RESPONSES


Flame31

Mena: Thanks for the compliment!

Toli: Hope you enjoy the next chapter!


TopazDragon

Toli: Thanks for the compliments!

Mena: Yeah, I'm a sucker for humor. We're sorry if you don't like Mia/Jou.

Toli: But we're glad you still like the story! Don't worry, the romance is in no terms a main part. You won't see but so much of it. Thanks for reviewing!


Mirrored-Insanity

Mena: SWEETS! YEYEAH! (starts scarfing down chocolate)

Toli: (sweatdrops)

Mena: (continues to scarf)

Toli: Thanks for the awesome compliments! Hope you enjoy the next installment!


Masami Mistress Of Fire

Mena: (bows) Thanks! (glomps Damion) Thank you, koishii!

Toli: (rolls eyes) Mena already knows you think she's the best, Damion. Don't encourage her any more.

Mani: YAY! (hugs Masami) I GOTS ME A NEW TWIN SISTER! WOO FREAKIN' HOO, MAN!

Toli: (sweatdrops) What about my hug? (hugs Masami) You can't forget your original pal!

Jesselda: (receives pat pat) Hmm. I don't know why, but that feels good. Why doesn't Mena ever pat me?

Meg: You never asked?

Jesselda: Why are you here?

Meg: Everyone else was busy, so I decided to drop in to answer your question!

Jesselda: (sweatdrops) Oh...

Meg: Sorry about the pic, Masami. I started working on it again. I must get it done! (grabs mouse hand) WHY ARE YOU SO DAMN FRAGILE, YOU HAND? (looks around) Can I have a hug? (hugs Masami)

Mani: I hope you can dye your hair, Masami-twin! We gots to look as much alike as possible so people'll think we're twins!

Toli: (sweatdrops) Though the two-foot difference in height might give it away...Your welcome for the pants, Masami! NOW let's see those legs just up and break, eh?

Mani: (waves tape) I got the Yu-Gi-Oh if you got the time, Masami twin!

Everyone else: (sweatdrop)

Mena: Okay, we're off! Bye Damie-chan!

Meg: Bye Masami!

Toli: Bye, pal!

Mani: Bai Masami-my-twin-who-looks-nothing-like-me-but-is-my-same-gender-and-will-look-like-me-soon-enough!

Jesselda: This is a lot of goodbyes.


kristen89

Mena: Hey! (waves)

Toli: Yeah, a lot of people seem to dislike Tea, even thought we don't! So there's a Tea to like and a Tea to hate! See, everybody's happy!

Mena: If you like how Atemu and Seto acted about having dinner with Anzu, then there's a certain fight between a certain pharaoh and a certain girl in a later chapter I think you'll LOVE...

Toli: That's a spoiler, ain't it?

Mena: Yep. But oh well! I like giving sneekpeeks to peoples I like! (pauses to catch marshmallows in her mouth)

Toli: (sweatdrops) Anyway, thanks for reviewing!


Millenniumgrl126

Mena: It's okay if you missed them, as long as you're up to speed now!

Toli: Yeah! Thanks for reviewing and hope you enjoy the next chapter!


redconvoy

Mena: Hey, and welcome!

Toli: No, Tea and Anzu aren't realted. But if I'm correct, their resemblance will play a semi-important part later on.

Mena: Good scheme to catch Bakura! Too bad Atemu hasn't though of it, haha. Anyway, thanks for reviewing!


Linkin-Phoenix

Mena/Toli: (watch chase with money in hand)

Toli: Aw yeah! (jumps up) You owe me ten leaves of lettuce, Mena!

Mena: (grumbles) Oh fine. (hands over money to Toli)

Toli: (pockets money) Yeah, those palace guards suck, don't they? Either Bakura's super-stealthy, or they're super-pathetic.

Mena: I pick B.

Toli: Me too. Yeah, angst still to come. Especially in the next few chapterswhew, angst galore. Anyway, thanks for reviewing!


Mena: So, what do you do when you have five stories going, three of them are Writer's Blocked, and the other two are due to be updated after the three that are Writer's Blocked?

Toli: I dunno. What?

Mena: I don't know either. That isn't the case with us; I was just curious.

Toli: (sweatdrops) Oh.

Jesselda: (sweatdrops) Why don't we move on? Since we all know you two still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, we can start the story, can't we?

Toli: Yeah. Let's get to it!


Notes: In case you forgot, here's some reminders.

We know almost nothing about Ancient Egypt customs and stuff, and since we've never been there, we don't really know where anything is. So! Prepare for plenty of made-up stuff!

Tameth: made up
Nubia: real

Land layout: There are two major kingdoms, Upper Egypt (Atemu's kingdom) and Lower Egypt (?'s kingdom) and inside them, several less important "kingdoms" like Nubia (?'s kingdom) and Tameth (Anzu's father's kingdom). That's made-up info too.

Yugi: 15 x Atemu/Yami: 18 x Seto: 19 x Bakura/the yami: 20 x Mia/Mai Valentine: 18 x Tea: 17 x Shizuka/Serenity Wheeler: 15 x Ishizu: 30 x Jou/Jounouchi/Joey Wheeler: 18 x Hiroto/Honda/Tristan Taylor: 19 x Marik/the hikari: 18 x Malik/the yami: 21 x Anzu/separate from Tea Gardner: 16 x Setia/OC: 16


NINE: Plots And Purloins

So dinner was served. The dinner was for Atemu, Seto, and Anzu, with Setia and Yugi along by choice. Yugi glanced apprehensively across the table at Setia. She was about his same height, with long black hair and green eyes. She was staring at the table's surface. For some reason, Setia seemed familiar to Yugi, but he couldn't figure out how or why.

"So," the princess was saying. Yugi looked at her and thought she reminded him of Tea, only with slightly longer hair and a lot more makeup. "I assume your reign's been successful so far, Pharaoh Atemu?"

Atemu glanced at her. "It's going fine," he answered coolly.

"Oh, yes," the princess said, fluffing her hair. "Especially considering how young you were when you first ascended the throne. Sixteen, wasn't it? My father started his reign in Tameth at 30."

"So I've heard," Atemu replied stiffly.

Yugi glanced down the table. Nobody was even eating. He could feel the tension in the air, and it kind of made him nervous. He didn't know why, but he didn't really like the princess. Maybe it was because he could see that Atemu didn't like her, and that helped make up his mind. Either way, he wished she wasn't here. Dinner was usually a nicer affair, especially when it was just him and Atemu.

"By the way," the princess said, "where did you get that slave of yours, Pharaoh Atemu? He looks an awful lot like you, you know."

Yugi, out of habit, sank down a little lower when he realized the conversation was focusing on him now. Underneath the table, Atemu gave Yugi's hand a reassuring squeeze. Yugi relaxed slightly.

"Yugi is my personal servant," Atemu said, stressing the use of the word "servant". "He was one of two survivors from a raiders' caravan."

The princess's nose wrinkled delicately. "And you kept him? Why?"

"That's my business," Atemu snapped.

Seto cleared his throat quite loudly. "Are we simply going to let dinner get cold?" he asked. He managed to stop the yellfest that was brewing. The one-sided yellfest.

Suddenly I'm not so hungry, Yugi thought.

"Setia is a very expensive slave all the way from Nubia," Anzu mentioned casually. "She cost an awful lot of money. I've had her for about two years." Setia, meanwhile, sat quietly beside her owner as she was talked about like some nifty paperweight.

Wow. Now I can die happy with that important information finally acquired, Atemu thought sarcastically.

There was a knock at the door. All five heads looked up. "Enter," Atemu commanded.

The door opened, and Yugi was surprised to see Mia. "I'm sorry for interrupting the meal, Your Highness," she said, her body language still slightly defiant, "but the captain of the guard needs to speak with you right away about the perimeter you want set up."

Atemu stood up, only too happy for an excuse to escape. "That's fine," he said. "Where is he?"

"Outside waiting in the hall," Mai answered, pointing vaguely. She then backed out of the door, letting it swing shut.

"Well, it looks as though we'll have to finish dinner later," Atemu said to the princess, trying not to sound too happy. "I'm sure you can find something else to occupy your time. Let's go, Seto. Yugi." Seto and Yugi stood up. Yugi saw the princess giving him a repulsed look out of the corner of his eye and he couldn't help a shudder. Beside her, Setia was now looking up as well, and she was watching him with an unreadable expression.

Why are they both staring at me? Yugi thought. He followed Atemu out into the hall without looking back.


Setia stood up. "If I may, princess, can I go wash my hands?" she asked.

"Go right ahead," Anzu said with a wave of her hand. She was still staring at the door. "Why in the world does the pharaoh want that look-alike slave following him around like some useless puppy?" she asked no one in particular.

Setia left the princess alone at the table and found her way to the guest room. Making sure no one was watching or following her, she ducked in and opened the satchel she had hidden there earlier. She pulled out a piece of papyrus and carefully read aloud the spell written on it. Moments later, a small dark oval of shadows formed beside her.

"Setia," her father's voice said through the portal.

"Father," Setia answered. "So far things have gone as planned. No one seems to suspect anything at all."

"Good. Now, remember, keep tabs on the woman and the boy, but be discreet. Try to get to know them if you can. And watch the High Priest. He is very perceptive and might suspect you if you don't keep a low profile."

"Yes, sir," Setia replied. "Bakura is coming tonight, right?"

"Yes. Once he has stolen what I need and brought it to me, we can put the third phase of our plan into motion."

"One thing I have noticed, which you might want to know, Father," Setia said, "there is a servant working in the palace who resembles Princess Anzu to a great extent."

There was a pause. "Is that so?" her father's voice came, with a pleased tone in it. "She may be useful as well later on. But for now, we will stay with the plan."

"Yes, sir," Setia said, and the portal of shadows dissipated. She re-hid the satchel and went back to attend the princess.


Mia walked down the hall. She had delivered the message to the Pharaoh; now she was off to do something else. What that something would be, she didn't know. She was so busy staring off into space, she didn't notice someone coming towards her until she bumped into them.

"Oh!" Mia exclaimed, coming back to reality. "Sorry." She found that she had bumped shoulders with Jou, who was now blushing madly.

"Oh, well...th-that's okay," Jou stammered. "I wasn't really lookin' where I was goin' and all...heheh..."

Mia watched him curiously. "Something on your mind?" she asked. "You seem a little preoccupied."

"What!" Jou's head snapped up. "Oh, uh...n-no, not really...uh..." He looked around nervously, then back at her. "Um, c-can I ask you for some...advice?"

Mia shrugged her shoulders. "Sure," she said.

Jou rubbed the back of his head. "Well, ya see...I kinda like this...this girl. And I wanna tell her, but I don't know...what to say. I mean, what if she laughs at me? Or thinks I sound dumb or somethin'?"

"Does this girl have any idea you like her?" Mia asked.

"I don't think so," Jou said.

Mia considered. She wondered who it was. There were plenty of girls in the palace she hadn't met yet. Maybe it was one of them. She thought back to when Tea was telling her about her small crush on Jou that she was afraid to admit to. Could it be Tea?

"How do you really feel about her?" Mia asked. They started to walk down the hall.

"Well," Jou said, "I mean, I don't know how to put it into words exactly, but...I just, whenever she's around, I get this really weird feeling in my stomach..."

"Indigestion?" Mia asked.

"No, no!" Jou exclaimed, waving his hands. "It's a good feeling, I mean, like, not painful. And I feel like nothin' else matters, except her. I really wanna tell her, but...I just can't think of the right words."

Mia smiled. "Sounds like something a little more serious than a crush," she said.

"Feels like it, too," Jou replied.

"Well, I tell you what," Mia said. "How about I teach you the ways to show a woman how you feel about her."

"Really?" Jou looked at her. "You'd do that for me?"

"Why not?" Mia asked. "You seem like a nice enough guy, now that I know you better. I'd be willing to. But only if you're serious about this girl."

"Oh, I am!" Jou exclaimed. He looked overjoyed. "Thanks a lot, Mia, this really means a lot to me!"

Mia smiled. "Okay, then," she said, spying a bench in the hall, "have a seat." She and Jou sat down. "Now. Lesson One of Proper Communication With Females will now begin." She cleared her throat. "Before you can tell this girl how you feel, you've got to know how to talk to her. There's no use in confessing your love if you can't talk to her right. One of the first things you have to remember about talking to a woman is that she wants to be treated like she has a brain. The prettier she is, the more you have to remember not to just ogle her assets. No one wants to be talked to like some possession."

"Uh huh," Jou said, listening as raptly as a five-year-old hearing a fairy tale.

"When you talk to a girl, treat her like any other person. You wouldn't tell your mom her ass looks nice, even if it does, because you respect her. So don't go telling this girl her ass looks nice, even if it does. Respect her femininity, or else you'll get it."

"Should I take notes?" Jou asked.

"Not a bad idea," Mia said. She went on. "Another thing to remember when talking to a girl is not to talk down to her, like she's inferior because she's a female. No girl likes that, no matter how low her self esteem is. It'll tick her off. You have to treat her like she's got a brain, like I said before. Oh, I just remembered a way to safely give a girl a compliment. Listen well to this, Jou, because if you want to confess your love to this girl, you got to be prepared to earnestly tell her how pretty she is..."


Atemu found the captain of the guard, Malik, waiting in the hall like Mia had said. Waiting along with him, and currently arguing with him, was Marik, who looked frustrated, like always.

"I'm telling you, having three guards at the back entrance to the wall is excessive!" Marik was saying. "We only need one there. The other two could guard a more important place."

"What the hell's more important than guarding the main entrances?" Malik shot back. "If he can't get inside the wall, then we don't have to worry about the palace, now do we?"

"You know how that thief is!" Marik argued. "He'll be able to sneak right past them, and then we'll be scrambling to cover our asses while he steals the stuff under our pillows."

"Is there a problem?" Atemu demanded with one eyebrow raised. Seto stood beside him, cold scowl in its proper place, and Yugi, who was still afraid of Marik and had never seen Malik before, was hiding behind him.

Marik and Malik turned to him. If you knew both them and Ishizu, you would have never guessed in a million years that the three were siblings. Not only did they look nothing like their sister, but Marik especially was a lot less wise and a lot more impulsive. Malik was more mature than him, but still not as mature as Ishizu, which was one of the many good reasons they weren't a part of the primary or secondary council.

"Your Highness," Malik said with a bow. Marik bowed also. "There seems to be a problem with the perimeter of guards you want. We don't have enough, for one, and for another, Marik is constantly bugging me about where to put them." He shot a glare at Marik at this.

"I'm just concerned that he's putting too many guards in the wrong places," Marik argued. "We know from experience that this thief Bakura is good at getting past walls and fences. I say we put the most guards at the entrances and exits to the palace. It seems more reasonable."

"What do you say about this?" Atemu asked Malik.

"I think putting more guards along the inside of the wall and at its entrances and exits is a better idea," Malik answered.

Atemu put his chin in his hand. "Hmm," he said. He looked up. "I want more guards guarding the wall."

Malik gave Marik a triumphant glance, while Marik scowled.

"It seems like the better idea," Atemu went on. He looked at Marik and Malik. "You have your orders. Do them."

"Yes, Your Highness," the two brothers said, bowing and leaving.

Seto glanced at Atemu. "Are you sure that's a better idea?"

"I said it was, didn't I?" Atemu snapped.

A grunt was Seto's response. "Perhaps we should get back to the evening meal with the princess."

"By now she's doing something else. Besides, I'd rather jump into the Nile with a millstone around my neck," Atemu replied. He looked out a window near him, where the sun had set and the moon was now high in the sky. "It's getting late. I think I'll turn in."

"Whatever," Seto said, turning around. "I couldn't possibly sleep with the thought of Bakura coming in my mind. I'll be in my room reading something important if you need me." He walked off.

Atemu rolled his eyes. He looked down at Yugi, who was watching him. "Are you angry at him, Atemu?" Yugi asked.

Atemu shook his head. "No. I'm rather annoyed, but I'm not angry." He smiled down at Yugi. "Why does anger frighten you so much?"

A flash of fear passed across Yugi's eyes. He ducked his head, clutching the side of Atemu's shirt. Atemu, worried, knelt down and wrapped his arms around the servant boy. "I'm sorry, Yugi. Do you not want to tell me?"

"M-Maybe later," Yugi said into his shoulder.

"Okay," Atemu said. "Are you ready for bed?"

Yugi nodded. He let out a startled squeak when Atemu lifted him up off the floor, but he soon got settled in the Pharaoh's arms. He wrapped his arms around Atemu's neck and rested his head on Atemu's shoulder.

Atemu carried Yugi to their bedroom. He had to do a lot of shifting Yugi's weight around so he could free an arm to open the door, but he managed to and got them safely in the room. Outside, after he had closed the door, two guards stood in front of it, as ordered.

The Pharaoh was taking no chances with the thief Bakura.


The hot sun shone down on him. But it was nothing compared to the burning pain on his back. Yugi gritted his teeth and tried not to cry as the whip fell mercilessly on his back again and again.

"You pathetic slave," he heard his master saying, "after all I've done for you, you try to escape? You'll regret that decision, I assure you..."

Yugi was already regretting it. It felt like his back was on fire, and the salty sweat dripping into the wounds wasn't helping. He saw his blood pooling underneath him out of the corner of his eye and nearly gagged. He always tried to look away from that.

'If only the pain would stop,' he thought. 'Please, let this be the dream. Please don't let my existence with Atemu be the dream. Please, please, please. Wake up. Please just let this only be a dream...'

Yugi's eyes opened and he shot upright in bed. He wrapped his arms around himself, shivering violently. It was a dream, he told himself. You aren't in pain. It was a dream. He whimpered, still scared. His dreams were so vivid. The pain always felt so real.

Yugi's eyes opened and he shot upright in bed. He wrapped his arms around himself, shivering violently. he told himself. He whimpered, still scared. His dreams were so vivid. The pain always felt so real.

A noise made his head snap up, fear flashing in his eyes. He looked around wildly. The only thing he saw was Atemu asleep in his bed. The moon was shining more brightly, as it was fuller, so he could distinguish better. He pulled the covers up to his chin and stared around fearfully, looking for any sign of movement. He saw something beside Atemu's bed move and disappeared under the covers, trembling. He gathered the covers around himself like a shield and listened fearfully.

"Oh, how sweet," a familiar voice said with an audible sneer in its tone. "The mighty Pharaoh, ruler of Upper Egypt, asleep in his bed, with no idea his worst enemy is about to escape unscathed with some of his pretty trinkets." There was a snort. "Foolish Pharaoh; did he really think those useless passels of guards would stop me?"

Yugi's head came up over the covers. He was still scared, but was brave enough to call out softly. "Bakura?"

Bakura whirled from his position beside Atemu's bed, a deadly-looking dagger being brandished in one hand and a brown sack filled with something clenched in the other. The sight of the weapon made Yugi shrink back on his bed. Bakura glared around, dagger up and poised to attack, until his eyes fell on Yugi cowering under his covers. Bakura's eyebrows raised, the fierce look disappeared, and the ominous dagger dropped to his side.

"Well, if it isn't Little Yugi," Bakura said, walking over to Yugi's bed. "You have to sleep in the same room with the Pharaoh? No wonder you looked so unhappy."

"What are you doing here?" Yugi asked. "If Atemu finds you here, he'll have you killed."

"Oh, he isn't going to find me here," Bakura said with a smirk. He held up the sack. "And all I'm doing is my business." There was something rectangle-shaped in the sack, along with the other stuff, and its pointy corners were visible through the sack's rough fabric.

Yugi looked at the sack. "How did you get in here without anyone noticing?" he asked. Then a horrible thought crossed his mind. "Did you kill someone?"

"Nope," Bakura said with a satisfied smirk. "I haven't had to kill anyone in my last seven heists. I'm going for a record." His smirk disappeared and he looked at Yugi seriously. "So, have you thought about the offer I gave you?" he asked.

Yugi's eyes widened. "You still want me to go with you?" he said incredulously. "Wouldn't I be a burden?"

"Thieves don't have burdens," Bakura replied. "And you don't belong here. Trust me, Yugi, you may think they're your friends, even that Mia person you mentioned, but sooner or later, they'll all betray you. It's inevitable. It's better to get away before they leave you behind."

Yugi felt fear. "Betray me?" he repeated. He looked down at his lap. Would they really? He thought of Atemu, and Miss Ishizu, and Mia. They were all so nice to him. They all said they wanted to help him, and they did. And, especially recently, Atemu was a great means of comfort to Yugi. He liked it when Atemu held him in his arms. It felt like he was safe, and nothing could hurt him again. But would they all turn their backs on him?

"I don't want to lose my friends," Yugi said in a voice barely above a whisper. He was just starting to get used to being able to trust people. Would they end up betraying his trust, like he stillunfortunatelyfeared? He didn't want that to happen.

Yugi slowly shook his head. "I don't want to lose them," he said. "I-I can't go. Maybe I can do something to...to keep them from leaving me."

"You like trusting," Bakura stated. He shook his head, genuinely sorry for Yugi. "That's too bad. It'll only make things worse when they abandon you, believe me. But it seems as though you'll have to figure that out for yourself." He glanced over at Atemu's sleeping form. "It looks like it's time for me to go," he said. "But one thing." He turned back to Yugi.

Yugi looked up. "What?"

"When I get out the window, wake Atemu up and tell him I was here," Bakura said, his smirk reappearing. "That will make it even sweeter when I still escape."

"Okay," Yugi said. He watched Bakura walk to the window and climb out. Then he slipped out of bed and walked across the floor to Atemu's bed. This time he didn't hesitate at all but reached out with both hands and shook the pharaoh's shoulder.

"Atemu. Wake up," Yugi whispered. Atemu groaned and rolled over. "A-tem-u," Yugi said, shaking him harder.

Atemu groaned again, rubbing his eyes. "Seto, I'm going to murder you," he grumbled.

"I'm not Seto!" Yugi said. "Bakura just left, Atemu! Wake up!"

Atemu sat bolt upright. "He WHAT!"

END CHAPTER


Toli: Cliffie?

Mena: Sorta!

Jesselda: Why?

Mena: (shrugs)

Toli: Well, I guess it's time to mosey on out.

Mena: Not before the previews! Next time...suspense! Hahahahahahahaha! What a terrible preview! But anything else would spoil too much!

Toli: So all we can say, is come back next time, and you won't regret it!

Jesselda: You won't, and they won't, but I will.