Chapter 2 Departure

Newspapers were beginning to proclaim the reading of Pegasus's will, which confused Yugi to no end. How had they discovered that? Had someone told them? None of his friends would have done that, surely. Although Anzu considered Jonouchi a great rumor spreader, and Yugi had to admit that he was, he still did not think his best friend would talk about the American's death.

The exact number of people with invitations remained unknown. Also, while the design of the needed cards was surmised at, some rather close, it was uncertain. Finally, the exact date of the departure and reading was also secret. Yet, what people were going there for was one of the odd circumstances the paper had known.

Therefore, before the day arrived in which they would leave, the gang decided to meet up and discuss what exactly was going on.

Most of the friends showed up with the exception of the usual few. These, of course, consisted of Seto and Mokuba Kaiba, Suguroku, and oddly, Otogi. A few extras to the bunch had been able to come. Shizuka, Mai, and the Ishtars had all been staying in the city of Domino for a few days.

"I called Otogi but never got an answer. I was certain he was invited since he made such a big deal of Pegasus's correspondence before." Anzu looked questionably around at the others.

Honda replied, "I'm betting he was invited to Duelist Kingdom, but the idiot's too depressed to answer his phone. Or else he is too busy with his store. Still, I favor the former. Seems odd that he's taking Pegasus's death so hard. He hardly knew the man!"

Surprisingly, Shizuka spoke up, "But it's so sad that Pegasus died so young! And it is always harder to deal with when you know the person even a little. I even feel for poor Pegasus."

"Poor Pegasus!" Jonouchi stared agape at his sister. "Sis, I can't believe you. The man stole people's souls! I think it's better that he's gone!" He narrowed his eyes at her. "In fact, I don't think you should even go. I'll get your share of whatever he gives us. I want to know that you're safe here."

"Katsuya, I have to go. I have to pay my respects. He helped give me back my sight…"

The others were quiet despite the fact that some did not know everything that was being discussed. Malik was itching to ask what the two siblings were talking about, but he would pester someone else later.

"The man's dead, Jonouchi. What else do you think he can do?" Mai was vastly amused.

Isis, in her dead-serious predicting-the-future voice, said, "If Pegasus invited her, it was for a certain purpose. She must go to play her role." When she opened her eyes, she saw Malik scowling at her.

In an under-breath, he hissed, "You can't talk like that! You necklace does not even work for you anymore!"

Coolly, just as low, she answered, "But it can come in handy sometimes, Malik. Just watch." So he did.

"All right, Shizuka can go. But I want you to stay by me at all times. I need to protect you, sis!"

"I will, Katsuya."

Marlik's jaw dropped. Maybe his sister still had some power left with the necklace. Or maybe, more likely, Isis just made it seem she did so she could continue to influence others. That was quite a trick.

After that, the friends had to discuss exactly what time they would meet at the pier. Somewhat smugly, Malik offered to let others ride with him on his own boat, but the majority decided to do as Pegasus had ordered and take the one the American had set up for them.

"That's what we should do as well. Now that we're here, we might as well go all together, Malik." Isis turned to Rishid. "Don't you think so, Rishid?" She knew he had more power over her brother than herself. Those two had always gotten along so well.

Rishid detested having to come between the Ishtar siblings. "I will go wherever I must."

Her voice slightly icy, Isis turned again to Malik. "I'm older, so when I say we ride Pegasus's ship, that is the one we ride."

"But that means I have to pay a docking fee!"

"You are not exactly poor, Malik. You are always apt to wearing plenty of gold."

Their voices faded as it was evident Malik was not going to win. So, Bakura reiterated what the rest of the group had discussed at the same time. They would meet the next morning at nine. The boat left at ten.

"Now we can finally talk about the papers!" Yugi looked at each one of them. "I was wondering how they learned so much."

The others were wondering the same thing, but no one confessed to having told the papers anything. And, Yugi being who he was, he trusted them. So that meant that someone else invited had told or else someone uninvited had known and told. To the other Yugi, which spread to Yugi, it was suspicious.

There was nothing that could be said in answer, so the others began to filter away. All the talk of the next day had excited most of them, and the approaching night and early morning seemed too long to wait.

&&&

The Blue-Eyes White Dragon jet always made Kaiba stop and admire it. He could still remember the look on that bonkatsu's face. He was certain Jonouchi had thought the craft a real dragon.

"Seto, are you sure about this?" Mokuba hefted his brother's briefcase into the compartment at the side of the dragon.

"Of course I'm sure. Besides, you're the one who wants to go in the first place."

"Yes, but I am not the one who decided to go early."

"If we're going, we are going to get it finished as soon as possible. It is even probable we will not see anyone else there." While the papers had not known how many were invited, Kaiba was positive certain other annoying people would be there. That was why he wanted to go early and finish before they arrived.

Sighing, Mokuba finished stowing away the briefcase. "But, nii-sama, you're the one who always tells me that the rules are for a reason, and that the lines have to be made somewhere. It seems to me we're going to be a nuisance out of the agenda."

"This time, I have no problem with that."

Approaching footsteps echoed in the copter hold. A few men in black bowed before Kaiba, the one most in the lead taking charge.

"Seto-sama, are you certain you do not want us to follow in the copter?"

"As much as I don't trust Pegsus and doubt that he would ever die from a type of cancer, I don't think it is necessary for you to come. We shouldn't be gone long. If all goes well, the fly over and back will be far longer than our time on the island."

The goons bowed again.

Then, cockpit open, Kaiba climbed into his jet, letting his little brother crawl in on his own as the boy liked. There was a small "oof!", which meant Mokuba had landed within. Soon, instead of his light blue pants, his brother's head of shiny black hair and light blue handkerchief were visible. Buckling up, Kaiba started the takeoff sequence and heard Mokuba doing it as well.

Soon, the starting engines buzzed over any other sound, including the farewell of the goons. It was odd to see their lips moving without hearing anything other than whipping wind. Once the three men had backed away from the jet, Kaiba started accelerating. In honor of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, a jet of blue-white flame flickered from one end, the wrong end, it was true. Then, they were in the air and heading east.

&&&

There was nothing more uneasy than sensing another you sitting on the bed as you awake. Yugi started as the last grip of sleep subdued and his consciousness came through.

"Good morning, mou hitori no boku," he said between yawns. It was a good thing he had no one to share a room with or they might have been wondering what was going on.

His other self gave a grave reply. Obviously, he was thinking of deeper things, which was evident in his ramrod straight back, tense muscles, and air of solemnity that became evident to Yugi's senses.

As Yugi dressed in his usual clothes—the school uniform—the other Yugi finally seemed to come alive.

"Aibou, you do not want to go like that."

"I don't?" He remembered Jonouchi telling him not to wear his uniform on the weekends, but he had never understood that. Besides, this was not the weekend.

The other self winked at him. "I think Anzu would like to see you in something besides the navy blue uniform."

"But I don't have much else!" Frantically, Yugi tore apart his closet searching for something the Spirit would attest to as "appealing."

Probably sensing Yugi's embarrassment, the Spirit had retreated to within the Puzzle. Now, his voice came like outside thoughts to Yugi's mind.

"What about that outfit we wore to play DDD against Otogi? I always liked black."

Yugi agreed; he would have agreed to anything the Spirit told him to wear. Finding the outfit was the problem. The search proved to be fruitful, however, as he dug out the clothes from a heap of similar black t-shirts.

"And don't forget that bracelet I always told you to wear."

That bracelet had never appealed to Yugi, but he trusted his other self. And, as his other self had said before (to Anzu, Yugi recalled with burning cheeks) it was a symbol to hide behind. He thought he looked tougher with it.

"But won't it be odd if I look special today? I never look like this any other day!"

The Spirit was smiling, evident even to Yugi. He replied, "You wore both on some other day. Why would it be odd just today?"

"Because it feels odd," Yugi muttered.

Suguroku, downstairs, was whistling. If Yugi had not come down and reminded him of the day, the old man probably would have forgotten all about, going about his day wondering why no one was here to help him in his store.

"Come on, Grandpa. We have a boat to catch!"

"Oh, that's right. But, say, Yugi, it is only going on nine o'clock. The boat leaves at ten. Why are we going now?"

"We have to go meet my friends!" The boy was dragging his grandfather out of the door.

"Well, don't I get to pack?"

"It should only be one day. Now, come on!"

The elderly man gave into the excitement of youth as he flipped the Open sign over and followed. His daughter was still around in the store, but she would be leaving to go to her own work soon. Hopefully, they would be back in time for one of her delicious meals.

&&&

He could not believe it. This was not fair! Why now? Why ever? What should he do?

Bakura stared in dismay at the Ring, finally making an appearance around his neck once more. It was not that he thought the Spirit of the Ring was gone before, but more that Bakura hoped it would leave him alone for awhile. Now that he looked at it, he could not recall the last time he had seen it. Maybe, it had been there all along, and he had never known. The Spirit did enjoy tormenting his mind and memory.

"Maybe I should just stay home," he muttered to himself.

Oh, I don't think so! came the voice from the Ring. He and his host never got along so well as Yugi and his other self, so Bakura never had the chance to converse with his other self like two people.

"What are you going to do?" Bakura could easily have thought it and let his other self hear, but he was so nervous he could not help speaking aloud.

There was an evil chuckle. Go to sleep, Bakura Ryo. Just sleep.

And, slowly, his consciousness faded until he seemed to sense nothing at all despite his fierce struggle to keep control. Then, looking in the mirror with a toothy grin, another Bakura threw back his head of hair and laughed.

&&&

There was no way Kujaka Mai was going to Duelist Kingdom without being prepared. She had helped feed the others last time, and this time, she was taking a bit of food and, of course, necessities. Everything a girl needed to look on top of her game. Part of her wanted to put little Anzu to shame. The other part just found this necessary. Besides, it would be fun to tease Jonouchi some.

Nine o'clock came and went, and Mai still was getting ready. She had no worries. No one would let the boat leave without her.

&&&

Honda dropped his duffel bag full of food at the port and waited. Yugi was already here with his grandfather, but they were the only ones.

"What are you taking?" Yugi asked with wide eyes.

"Well…" Honda put a hand behind his head. "Remember how I brought that survival book last time? I thought I'd be smarter and bring food this time. Just in case."

"Just in case you don't get enough to eat in-between meals?" Jonouchi's tell-tale laugh came from behind him. "I brought food for that, too!"

Honda and Yugi greeted Jonouchi and his sister. Then, behind Jonouchi appeared a few more, Anzu among them. Yugi turned scarlet without any warning and turned away. It seemed very evident that he was dressing up for the occasion with his friends. No one else really noticed his clothes, but they did notice his blush.

Trudging in the rear was Malik with his siblings. They were taking the boat Pegasus had sent, despite Malik's best try at taking his own cruiser. Still farther back, just now visible, came a white-haired figure with a cheery smile.

Slowly, everyone trickled in around nine. Mai was not the last to arrive, as she had hoped. Otogi was the last of the gang to arrive, and he stared in shock at all of them.

"What are all you doing here?" he asked faintly.

Honda clapped an arm around him. "We're going to Duelist Kingdom!"

"He…invited all of you?"

"Yup!" came Yugi's standard reply.

For some reason, Otogi had never thought all these people would be here. He had thought Pegasus and he had a special understanding, a kinship none of these people had with him. Yet, they were all invited to get something from the American?

"Oh, I see…"

Before any more talk could be made, there were also a few others coming who had no right to. Ryuzaki Dinosaur and Insector Haga. They always tried to sneak on everything.

"What are you guys doing here?" Anzu asked bossily, her tone indicating they should not be here.

"We were invited!"

"That's right!"

Together, the two held out their cards decorated with a tombstone. Two very different gravestones. And two that did not look anything like the rest of them.

"Nice try! Those aren't the tickets!" Triumphantly, Otogi showed his. Maybe all of his friends were trying to sneak on board.

No, he saw theirs looks like his as they, too, showed the short boys. Both groaned and they began to yell at one another about whose fault this was.

"Mine at least looks like a tombstone!"

"You probably told me wrong when you were describing it!"

"I only had a glance!"

By then, the boat was opening for boarders. All of them began to climb on and show their tickets to the captain at the top of the plank. Somehow, Yugi fell in beside Anzu.

"Nice outfit, Yugi!" She thought he looked more like the other Yugi with it on.

"Thanks," he said, blushing again.

"I'll be fine, Katsuya," spoke Shizuka from behind them. "Don't worry about me so much!"

"I just don't want you to fall into the water!"

"I can, swim, remember?"

Jonouchi, grumbling, finally had nothing more to say.

All the crowd was admitted to the boat except the two obvious liars. Ryuzaki and Insector were cast back down the plank despite their struggles to slip past. Once there, they furiously began muttering to one another about all the rare cards and money they were missing out on. It just was not fair.

&&&

At the time the others were climbing aboard the boat, the Kaibas were reaching Duelist Kingdom. It took a good few hours to get there, but Kaiba had done it once and would do it again. Because they had left so early in the morning, the brothers reached the island a little after ten.

The castle's courtyard became the landing place for the Blue-Eyes jet. Then, once everything was stable, Kaiba opened the cockpit and leaped out. He opened the compartment inside the jet and took his briefcase as Mokuba practically fell out. Then, with a smile, the boy righted himself and looked around.

This place did have nothing but bad memories. Almost. He still remembered seeing his brother's face for the first time in so long…for the first time happy to see him in so long. Their embrace was the memory that made Mokuba smile.

"Come on, let's get this over with."

Hastened footsteps trod their way where all had been silent. A few of Pegasus's goons came out looked frazzled.

"We will make you comfortable, Misters Kaiba. We did not know anyone was arriving so soon."

That caused a quirky grin on Kaiba's face. Just as he had intended, they had arrived unannounced. After the last time he was here and Pegasus had sent a goon out to greet him with his fist, Kaiba had hoped to give someone the taste of that medicine. That it turned out to be goons pleased him. It was not as if Kaiba could startle Pegasus anymore.

"The reading of the will shall be done later this evening. Now, I will show you to your rooms."

"Hold on. Why don't we just get this done now? I want to get what was left to me and leave again."

The goon did not change his facial expression. "I am afraid the reading will be done only at a specific time. We cannot give you anything early. Now, come this way."

Kaiba looked at his brother, the question evident in his eyes. Did he still want to stay here? When Mokuba's plodding feet gave the answer, Kaiba unhappily fell in behind.

Now he had to waste time sitting around here. So much for arriving early.

&&&

The rolling waves and cresting ship made it all seem like another adventure. Last time, Yugi had been so excited. What could be more fun than going to a tournament on an island with your best friend? Now, the circumstances had changed, but the excitement still lingered.

Bakura was nearby, and Yugi asked him how he was.

"Oh, I'm fine, Yugi! It's just like you told me it would be! My paranoia already seems to be fading."

Smiling back at his friend, Yugi was glad someone besides himself was enjoying this trip. Still, at the mention of paranoia, Yugi could not help thinking of himself and Anzu. Yugi still knew exactly where she was, and he was wishing he could, for one moment, be less nervous. Dealing with Anzu had never seemed as hard as today. Usually, when he was surrounded by so many people, he was not even nervous at all.

"Hey, Yugi and Bakura! It's time to eat!" Jonouchi shouted across the ship.

Near him was Honda and a few others. Because this ship ride took about four hours, going right through lunch, the meal was provided for them. That was the best part according to some. Apparently, Yugi's excitement was with many others as well.

Otogi Ryuji was not eating. Shizuka noticed, and because of her own sad feelings, she guessed what was bothering him. He stood near the end of the ship gazing at the rushing water flooding out behind.

"Otogi?" she asked quietly. "Are you all right?"

At first, he was quiet, just gazing out into the sea. Then, despite his prevailing attitude of depression and even disgust at the others having a blast for the very reason that Pegasus was dead, he tried a smile.

"I'm fine, Shizuka. Besides, won't your brother be worried?" You're here alone with me, he finished in his head.

"I don't think so. Why should he be? But if you ever want to talk, you can always come to me."

"Thanks, I appreciate it." For a moment, as the girl left, he watched her instead of the ocean. Then, sighing, he went back to the lifeless water.