelled yesterday and I forgot to give them back.'

Tory sighed in relief and snatched her small deck up from Yugi. 'Thanks, Yuge.'

Joey crossed his arms over his chest. 'Good – now can we duel?'

Tory grinned. 'No.'

Joey fell over ("anime-style"), and then quickly jumped back to his feet. Steam practically rose off his red face. 'What?! First, you say you lost your cards, then Yugi gives you your deck so that you can play, and now you say NO?'

Tory pocketed her deck. 'Not after you've spoken to me like that, Wheeler. Come back on another day when you haven't skipped your anger management classes.'

Tory turned on her heel and left; the crowd parted around her like Moses parting the red sea. Joey's face fell. '...That's right! Keep walking, Tory! I'll get you!'

Tory waved over her shoulder.

- -

Present:

Joey was still fuming when he sat down for the first class of the day. He shot Tory daggers when she entered with her friends: she gave him a smug look and sat down at the back of the classroom.

'Stupid...blonde!' Joey spat. Tea poked him in the back with her pencil.

'In case you haven't noticed, you're blonde too!'

Joey stared at her. 'Tea, that ain't my point! My point is...Tory's a rotten cheat and I'm going to beat her flat next time we duel!'

Tea rolled her eyes. 'Sure, Joey.' She turned to Yugi. 'You duelled her yesterday, didn't you, Yugi? How was she?'

Yugi moved uncomfortably in his chair. 'Good. But we didn't duel much.'

Joey and Tristan stared. Someone threw a ball of paper at Joey's head (most likely one of Tory's friends), but he didn't notice. Yugi shook his head. 'Guys! We duelled as a team against some...new kid. Lucca, I think his name was.'

'Lucca?' Duke Deblin (A/N: I can't spell his name!) said from in front of Tristan. 'I know him. He came into my game shop yesterday. I thought he was going to nick something. He's a sly-looking guy.'

Tea rolled her eyes again. 'Duke! You're so typical – if someone doesn't buy something from you, you automatically think that they're stealing it. Let it go.'

Duke ducked as another rolled up piece of paper flew over his head and hit Joey on the nose. He instantly picked up a textbook and threw it at one of Tory's friends – both he and the girl received detentions.

- -

Tory was going through her schoolbag, looking for a calculator, when Yugi approached her in the corridor. She snapped up as Yugi said her name. 'Oh, hi.'

'I'm sorry about Joey. He gets worked up sometimes.'

'That's okay,' Tory smirked. 'I'm sure he and Kumi will enjoy detention together – scrubbing gum off desks is usually slow work.'

Yugi grinned, and then tapped his Millennium Puzzle. 'Did you want to talk to Yami?'

Tory peered at the Millennium Puzzle. 'Uh...not now. How about you and him meet me in front of the museum or something this afternoon?'

'We always go unconscious during a memory,' Yugi commented. 'How about at the game shop my grandfather owns? We won't be annoyed there.'

- -

Present:

Yugi shut the door to his bedroom. 'We'll be up here if you need us, grandfather!'

His grandfather wailed something from downstairs. Yugi sat down on a very fluffy cushion. 'Ignore him.' His Millennium Puzzle began to glow.

'I'll try...' Tory laughed. She closed her eyes as the room was plunged into light for a second, and Yami came out of nowhere. Taking a deep breath, she held out a palm to Yami.

'Well...are we ready for another trip down memory lane?'

Yami did not ask if this was supposed to be a pun or not, and put his palm down on Tory's. The room evaporated in a whirl or white light...

- -

Past:

The High Priest, Akunriou and the servant rode speedily from the city as Akunriou's home went up in flames – flames that stretched up into the sky, licking the velvety hue and sending golden sparks flying through the air, as if they were on wings.

Akunriou was still trying to shake off the vision of her fight with Bakura as she and the others came to a stop before the palace. She did not want to wait around in the palace for very long: immediately, she bid farewell to Seto and went inside and planned to go to bed. However, another thought crossed her mind. She went up the stairs that stood in the centre of the palace, and climbed...she went as far as she could, before she stepped into a corridor she had never been in before. It was richly decorated, and at the end of the corridor was a balcony that was decorated with small statues of the Gods that sat on the railings.

Still not knowing where she was, Akunriou went out onto the balcony and breathed in the cold Egyptian night. Far away, a glimmer of fire burnt on the horizon like a beacon – her home, or what was left of it.

I hope that thief went down with it! Akunriou thought angrily to herself. And then she remembered her mother's blood on the wall...her brother's hatred for the Pharaoh and what he was doing to save her. It was a thoughtful thing to do – but, obviously, it was stupid too.

'Good evening.'

Akunriou spun around, heart racing. A single tear raced down her face and splattered to the ground, clearing away the sand in an instant.

Atemu watched as Akunriou dropped to her knees. 'I am sorry, my Pharaoh. I did not mean to come up here, I swear to the Gods.'

'It's alright. You can stand up, Akunriou.'

She stood up.

'The High Priest has informed me of what happened when you returned home,' Atemu said. 'I am sorry about your mother.'

Akunriou tried to look anywhere but at the Pharaoh's face. 'If she was meant to die, then so be it.' But the tears welled in her eyes, and they fled down her face quickly.

'Do not say that,' Atemu said quietly. 'But, then again, fate is an extremely powerful thing. Do not fret: I am sure your mother is now with everyone else she loves.'

Akunriou wiped the tears from her face with the back of her dress' sleeve. Atemu smiled as he saw Akunriou's eyes change colour each time a tear fell from them.

There was silence between the two of them. Atemu then asked a very strange question, 'How long have you known Bakura?'

Akunriou grimaced. 'He and my brother grew up together. But, one day, they had a fight. Coincidently, it was the day before I was born into the world. So, Kishtoh and Bakura were never friends again – and Bakura made it his duty to be like a pesky insect toward me, calling me beautiful when no one else would. He was...is...a selfish man and I want nothing to do with him again. I hope that he went down with my home and now he's paying off his dept to Osiris!'

Akunriou's outburst stunned the Pharaoh. Finally, he said, 'A thief he may be, but there was always some truth in his words.'

Akunriou went still. What is he going on about? She thought. Is he mocking me in the same way the thief used to –

And then she realised what Atemu was talking about. She saw the look, much unlike Bakura's, in his eyes, and the smile that was upon his face. But as soon as he took one step (closer or further, Akunriou did not know, she was far too scared) Akunriou said, 'I have that song. The one you requested me to sing when your guests arrive.'

Atemu stopped whatever it was he was about to do and nodded. 'I look forward to it.'

Akunriou bowed quickly and went back inside. As she did, she looked over her shoulder – Atemu was watching her, and he smiled a little as Akunriou disappeared into the darkness of the palace.

-End chapter 10-

MidnightBallad: I apologize for the slow update, but I think the site's been down for ages. Meh. Anyway, I'm giving you TWO UPDATES in one day to make up for it. How good is that? Not very, I hear you say? Too bad.

Maybe I should start being nicer. Maybe I'll get more reviews –weeps over the absence of reviews– It's not fair, being me.