A/N: Ph34r the random and disjointedness of this chapter. However, despite that, I've reintroduced the plot. /People in the background cheer/

Itsumo appears to wish to be shorter than originally intended. So, instead of 14 chapters, it will most likely be 10 long chapters. Maybe 13 or 14, but probably between 10 and 12. Then on to Fumetsu!

I'm sorry, no responses to reviews this chapter... Thanks to everyone who reviewed, though! Just pressed for time and am tired. /Sigh/ Also, didn't have a program to spellcheck, so please excuse spelling errors.

Disclaimer: Yugioh's... Sob... Not mine...

Warnings: Small amounts of violence, most likely some language.

Summary of last chapter: People went splody. Yes, that's the extent of the summary. Deal with it. XD

Preview for this chapter: Yami, Bekhura, and Jouno to the rescue!

Itsumo; part 7
by: Amiasha

Gold sparkled, like millions of tiny stars all around him in the vast inky darkness. Usually he would be stunned with the beauty of the surroundings, like he was almost every time he was here, but this time he wasn't. He was focused, running forward and reaching for something he could sense was just out of his grasp. Suddenly something flared in front of him and he stopped, recoiling back from the flash, the gold stars swallowed up by the light. He raised an arm to sheild his eyes when the glow suddenly contracted, forming into a perfect blue orb before everything disappeared and an eleven year-old Pharaoh Atem started awake, tumbling ungracefully out of his throne to land with a loud smack on the decorative floor.

"Ow..." The Pharaoh murmered, pushing himself back up to his knees as Simon reached him, putting a hand on his shoulder in concern.

"Pharaoh, are you alright?" He asked, looking the boy over once for injuries.

Yami smiled at him, unharmed from the fall. "Yes, I'm fine." He replied, standing up and nearly tripping over the ends of his purple cape. His smile turned slightly sheepish, and Simon laughed.

"You're incredibly ungraceful." The vizier commented, chuckling. "Hopefully you'll get your mother's gene in that area and grow out of it, though."

"I wouldn't count on it." Yami replied, sitting back down on his throne and putting his chin in his hand.

It had been three years since the boy had been crowned Pharaoh. There had been quite a few radical changes in the palace during that time; Mahaado, Seth, Aishizu, Shaadah, and Kalim had become priests, and along with Akunadin they formed Yami's circle. All but one of Millennium Items had changed hands; The Ring to Mahaado, the Rod to Seth, the Tauk to Aishizu, the Ankh to Shaadah, the Scales to Kalim, and the Puzzle to Yami. Nebenkharu had been 'let go' from the position of advisor, as Yami had so elegantly put it, though he had been allowed to return to the palace at times to gather plantss from the gardens. Yami didn't have to deal with him at those times, however, so he was satisfied with the arrangements.

All of Yami's friends had made advances in their fields; Jouno and Honda, both twelve, were Yami's bodyguards, Ryuuji was working his way up to being one of the head scribes even though he was also only twelve, Anzu was already one of the best healers in the palace with the less proficient eight year old Shizuka as her assistant, five year old Mokuba had started the training to become a priest 'just like his brother', and Rishido and Malik were already accomplished temple priests. Bekhura, in a class all his own, was something undefinable but seemed to be a cross between swordfighter, magician, herbologist, priest, and of course, thief. But most remarkable were Mafdet and Spot. Mafdet was six, and Spot was almost nine, and yet neither cat showed any signs of their age. Mafdet still seemed one, and Spot seemed three. No one could figure out why, but the cats didn't appear to be aging.

Yami had chosen the name 'Atem' for his throne name, keeping 'Yami' as his personal one. In the three years he'd been Pharaoh there had been no major conflicts with other countries, and Yami had actually improved upon their relationships with Egypt. In fact, King Tayib of India was arriving that day for what hopefully wouldn't be a repeat of five years earlier.

"How long was I asleep?" Yami asked, running his hands through his bangs to comb them and frowning when his fingers caught.

"Not more than twenty minutes." Simon responded, coming forward with an actual comb and beginning to work on the boy's tangled locks. After a moment or so of fighting with knots, he sweatdropped. "What have you done to your hair?"

Yami sweatdropped as well and the shrugged. "I... Don't know?"

Simon's sweatdrop grew, though he was beginning to make progress. "Well whatever it was, don't do it again. I've never seen your hair so messed up."

"I have!" A voice exclaimed, startling both Simon and Yami so much that they jumped, and for the second time in ten minutes Yami fell out of his throne.

They both turned to look at the speaker, a cute eight year old girl with blonde hair and green eyes who was holding a staff and smiling brightly.

"Mana!" Simon scolded. "Don't surprise us! You're lucky neither of us cast a spell at you."

Mana looked put out for a moment, but quickly shrugged it off and smiled again cutely. "Mahaado-sama sent me to tell you that the king of India should be here in about ten minutes. His traveling party made faster time than expected."

Before she'd even finished her sentence, Yami had rushed off down the hall to his room to change, considering he was wearing a very casual outfit. He'd expected at least another four hours to get ready, but ten minutes was barely enough time to get all his jewelry on right. He raced down the secret hall, opened both sets of doors to his room, and began to dig through his clothes.

"Oi, little Pharaoh, need a bit of help?" Bekhura asked, coming in from the courtyard with the cats. Mafdet and Spot were right next to him, having taken a huge liking to the thief over the time they'd known him, but when the saw Yami they bounded over to jump into his arms and rub on his legs, repectively.

Giving both cats a stroke, Yami set Mafdet on his bed and turned toward Bekhura. "It would be appriciated, yes. Could you find my better jewelry? It's in a drawer... Somewhere." He said, attempting to find his formal black robes.

"Psh, I know where it is." Bekhura responded, opening one drawer and producing the requested gold, silver, and jeweled items.

Yami chuckled as he finally located his robes. "I forgot, you know where every shiny thing I own is."

"Damn right." Bekhura responded proudly, depositing the jewelry on Yami's bed next to Mafdet. "So, what's the occasion THIS time you need to rush in here and get ready for something in a hurry?"

Yami paused changing a moment and gave the theif a glare before resuming. "I've only told you four or five times."

"Tell me again." Bekhura said calmly, trying on some of the Pharaoh's more expensive pieces of jewelry.

Yami sighed heavily as he snapped the gold belt he usually wore around his waist, swearing when he managed to pinch his finger at the same time. Bekhura chuckled. "Smooth, little Pharaoh."

"Oh, shut up." Yami responded, shaking his hand a moment before grabbing his fancy sandals. As he laced them, he looked back over at Bekhura again. "The king of India is arriving very soon." He informed the thief yet again.

"Hm." Bekhura said, crossing his arms and watching Yami change his earrings. "And why are you in a such a rush to look so nice? You don't have a crush on him, do you?"

Yami gave a glare so dark which would have scared Bekhura had he not already know the other boy was relatively harmless. "Watch it, thief."

Bekhura smirked. "I'm shaking."

"You better be." Yami responded, adjusting his circlet and looking himself over once. "And for your information, I'm attempting to make a good impression. My last meeting with him I acted like somewhat of a brat."

Bekhura shrugged. "Eh, at least you were an honest brat. I doubt he has a bad opinion of you."

The Pharaoh smiled. "That was an uncharacteristicly nice thing to say."

"I'm in a good mood." Bekhura responded, flopping back on Yami's bed, causing Mafdet to bounce and then give Behkura her best cat-glare. "I just stole some great stuff."

Yami gave a sigh of exasperation. "Stop stealing things from the citizens!" He said, looking slightly annoyed. "You do know that is you were anyone else, you'd probably get your hands cut off; you really need to not take advantage of-"

"Aren't you late?" Bekhura interrupted smoothly, smirking as he watched Yami's expression change from annoyance to panic before the Pharaoh ran out the door. The white haired Egyptian glanced over at the cats, still smirking about the other boy. "Airhead."

Yami literally slid into the throne room, barely keeping his balance and coming to a stop in front of the stairs that led up to his throne. Climbing them in two steps, the boy had just sat down when the doors of the palace opened.

Yami stole a glance around at who all was gathered with him before the convoy from India made it into the main part of the room. Honda and Jouno were standing to each side and behind his throne, watching as they leaned slightly against the wall. Simon was at his right, and his priests were lining the gold path to the throne. Doing a doubletake as he glanced over the priests, Yami's eyes widened when he spotted Bekhura in Seth's place, with the blue eyed boy no where to be seen. Yami stared at Bekhura, who was wearing white robes to match the other priests, and who snickered at his expression.

Drawn away from wondering why the thief was in Seth's place due to the arrival of the visitors, Yami stood up and decended the steps he'd just climbed. King Tayib, leading his precession, stopped about three meters from Yami, and both he and the young Pharaoh nodded to each other.

"Welcome to Egypt, King Tayib of India." Yami said formally, as he was expected to, a small bit nervous due to this being the first ruler of country that had actually visited Egypt since he'd be crowned. It was hard enough to talk to the governors of the larger cities in Egypt itself, let alone another king.

"Greetings again, Pharaoh Atem." Tayib said, not nearly so formally and giving a gentle smile. "It's good to see you again after so long."

Yami finally smiled as well, feeling a bit more relaxed, and nodded. At that time, Simon came forward.

"Greetings, King Tayib!" He exclaimed, smiling. "How was your trip?"

"We didn't get attacked by anyone." Tayib replied, chuckling. "So pretty good. How have you been, Simon?"

Yami blinked a few times, looking back and forth between Tayib and Smon, wondering when they'd become such friends.

"Very well." Simon answered, still in a casual tone. "I'm glad you could join us here today."

"As am I; it's been awhile." Tayib replied, smiling. He looked over at Yami, who still seemed baffled. "You've grown a lot since I last saw you, Atem." He commented, still smiling gently. "And from what I've heard, you're turning out to be a fine Pharaoh."

Yami blushed slightly at the praise, looking at his sandals, and Tayib and Simon both chuckled. Getting over his embarassment, Yami glanced around again as Tayib and Simon resumed talking. His eyes once again fell on Bekhura, who grinned at him.

Simon began to lead Tayib and his traveling party to the dining hall, leaving Yami to feel a bit like he was just there for show. He knew Simon hadn't meant for it to feel that way; and that more likely than not he was trying to help, but it still made the Pharaoh feel unneeded.

It did give him a chance to talk to Bekhura, though. "What are you doing here!? And where has Seth gone?" He hissed, trying not to attract attention.

Bekhura smiled at him. "I'm playing priest while pretty-boy is out on an assignment."

Yami sputtered. "I didn't send Seth anywhere! I didn't even know he was gone! And I certainly didn't have any idea you'd be standing in for him; I talked to you less than twenty minutes ago and you said you didn't even remember that king Tayib was coming!"

"I didn't?" Bekhura asked, smiling evilly.

That set the other boy off. "You're so mean!" Yami whined, grabbing a handful of Bekhura's hair and yanking. "You know I hate to be left out of things!"

"I also knew you'd throw a fit if we told you what was REALLY going on." Bekhura replied, not fazed by the pulling on his hair. "Considering how overly protective you are of your priests, even though it's supposed to be the other way around."

"But my priests are all so STUPID!" Yami exclaimed. Though he cared very much for his priests, they did have the tendency to make choices or decisions that got them into trouble. But they were always careful it was just them and never their Pharaoh who was put in harm's way. "I have to know what they're doing so I can keep an eye on them!"

"Hence the reason Seth made me promise not to tell you until he had already left." Bekhura responded, crossing his arms. "He knew you'd throw a fit, like you're doing right now."

Yami glared. "I'm not throwing a fit!" He exclaimed, not realizing how he just proved his statement to the contrary. "You know that I could have you thrown in the dungeons for plotting behind my back; whether to harm me or not. Were you anyone else-"

"But Seth and I AREN'T anyone else." Bekhura responded, smirking as he gently pried Yami's fingers from his hair. "And even if we were, you're still making hollow threats. The dungeons have been deserted ever since you took the thone."

Yami was getting a bit fed up with Bakura's nonchalance. "You don't get it, Bekhura; I'm REALLY upset. Just exactly WHAT has Seth gone to do!?"

Bekhura regarded the boy a moment. "Seth asked that I not tell you. He said you'd do something stupid."

Eyes narrowing and turning a shade redder, Yami made an undefinable growling noise. "I'm about to SHOW you doing something stupid." He said, before storming off towards the dining hall.

Bekhura blinked a few times, realizing he set the other boy off a little too far. "Well, shit." He muttered, following after Yami and wondering what the Pharaoh was going to do.

Yami entered the dining hall and made his way to his place at the head of the table. Instead of sitting down, however, he remained standing. "King Tayib," He started, his tone authorative as regal and as possible. "I'm sorry; something has come up that needs my immediate attention. Mahaado and Simon will act in my stead; I'll return later to continue discussion with you. I'm very sorry for the inconvenience." Leaving his remaining priests and Simon a bit surprised, but Tayib seeming more concerned than annoyed, Yami took off for his room, passing Bekhura on the way.

He reached his room in record time, waving a hand once over his scrying pool. The inky water began to swirl, and leaving it to do so Yami quickly removed his jewelry. Bekhura entered the room, looking confused.

"Little Pharaoh, what exactly are you doing?"

"Going to find Seth." Yami replied, turning his gaze towards the white haired boy. "Since you're not going to tell me what he's gone to do, I'll have to go relatively unprepared, but I suppose that's the way it'll have to be."

"You are entirely crazy." Bekhura replied, crossing his arms. "I can't believe you..."

"I can't believe you, either." Yami responded, unlacing his sandals and not looking up.

A moment later Bekhura sighed. "Fine, you little brat." He sighed, but without and real malice in his tone. "Seth's gone to attempt to uncover a circle of bandits that have sprung up. He thinks they're supplying rare poisons to other bandit groups; he's been sneaking around in the city late at night, once he knows you've finally fallen asleep, and bringing back some of the poisons for me to analyze."

Yami's attention sprang back to Bekhura. "How long has this been going on without me knowing!?"

"Maybe... A month?" Bekhura guessed, shrugging. He then looked a bit more seriously at Yami, noting the boy's betrayed expression. "We didn't tell you because we knew you'd demand to be involved. We were trying to keep you from getting killed."

Yami sighed heavily, eyes returning to the floor. "I know that... But that doesn't excuse keeping something like this from me." He sighed again and shook his head slightly. "But we'll discuss that later. How long has Seth been gone?"

Bekhura sighed as well. "That's the problem. I haven't seen or heard from him since last night, when he left."

"Then something probably happened to him..." Yami murmered. Finally having gotten his sandals off, he slipped on more casual shoes and stood, turning to face Bekhura. "How should we go? Undercover, I assume?"

Bekhura smirked. "You got it; time to practice your commoner look again."

Yami nodded and dug some cloth from his closet, changing into a much more nondescript white short-sleeved tunic. He wound a small length of rope around his waist to tie the outift in place, before looking back at Bekhura and copying the thief's expression. "You should change too, PRIEST."

Bekhura suddenly remember he was wearing priest's robes, and snorted before changing into a brown tunic with long sleeves, also tying a bit of rope around his waist. He snatched his beaten up shoes and put them on, placing a matching cloth over his head and holding it in place with a thin ring of metal before throwing on a brown cloak. "You should do something about your hair, little Pharaoh."

Yami nodded, running a hand through the locks and causing them to fall around his shoulders. He shook his head a bit to settle the strands, grabbing a headpiece identical to Bekhura's in everything but color.

It was at that moment that Yami heard his first set of doors open, and a moment later the second. Jouno and Honda came in, looking confused and a bit concerned.

"Yami, what's going on!?" Jouno asked, seeing the other boy dressed in the style of clothes he always wore when plannign some sort of adventure outside the palace.

"We're going to find Seth." Yami responded, making his way back to his scrying pool, which had stopped swirling and had settled to a smooth black. He stared intently into it, willing it to show him where the blue eyed boy was as Bekhura explained to Honda and Jouno.

At the sudden exclaimation of "We're coming too!" Yami looked up again.

"No, you're not." He replied, watching as Honda and Jouno both sort of looked at him. "The smaller the group, the better."

Jouno glared. "We're here to protect you, you silly dolt! We can't do that if we're never able to go with you on your crazy, dangerous missions."

Yami glared right back. "I said no. You're staying. Both of you."

"Honda may be, but I'm not." Jouno stated, crossing his arms. "I'm only one more person, and neither of you are good fighters." Bekhura made an annoyed noise at that, but Jouno ignored him.

"Yeah, come on Yami." Honda said. "At least let Jouno come with you. It's not like it's a loss if something happens to him, anyway."

"Why you..." Jouno said, though it was without malice, turning and grabbing Honda's collar. "You jerk..."

Yami sighed, but finally nodded. "Alright, I give in. Jouno, you may come, but on the conditions that you do EXACTLY as Bekhura and I say. Honda, I'm sorry, but you'll have to stay here. I need you to watch out for Mahaado while we're out, because I made him honorary Pharaoh in my absense."

Honda nodded, and Jouno cheered.

"But get one of Bekhura's cloaks or something, Jouno." Yami said. "Your sword is a bit obvious, as is your hair."

Jouno nodded, catching the cloak Bekhura threw at him, and quickly putting it on over his normal clothes. He pulled the hood up to hide his gold hair; gold not being as unusual a color as white or tricolored, but enough so none the less.

"Alright, let's get going." Yami said, impatient to find his priest. If Seth had been missing since the night before; he'd been gone almost fourteen hours. He glared down at the scrying pool once more, hoping to get an indication of what direction the older boy was in without having to cast a spell. It didn't seem to be going to happen that way, however.

Suddenly, the water began to almost ripple; only in tiny waves instead of rings. They all went east. Yami gave a small smirk.

"We're going east." He declared, smiling as everyone nodded, not once questioning him. "Let's go over my courtyard wall; we can go around the back of the palace to the stables, get horses, and head east from there."

The group nodded again, and they all went out into Yami's courtyard, where they ran into the cats. Spot and Mafdet looked at them, a bit confused, and yowled in unison.

"Sorry, but you can't come." Yami replied to them, smiling in amusement when he saw them glare at him. "I'd take you, but you're too noticeable. So you have to stay and guard the palace." They both yowled again, but slunk off back towards Yami's room, tails swishing in time to each other's.

Bekhura climbed up the wall first, having done so many times before, and sat up at the top. Jouno laced his fingers together and let Yami step into his hands so he could lift the smaller boy high enough that he caught Bekhura's hands and the thief coudl pull him up. Jouno climbed up a moment later.

"You've got to work on your climbing skills." Bekhura told Yami, smirking.

Yami made a rude gesture before turning around on the wall and jumping down, outside the palace. There were magical wards a few meters from the wall itself, but they wouldn't bother the three, so they simply walked through them. It wasn't far to the stables, which they entered to get three horses. Seth could ride with one of them when they found him.

Jouno chose a dappled white Arabian stallion, quickly climbing up onto his back as Yami got on his spotted white mare and Bekhura... Fell off his gray mare.

Grumbling as Yami and Jouno laughed, Bekhura climbed back up, and the three left the stables. The horses set at a trot, and the group made around the palace, going east through the streets.

Yami sighed. Once they got close to him, the boy was certain he'd be able to sense Seth. He hadn't felt anything yet, though he wasn't surprised; he doubted Seth was in the city.

"Bekhura, do the bandits have a play they gather?" He asked. "Perhaps in the eastern desert?"

Bekhura nodded once. "There are a few places they stay, and I believe one of them is in the eastern desert. There's a small oasis; I'd guess they're there."

"A good a place as any." Yami responded, nodding as well. "We should start there."

It took about three hours to reach the rocky desert, and it was late evening. The sun would set in less than an hour, leaving a small amount of time to find Seth and get back to the palace. The temperature would drop drastically after sunset, so it would be a cold ride home. Yami was beginning to regret being so reckless, wishing he'd planned things a bit better. He didn't regret his decision to go after Seth, though.

The horses had to walk carefully due to the rocks and sudden changes in ground level, but finally Yami stopped his horse. The other two looked at him, while Yami stared out at the horizen line. He could sense Seth now; they'd guessed right. Looking harder, the Pharaoh was able to spot a tree and a few temporary shelters. He glanced over at Bekhura and Jouno. "We're here."

"Thank the gods!" Bekhura exclaimed with a flourish, slipping off the back of his horse and leading it to a nearby, convinient rock. The other two boys followed suit, and the trio secured their horse's reign to the rock.

"Now we have to think." Yami told the two, who groaned at the same time. Yami smacked them both. "Very funny."

"I don't like thinking." Jouno said, still having a pout on his face.

"Too bad." Yami replied pitilessly, before returning to business. "We need to find some way to get Seth out without requiring a rescue mission ourselves."

"I could steal some guy's skirt." Bekhura suggested.

Yami and Jouno looked at him.

"Well it's TRUE!" Bekhura defended. "If I stole a skirt right off some guy's ass, that'd sure cause a diversion long enough for you to save your pretty-boy priest!"

Yami and Jouno looked at each other, then back at Bekhura.

"Actually, that could work." Yami said, barely containing his laughter. "While everyone is either laughing at the one who got his skirt stolen, or chasing after the skirt, we could sneak in."

"Exactly." Bekhura said, getting a devilish look on his face. He seemed to be having far too much fun with this thought.

"You'd have to be very careful." Yami cautioned the older boy.

"Psh, when am I not cautious?" Bekhura asked casually, shrugging his shoulders. He grinned. "Besides, this is the sort of thing I DO. This wouldn't be the first evil guy I've stolen a skirt from."

Yami and Jouno sweatdropped, but decided it'd be best not to ask. "Okay." Yami said, finalizing their plan. "Jouno and I will go around to the back as you come towards the front. When we hear someone wailing about their loss, we'll go in and get Seth, then run back to the horses. When you see us leaving, do the same."

"Got it, little Pharaoh." Bekhura responded, giving a thumbs up. He then rubbed his hands together. "This'll be fun..."

Yami took another look at the camp and sighed. "Let's go."

The three snuck towards their target, and once they were within running distance, they all hid behind another rock. "Okay." Yami said. He looked around the rock, making sure everythign was where he thought it was. No one was outside the small structures; just a few horses and camels grazing on the grass next to the small pond. It would be easy for them to pull of their plan. "Everyone ready?"

Jouno and Bekhura both grinned and nodded, and Yami sighed. "Alright then... Go!"

Bekhura shot off towards the front of the camp, and Yami and Jouno towards the back. Yami was using his ability to sense Seth to attempt to locate exactly where the other boy was, when he and Jouno heard the distinct squeal of someone who'd just found out a certain thief had snatched their skirt. People began flooding towards the sounds as Yami and Jouno kept out of sight, and it only took a moment for it to be clear for the two to go.

Yami led the blond to one of the tent-like-huts in the back, opening the flap and entering. He smirked, pleased with himself when he spotted his priest sleeping, unharmed, tied loosly to a pole in the center of the room.

Yami trotted over and got to his knees, smiling. He reached out and shook Seth's shoulder. "Oi, rise and shine." He said, smirking again and sitting back when Seth opened his eyes and looked up at him.

The priest blinked a couple of times. "...PHARAOH!?" He exclaimed, shocked.

"And me." Jouno added, leaning in and grinning. "We're here to rescue you! Bekhura's causing a commotion out front, so we could sneak around here."

"Well then, 'rescue' me and let's get going!" Seth said impatiently, the usual annoyed tone that he used with Jouno present in his voice.

"Hey, shouldn't you be a bit more grateful?" Jouno said blandly, poking the brunette in the forehead. "I mean, we could decide we don't want to save your ass after all."

"But we won't." Yami said, getting a bit annoyed and feeling somewhat edgy. They could banter later, they needed to leave NOW. "Jouno, get him loose and let's go."

"Not so fast, kids." A voice from behind them said. Yami whirled around, hand raised to cast a spell, but came face to face with a scimitar. Eyes narrowing, Yami lowed his hand, knowing he couldn't manage a spell fast enough to avoid being struck by the sword. A tall, muscular man was the owner of the sword. He had dark hair and eyes that were a color between black and red, and wore a black cloak that made Yami wonder if it got hot to wear it in the desert sun.

A curse from Jouno prompted Yami to look back over his shoulder, and then to also swear. There were another three men who had just entered; all armed with scimitars and wearing the same black cloaks. One approached and reached to grab Yami's arm, but the boy yanked it away and turned slightly to snarl at him. However, two long locks of golden hair slipped from under the head covering he wore, falling down over his right eye.

"Well well, look at this." The first man said, grabbing the golden bangs and yanking hard. Yami stumbled but caught his balance, though the movement of his head caused his hair to swing around and reveal the red tips. "Looks like we made quite a catch. But then again, the whole kingdom knows that if you get one of the priests, the Pharaoh's sure to come right to you."

Yami snarled again, frustrated they'd be caught and his identity had been revealed. Now it would be a hassle to get out of this mess. He idly wondered what had happened to Bekhura for a moment before another yank on his bangs drew his out of this thoughts.

"Stop pulling my hair, damnit." Yami bit out, a hand going up to attempt to pry the man's fingers from his hair. The effort was abandoned when the bandit behind him grabbed his arms, and the first man's sword moved forward to press into lightly into his chest.

"What language!" The man holding his hair commented, chuckling. "You're not a very polite little boy, are you... And certainly not the god among men you're supposed to be, either."

"As if I haven't heard that before." Yami responded, fixing him with a dark glare. "Who the hell are you, anyway?"

The bandit seemed to consider that a minute. "I don't think I'll tell you." He finally responded, shrugging. "It won't really matter anyway, after all, you're not going to be around a whole lot longer."

Feeling a soft brush of familiar magic against his senses, Yami smirked. "You're right; I'm not going to stay around the camp a lot longer. It, and you, all smell vaguely of camel."

The fun of watching the man's face turn an interesting shade of reddish-purple was well worth the slap the boy recieved for the comment. He snickered to himself and grinned at the man, noting with amusement that the man was looking at him with caution, seeming to think he was a bit crazy.

Feeling the brush of Bekhura's magic again, the Pharaoh wondered just how long it would take the other boy to get to them. He needed to not be faced with a sword in order to safely cast a spell. As if the gods heard his thoughts, the white haired theif made his entrance, smugly strolling into the room and waving a large piece of cloth he still held in his hand.

Everyone turned to look at the newcomer, including the man in front of Yami who, like the boy had hoped, lowered his sword. It was easy from there to simply let his magic cast outwards in a ring; knocking everyone in the room but Bekhura down. Yami hopped over a few of the recovering men, he reached Bekhura, Jouno, and Seth. Jouno had finally freed Seth, who was looking more than a bit annoyed by the whole ordeal.

"Well, I say success. Let's get out of here before everyone gets up." Bekhura suggested, darting out of the small hut like lighting. Jouno, Seth, and Yami followed all-too happily, and took off towards the horses.

They quickly skidded to a stop in the sand as a volley of arrows struck the ground just in front of them. The men Bekhura had distracted were no un-distracted, and shooting arrows. Seth knocked them all back with a quick blast of energy from the Rod and they started forward again, but once again stopped. The already cooling air became suddenly colder, and the skies darker. Four sets of eyes widened as they realized why. Someone besides Yami or Bekhura, the only two of the group that had the ability, had called a Shadow Game.

They turned as they heard the familiar voice of the bandit Yami had argued with laugh from behind them. The man was standing behind a table that had appeared from nowhere. "Which of you will play this game with me?"

Yami slowly smiled and the other three members of his group stepped back, knowing Yami was the best of them at games. "I will." He said, tone changing from it usual casual one to a harsher, more confident one. Games were one of the few things he KNEW he was good at. He didn't like playing in the Shadow Realm, mainly because if you weren't careful, something you hadn't expected would be joining you, not because he ever doubted his ability to win. That, and he'd heard rumors that the Shadow Games could influence you if you used them for a long period of time, and didn't want to find out if it was true. But he certainly didn't back down from a challenge.

"Alright then, Pharaoh... Let's see if you're really so good at games as the rumors say." The badit commented, smirking broadly.

"First, I want to know your name, at least." Yami replied, setting his hands on his hips. "So I don't keep thinking of you as various rude things."

The man gave a glare, but seemed to consider it. A few moments later, he said, "Neserkasru. I don't really fear you cursing me, so it doesn't hurt to let you know." He smirked again. "Besides, it's good to know the name of the person who's going to kill you."

Yami scoffed. "If you think your threats bother me, you're wrong. I've heard them before." He stepped up to the table. "Name the game."

Neserkasru waved a hand, and two bows and ten arrows appeared on the table. "We'll have a shooting contest." He stated, smirking. "We'll shoot at those targets," He pointed, as two large pieces of cloth suspended themselves from seemingly nothing, both with a small red circle in the center and about twenty meters away. "We each get five shots, and on them, closest to the center is deemed the winner. Whoever wins the most rounds in five shots is the winner, and can demand or do anything they choose, to their opponent or otherwise." His smirk grew as he looked over at Yami, who was glaring at him. "I have a feelign I'll the be the one winnign this game. What would a palace brat know about archery, anyway?"

A slightly worried expression crossed Yami's face for an instant, which didn't g unnoticed by Neserkasru, and he glanced hesitatingly at the bows before his look changed to one of determination. "I accept your challenge." He said, taking his bow and one arrow, but not putting it to the bow string as he waited for his opponent to take his own bow and an arrow, Neserkasru still smirking the whole time.

"I'll take the first shot, your highness." He said mockingly as he set his arrow into the bow. "This will be over in no time." He said confidently, before releasing the arrow. It flew steadily across the distance to the targets, hitting close to the center.

Yami blinked. Neserkasru was a better shot than he'd thought he was.

"Your turn." The bandit said, putting his hands on his hips and looking satisfied with himself.

Yami notched his arrow, and doing his best to hold the large weapon steady and yet manage to pull the arrow far enough back that it would be able to make it across the distance wasn't easy. Though, this being a Shadow Game, it was easier than it usually would have been due to the fact that, the more worthy of winning the competitor was, the easier the game became. Bows of this size were far larger than the ones he was used to, and was at times even hard for adult men to correctly use, but Yami could hold it because of the boost.

Yami released his arrow, and gave a smirk as it landed perfectly in the center of the target. He let his facade drop entirely, turnign to get a smile to Neserkasru, who looked less than pleased. "I suppose I forgot to tell you I'm the best archer in the palace." The Pharaoh commented casually, amused by the expression still on Neserkasru's face.

"I believe the Pharaoh is winner of this round." Bekhura commented, taking a few steps up until he was level with the competitors, a small grin appearing on his face.

Neserkasru snarled and Yami smirked again, the boy turning to face the bandit. "Your turn, again."

The man notched another arrow, but was so angry that he released it too early and it hit far from the center. He cursed loudly, as Yami shot another arrow directly into the center yet again.

"Looks like we know who the winner's going to be." Jouno commented, coming forward as well with Seth. "One more round; if the Pharaoh beats you again, you loose the whole game."

"I'm not stupid!" Neserkasru snarled, whipping around to face the blond.

Seth chuckled. "You challenged the Pharaoh to a game. If that's not stupid, nothing is."

"Stay out of it!" Neserkasu snapped, turning his focus to him. "No one asked you!"

"My, you have a temper." Bekhura commented dully, crossing his arms. "It's your turn, go... Unless, of course, you're afraid the Pharaoh will get a perfect. Then, you can just forfeit now and be over with it."

"Arrogant little brats..." Neserkasru spat, turning towards the target again. "I'll show you all..."

"Yeah, show us a stunnign defeat." Jouno muttered under his breath, too quietly for the bandit to hear.

Neserkasru took aim carefully, concentrating. It took nearly four minutes for him to shoot, but when he did, he struck the center of the target. "Ha ha! Take that, brats!"

Yami just smiled and easily shot directly into the center of the target. "Draw for this round." He said calmly. He turned to looked up at Neserkasru. "You do know that you have to BEAT my next shot simply to not be declared loser. Two draws and two wins in my favor would leave you only with the possibility of a win, and that does nothing for you. Likewise with two draws, two wins for me, and one win for you. Your next shot may end the game, so be careful."

"I don't need your observations or advice, brat." Neserkasru snarled again, fixing the boy with a cold glare. "I'm a grown man."

"You don't act like one." Jouno muttered again, this time loud enough to be heard. Neserkasru pretended it hadn't been, however.

"Well? Go." Bekhura said calmly, smirking. "Loose, so we can leave already. The sun must have gotten low by now."

Neserkasru took careful aim again, and after another four minutes, hit another bull's eye. He smirked triumphantly, until Yami's arrow landed directly int he center of the boy's target as well.

"You loose." Yami said calmly, turning towards the man. "What I'm taking as my prize, is that you call off all your men so we can leave. It's very reasonable, considering how encompassing our terms were and the multitue of the things I COULD have demanded."

Neserkasru met Yami's eyes, glaring deeply at him, until Yami felt a small stab of pain in his forehead. The Pharaoh immediatly put a hand to his head, wincing, much to the concern of his friends and priest. But Neserkasru seemed satisfied.

"Fine. I'll call off my men." He said, as the Shadow Realm slowly disappeared around them, along with the bows. He smirked, not looking like someone who'd lost. He turned towards the bandits as they became visible again, and shouted to them not to attack.

Yami, Bekhura, Seth, and Jouno took their opportunity, running back towards where they'd lef tthe horses. They'd barely gotten ten yards before they heard a roar from behind them and, whirling around, came face to face with a horde of Shadow Monsters.

The four swore at once and began summoning as well. Seth's favorite kaa, his Diosu, appeared in shining black armour with a matching sword, taking up position beside Seth. Jouno's Flame Swordsman appeared a moment later in blue and orange armour, weilding a long orange that held a strange symbol that almost looked like a simplistic drawing of a burning tree. Bekhura's kaa, an angel with the tail of a snake and called Diabound, appeared towering above all the other monsters. Yami was about to summon a monster of his own when Seth and Bekhura glared at him.

"No summoning for you, little Pharaoh." Bekhura chided, not bothering to watch as Diabound began to wipe out opposing monsters. "You just finished a Shadow Game."

Their attention was drawn back to the battle as Jouno yelped, the Flame Swordsman having been defeated. Jouno was more of a swordsman, like his monster, than a magician, so it wasn't entirely surprising that he was beaten. But it did mean that it was just Diabound and Diosu against a large number of enemy monsters. Yami was surprised that so many of the bandits knew how to draw out their kaas. Usually it wasn't taught to anyone but royalty, the priesthood, and advisors and viziers.

Diosu and Diabound were faring well, but they were still outnumbered. The quartet knew they didn't have a whole lot of time before the two monsters would loose due to the sheer number of enemies, so they began retreating again back towards the horses. Unfortunatly, that plan was foiled when a second batch of monsters appeared behind them, prompting Yami to summon up a Kuribo despite Bekhura's protests.

The furry Kuribos multiptlied with a quick spell from Yami, and effectivly blocked off the other monsters. Though, they couldn't get back that way, and after looking at each other for agreement, silently agreed to change their escape plan.

Yami sent two Kuribos to free the horses, who would undoubtedly return to the palace, before half the wall of Kuribos moved to gather around the Pharaoh. Yami took off sprinting into the monsters facing against Diosu and Diabound, drawing the attacks to the shield of Kuribos, which blew up very close to the monsters. Diosu and Diabound cut a path through, Bekhura, Jouno, and Seth following Yami and their kaas, all going straight through the bandits and the camp to begin their escape into the Eastern Desert.

Once in the clear, the Kuribos returned to the Shadow Realm, and the for took off across the desert with Diabound and Diosu following and holding off the bandits' creatures. Considering so many had already been defeated, the bandits gave up once the boys and their kaas had gotten aways away, leaving the four to get out of sight before the small group stopped running and called back Diosu and Diabound.

The sun had set and the air was rapidly cooling, as was the sand. Seth sighed and dropped to sit in the sand, Jouno flopping down a few feet to his left. Bekhura, looking a little tired but not too much so, remained standing and put a hand on his hip. Yami sat beside his priest, sighing as well and leaning against the brunette tiredly. He stayed that way a moment, before seeming to remember something and straightening, pointing accusitorily at the other boy. "How DARE you do something this stupid! And without be knowing! Following bandits around is NOT work for a priest!"

Seth chuckled. "You're so stuffy." He commented, earning and few blinks from Yami.

"I'M stuffy!? You dare say this when YOU'RE right there!? You're far more stuffy than I am!" Yami protested, looking very offended and causing Jouno to giggle from his spot in the sand.

Bekhura smirked. "You and the priest are so cute together, little Pharaoh." He said, getting glares from both boys and another giggle from Jouno. "But this isn't the time. How are we getting back? It's becoming more cold and we're a few hours' horseback ride from palace."

Yami sighed, his breath faintly visible as the cold of desert night set in. "I'm not sure. Our plans got slightly ruined."

"Someone'll come find us." Seth said confidently, wrapping his long white cape around Yami and himself, holding the Pharaoh gently. "Most likely Aishizu. We've been gone awile; they'll have noticed something is wrong by now."

Bekhura finally sat down, huddling next to the priest and Pharaoh. "Tch, I wouldn't be surprised if only Simon and Aishizu noticed. Simon is the only man in the palace with a brain, and Aishizu is a woman. Anzu might have noticed, but I doubt it, she's not in charge of where you are. The rest of the priests and your other friends are all idiots."

Jouno joined the pack, wrapping his cloak farther around him. "Honda knows we're gone." He reminded. "He'll send people after us."

"I hope so." Seth commented, rolling his eyes. "But Honda's an idiot too. He probably fell asleep."

Yami laughed as Jouno growled, Bekhura agreeing with Seth.

"Oh, Yami," Jouno said, suddenly remembering something and turning to look at the smaller boy. "I thought you told that Neserkasru guy he had to tell the men not to hurt us as your prize for winnign the game. When he broke that, he should've been smote or something, right?"

Yami thought a moment. "Actually..." He said hestitantly, looking slightly embarassed. "It was my fault. I ddin't make the terms clear enough. I said 'Call off all your men so we can leave'; I never mentioned Shadow Monsters. Even though they were summoned by the bandits, the bandits themselves weren't attacking us, so they were within the rules. I... Need to word more carefully." He said, seeming a bit guilty.

"Don't worry about it." Seth said, hugging the Pharaoh tighter a moment before loosening his grip again. "Everyone's fine, so it turned out alright."

"Besides, now we have an excuse to do something bad to him next time we see him." Bekhura commented, smirking.

"Yeah!" Jouno said enthusiastically, causing a glare from Seth.

"That was far too loud. Be quiet for a little while." The priest said, sighing annoyedly. "In fact, just be quiet until someone comes to save us."

Jouno grumbled, but decided to follow the priest's orders anyway. Bekhura crossed his arms and closed his eyes, but didn't sleep. Yami, thankful for the silence, rested his head against Seth's chest and tried to stay warm.

Eight hours later, Seth and Bekhura looked up at the sound of hooves. A few minutes later, Kalim, Shaadah, Honda, and Simon were all dismounting their horses and rushing over, looking worried.

Jouno stretched lazily, having been dozing, and looked up at the priests, Honda, and Simon. "Glad to see you." He commented, takign the hand Honda offered and standing up, shivering a bit until Honda gave him a blanket. Bekhura also stood, looking mostly unaffected by the cold, and wandered over to explain what had happened to Kalim and Shaadah.

Simon knelt down next to Seth and Yami, who was beginning to worry the vizier due to the fact he'd made no move to show he'd heard them arrive. Simon gently shook Yami's shoulder, pleased when the boy murmered something and moved closer to Seth.

Simon chuckled and pulled Yami away from Seth, wrapping him in a blanket as well, before noticing the Pharaoh's lips had turned a faint blueish color. Seth noticed as well, and calmed Simon by placing a hand on his arm. "He'll be fine now that he's got a blanket. He'll wake up soon, don't worry."

Bekhura glanced over, wondering what the fuss was about, and quickly discovered the reason. He gave a small grin. "Figures." He commented dryly. "The little Pharoah has no luck for anything outside of games."

Four hours later, all warm and happy in the palace, Seth and Bekhura explained what had happened to the priests. Jouno, Bekhura, and Yami had all been sent to bed; despite the latter having woken up an hour before and been completely fine, Simon had still insisted he rest.

After the story had been told, the priests all turned to glare at Seth.

"What an irresponsible thing to do!" Akunadin practically bellowed, causing Seth's bangs to flip everywhere and making the boy think the holder of the Eye needed to do something about his breath. Otherwise, he wasn't bothered in the slightest. Akunadin yelled at everyone all the time.

"I think we established that." Seth said, yawning. "I'm goign to bed." He declared, wandering off down the corridors, much to Akunadin's surprise at having been mostly ignored. Mahaado tried to hide a smile, but Akunadin noticed and glared half heartedly at him. Kalim and Shaadah stared ahead stocily, willing themselves not to laugh, and AIshizu just sighed and shook her head.

"Honestly." She muttered, turning and beginning to leave the throne room to return to her chambers. "You'd think the priesthood was made up of teenage boys..."

A/N: Yes, I am aware that the symbol on the Flame Swordsman's sword is Kanji. XD Just threw it in as a bit of oddness, since Kanji's not supposed to be in AE. XD

So... Guesses on Neserkasru? XD And yes, he will be appearing again. For he is... Semi important. Not really. But a little bit.

Please review and make me happy. ;;