The Game of Life
By: Rogue Fox
Part Three... I Came For You
A/N: I just want to say I am a proud American, and in the spirit of patriotism, I LOVE AMERICA!!!! UNITED WE STAND!! Thank you.
*+*+*Yami*+*+*
I had come to the conclusion that I had the most disobedient, disrespectful, pain-in-the-ass sister that the world had ever known. I yelled after Isis as she stormed out of the house, but that made little to no difference to her. She ignored me. Irritated, I flipped her off to her back. Of course, I didn't mean it, but I needed some way to vent.
" Maybe if you showed her every now and then that you trust her, she wouldn't be so defiant of you." Grandpa said. I sighed and wondered if he had seen my little gesture. I decided that if he did, he didn't care.
" If she gave me a reason to trust her, I would her." I told him.
" She's always there for you when it counts." He reminded me. I turned to face him. I was taller, which was odd for me. I was still getting used to life outside of Yugi's head. And from Yugi's perspective, Grandpa had always been at eye level. At least, until just recently.
" Yeah, I guess." I agreed. " I do trust her. I just don't trust the rest of the world." I protested after thinking it over. It was a tired excuse, but it was true.
" Learn to trust her to handle the rest of the world herself. She'll respond much more positively if you do." Grandpa advised. I grinned.
" How'd you get so wise?" I asked.
" Too many years of seeing too many things, my young friend." He told me.
" Too many years. You'd think that after all the years I've seen, I might have gained a little wisdom from them." I thought out loud, leaning on the banister on the stairs. Grandpa seated himself in his old recliner.
" You soul is old, Yami. Not your mind or body. What your soul knows takes time to teach to the mind, and of course, a body as young as yours never listens." He said with a grin.
" If Isis had shown a little bit of better judgement back then, I might trust her more." I said, returning to the original topic.
" Better judgement?" Grandpa asked. I sighed.
" There were too many times when I had to bail her out of trouble. Too many times where if she had just walked away, she would have avoided a big mess. Too many times I had to yank her out just in time. Too many. I'm always afraid that the wrong someone will get to that heart of hers. Like last time." I said. I was really thinking out loud again. I had forgotten Grandpa was even in the room. He didn't question me.
" Have you spoken to Yuki yet?" he asked instead.
" No. She hung up when Isis and I were fighting over the phone." I said with a laugh.
" You should have known better to try to call her before eleven in the morning. The end of the world wouldn't get a rise out of her before then." Grandpa said, joining my laughter. I stood and headed for the door.
" Well, I'm not going to be the only teen in this house stuck at home. I'm going to Kaiba's. Give me a call if you need me for anything." I said. I headed out the door without waiting for a reply. I grabbed my keys as I went and hopped into my car. I like my car. I'm the only one of my siblings (not including Yoshi and Yukio) that can drive. I just got my license first. The rest could all get theirs, but I'm the only one that has. My car is a used one, and I'll be damned to eternal fire before I can tell you what kind it is. I'm figuring that out, though. I started it up, and pulled out into the road. The drive to the Kaiba Mansion is about ten minutes long, but it's a nice drive. Pretty scenic once you start getting into the nicer part of town. The only thing about this blasted age I can figure out. Roads and cars. Might be a sign of some kind.
I pulled into the long drive and parked my car in the usual spot. I then pocketed my keys and jogged through the open front door, stopping just inside. Kaiba and Yuki were very conscious of Kaiba's billionaire position. They weren't likely to leave the door open. Come to think of it, I thought, I didn't see Kentaro anywhere. Kentaro was the new guard dog Kaiba bought after the whole thing in Egypt. He didn't trust the world any more than me, and Yuki wasn't so eager to give the maniacs out there another shot at her brothers. Yugi and I were not part of that equation. It was unusually quiet for a house where three little boys, Yuki and Kaiba all lived. Too quiet. No maids hustling around, not even a discarded toy on the ground. I immediately scanned the house and the surrounding area with my sixth sense. I didn't like what came back.
A scanning reminds me of those heat sensing cameras they use on TV, except that instead of picking up heat, it senses what in this age is called auras or vibes. I call it soul heat. You see, in your head, dark areas that are unoccupied by any living thing. The colors are different for everyone after that, but for me, green patches are living things like plants or things that can't move. Moving things, but not sentient, are in light blue. Sentient things, like humans, that have no special abilities light up as orange, and red is a human or god with supernatural powers.
The majority of the mansion was dark. There were green patches all over the place, but I was not particularly concerned with them. There was a light blue spot out in the back of the mansion that I assumed was Kentaro. He was lying too still for comfort. My mind's eye was drawn to a few orange spots in the area where the kitchen would be. I figured they, along with a few more orange spots around the place, were the hired help. They were lying awfully still as well. I really didn't like this at all. Then, I saw a two dark red spots in the living area. One was crimson, and I recognized the color immediately as Yuki, her signature color on my scans. The other was a color closer to blood. I had only seen one signature like that before, and I didn't want to think about who it was that owned that signature. In the same room, there were three small patches of light orange and one larger patch of an orange so dark it was almost red. The dark one was Kaiba, so close to being like Yuki it was uncanny, but not there. The potential was there, but not the means.
" Help-mmmh!" someone cried suddenly. It was definitely Yuki, but someone had muffled her voice at the end. I broadcast the cry mentally, forcing all my strength behind it. I prayed someone was in range to hear it. Then I charged into the living area. It was in tatters. Yuki's signature is so dark on my scans because she actually holds incredible destructive force in her soul, despite her sweet and loving personality. When provoked, she is a powerful and dangerous opponent. Obviously, her opponent hadn't counted on her powers being so well developed. She develops very fast. But I could see that he had counted on her merciful nature. He had her in a vice grip, his hand clamped over her mouth. I wondered briefly why she hadn't summoned the Key of Ra, but then I figured it must have been because one of the Millennium Items was out of range.
" Let her go!" I bellowed without thinking, instinctively enforcing my words with a little bit of mind controlling power. Not near enough, but I'd been spending too much time with weak little mortals. It had become habit. A pair of dark brown eyes peered at me dangerously from behind Yuki, whose red-violet eyes so like my own flashed to me with relief and hope. Yuki had always instilled in me a certainty that I could do anything. I could make any pain go away, destroy any threat, even though she was the one with all the power. I think she was putting the same faith in me that the little ones put in her. Total faith. But Yuki trusts too much too easily. It's one of her faults. Sort of like Isis before life left its mark on her.
" Well, hello there. I didn't expect you to come barging in." Yuki's captor said. By terms I'm most familiar with, he was a "yami," like me, although for me, the title stuck and became a name. But this guy just adopted his catalyst's surname for his own.
" Bakura, I'm warning you, let her go." I growled.
" All right." Bakura agreed, letting go of Yuki. He was quick, though. Before either Yuki or my lightning reflexes could kick in, he placed his hands on the back of her head and gave her a minor energy jolt. To the head, it would cause unconsciousness, and Yuki was no exception. She collapsed in a heap at Bakura's feet. A ways to the right, I noticed Kaiba was also collapsed, and I could make out Mokuba and Yoshi behind him, also unconscious.
" That's not what I meant and you know it." I snarled.
" Oh, really? Sorry, Almighty Pharaoh, but I need the little girl as insurance. You won't hurt me as long as I have her." Bakura responded, leaning down and hoisting Yuki over his shoulder.
" What makes you say that?" I asked, trying to sound cold-hearted.
" You love her. You won't hurt her because she reminds you of Princess Isis when she was young. Young and unscathed." Bakura said, smiling that cold, heartless smile I knew too well. I began radiating waves of energy, trying to use the more fine-tuned parts of my abilities to get to him. I have the ability to control minds, and rip them to shreds. It's my talent, even though, like Isis, I can set up an assault like nobody's business. In this case, though, it wasn't working. Bakura threw in his own energy waves and uprooted all my efforts.
" I don't think so." Bakura said, smiling again. At that exact moment, someone came crashing into the room. I groaned without even looking. I had been hoping for help, but I had pulling for Yugi to show up, not her! " Ah, so the star of the show has finally made her entrance!" Bakura explained as Isis stormed into the room, her eyes wild and gasping for breath. She tossed her hair out of her face and doubled over to catch her breath. I moved in front of her to protect her.
" Let... Yuki... Go..." Isis said, between gasps for air.
" Can't do that just yet, Princess. Rest assured, I don't want to hurt her anymore than you want me to, but I will if I think I have to. Don't push me." Bakura said matter-of-factly, shifting Yuki on his shoulder. I heard a small whimper from her direction. " She'll be awake soon, and then the real fun will begin, won't it?" Bakura asked Isis. She chose not to reply. Maybe I was wrong, I thought to myself, maybe she did learn her lesson. " Pharaoh, I'm going to have to ask you to swear on your father's name that you will go over there," Bakura said, pointing to where Kaiba and the little ones lay. " And sit quietly. You can't interfere at all. I don't even want you to speak."
" No." I said, tacking some Egyptian curses on the end. Bakura shifted Yuki so that he was holding her in one arm, her head laying against his chest and her feet loosely on the ground. Then he took a pocket knife from his pocket and dramatically opened the largest blade, then pressed it to the smooth, olive skin of Yuki's neck. Isis screamed, and her scream jarred Yuki from sleep.
" I highly advise you don't move, little girl." Bakura said calmly. Yuki held perfectly still, save for a tiny tremble in her lip and a small whimper that escaped her throat. My heart almost shattered on the spot.
" All right!" I cried in frustration. " I swear on my father's honor that I will not interfere." I said dutifully. Then I walked out of the way, sat down next to Kaiba, bit my tongue, swallowed all the curses I wanted to say and the worst of my pride, and glared coldly at the offender. The knife drew away from Yuki's neck and she exhaled loudly.
" You're not out of danger yet." Bakura told her, clamping one of his hands over both Yuki's wrists. Yuki closed her eyes and seemed to be praying for it to end. I wished that I could, for once, really make her wish come true.
*+*+*Himeko*+*+*
" Well then. Down to business. How have you been all these years?" Bakura asked me sociably. My eyes flitted from his face to Yuki's. I wished, for once, that Ammon could tell me what to do. But he had sworn himself to silence, and Ammon doesn't break his word.
" Peachy." I responded.
" Witty as always, I see." Bakura said. I could see his eyes traveling up and down my form, appraising me. " Hmm. You haven't changed at all. Still gung ho an determined to give your big brother a hard time." I chose not to respond to his remarks, swallowing all the painful memories that refused to remain buried any longer.
" What do you want with us?" I asked him. " And where's your partner? You and Pegasus seemed pretty cozy six months ago."
" That imbecile. I dropped him for bigger and better things. Like you." Bakura said, his eyes flashing. " Anyway, I want a little bit of revenge on you. Do you have any idea how much pain I've been in for the last millennia?" he asked me, his face twisting to crazed anguish. " How could you? You're heartless. You have no idea what a broken heart feels like." I bit back harsh words that would only worsen the situation.
" If you have a bone to pick with me, leave Yuki and Ammon out of it. This is between you and me." I said.
" It would be between us alone, and I'd have been happy to leave it that way, had your brother dear not interfered." Bakura shot back. I could hear Ammon draw in his breath quickly, but he didn't react other than that. " As for the little girl, I just needed her as bait, to get you to come to me. And, of course, to keep you from blowing me off the face of the planet."
" Don't tempt me." I warned him. " As for broken hearts, how would you know? You're the one who ran off in the middle of the night and got yourself killed! Damn you, I thought you were dead all this time! How was I supposed to know you were alive?" I asked in annoyance. " You're dead! I saw your body, scanned it and all! You didn't leave a catalyst! How the hell can you be here?" I asked.
" Saw my body?" Bakura asked, his annoyance equal to mine. " You were deceived, Isis. I saw your body. I saw you dead after I came back. I had to flee, I told you so. I needed a few months until things cleared up, but it took longer than I thought it would. It took just a little more than a year for things to cool down, and then I came back. Came back and saw you with that other man. Came back the next day to see you dead. I don't know what happened, but you sure forgot about me fast!" he cried, jerking Yuki viciously. Yuki made another tiny whimper, but clamped her mouth and eyes shut.
" I told you, I saw you dead three days after you left! Dead! I saw your body! They showed me that you were dead!" I screamed back. At that moment, we were interrupted.
" Himeko, are you in here?" a voice called. I wheeled around.
" Yugi, get out of here!" I yelled. Naturally, he didn't listen and came right on in. " Did I not tell you to get lost?" I asked.
" Yeah, but I don't care." Yugi said, training his eyes on Bakura. " What's he doing here? I thought Yuki killed him."
" Don't you know you can't just kill a spirit of a Millennium Item? The spirit has to decide to die. You can send it away, lock it up, but it doesn't necessarily die." Bakura said, exasperated. Then, he looked at Ammon and I pointedly. " What have you two been teaching these kids? Parlor tricks?" he asked. I growled, a low sound from deep in my throat. Bakura gave Yuki's wrists a wrench, jerking them above her head so that she had to stand close to him, her arms stretched above her. Ammon and Yugi didn't appear to be the only ones that were growing. " Time grows short, Isis. I'm not leaving. I swore one day I'd come back for you. It's been a long time coming, but I came for you. I, unlike some people who deem themselves better, keep my promises." He said. Obviously, the insult was meant for me. Looking at the whole thing from his point of view, it wasn't a groundless accusation. I probably looked pretty bad to him right now.
" What is he talking about?" Yugi asked me.
" Go on, Isis. Tell them this story. Doesn't your precious Yuki deserve to know?" Bakura asked, jerking Yuki so that she stumbled. Her eyes opened and she looked to me. I felt like I was looking in a mirror. But, for the first time, her eyes showed doubt and fear. They questioned me. I felt guilty and ashamed.
" It... It was a long time ago." I protested feebly.
" But even you have to admit it still happened. Even your self-righteous brother has to admit that." Bakura said, shooting a dirty look at Ammon, who, true to his word, remained silent. But that by no means meant that he didn't give Bakura a champion death glare. Yugi stayed silent as well, waiting. Yuki gave me an expectant look. There's no way out of this, I realized.
" It was a long time ago." I repeated, but my tone was now on story-telling mode. And as I told the story, I was living it again. Again, I was young and foolish. And again, I was about to fall in love...
*+*+*Isis*+*+*
It was a hot day, and the air was dry and abrasive against my face. I was still young, no older than fifteen. But, I was the Princess of Egypt, the most powerful girl in the world. And probably the most angry.
" Stupid brother... Only two minutes older than me... thinks he knows everything..." I muttered to myself, storming through the market place. I was purposely avoiding places where I knew soldiers from Ammon's army hung around. Despite the fact I was dressed like nobility in a white gown that trailed behind me, getting rather dirty in the dust, and had a gold hair adornment on my head, I was determined to lose myself in the crowd. The loud, busy hustle and bustle of the market place always calmed me down. And I was hoping that today was no exception. My eyes were glued to the ground, lest someone recognize my unique and rather famous red-violet eyes. My bright gold hair already set me off, the last thing I wanted was for my most unique feature to be noticed. All I wanted was to have a little time to myself to sort my emotions out and think things through. How was I supposed to know my life was going to change?
I was just minding my own business, walking along, without any purpose or destination, when I saw a flash of white. I looked up, startled, just before something very heavy crashed into me, sending both me and itself to the ground. I looked up, very startled. As the Princess of Egypt, it could be considered treason just to look at me the wrong way. To crash right into me and knock me down was unheard of, so I was quite unused to the sensation. My eyes met a pair of dark brown ones, as wide and startled as my own. I was staring a boy, my age, with silvery white hair and dark brown eyes that looked too dark for his pale skin and shocking hair. He was dressed in typical Egyptian male clothes, and was bare-chested. He looked way too pale to be Egyptian. I heard shouting, and the boy looked over his shoulder, as though he had suddenly been yanked back to reality. Then, he grabbed my wrist and yanked me to my feet.
" Hey-" I started to protest, but I was cut off as he yanked me along behind him.
" Follow me, and don't ask questions!" he shouted, dragging me into a back alleyway as we were chased by a foursome of soldiers.
" Let me go! Do you have any idea who I am?!" I asked indignantly, trying to wrench my wrist from his grasp. He was stronger than he looked.
" No, and I don't care at the moment! Besides, didn't I tell you not to ask questions?" he shouted back.
" I didn't! I ordered you to let me go!" I screamed angrily.
" Too bad!" He responded, jerking me as he took a sharp turn into another alley. In a matter of moments, the thrill of the chase caught up to me. I giggled excitedly at each sharp turn we made. I was always an adrenaline junkie, and always loved a good thrill. In no time, the boy was laughing too. We ran onto a bridge that went over a stream, where he screeched to a halt and pulled me to do so as well. We were trapped, there were soldiers on both sides. I hid my eyes so they wouldn't recognize me.
" Are you brave?" the boy asked me.
" Um, I think so." I said, suddenly uncertain.
" Then come on!" he cried, pulling me up onto the rail of the bridge and shoving me off into the water. I screamed and ker-splashed right in. I heard the boy's laughter as he hit the water as well. I was a good swimmer, having grown up near the Nile, and pushed my head above water. The water was deep and swift, but the boy's hand caught mine and he hauled me up to the shore under the bridge. Once there, he clamped a hand over my mouth and held me still.
" They must be using the stream for cover! You two go up stream, you come with me down stream!" one of the soldiers shouted. We listened to them run off, and then the boy burst out laughing. I laughed too, until I remembereed my situation.
" Who are you? What do you want with me? Do you have any idea who I am?" I asked, rapid fire.
" Nobody important, nothing, and no." the boy answered, grinning at me. " But you are the prettiest girl I've ever seen." He added. I blushed, but tried to concentrate on business, not saying anything about how he was quite handsome himself.
" Well, nobody important, I'll have you know that I am the Princess of Egypt and you have just sentenced yourself to death by taking me captive. My brother will have you beheaded before you can blink when he finds me." I announced proudly.
" Wait, take you captive? I did nothing like that. I saved you. I thought you were just a girl in the market and since I crashed into you, those guards would think you knew me and take you to the slave market and sell you to some rich woman as a hand maid." The boy explained. " Come to think of it, you do look like the Princess." He added.
" Of course I do, I am the Princess!" I cried. " I'm also all wet and muddy now!" I cried, looking down at my dress despairingly. It clung to my body and stank like the water we had just been in. I grimaced. It really stank.
" Sorry." The boy said, scratching his head and standing up. " It's definitely better than getting caught, trust me." he said.
" Why were they chasing you in the first place?" I asked. I was never very good at controlling my curiosity.
" I don't have the best reputation in the world. I should probably clear out of this place, but I haven't yet." He said, helping me up. " What were you doing in the market of peasants, oh mighty Princess?" he asked. I noticed the slightly mocking tone in his voice.
" Trying to calm down. I had a fight with my brother." I explained as he looked around out from under the bridge, then motioned for me to follow him.
" Trouble in paradise? Don't answer that." He said before I could respond. " Just keep quiet and follow me." I complied. I don't know why. I just felt like I could trust him. " There's something I want to show you." He told me as he led me through several alleys. We finally emerged in a narrow street, each side lined with houses all jammed together. Mothers called their playing children in to eat, and old men played board games as mangy dogs slept contentedly in the sun next to them.
" Where are we?" I asked, awed by the sheer coziness of the scene in front of me.
" My home. The home of the unclean, unimportant peasants." The white haired boy answered, grabbing my hand and leading me down the narrow streets. I stopped and watched a mother kiss her child on the forehead. My mother had never done that to me. Even my father had never kissed me. The boy pulled me on, leading me into a small house. There was a table and three beds, a small fireplace, and a crib in the far corner.
" What is this place?" I asked him.
" The house I'm staying in. A family used to live here. I... I didn't want to move any of their stuff, because I knew I wouldn't be staying." He answered. I looked at him.
" Why isn't the family here?" I asked, wondering about the child who must have lain in the crib.
" They're dead. They were Hebrew. Your brother had them killed." The boy told me. I gasped and stumbled back, out of the house.
" W-why?" I stuttered.
" Why does it matter?" the boy asked, glaring at me. " They had no money, they didn't believe the way you do, they were slaves. They had no worth. What does it matter that the world is rid of one more worthless family? One more worthless baby?" he asked, gesturing to the crib. I glared back at him.
" They weren't worthless, they were people!" I cried. He smiled.
" Maybe you rich people aren't idiots after all." He said, apparently pleased. Then he frowned. " Sorry. I shouldn't have acted like I was blaming you for their deaths. They were nice people. The children were sweet, and the baby was so cute. The mother was such a nice lady. She gave me dinner, the night before her family died. They lived a really cramped life. Three children, a baby, two parents, and the grandparents all living in this little house."
" I... couldn't possibly imagine..." I muttered.
" No, you can't. I can't imagine your life. You've always had it easy." The boy said, moving restlessly around the house, fingering a child's dress that lay on one of the beds. " You didn't have to fight for your survival, you didn't have to sweat and bleed for every day you got to live. Your father was good to you. Your brother loves you." He said, looking up at me. " You had it easy." He repeated. I stayed silent for a long moment. What was I supposed to say? Thank you, I'm glad you think so? Or perhaps I should protest that it wasn't my fault. Either way sounded stupid and selfish. Suddenly, I felt really bad about fighting with Ammon. I was being selfish. I owed him an apology.
" I'm sorry." I said finally. The boy smiled.
" Sorry for what? It's not your fault. Maybe you can convince your brother to do better. You could be the one that makes it better." He said.
" I never even knew until now." I said, looking out at the setting sun. If I wasn't home before dark, Ammon would kill me. And I didn't want to make him worry about me anymore. " Are you Hebrew?" Again, he smiled.
" No. I'm not. I come from a traveling tribe, far to the south. My brother banished me from the tribe." He said.
" Please excuse my curiosity, but why did your brother banish you?" I asked, even though I knew it was rude. I had only just met this boy, and I was asking him about his family?
" I was a danger to him. We were the sons of the tribe leader. By right of birth, he was the next leader, but I had a good claim as well. After our father died, he assumed control of the tribe. If I stayed, I might overthrow him and take that away. I didn't want control of the tribe, but men like him have no concept of wanting anything but power." The boy explained, blowing his long white hair out of his face.
" I must seem pretty nosey." I said, looking everywhere but at him. He, however, looked right at me, with no discretion whatsoever.
" No. Just curious. I'm different, you knew that right from the beginning. You just want to know more. There's nothing wrong with that." He said. " At least you don't want to kill me for being different. That's what I get most of the time." He added with a laugh. I wondered why he was able to talk so calmly about death.
" Please, um... I need to get back to my brother, before he starts to worry." I said, realizing too late that I didn't even know this guy's name.
" Sure. Follow me." He said, leading me out the door.
Ten minutes later, he was opening a back door to my brother's palace for me. I turned to him and smiled.
" Thank you for showing me all those things today." I said.
" It was my pleasure to have a Princess in my humble lodgings." He said with a laugh.
" Can I see you again?" I asked. His laughter turned to a frown that his dark brown eyes made more serious.
" I don't think so, Princess. I don't think your brother would like you spending time with someone like me too much." He said.
" Please. It can be our secret. I don't want to have to say goodbye forever after just meeting you." I pleaded. He considered.
" Alright. But it can only be at midnight, every third day, right here. If I'm not here at midnight when you come, go back to your room. Don't arouse any suspicion." He ordered me. I nodded. " You'd better go now, before your brother sends out a search party." He told me. I laughed.
" Don't worry. I know how to handle him." I said, noticing he was staring at me. " What?" I asked.
" Sorry. I just realized that after all that time we spent together, that's the first time I've heard you laugh. You've got a really nice laugh. You should do it more often." He said.
" I'll try to remember that." I said. He smiled and started to walk away, into the night. " Wait! What's your name?" I called after him. He stopped, turned back, and shrugged.
" I don't know. Haven't had one in a long time. Give me one, if you must." he answered, then turned and ran off into the night. I watched after him, then turned and went into the palace to face Ammon and whatever else was waiting.
A/N: Okay, had to cut this off here. Who is the white-haired boy? I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count. ^_^ Well, please review! ~ Rogue Fox
By: Rogue Fox
Part Three... I Came For You
A/N: I just want to say I am a proud American, and in the spirit of patriotism, I LOVE AMERICA!!!! UNITED WE STAND!! Thank you.
*+*+*Yami*+*+*
I had come to the conclusion that I had the most disobedient, disrespectful, pain-in-the-ass sister that the world had ever known. I yelled after Isis as she stormed out of the house, but that made little to no difference to her. She ignored me. Irritated, I flipped her off to her back. Of course, I didn't mean it, but I needed some way to vent.
" Maybe if you showed her every now and then that you trust her, she wouldn't be so defiant of you." Grandpa said. I sighed and wondered if he had seen my little gesture. I decided that if he did, he didn't care.
" If she gave me a reason to trust her, I would her." I told him.
" She's always there for you when it counts." He reminded me. I turned to face him. I was taller, which was odd for me. I was still getting used to life outside of Yugi's head. And from Yugi's perspective, Grandpa had always been at eye level. At least, until just recently.
" Yeah, I guess." I agreed. " I do trust her. I just don't trust the rest of the world." I protested after thinking it over. It was a tired excuse, but it was true.
" Learn to trust her to handle the rest of the world herself. She'll respond much more positively if you do." Grandpa advised. I grinned.
" How'd you get so wise?" I asked.
" Too many years of seeing too many things, my young friend." He told me.
" Too many years. You'd think that after all the years I've seen, I might have gained a little wisdom from them." I thought out loud, leaning on the banister on the stairs. Grandpa seated himself in his old recliner.
" You soul is old, Yami. Not your mind or body. What your soul knows takes time to teach to the mind, and of course, a body as young as yours never listens." He said with a grin.
" If Isis had shown a little bit of better judgement back then, I might trust her more." I said, returning to the original topic.
" Better judgement?" Grandpa asked. I sighed.
" There were too many times when I had to bail her out of trouble. Too many times where if she had just walked away, she would have avoided a big mess. Too many times I had to yank her out just in time. Too many. I'm always afraid that the wrong someone will get to that heart of hers. Like last time." I said. I was really thinking out loud again. I had forgotten Grandpa was even in the room. He didn't question me.
" Have you spoken to Yuki yet?" he asked instead.
" No. She hung up when Isis and I were fighting over the phone." I said with a laugh.
" You should have known better to try to call her before eleven in the morning. The end of the world wouldn't get a rise out of her before then." Grandpa said, joining my laughter. I stood and headed for the door.
" Well, I'm not going to be the only teen in this house stuck at home. I'm going to Kaiba's. Give me a call if you need me for anything." I said. I headed out the door without waiting for a reply. I grabbed my keys as I went and hopped into my car. I like my car. I'm the only one of my siblings (not including Yoshi and Yukio) that can drive. I just got my license first. The rest could all get theirs, but I'm the only one that has. My car is a used one, and I'll be damned to eternal fire before I can tell you what kind it is. I'm figuring that out, though. I started it up, and pulled out into the road. The drive to the Kaiba Mansion is about ten minutes long, but it's a nice drive. Pretty scenic once you start getting into the nicer part of town. The only thing about this blasted age I can figure out. Roads and cars. Might be a sign of some kind.
I pulled into the long drive and parked my car in the usual spot. I then pocketed my keys and jogged through the open front door, stopping just inside. Kaiba and Yuki were very conscious of Kaiba's billionaire position. They weren't likely to leave the door open. Come to think of it, I thought, I didn't see Kentaro anywhere. Kentaro was the new guard dog Kaiba bought after the whole thing in Egypt. He didn't trust the world any more than me, and Yuki wasn't so eager to give the maniacs out there another shot at her brothers. Yugi and I were not part of that equation. It was unusually quiet for a house where three little boys, Yuki and Kaiba all lived. Too quiet. No maids hustling around, not even a discarded toy on the ground. I immediately scanned the house and the surrounding area with my sixth sense. I didn't like what came back.
A scanning reminds me of those heat sensing cameras they use on TV, except that instead of picking up heat, it senses what in this age is called auras or vibes. I call it soul heat. You see, in your head, dark areas that are unoccupied by any living thing. The colors are different for everyone after that, but for me, green patches are living things like plants or things that can't move. Moving things, but not sentient, are in light blue. Sentient things, like humans, that have no special abilities light up as orange, and red is a human or god with supernatural powers.
The majority of the mansion was dark. There were green patches all over the place, but I was not particularly concerned with them. There was a light blue spot out in the back of the mansion that I assumed was Kentaro. He was lying too still for comfort. My mind's eye was drawn to a few orange spots in the area where the kitchen would be. I figured they, along with a few more orange spots around the place, were the hired help. They were lying awfully still as well. I really didn't like this at all. Then, I saw a two dark red spots in the living area. One was crimson, and I recognized the color immediately as Yuki, her signature color on my scans. The other was a color closer to blood. I had only seen one signature like that before, and I didn't want to think about who it was that owned that signature. In the same room, there were three small patches of light orange and one larger patch of an orange so dark it was almost red. The dark one was Kaiba, so close to being like Yuki it was uncanny, but not there. The potential was there, but not the means.
" Help-mmmh!" someone cried suddenly. It was definitely Yuki, but someone had muffled her voice at the end. I broadcast the cry mentally, forcing all my strength behind it. I prayed someone was in range to hear it. Then I charged into the living area. It was in tatters. Yuki's signature is so dark on my scans because she actually holds incredible destructive force in her soul, despite her sweet and loving personality. When provoked, she is a powerful and dangerous opponent. Obviously, her opponent hadn't counted on her powers being so well developed. She develops very fast. But I could see that he had counted on her merciful nature. He had her in a vice grip, his hand clamped over her mouth. I wondered briefly why she hadn't summoned the Key of Ra, but then I figured it must have been because one of the Millennium Items was out of range.
" Let her go!" I bellowed without thinking, instinctively enforcing my words with a little bit of mind controlling power. Not near enough, but I'd been spending too much time with weak little mortals. It had become habit. A pair of dark brown eyes peered at me dangerously from behind Yuki, whose red-violet eyes so like my own flashed to me with relief and hope. Yuki had always instilled in me a certainty that I could do anything. I could make any pain go away, destroy any threat, even though she was the one with all the power. I think she was putting the same faith in me that the little ones put in her. Total faith. But Yuki trusts too much too easily. It's one of her faults. Sort of like Isis before life left its mark on her.
" Well, hello there. I didn't expect you to come barging in." Yuki's captor said. By terms I'm most familiar with, he was a "yami," like me, although for me, the title stuck and became a name. But this guy just adopted his catalyst's surname for his own.
" Bakura, I'm warning you, let her go." I growled.
" All right." Bakura agreed, letting go of Yuki. He was quick, though. Before either Yuki or my lightning reflexes could kick in, he placed his hands on the back of her head and gave her a minor energy jolt. To the head, it would cause unconsciousness, and Yuki was no exception. She collapsed in a heap at Bakura's feet. A ways to the right, I noticed Kaiba was also collapsed, and I could make out Mokuba and Yoshi behind him, also unconscious.
" That's not what I meant and you know it." I snarled.
" Oh, really? Sorry, Almighty Pharaoh, but I need the little girl as insurance. You won't hurt me as long as I have her." Bakura responded, leaning down and hoisting Yuki over his shoulder.
" What makes you say that?" I asked, trying to sound cold-hearted.
" You love her. You won't hurt her because she reminds you of Princess Isis when she was young. Young and unscathed." Bakura said, smiling that cold, heartless smile I knew too well. I began radiating waves of energy, trying to use the more fine-tuned parts of my abilities to get to him. I have the ability to control minds, and rip them to shreds. It's my talent, even though, like Isis, I can set up an assault like nobody's business. In this case, though, it wasn't working. Bakura threw in his own energy waves and uprooted all my efforts.
" I don't think so." Bakura said, smiling again. At that exact moment, someone came crashing into the room. I groaned without even looking. I had been hoping for help, but I had pulling for Yugi to show up, not her! " Ah, so the star of the show has finally made her entrance!" Bakura explained as Isis stormed into the room, her eyes wild and gasping for breath. She tossed her hair out of her face and doubled over to catch her breath. I moved in front of her to protect her.
" Let... Yuki... Go..." Isis said, between gasps for air.
" Can't do that just yet, Princess. Rest assured, I don't want to hurt her anymore than you want me to, but I will if I think I have to. Don't push me." Bakura said matter-of-factly, shifting Yuki on his shoulder. I heard a small whimper from her direction. " She'll be awake soon, and then the real fun will begin, won't it?" Bakura asked Isis. She chose not to reply. Maybe I was wrong, I thought to myself, maybe she did learn her lesson. " Pharaoh, I'm going to have to ask you to swear on your father's name that you will go over there," Bakura said, pointing to where Kaiba and the little ones lay. " And sit quietly. You can't interfere at all. I don't even want you to speak."
" No." I said, tacking some Egyptian curses on the end. Bakura shifted Yuki so that he was holding her in one arm, her head laying against his chest and her feet loosely on the ground. Then he took a pocket knife from his pocket and dramatically opened the largest blade, then pressed it to the smooth, olive skin of Yuki's neck. Isis screamed, and her scream jarred Yuki from sleep.
" I highly advise you don't move, little girl." Bakura said calmly. Yuki held perfectly still, save for a tiny tremble in her lip and a small whimper that escaped her throat. My heart almost shattered on the spot.
" All right!" I cried in frustration. " I swear on my father's honor that I will not interfere." I said dutifully. Then I walked out of the way, sat down next to Kaiba, bit my tongue, swallowed all the curses I wanted to say and the worst of my pride, and glared coldly at the offender. The knife drew away from Yuki's neck and she exhaled loudly.
" You're not out of danger yet." Bakura told her, clamping one of his hands over both Yuki's wrists. Yuki closed her eyes and seemed to be praying for it to end. I wished that I could, for once, really make her wish come true.
*+*+*Himeko*+*+*
" Well then. Down to business. How have you been all these years?" Bakura asked me sociably. My eyes flitted from his face to Yuki's. I wished, for once, that Ammon could tell me what to do. But he had sworn himself to silence, and Ammon doesn't break his word.
" Peachy." I responded.
" Witty as always, I see." Bakura said. I could see his eyes traveling up and down my form, appraising me. " Hmm. You haven't changed at all. Still gung ho an determined to give your big brother a hard time." I chose not to respond to his remarks, swallowing all the painful memories that refused to remain buried any longer.
" What do you want with us?" I asked him. " And where's your partner? You and Pegasus seemed pretty cozy six months ago."
" That imbecile. I dropped him for bigger and better things. Like you." Bakura said, his eyes flashing. " Anyway, I want a little bit of revenge on you. Do you have any idea how much pain I've been in for the last millennia?" he asked me, his face twisting to crazed anguish. " How could you? You're heartless. You have no idea what a broken heart feels like." I bit back harsh words that would only worsen the situation.
" If you have a bone to pick with me, leave Yuki and Ammon out of it. This is between you and me." I said.
" It would be between us alone, and I'd have been happy to leave it that way, had your brother dear not interfered." Bakura shot back. I could hear Ammon draw in his breath quickly, but he didn't react other than that. " As for the little girl, I just needed her as bait, to get you to come to me. And, of course, to keep you from blowing me off the face of the planet."
" Don't tempt me." I warned him. " As for broken hearts, how would you know? You're the one who ran off in the middle of the night and got yourself killed! Damn you, I thought you were dead all this time! How was I supposed to know you were alive?" I asked in annoyance. " You're dead! I saw your body, scanned it and all! You didn't leave a catalyst! How the hell can you be here?" I asked.
" Saw my body?" Bakura asked, his annoyance equal to mine. " You were deceived, Isis. I saw your body. I saw you dead after I came back. I had to flee, I told you so. I needed a few months until things cleared up, but it took longer than I thought it would. It took just a little more than a year for things to cool down, and then I came back. Came back and saw you with that other man. Came back the next day to see you dead. I don't know what happened, but you sure forgot about me fast!" he cried, jerking Yuki viciously. Yuki made another tiny whimper, but clamped her mouth and eyes shut.
" I told you, I saw you dead three days after you left! Dead! I saw your body! They showed me that you were dead!" I screamed back. At that moment, we were interrupted.
" Himeko, are you in here?" a voice called. I wheeled around.
" Yugi, get out of here!" I yelled. Naturally, he didn't listen and came right on in. " Did I not tell you to get lost?" I asked.
" Yeah, but I don't care." Yugi said, training his eyes on Bakura. " What's he doing here? I thought Yuki killed him."
" Don't you know you can't just kill a spirit of a Millennium Item? The spirit has to decide to die. You can send it away, lock it up, but it doesn't necessarily die." Bakura said, exasperated. Then, he looked at Ammon and I pointedly. " What have you two been teaching these kids? Parlor tricks?" he asked. I growled, a low sound from deep in my throat. Bakura gave Yuki's wrists a wrench, jerking them above her head so that she had to stand close to him, her arms stretched above her. Ammon and Yugi didn't appear to be the only ones that were growing. " Time grows short, Isis. I'm not leaving. I swore one day I'd come back for you. It's been a long time coming, but I came for you. I, unlike some people who deem themselves better, keep my promises." He said. Obviously, the insult was meant for me. Looking at the whole thing from his point of view, it wasn't a groundless accusation. I probably looked pretty bad to him right now.
" What is he talking about?" Yugi asked me.
" Go on, Isis. Tell them this story. Doesn't your precious Yuki deserve to know?" Bakura asked, jerking Yuki so that she stumbled. Her eyes opened and she looked to me. I felt like I was looking in a mirror. But, for the first time, her eyes showed doubt and fear. They questioned me. I felt guilty and ashamed.
" It... It was a long time ago." I protested feebly.
" But even you have to admit it still happened. Even your self-righteous brother has to admit that." Bakura said, shooting a dirty look at Ammon, who, true to his word, remained silent. But that by no means meant that he didn't give Bakura a champion death glare. Yugi stayed silent as well, waiting. Yuki gave me an expectant look. There's no way out of this, I realized.
" It was a long time ago." I repeated, but my tone was now on story-telling mode. And as I told the story, I was living it again. Again, I was young and foolish. And again, I was about to fall in love...
*+*+*Isis*+*+*
It was a hot day, and the air was dry and abrasive against my face. I was still young, no older than fifteen. But, I was the Princess of Egypt, the most powerful girl in the world. And probably the most angry.
" Stupid brother... Only two minutes older than me... thinks he knows everything..." I muttered to myself, storming through the market place. I was purposely avoiding places where I knew soldiers from Ammon's army hung around. Despite the fact I was dressed like nobility in a white gown that trailed behind me, getting rather dirty in the dust, and had a gold hair adornment on my head, I was determined to lose myself in the crowd. The loud, busy hustle and bustle of the market place always calmed me down. And I was hoping that today was no exception. My eyes were glued to the ground, lest someone recognize my unique and rather famous red-violet eyes. My bright gold hair already set me off, the last thing I wanted was for my most unique feature to be noticed. All I wanted was to have a little time to myself to sort my emotions out and think things through. How was I supposed to know my life was going to change?
I was just minding my own business, walking along, without any purpose or destination, when I saw a flash of white. I looked up, startled, just before something very heavy crashed into me, sending both me and itself to the ground. I looked up, very startled. As the Princess of Egypt, it could be considered treason just to look at me the wrong way. To crash right into me and knock me down was unheard of, so I was quite unused to the sensation. My eyes met a pair of dark brown ones, as wide and startled as my own. I was staring a boy, my age, with silvery white hair and dark brown eyes that looked too dark for his pale skin and shocking hair. He was dressed in typical Egyptian male clothes, and was bare-chested. He looked way too pale to be Egyptian. I heard shouting, and the boy looked over his shoulder, as though he had suddenly been yanked back to reality. Then, he grabbed my wrist and yanked me to my feet.
" Hey-" I started to protest, but I was cut off as he yanked me along behind him.
" Follow me, and don't ask questions!" he shouted, dragging me into a back alleyway as we were chased by a foursome of soldiers.
" Let me go! Do you have any idea who I am?!" I asked indignantly, trying to wrench my wrist from his grasp. He was stronger than he looked.
" No, and I don't care at the moment! Besides, didn't I tell you not to ask questions?" he shouted back.
" I didn't! I ordered you to let me go!" I screamed angrily.
" Too bad!" He responded, jerking me as he took a sharp turn into another alley. In a matter of moments, the thrill of the chase caught up to me. I giggled excitedly at each sharp turn we made. I was always an adrenaline junkie, and always loved a good thrill. In no time, the boy was laughing too. We ran onto a bridge that went over a stream, where he screeched to a halt and pulled me to do so as well. We were trapped, there were soldiers on both sides. I hid my eyes so they wouldn't recognize me.
" Are you brave?" the boy asked me.
" Um, I think so." I said, suddenly uncertain.
" Then come on!" he cried, pulling me up onto the rail of the bridge and shoving me off into the water. I screamed and ker-splashed right in. I heard the boy's laughter as he hit the water as well. I was a good swimmer, having grown up near the Nile, and pushed my head above water. The water was deep and swift, but the boy's hand caught mine and he hauled me up to the shore under the bridge. Once there, he clamped a hand over my mouth and held me still.
" They must be using the stream for cover! You two go up stream, you come with me down stream!" one of the soldiers shouted. We listened to them run off, and then the boy burst out laughing. I laughed too, until I remembereed my situation.
" Who are you? What do you want with me? Do you have any idea who I am?" I asked, rapid fire.
" Nobody important, nothing, and no." the boy answered, grinning at me. " But you are the prettiest girl I've ever seen." He added. I blushed, but tried to concentrate on business, not saying anything about how he was quite handsome himself.
" Well, nobody important, I'll have you know that I am the Princess of Egypt and you have just sentenced yourself to death by taking me captive. My brother will have you beheaded before you can blink when he finds me." I announced proudly.
" Wait, take you captive? I did nothing like that. I saved you. I thought you were just a girl in the market and since I crashed into you, those guards would think you knew me and take you to the slave market and sell you to some rich woman as a hand maid." The boy explained. " Come to think of it, you do look like the Princess." He added.
" Of course I do, I am the Princess!" I cried. " I'm also all wet and muddy now!" I cried, looking down at my dress despairingly. It clung to my body and stank like the water we had just been in. I grimaced. It really stank.
" Sorry." The boy said, scratching his head and standing up. " It's definitely better than getting caught, trust me." he said.
" Why were they chasing you in the first place?" I asked. I was never very good at controlling my curiosity.
" I don't have the best reputation in the world. I should probably clear out of this place, but I haven't yet." He said, helping me up. " What were you doing in the market of peasants, oh mighty Princess?" he asked. I noticed the slightly mocking tone in his voice.
" Trying to calm down. I had a fight with my brother." I explained as he looked around out from under the bridge, then motioned for me to follow him.
" Trouble in paradise? Don't answer that." He said before I could respond. " Just keep quiet and follow me." I complied. I don't know why. I just felt like I could trust him. " There's something I want to show you." He told me as he led me through several alleys. We finally emerged in a narrow street, each side lined with houses all jammed together. Mothers called their playing children in to eat, and old men played board games as mangy dogs slept contentedly in the sun next to them.
" Where are we?" I asked, awed by the sheer coziness of the scene in front of me.
" My home. The home of the unclean, unimportant peasants." The white haired boy answered, grabbing my hand and leading me down the narrow streets. I stopped and watched a mother kiss her child on the forehead. My mother had never done that to me. Even my father had never kissed me. The boy pulled me on, leading me into a small house. There was a table and three beds, a small fireplace, and a crib in the far corner.
" What is this place?" I asked him.
" The house I'm staying in. A family used to live here. I... I didn't want to move any of their stuff, because I knew I wouldn't be staying." He answered. I looked at him.
" Why isn't the family here?" I asked, wondering about the child who must have lain in the crib.
" They're dead. They were Hebrew. Your brother had them killed." The boy told me. I gasped and stumbled back, out of the house.
" W-why?" I stuttered.
" Why does it matter?" the boy asked, glaring at me. " They had no money, they didn't believe the way you do, they were slaves. They had no worth. What does it matter that the world is rid of one more worthless family? One more worthless baby?" he asked, gesturing to the crib. I glared back at him.
" They weren't worthless, they were people!" I cried. He smiled.
" Maybe you rich people aren't idiots after all." He said, apparently pleased. Then he frowned. " Sorry. I shouldn't have acted like I was blaming you for their deaths. They were nice people. The children were sweet, and the baby was so cute. The mother was such a nice lady. She gave me dinner, the night before her family died. They lived a really cramped life. Three children, a baby, two parents, and the grandparents all living in this little house."
" I... couldn't possibly imagine..." I muttered.
" No, you can't. I can't imagine your life. You've always had it easy." The boy said, moving restlessly around the house, fingering a child's dress that lay on one of the beds. " You didn't have to fight for your survival, you didn't have to sweat and bleed for every day you got to live. Your father was good to you. Your brother loves you." He said, looking up at me. " You had it easy." He repeated. I stayed silent for a long moment. What was I supposed to say? Thank you, I'm glad you think so? Or perhaps I should protest that it wasn't my fault. Either way sounded stupid and selfish. Suddenly, I felt really bad about fighting with Ammon. I was being selfish. I owed him an apology.
" I'm sorry." I said finally. The boy smiled.
" Sorry for what? It's not your fault. Maybe you can convince your brother to do better. You could be the one that makes it better." He said.
" I never even knew until now." I said, looking out at the setting sun. If I wasn't home before dark, Ammon would kill me. And I didn't want to make him worry about me anymore. " Are you Hebrew?" Again, he smiled.
" No. I'm not. I come from a traveling tribe, far to the south. My brother banished me from the tribe." He said.
" Please excuse my curiosity, but why did your brother banish you?" I asked, even though I knew it was rude. I had only just met this boy, and I was asking him about his family?
" I was a danger to him. We were the sons of the tribe leader. By right of birth, he was the next leader, but I had a good claim as well. After our father died, he assumed control of the tribe. If I stayed, I might overthrow him and take that away. I didn't want control of the tribe, but men like him have no concept of wanting anything but power." The boy explained, blowing his long white hair out of his face.
" I must seem pretty nosey." I said, looking everywhere but at him. He, however, looked right at me, with no discretion whatsoever.
" No. Just curious. I'm different, you knew that right from the beginning. You just want to know more. There's nothing wrong with that." He said. " At least you don't want to kill me for being different. That's what I get most of the time." He added with a laugh. I wondered why he was able to talk so calmly about death.
" Please, um... I need to get back to my brother, before he starts to worry." I said, realizing too late that I didn't even know this guy's name.
" Sure. Follow me." He said, leading me out the door.
Ten minutes later, he was opening a back door to my brother's palace for me. I turned to him and smiled.
" Thank you for showing me all those things today." I said.
" It was my pleasure to have a Princess in my humble lodgings." He said with a laugh.
" Can I see you again?" I asked. His laughter turned to a frown that his dark brown eyes made more serious.
" I don't think so, Princess. I don't think your brother would like you spending time with someone like me too much." He said.
" Please. It can be our secret. I don't want to have to say goodbye forever after just meeting you." I pleaded. He considered.
" Alright. But it can only be at midnight, every third day, right here. If I'm not here at midnight when you come, go back to your room. Don't arouse any suspicion." He ordered me. I nodded. " You'd better go now, before your brother sends out a search party." He told me. I laughed.
" Don't worry. I know how to handle him." I said, noticing he was staring at me. " What?" I asked.
" Sorry. I just realized that after all that time we spent together, that's the first time I've heard you laugh. You've got a really nice laugh. You should do it more often." He said.
" I'll try to remember that." I said. He smiled and started to walk away, into the night. " Wait! What's your name?" I called after him. He stopped, turned back, and shrugged.
" I don't know. Haven't had one in a long time. Give me one, if you must." he answered, then turned and ran off into the night. I watched after him, then turned and went into the palace to face Ammon and whatever else was waiting.
A/N: Okay, had to cut this off here. Who is the white-haired boy? I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count. ^_^ Well, please review! ~ Rogue Fox