Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or anything related to it what-so-ever. The only characters in this fic that are truly mine are:

Lady Aurora Phoenix

Lady Natara Fear

Lady Sapphira Star

Dorian "Chaos"

Bryant "Havoc"

Sanura

Zahara

Adais

A/N: This is a fantasy as you can tell. It is part 2 to the Eternal Love fanfic that I ended a little while ago as it was getting to be too long. The story of the Pharaoh and his family is far from over however. His children are still around and they will incorporate themselves in the lives of little Yugi and his friends in one way or another. Fair warning, I am not one for writing out duels so you may not see a lot of them- barely any actually, as the fic is about the events that happened outside the duel arena. There will be some familiar scenes to fans of the show but most of those scenes will have a small twist or two in order for it to fit with the plot being laid out.

I understand many will not agree with a lot of what is written but that is why this is in the fantasy genera and not in just the general one. This is purely a concoction out of my own head and I am just going where the ideas lead me.

Just want to thank my faithful readers and reviewers again for continuing along on this little journey. DDCfreak, Atemu Fangurl, Ishizusan, Pastelblue, Lady of Perfection and her Yami- Yami Nefera, Luna Dusk, and mugen thank you all!

A Bad Day For Pegasus

Zahara and Tristan nearly crashed into Joey and Téa when they returned with Ryou and Mokuba. Zahara staggered to get her balance back as the dark sphere caught her eye.

"What's going on?" she asked them.

"Pegasus took a hard hit from Yugi and decided he was making this duel a Shadow Game," Téa explained.

"Now what happened ta you two? Zahara, I didn't even know ya left," Joey asked, eyeing the unconscious Ryou in Tristan's arms.

"That evil spirit that was in his Ring made a come back. But I got rid of it. Hopefully this time it doesn't come back."

Wishful thinking, Zahara thought as she placed Mokuba on the floor near the balcony. Tristan rested Ryou's body beside him. Then they both looked down at the darkness. It was not long after when they were all struck with a sudden pain that made them gasp in shock.

"What happened?" Tristan asked.

"You felt that, too?" Téa returned.

"Something is wrong," Joey added.

"You are right," A new voice agreed. They turned to see Aurora standing at the entrance that Zahara and Tristan had just come through. She had stopped there but then started forward, calm and with deadly purpose. "Something has gone terribly wrong. Yugi needs your help."

"I don't feel him anymore," Téa said softly.

"He is still there. But he is very weak. The spirit of his puzzle is left alone to face Pegasus now.

"Mother?" Zahara started forward, but stopped when Aurora looked over at her. "How can we help him?"

"At least you understand…" Aurora sighed and looked at Tristan, Joey, and Téa. "Zahara and I can take you to him. Through a spiritual sense. The spirit needs your help to stop Pegasus."

"But how can we help him?" Téa did not hide the scorn in her voice as she squared off with Aurora. Zahara watched as her mother quirked an eyebrow at her, vaguely amused.

"By changing the game, he changed the rules. I warned Pegasus if he tried anything I would see to it he failed. I have every intention of going through with that promise. Now you can forget your little grudge against me and think of your friend, or you can leave him to lose his soul forever to Pegasus. Now you tell me what is more important at this time." Téa took a step back as the guys looked back and forth between them.

"Tell us what we need ta do," Joey told her.

"Count me in, too," Tristan agreed. Zahara nodded to her mother. She glanced down at Ryou and felt he would be alright for the most part, right there. She walked over to stand beside her mother as Téa still struggled with her hatred for Aurora and her need to help Yugi.

"You are not a cold person, Téa. Neither is my mother. She can take you to Yugi to help him. Don't let him suffer because of some hurt pride that happened a long time ago." Téa finally relented. Zahara looked up at her mother. "How am I supposed to help you?"

"When you started showing access to your powers, that was when you established that you could handle the Shadow Realm. I will take care of transporting. You will guard them. We have to help Yami keep his mind shielded from the Millennium Eye. He has not been able to work the special powers granted him by Reno all those years ago. Until he can tap into their full strength, his mind is susceptible to the power of the Eye." She turned back to the others again. "Your friendship, belief and trust will give you the strength you need to do what needs to be done. But we must act quickly while we still have a chance." They all nodded and headed down to the duelist platform. Zahara pauses only a moment to return to Ryou and place a tender kiss on his cheek.

"I will return for you. I am sorry if I hurt you. I had no other choice." She touched his face lightly and then stood and ran after the others. The dark shadows surrounding the dueling arena sparked with dark electricity and Zahara eyed it cautiously. "How do we expect to get through that thing?" She asked as Téa and Tristan made an attempt to run through it.

"Not like that," Aurora answered. She blinked as she felt Yami's fear begin to grow. Pegasus was quickly making his move now that Yugi was no longer there to help him. She knew they had to act fast. "Quick, put your hands together and think only of Yugi. Concentrate on him. Imagine yourselves right there beside him." They no longer fought against her order. Téa had completely given up her fight with Aurora and began to do what she was asked. "Zahara, place your hand on Téa's shoulder, as she is closest to you and the Shadow Realm." Zahara nodded and did just so. Aurora placed a hand on Tristan's shoulder and nodded toward her daughter. Together they raised their hands as Aurora murmured a chant. Zahara received a shock when her hands met the power of the Shadow Realm under her fingers as she and her mother reached out to place their hands on the orb of dark power. It was not long before she could hear Pegasus taunting Yami.

"This day came so much sooner than I had hoped it would, Yugi-boy," Pegasus purred in his arrogant voice. "You see I truly wanted to see your pain last. It was such a beautiful sight, don't you agree?" Yami scowled at him as he thought back to Yugi's last desperate attempt to save them. "Watch yourself, Yugi-boy… This battle is too the end, so stay on guard and play your strongest card, because there is no way you can beat me now." Yami looked away, his words cutting him deeply as he began to doubt himself. Pegasus saw this and decided to drive the nail even farther into Yami's heart.

"All your cunning strategies and all the tricks you've tried are mere child's play to all the skills I possess. Especially when I can see them all coming from a mile away! And they helped you to fail at protecting the one you vowed to guard." He laughed. "What's wrong, Yugi-boy? You look so sad? Losing your soul isn't all that bad, I can assure you." His eye began to glow as he made another attempt to read Yami's mind. He received a shock when his powers were blocked.

"Ever had your soul stolen, Pegasus?" Aurora's voice called out. "No? Then hush your mouth!" He scowled as she appeared beside Yami. Zahara appeared on his other side, each placing their outstretched hands on his shoulders. Joey, and Tristan were just behind them while Téa was seen holding the faded form of Yugi. Yami felt a wave of energy surging through him like never before. He cast a corner glance at Aurora who was staring straight ahead at Pegasus. "I warned you, Pegasus. If you pulled anything I would be here to stop you. By overtaxing Yugi's mind, you dealt me into the game."

"Your mind reading days are over, Pegasus," Zahara chimed in, finally finding her strength. Yami gasped and passed a look over at her, before turning slightly to see Yugi's other friends as well. He felt as if a part of him was complete. As if he was a part of a team again.

"But my Millennium powers are supposed to be unstoppable!" Pegasus cried out.

"Not anymore, Pegasus," Joey said with a tight voice. "Not as long as we're here to help our buddy out. So get out of his mind and stay out!" Pegasus reeled backward.

"Thank you," Yami said softly as he turned to face them all. Aurora and Zahara dropped their arms from his shoulders so he would be able to continue the duel unhindered. "Together we shall face him."

"And together, we can take him down," Zahara agreed. Aurora nodded with a smile on her face. Pegasus growled at them as he regained his composer.

"Traitor," he snarled at Aurora. She chuckled back at him.

"I was never a traitor. You knew right from the start where my loyalties laid. I was against this from the beginning and you knew it, which was why you hid all of this from me. You knew I would stop you. Just as I was able to stop you now. I know the rules of the Shadow Games. I have known them far longer than you. But I am not the one playing. I am merely, evening the playing field." She waved her hand to shed light on Yugi's other friends.

"You just don't get it, Pegasus!" Téa called out to him.

"You think your Eye makes all the difference," Joey added.

"But you're wrong," Tristan chimed in. "Friends do." Yami turned back to face Pegasus, his head still trying to process everything happening around him.

"That's right," he acknowledged as he realized he had a new strategy to try. "And thanks to them, I can save my Magician!"

"You. Can. Not." Pegasus returned, his good eye twitching with his anger.

"I can, and I will," Yami returned. "This is a whole new game, now, Pegasus. Since you can no longer see the cards I pull, you will have to just take them as they come!" He drew his next card. "And they don't come any better than this!" He laid the card on his playing grid. "I play, Mystic Box!" Two magic boxes appeared on the field, allowing the Dark Magician to be free from his prison within Pegasus' Relinquished. In replacement of the Magician, Pegasus' Time Bomb was sealed within Relinquished instead. Pegasus scowled when he realized the Time Bomb would only destroy his own monster, causing no damage to Yami at all. He drew a card, but found he could do nothing so he passed his turn.

Yami drew his next card and revealed it to be Brain Control. He used it to bring Relinquished to his side of the field, but he was far from done. Pegasus felt a moment of joy when he saw the Time Bomb was about to detonate and he lowered his apprehension. But he was in for another shock. As he laughed about his certainty of Yami's demise, Yami grew solemn as he lifted a card that had been placed face down.

"I still have one more card to play. The last one Yugi lay down. Now it is time to find out what it is!" He threw that card down and blinked as he saw it was a ritual card. The Dark Magic Ritual Card. Yami knew he needed to make a double offering for the card to work. So he sacrificed his Dark Magician and Pegasus' Time Bomb, throwing the creator into another world of panic. Aurora gasped and stepped back slightly as the new monster was brought into the game. She knew that monster. It was his Chaos Mage. The same monster he had called upon in his time as Pharaoh to go up against her enemy, Shadow. She never knew if she would see him again. But there in the arena, standing poised for battle, the Magician of Black Chaos awaited Yami's command.

"You may have succeeded in putting Yugi out of commission, but not before his final courageous act could set the stage for the greatest magician in all of Duel Monsters! And with him, I will avenge my fallen friend," Yami vowed. "Face it, Pegasus, you're through!" Pegasus glared hard at the Chaos Mage before him. Aurora grew concerned for a moment when she saw an evil smirk come across his face and he began to laugh again. That was when she remembered that his Relinquished Monster would return to his side of the field again at the end of Yami's turn. She realized he was laughing because he felt certain of his victory.

"You know, Yugi-boy, you may be right about that Chaos Mage. I think he will be the end of this duel, and a lot sooner than you think," he told the spirit.

"We shall see!" Yami ended his turn by playing one card face down and one monster card in face down defensive mode. "That ends my turn."

"Now Relinquished returns to his daddy," Pegasus cooed as the monster reappeared on his side of the field. With the placement of two cards on the field, Pegasus transformed his Relinquished into Thousand Eyes Restrict. His ultimate merged monster. Yami froze as he stared at the monster in front of him. His friends felt his fear and doubt.

"Come on, Yuge. We know you can do dis," Joey told him.

"We're not giving up on you, Yugi," Tristan said.

"We have always believed in you, that won't change now," Téa added.

"You have all of us with you. Feel the strength we are offering you," Zahara insisted. Aurora lowered her gaze a moment before looking back up at Yami.

"You are not alone, here. We fight beside you in one way or another. You can't lose faith. You can't let the monster Yugi helped you to create go to waste. He can win this. I know you know that. Now go ahead and strike Pegasus down for his abuse of the Millennium Eye, for Yugi's grandfather, and for the Kaiba brothers." Yami nodded at her and turned to face the effect of the Thousand Eyes Restrict as the eyes opened, freezing the Chaos Mage on the field.

"You haven't won yet, Pegasus!" Yami informed the creator.

"Don't be a fool! Once my Thousand Eyes Restrict assimilates your Mage, I can turn his powers against you, ending this duel and taking not only your soul, but your Millennium Puzzle as well! Accept it. It's all over! Even the monsters you have hidden from me are trapped under the spell of my monster!" Pegasus called upon the Absorption Force power of his monster to assimilate the Chaos Mage, not knowing he had stumbled upon a trap. "It won't be long and your Mage's powers will be mine!"

"Wrong, Pegasus," Yami said evenly.

"Huh?" He watched in shock as the field was suddenly covered with Kuriboh. Yami explained that his monsters had indeed been caught up under the spell, but that the Thousand Eyes Restrict would have to assimilate all the Kuriboh before it could take a chance at claiming his Mage. Pegasus watched as the Kuriboh began to appear and cover his monster; blocking the gaze and breaking the spell held over the Chaos Mage. Aurora smiled as she watched the valiant attack Yami called forth.

"Attack with Chaos Scepter Blast!" Yami ordered. The Mage twirled his scepter in his hand before leveling it at the enemy monster sending a black ball of electric light hurdling toward it. With the monster destroyed, Pegasus found himself the loser. The shadows began to lift. Aurora watched him as Yugi turned to thank his friends. She knew Pegasus still had one more thing he had to do and she was going to make certain he followed through. Silently, she moved away from the cheering group and followed after the retreating creator of Duel Monsters.

The Spirit had returned to the puzzle, resting from the duel. Trying to go over more questions in his mind. He knew there was so much more to Aurora than he had realized at first. When her hand had touched his shoulder, he felt a chill run through him. A chill of excitement. He knew that touch. Was very familiar with it. He cursed himself for not understanding why he did not know who she was. But he knew there was nothing he could do just then and Yugi's friends needed the boy.

Zahara smiled and backed away to let his friends crowd around him. She looked up at the balcony to see Ryou beginning to stir. Quickly, she left the platform and made her way up to greet him.

"Good afternoon, sleepy head," she said softly, trying to manage a smile. He raised a hand to his head.

"What happened?"

"Yugi won," she answered, trying to avoid the real question he was asking.

"He did?" He stood and looked down at the group still congratulating Yugi. "Hey guys, up here!"

"Hey there! Feelin' back to normal?" Tristan asked. Ryou arched an eyebrow and looked over at Zahara who immediately found the carpeting very fascinating.

"Have I not been normal, Tristan?" he asked.

"Do you not remember, Ryou?" Zahara returned softly. He looked at her again and his eyes widened as realization began to sink in.

"Yeah, that weird Ring you wear was making you act like a real freak again!" Tristan shouted up to him.

"A freak? Oh my…" Yugi blinked.

"His Millennium Ring?" He turned to Tristan. "Tristan, where is it now?"

"Gone, I chucked that thing as far away as I could." Ryou sighed. Zahara got the feeling they had not seen the last of the Ring and by the tone in Ryou's voice, she knew he felt the same, even though he tried to sound better for everyone.

"Oh well. If it was making me act strange then it was for the best." Zahara turned to see about Pegasus when she realized he was gone.

"You guys, look! Pegasus is gone!" Everyone gasped and spun to the opposite side of the arena.

"Looks like your mother is gone as well. How convenient," Téa muttered. Zahara's eyes flashed, but she held her tongue.

"Ryou and I will watch over Mokuba. You find him and get him to keep his word. We will be fine. Just you guys be careful," Zahara told them instead. Yugi nodded and they all took off out of the room. Ryou sighed beside her and watched them go. But it did not take long for Zahara to sense the change. She cautiously and instinctively moved to stand between him and Mokuba. She watched him as he slowly turned to face her, gazing down at Mokuba. "You can't have him, Bakura," she whispered. He looked up at her then, his eyes widening in brief shock before returning to their cold demeanor.

"You are very perceptive, Zahara."

"I have to be. He will never be rid of you, will he?" Bakura chuckled.

"Only if I choose him to be. But this vessel serves well for me right now. In more than one way," he sneered as he quickly moved toward her. She raised her arms up to defend herself as he came at her. He grabbed her arm and swung her to rest precariously against the railing of the balcony. "I could drop you right here and now, and no one would even hear you," he hissed at her. She gulped, knowing he was heartless enough to do just that.

"Then what is stopping you?" she returned in a cold voice. Bakura had to admit, he admired the fact she was willing to tempt him, knowing what the end result could be, and yet keep her cool. She was very much like her mother when she had to be. He leaned forward, his lips brushing her cheek and she closed her eyes when his breath met her ear.

"You are just lucky I have more important matters to attend to. If Pegasus returns Mokuba's soul, his body will be of no use to me. However, he was weakened in the duel with Yugi. He is my target now." Her mother's words filtered into her mind and her eyes snapped open.

"You! You are the one!" He pulled back, blinking at her.

"Depends on what you are saying I am…"

"You are the one Mother predicted would teach Pegasus his lesson. The one who would make him sorry for all he had, and has,done…" He grinned at her.

"That I shall…" He spun her back around and threw her at Mokuba. She had to twist out of the way in order to not fall on the boy. When she looked up he was already disappearing down the hall. "See, Zahara… I'm not all bad…" She could hear the smirk on his face. "We are not finished yet. We will meet another time." She shivered, knowing he was not lying. Silently, she lifted Mokuba's head and cradles him in her arms. She could at least stay and make sure he remained safe. She knew her mother was gone. She figured Aurora had gone after Pegasus.

"You will be in for a surprise, Bakura. Pegasus is not alone. You won't take his Eye without a fight. I can promise you that."

Sanura kept silent as she watched the darkened hall for signs of guards. Seto was still rested on her lap as she brushed his bangs away from his eyes. He still had not awakened and she grew concerned. She wished there was something she could do, but this was not something she had experience with. She sighed and looked back down at him again, this time seeing the slight flicker of his eyes.

"Mr. Kaiba?" she whispered, daring to hope. He groaned and slowly tried to move his stiff neck. He blinked his eyes open and stared up at her for a moment.

"Sanura?" She nodded mutely and helped him to sit up. She found his briefcase and reached for it, handing it to him. He opened it to check the contents and when he seemed satisfied everything was in place, he stood.

"Are you all right, sir?"

"I'm fine." His cold voice was back, though his eyes betrayed the confusion in his head. He was still staring at her when he remembered why he was there to begin with. "Have you seen Mokuba?"

"No, sir. I am sorry, but he is not down here."

"I have to find him!" He turned and ran out of the cell. Not wanting to be left behind, Sanura chased after him.

"You choose not to heed my warnings, Pegasus. Do you believe me now?" Pegasus had just released the souls he had stolen when he spun around at the voice. Aurora was lounged against the doorway with a calm expression on her face. "All you had to do was back off. Not steal the souls of others… But you just couldn't resist the temptation the powers gave you. Now you will end up suffering."

"But if you wanted to make me suffer, you could have done it at anytime."

"True… But I am not the one. Your fate was sealed from day one, Pegasus. There is nothing I can do. I am only here to make sure you fulfill your promise. I see that you have." She sighed and turned to leave but was stopped by the sound of a dark voice.

"Don't leave just yet, milady." She stepped back into the room, her body tense as she saw Bakura standing in the room. She did not even bother to ask how he managed to get in with her standing at the door. The Ring allowed him Powers like the shadows. He could pass through the stone if he wanted to. "Things are about to get interesting."

"Bakura!" Pegasus gasped. "You're the one who possesses the Millennium Ring!" Bakura chuckled and stepped into the light.

"That is correct. I intend to have all the items," he said, glancing over at Aurora. She arched an eyebrow at him but said nothing. She knew what had to happen. She knew it had to in order for future events to take place as they should. Bakura winked at her earning a non-amused roll of her eyes before he turned back to Pegasus. "Care to wager yours on a Shadow Game? It would give you a second chance at a Millennium Item. What you couldn't win from Yugi, perhaps you can win from me." Bakura produced a Duel Monsters Deck and began to shuffle it casually as Pegasus thought over the offer. Aurora went back to leaning against the door way. She watched as he spread the top few cards out on a table in tarot fashion. He was using his deck to foretell Pegasus' future. The future she, herself, had already told him. "Your Eye allows you to look into one's mind, mine allows me to look into their soul."

Bakura flipped over one card as Pegasus watched. "I have but to look at your cards to know what you hide. Ah! The Happy Lover Card…" Bakura looked up at Pegasus with a smirk. "So you have been in love? But with the card upside down it means your love met with a tragic end." Pegasus glared at the ancient spirit before him. "What a pity, love can be such a glorious feeling."

"And you know this how?" Aurora asked him suddenly. He glanced over at her.

"You think I can't feel what my Hikari feels for your daughter? The fool's head is so full of fluffy thoughts it is actually enough to make me sick."

"So leave, and you won't have to deal with them," she told him with a shrug.

"You would do well not to anger me right now, milady."

"But it is just so fun," she replied evenly, the sarcasm clearly evident. He glared at her before returning to the next card.

"The Mask of Darkness for your present, eh? So your true objectives were masked behind your evil acts. You had pure intentions even though you went about things in not the best way possible." Pegasus stepped forward. "I never would have pegged you to have much of a heart, Pegasus."

"Something we can actually agree on, thief," Aurora murmured. He chuckled.

"Give me a chance and I can make you agree to so much more." She caught the innuendo, and growled deep in the back of her throat.

"Baka, you should know better than to speak to me in such a manner."

"Like I ever worried about my conduct before you before. Just because you married him. You sealed your own fate." She laughed softly.

"So you say, Thief." He turned back to the cards on the table turning over another one.

"Quiet!" Pegasus said, stepping closer to Bakura. He had heard enough from the both of them. "Let's just play the game." Bakura chuckled.

"As you wish, after the last card is revealed. Doma the Angel of Silence. It is the card of your future. And a fitting one at that." Bakura turned to face him directly. "I shall silence you forever!" Pegasus' eye grew large and he took a step back as Aurora watched. "Prepare yourself, mortal, for a Shadow Game the likes of which you've never played." His Ring began to take on a blue-green hue as the power collected and gathered at the Sennen Eye in the center. Pegasus used his own to bring a golden beam of light to meet the light coming from the Ring. He had not realized just how weak he had been from his Shadow Game with Yugi. It was not long before he had fallen to his knees, completely drained. He looked up at Bakura with a pleading eye. "You were defeated, an amateur to someone who has played games like for centuries."

"Centuries?" Pegasus asked. He looked between Aurora and Bakura, taking in their past words and Bakura's comment right then. "You've lived for centuries? What kind of creature are you?" he asked as Bakura approached him with a deadly calm pace. He was going to enjoy this and Aurora closed her eyes. Though she was in fact a warrior who had seen her fair share of blood, she was not always too keen on it.

"I am the one who shall control all of the Millennium Items with which I will use them to conquer the entire world!"

"Not without a fight, you won't," Aurora told him softly as she heard Pegasus' anguished and pained scream. When she looked back up, Bakura was standing in front of her, holding the Eye. Pegasus' blood dripped from it, running down his hand and wrist. A sick smile played on his lips as he watched her twitch uneasily.

"The sight of blood makes you weary, milady?" he mocked her.

"No, the site of you again makes me sick."

"I still say I can change your mind… It isn't like the Pharaoh is much good to you as is now. I, however, am here."

"And in the body of the one in love with my daughter. You aren't just a fool, Bakura. You are a sick fool. I pledged my heart to the Pharaoh three thousand years ago. Just because he is but a spirit means nothing. He still lives. My vow continues." She stood up straight to face him evenly. "You may have the Eye now… But you will not be keeping it. As you foretold his future," she said, nodding at Pegasus. "I shall foretell yours."

"There is nothing you can say that will unnerve me."

"Very well… But beware of whom you befriend, Thief. For you are not the only one seeking power. Seeking to take down the Pharaoh. You will one day find yourself unable to escape your own fate. That is, unless the Pharaoh decides to set you free." He scowled at her in disbelief before fading from site. Aurora went to kneel in front of Pegasus. "Here, look up at me."

"Get back." He tried to turn away, but her gentle hand caught his chin.

"I am not here to gloat. I am here to help you now. Unless you wish to bleed to death." He hung his head and she closed her eyes again to call upon her power to staunch the blood flow. She then called for his security. She remained after they took Pegasus away, looking around to see if there was anything else she needed to take care of before leaving. "Shadi is not going to be happy about this," she said lightly as she began to leave.

Well, that's the end of that battle... I like the banter Aurora gets into with certain characters... It gets to be quite fun... (grins)... ok - well you all know what is next... Shadi arrives... but - you won't see him much in the next chapter... just the ride home, and some filler scenes between Yami and Aurora and Ryou, Bakura, and Zahara... wow does that sound worse than I mean it to sound... Only about 2 more chapters and it is on to Eternal Love 3: Battle for the Gods and yes... Marik and Adais make their appearences... Sanura gets more time in the light as well... At least the series is moving along quite nicely... I hope... lol Hope you enjoyed and I will see you next chapter!