The sun came up at approximately six o'clock that morning. Pegasus, however, was wide awake and moving around at five-forty-five. He had arisen before dawn, full of anticipation. It was too early to do anything much, unfortunately, and he rather doubted that any of his duelists would be awake at this hour. Even his Player Killers needed to sleep sometime. No, much as he would have loved to make the action start happening again, he decided it would be best just to wait. Between the early hour and the state of his nerves, he declined to have a substantial breakfast, and asked to have some buttered scones and a hot drink sent up to his study. There he sat, nibbling this meager repast and watching the sun come up.
Peace and quiet, he mused. I have had it up to here and then some with peace and quiet! If this doesn't work out...
His gaze strayed to the balcony, where he could see the ocean through its doors. If this most extreme measure didn't work, well... it wasn't in his nature to give up, but he had to be with her somehow.
No. I must not think like that, not this close to the end of my ordeal. I have come too far to be turned aside now! Today is the day - the last day I will have to spend without her...
Forcing himself to take his mind off anything that might discourage him, he turned resolutely away from the window, and instead turned his attention to the collection of photographs arranged on a nearby shelf. Though he was and always would be an artist at heart, there were some things that photographs portrayed more readily; they had a sense of spontaneity to them that a planned painting lacked. He kept a few of his favorites here, reminders of happier days.
One in particular caught and held his attention. It showed a wintry scene, its background patterned with the stark black trunks of snow-dampened trees, accented here and there by a regal green pine. A cottage could be glimpsed in the distance, with a stream of smoke drifting from its chimney. In the foreground, a pair of young people were pelting each other with snowballs, their faces flushed with laughter.
If I could have a week to live over, exactly as it was, I could ask for nothing better than this... but if I could go back and change time, I would make it so that this never happened.
It had been a particularly warm and snowless winter that year, so when February had come to its close with an unexpected heavy snowfall, Pegasus had begged his father to let him take Cyndia to stay a week in his father's lodge in the mountains. Mr. Crawford called it a hunting lodge, though no hunting had ever been done there, as far as Pegasus could remember - mostly it served as a place for Mr. Crawford and his drinking friends to get away from their wives and indulge in their own pursuits. It would also serve as a comfortable retreat for two young lovers to spend some time alone.
For those few short days, life had been idyllic. They played in the snow like children, or spent hours in front of the fireplace talking, planning out their life together. To Pegasus, it was a glorious first taste of what the rest of his life would be like. It was all he'd ever wanted: no more responsibilities, no more meddling parents, just him and Cyndia, and the few servants that were required to keep them comfortable. For those few days, at least, it looked like his dream was going to come true.
The days went by far too quickly, and they had returned home tired but happy, and content in the knowledge that they would be married in the spring and could return to their carefree lifestyle. Shortly afterwards, Cyndia had developed a case of the sniffles. It was just a cold, her doctor said, brought on by too much time out in the snow, and she had believed him. Pegasus had worried - what if she was still sick when the date of the wedding arrived? - and had been annoyed by the way the doctors had brushed her off, but she insisted that she wasn't that badly off and would be fine soon. All she needed was a little rest, she said, and she would be fine. So he had waited patiently for her to get well, and the snow melted, and spring came...
...But there was no warmth in it for him.
Sunlight peeked over the tops of the trees to gently stroke the faces of the boys sleeping there. It teased pale glints of light from Bakura's pale hair, and threw patterns of shadow across his face. It was annoying. He twitched, blinked a few times, and finally sat up and yawned.
"I wonder what's supposed to be so much fun about camping out under the stars?" he muttered, picking twigs out of his hair. "At least it doesn't look like it's going to rain."
The rest of his friends still appeared to be sleeping soundly, and he considered lying down and getting a few more winks of sleep before deciding that would be impossible in the strengthening sunlight. Then he considered waking everyone else up. At last, he decided the most fun and useful thing he could do was make breakfast. Maybe the scent of cooking food would even bring Mai back - after all, she had to eat something, and she'd left all her supplies behind. Despite her standoffish manner, he had taken a dim liking to her; he approved of women who knew how to control themselves and keep their distance, instead of squealing and pawing at people like his fan club at school did. Already planning out what he would cook, he climbed to his feet, and a flash of gold caught his eye.
Oh, no.
The Ring was once again hanging around his neck, as if it thought it belonged there. Bakura scowled; he couldn't remember putting it there. He hadn't thought the Voice could control him while he wasn't wearing the thing, or even touching it. Perhaps his agreement to wear it today had been all it had taken?
"Try anything funny, and I'll tell Yugi about you," he said.
The Voice didn't say anything. Bakura guessed he was being ignored, which somehow didn't settle his mind very much. He didn't like the Voice in the Ring, but he preferred it when he knew what it was up to. With a sigh, he tucked the Ring under his clothes, where the others hopefully wouldn't notice it, and resignedly went about making something to eat.
As he'd guessed, the smell of cooking food woke the others from their dreams, and one by one they dragged themselves over to the camp fire to see what he was making. Despite his preoccupied state, Bakura couldn't help but feel proud of himself for doing a creditable job at cooking with nothing but a campfire, a few pots and pans, and the leftovers from dinner.
"So, what are our plans for today?" asked Honda as they ate.
"I don't know - I thought I might do some dueling," Jonouchi answered sarcastically. "Come on! What do you think we're going to do?"
Honda looked affronted. "I mean, do we have any particular plan on how we're going to do it, or are we just going to wander around aimlessly and hope something useful comes up?"
"You know," said Bakura slowly, "it might not be a bad idea to split up, for a while."
"Are you sure?" Anzu asked. "What if there are more Player Killers like the one that got Mai?"
"That is a risk," Bakura admitted, "but if all of us plan on trying to win any star chips today, it might be one we'll have to take."
"Bakura may be right," said Yugi. "We already know that terrain is important here. All of us have different decks, so all of us will play our best on different terrains. It might be in our best interest to move to different places."
"Well, maybe," said Jonouchi. "Besides... no offense, Yugi, but having you around kinda scares off a lot of people. Seems like everybody's heard of how you beat Kaiba, and now they don't want anything to do with us."
"When you put it that way, we might be better off breaking up - temporarily, at least," said Anzu, frowning slightly. "Still, I don't know if I like the idea of running off completely alone..."
"You can come with me, if you want," Honda offered. "I'm not going to scare anyone with my card skills, that's for sure."
"I'll be fine on my own for a while," said Jonouchi. "After Mai and Ryuzaki, I can take on anybody!"
"I think I'll be all right," Bakura said. "What do you say we meet back here in about two hours? That should be enough time for all of us to have at least one duel."
The group eventually agreed on this plan, so after the breakfast things had all been cleared away, they all set out in different directions. Bakura trudged away from the camp site with a heavy heart. He hated to deceive his friends this way, but he had the feeling that whatever the Voice wanted to do, it would be best if the people he cared about were far away.
Don't be ridiculous, it said, making him jump. I promised I wasn't going to hurt anyone with this duel, and I won't.
"I'm not taking any chances," Bakura replied.
Wise of you. I'm glad to see I'm having such a good effect on you.
"You call this a good effect?"
It's teaching you to think, instead of wandering around like a lost puppy, begging someone to take you in and look after you. If I train you enough, someday I might make something useful out of you. Or not. We'll see.
"I don't want to be trained!"
Too late. It's already happening. Now, be good and find me someone to duel.
Bakura nodded sullenly. Anything to get this spirit to be quiet and leave him alone! He stubbornly refused to think about why exactly the Voice wanted to duel someone, and what the outcome would be like. Whatever his reasons were, they were doubtless unpleasant, and he didn't want to be responsible for them. If he knew what the Voice was doing and willingly went along with it, it would make him just as bad as the Voice itself. Better to be an unknowing dupe than a willing accomplice.
After a brief search, Bakura finally spied a lone man roaming the wasteland area. He was badly dressed for the climate, with an outfit involving much black leather and a more than the usual number of heavy metal accessories. He was heavily tattooed, and sported a blue mohawk. The only sensible thing he wore was a pair of sunglasses. As he drew closer, Bakura noticed something odd: the man wore two duel gloves, one on each hand.
"One of Pegasus's Player Killers? That's just my luck..."
The Voice chuckled. What's the matter, my host? Are you afraid of him? Shall I duel him for you?
"Fine. Duel him, get it over with, and let me be."
As you wish.
There was a wrenching feeling, and then Bakura was no longer in control of his body. All that was left was a sliver of his consciousness, lurking in the corner of his mind. He could see and hear what was going on, which was a slight improvement over how it usually was when his darker side took over, but he could no longer do anything but watch. He watched now as he was carried closer to the Player Killer, and listened as he heard a voice that wasn't quite his own say, "I challenge you to a duel."
"What? You think you can take me on, kid?" the thug snarled. "Don't make me laugh!"
"I challenged you. Duel me, or else."
The thug laughed. "Sure, kid, whatever you say! If you want me to beat you, I'll play. It shouldn't take long."
They went to a Battle Box that was stationed on some nearby rocks, and there they took out their decks and proceeded to duel. The Player Killer had been wrong on one count: it did take a while to finish off the duel. He was right, however, in saying that he would win. Bakura watched in horror as his final monster evaporated and his life points were reduced to nothing.
How could you do that? Bakura demanded. I thought you could play! What's wrong with you - can't you play cards as well as you play RPGs?
Quiet, the voice snapped back. You have no idea how difficult it was, losing like that. This is a very good deck you've got - it isn't meant for losing, especially against cretins like this.
You mean you wanted to lose on purpose? Why? Bakura realized he'd been wasting his time trying to guess what the Voice was going to do; he never would have imagined this possibility, anyway.
"All right, kid," said the thug. "You know the rules - fork over your star chips."
Bakura wished he could sigh as he watched his own hands giving his hard-earned star chips to the Player Killer. What on earth did the Voice think it was doing? Was it trying to get him disqualified out of spite?
"Now, then," said the Voice. "I believe the rules say that now that I have lost, I should be directed to Pegasus's castle to await the end of the tournament. Did I hear that right?"
"Sure, kid. Right this way," said the goon smugly. He started walking away, then stopped and fished for a sheaf of papers in his pocket. "By the way, what did you say your name was?"
"Ryou Bakura."
The Player Killer groaned. "Oh, shit."
Bakura's eyebrow raised; it was hard to be sure if it was he or his tenant that was more curious. "What's your problem?"
"I wasn't supposed to beat you! Pegasus is going to be pissed when he hears about this! I'm really going to get it now..."
"Very interesting," Bakura murmured. "I want to see that, now. Let's go."
Before the thug knew what was happening, he was seized in a surprisingly strong grip and dragged, protesting loudly, across the sands, making a beeline towards Pegasus castle.
"Mr. Pegasus, sir?"
"Yes?" Pegasus looked up from his desk, where he'd been amusing himself with a pack of multicolored index cards. The servant looked askance at the collection of small origami animals that his master had assembled.
"Sir, there's been a slight problem with one of your assassins."
Pegasus looked up from the frog he'd been folding. "What kind of problem?"
"It seems that he unknowingly defeated one of the young gentlemen that you had declared off-limits."
"Oh, he did, did he?" said Pegasus casually. "And why do you think he didn't realize he was dueling someone whom I specifically forbid him from dueling?"
"He says he didn't recognize him until he said his name."
"Ahh, yes. A good excuse," Pegasus replied. "It would be a very good excuse if I didn't know I showed him a picture of the boy beforehand."
"He said he looked different from the picture," said the servant.
"A likely story. See to it that he isn't paid," said Pegasus. "And have his ears removed. If he doesn't want to listen, I'll certainly oblige him."
"Yes, sir," said the servant. "I'll see to it. What shall I do with the boy? He's here at the castle, demanding to be let in."
"Well, I would be a poor host if I left my guest of honor standing at the door. Put him with the others and make him comfortable until I figure out what to do with him. I'll have to think of some other excuse to meet with him in private."
"Will that be all, sir?"
"Yes, I think so, for now." Pegasus held up a pink index card, artfully folded. "Would you like a bunny?"
"No, sir, but thank you just the same."
"Oh, come on! It hops and everything, watch!"
The servant watched as his employer illustrated how to make a folded-paper rabbit jump off the desk. He picked it up and put it in his pocket.
"Thank you, sir," he said. "I'll leave you to your work now."
He exited the room as quickly as he dared, as if fearing that whatever Pegasus had was catching. Pegasus chuckled; there were few office supplies quite like a package of index cards, properly implemented, to keep people on their toes.
"My work is never done," he sighed, and began doodling patterns of spots on the back of a green paper frog.
It wasn't quite noon when Yugi returned to the campsite to meet up with his friends. He arrived to find that Honda and Anzu were already waiting for them, and he hurried over to greet them.
"Hey, you guys!" he called.
"Hi, Yugi," said Anzu. "How did your dueling go?"
In reply, he held up his gauntlet to show a complete set of star chips. "I won!"
"Congratulations!" she said. "I knew you could do it!"
"Yeah, ditto," Honda added. "Kinda figured if any of us made it, it would be you. We lost all ours."
"Where's Jonouchi? Isn't he back yet?" asked Yugi, looking around as if he thought Jonouchi might be hiding up a tree.
"Haven't seen him," Honda replied. "Don't you worry about him - he's bound to turn up somewhere."
"Knowing him, he had to get in one last duel before he comes back," said Anzu. "He'll turn up."
Sure enough, about five minutes later, Jonouchi came running up over the hill, flushed with success.
"I am the man!" he declared, when he was within shouting distance. He waved his gloved hand so all could see. "I got ten star chips! Do I rock or what?"
"You did great," said Yugi, grinning. "Looks like the two of us are headed to the finals!"
"All right! Let's hurry up and get there before someone beats us to it!" said Jonouchi. "I didn't go to all the trouble of winning these star chips just so someone else can get to the castle before we do!"
"Wait a minute," said Anzu. "Bakura's not here yet. We can't leave without him."
"Hey, that's right," Honda said. "Y'know, that's kinda weird. You wouldn't think he'd be late - he's the one wearing a watch."
"Maybe he's busy playing with someone," Anzu said. "Let's give him a few more minutes."
"Aw, do we have to?" asked Jonouchi. "He's already late! He'll catch up to us, won't he?"
"He might have lost all his chips," Yugi suggested. "If he did, they'd take him to the castle with everyone else."
"They didn't take us," said Honda. "We've been hanging around here for almost twenty minutes, and nobody's come to get us."
"Weird," said Jonouchi. He poked Bakura's knapsack with his foot. "You'd think they'd at least let him come pick up his stuff, wouldn't you? That Pegasus - first he doesn't leave us anything for dinner, he doesn't give us anywhere to sleep, and now he drags people off to his castle and makes them leave all their stuff on the ground."
"Hmm..." Yugi frowned, looking deeply thoughtful. Suddenly he jumped forward and began rummaging through Bakura's bag. "It's gone!"
"What? What's gone?" asked Jonouchi.
"Bakura's Ring! It's missing!"
Anzu paled. "You don't think...?"
"I do," said Yugi, his mouth set in a grim line. "He must have put it on while we weren't looking."
"Man, why would he do a stupid thing like that?" Jonouchi wailed. "Now we're in for all kinds of trouble!"
"We won't know why unless we can find him," said Yugi. "I don't believe Bakura would have done something like that on purpose. It could be the Spirit of the Ring had some way of making him do it. We really don't understand its powers. All I know for sure is that we've got to get to the castle as fast as possible."
"What?" Anzu cried. "You aren't going to run off and leave him! We have to look for him, before he does something!"
Yugi shook his head. "We don't have to look for him. Remember last night, when he took out the Ring? It was pointing to the castle. I'm sure the Spirit of the Ring wants to go there, and if he's controlling Bakura, that's where he'll be. It's a good thing we've got these." He tapped the star chips at his wrist. "That should give us a little freedom to move around the castle. We're going to need it if we're going to find Bakura."
"Let's get moving, then," said Honda.
When they arrived at the front gate, they were intercepted by a serious-looking man in dark glasses. He blocked their path, standing there in a manner that suggested that he was both willing and capable to do damage to anyone who dared to cross him. Everyone stopped to size him up.
"Um... can we get by, please?" asked Yugi. He thought it was worth a try to ask nicely.
"No one may pass unless they have collected ten star chips," the man answered.
"Well, that's okay, then!" said Jonouchi, holding up his glove. "Come on, let us through!"
The man was unmoved. "What about the rest of you?"
"I have mine, too," said Yugi, holding up his chips as proof.
"Very well. You two may pass." The man shifted his gaze to Anzu and Honda. "But you two will not. There can only be four finalists, and there have already been two earlier."
"That's okay, we don't have any star chips, anyway," Honda blurted. Anzu elbowed him.
"Shut up!" she hissed.
"It doesn't matter if you have no star chips or a dozen - no one else can come in," the guard snapped. "You'll have to go around back and join the rest of the rejects."
"Can't they please come in with us?" asked Yugi, giving his best sad-eyed look. It had been known to work miracles on adults of all sizes, ages, and model numbers. "They won't be any trouble. Just let them watch."
The guard frowned. "You'll have to take that up with Pegasus. One moment."
He took out a cellular phone and spoke into it briefly. A few minutes later, Pegasus himself arrived, looking around eagerly.
"Ahh, here are my young champions!" he exclaimed. "Yugi-boy! So good to see you here at last! I just knew you'd make it! Congratulations!" He seized on Yugi's hand and pumped it vigorously.
"Th-thank you!" Yugi managed to say, trying to keep his teeth from being shaken out of his head.
Pegasus wheeled around to face Jonouchi, releasing his grip on Yugi to shake the other boy's hand instead.
"Jonouchi, isn't it? So you made it all the way here? How wonderful! Splendid! You see, I knew you had untapped depths! There's nothing quite like seeing the underdog pull off a smashing success to lift the spirits."
"Mr. Crawford, sir," said the guard, interposing himself between Pegasus and Jonouchi, "I needed to ask you something."
Pegasus looked at him as if he'd never seen him in his life. "Oh, really? Whatever for?"
"These people," said the guard, forging on doggedly, "have requested that they allow their companions to enter the castle as spectators. Is that allowed?"
"Of course it's allowed! Why wouldn't it be?" Pegasus replied. "Our champions have the right to some special treatment. They've earned a bit of a reward just for making it this far. We can make room for a spectator or two somewhere. Now, escort our guests inside and see that they are made comfortable. You've arrived just in time for lunch," he added, with a nod to Yugi and his friends. "I'll have some extra rooms prepared for your friends, and lunch will be sent up to you there. You'll have some time to prepare yourselves before the fun begins. Well, what are you waiting for? Come in, come in!"
He waved everyone inside, and the guard, taking his cue, did what he could to hustle the slightly bewildered teenagers inside. Yugi found himself trotting along at Pegasus's side, trying to keep up to his host. He had not properly appreciated just how tall Pegasus was until he was forced to try to match his long stride with his own short legs.
"Excuse me," he said, panting slightly as he jogged along, "could I ask a question?"
Pegasus gave him a piercing look. Yugi had the sudden feeling that he had just had someone gaze down through the top of his head and see all the way down to the soles of his feet, leaving nothing hidden. He shivered a little. Pegasus smiled.
"Of course! Ask whatever you like," he said.
"Well, my friend Bakura... he wandered off a while ago, and we haven't seen him since then..."
"And you're wondering if I might know his whereabouts," Pegasus replied. "You don't need to worry. He had the misfortune to duel with someone who got the better of him, and he was brought back to the holding area to await the end of the tournament. If it bothers you very much, I will have someone track him down and let him come up and talk to you."
"Thank you. I know it's silly, but it would make me feel better," said Yugi.
Pegasus chuckled. "No, dear boy, it's not the least bit silly to want to see someone after you've lost them."
Yugi felt that there was something here he was missing. A tremor of uncertainty emanated from his other self, and he shooed it away. He decided to talk about something a bit safer.
"We've left all our camping things behind," he said. "They belong to a friend, and they were too much for us to carry. Bakura's stuff is there, too. Do you think they'll be safe?"
"I'll have someone pick it up and return it all to the correct owners."
"I don't want to be any trouble..."
"And I don't want other people's things littering my island. It will be dealt with," said Pegasus.
Yugi nodded and fell silent, feeling he'd asked enough of his host for the time being. Once again, he felt suspicion arising from a part of his mind that didn't quite belong to it, and this time, he listened.
Pegasus is doing me an awful lot of favors, he mused. My other self might be right - it might be he wants something from me. But what could it be? Could he really be after my Millennium Puzzle? But why go through all of this for it? Why not just take it, or, or try to buy it from me or something? He doesn't act like he's that interested in it, but I don't have anything else of value...
Wrapped up in his musings as he was, he failed to notice that he had arrived at a long hallway lined with doors, most of which were closed tightly, but four of which stood invitingly open.
"Here you are, home sweet home! At least for the time being," Pegasus announced. "Choose your accommodations, and I will see that you are supplied with anything you need. Meals will be delivered momentarily. In the meantime, you are to rest, refresh yourselves, and prepare for the finals as you see fit. And that's all. Be good, and I'll see you later."
He swept off, leaving Yugi and his companions to investigate their new surroundings.
"I got dibs on the green one!" said Jonouchi, bounding into one of the rooms.
"What's so special about the green one?" Honda asked.
"I like green!"
"Fine, I'll take the blue one," said Honda.
"This one is nice," said Anzu, peering into a room decorated in pale coral.
"Then I'll take the yellow one," said Yugi.
He ducked into his new room and took stock of his new accommodations. It was a cheery place, he had to admit, even down to the fresh daffodils on the mantelpiece. He wondered idly if all the rooms here were color coded, and what kind of flowers would be in the green room, before he gave it all up with a shake of his head. Normally he could spend hours pondering that kind of pointless puzzle, but he needed to be serious today.
"I'm going to be in the tournament finals pretty soon," he told himself. "If I had any sense, I'd be working on my deck... but I like it the way it is, really."
He flopped back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling, trying to think. In a little while - he suspected; no one had actually told him when the finals would begin - he would be dueling against an unknown opponent for stakes some people were prepared to go to any lengths for. It was possible that he would be up against an honest player, but it was also possible he would be up against a cheater like Haga, or even one of Pegasus's own assassins...
It's hard to believe he's plotting anything. He seems so nice... but I saw what happened with the Player Killer of Darkness. I have to believe that something is wrong here. I have to be ready to face anything, when the time comes.
That worried him. He had been trying not to think about it too much, but now that he had nothing to do but think, it all rose to the surface. He felt certain that when the time came, his other self would be ready to take charge. It was almost certain that he would win; he always seemed to come out on top, no matter what the odds. But at what price?
If someone makes him angry...
So many times, when his other self gamed with someone, the loser was forced to pay a terrible price. Some lost their sanity, as the Player Killer had; some even lost their lives, if they pushed him too hard. One classmate had lost his soul forever. It frightened Yugi to know this force was so close to him, and to not know or understand what would make him come to the surface and what he would do when he got there.
He's only trying to protect me and my friends. He doesn't mean any harm, he tried to assure himself. And then, Not to me, but to other people...
He mulled it over a while, and finally decided that he just hoped that everyone he dealt with would play fair. Otherwise, he wasn't sure whether he was more afraid of losing or winning.
Bakura tucked himself in a corner and tried to stay out of sight. He had been in this room for quite some time now, and was wishing deeply for a way to get out. So far, the only good thing that had happened since he'd gotten here was that someone had given him his backpack back; other than that, he was having a hard time of it. There were far too many people here, more people than he ever liked to be around at the best of times, even if they were people he knew. Most of these were either complete strangers, or people like Haga and Ryuzaki who knew him only because he was friends with the people who had beaten them. He could see the two of them huddling in a corner, no doubt planning out dire things that they could do to Yugi and Jonouchi the next time they met. He doubted they would welcome his company, though he certainly was capable of doing dire things to Yugi right now...
Oh, I wouldn't make you do that! After all, I did promise that I wouldn't hurt anyone. Not today, anyway. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe a few days after that. You can relax until then.
"You think I can relax while you say things like that?" Bakura muttered.
The Voice gave a mental shrug. If you don't want to, don't.
"That's not what I meant."
A few people were giving Bakura odd looks at him for talking to himself, but he didn't care. It made them edge away from him, and give him more breathing room. This place looked more like a hastily cleared-out basement than any kind of proper room, and there weren't many windows. It was uncomfortably stuffy and warm as well as crowded, and he wanted all the space he could get.
Thus, he was rather surprised when he realized someone was walking deliberately towards him. He glanced up to see one of the suited men who served Pegasus.
"Your presence is required," he said.
Bakura blinked, puzzled. "For what? And why me?"
"One of the finalists has asked to speak with you."
"Who is it?" asked Bakura uneasily.
"His name is Yugi Mutou."
Go! Go with him! Go right now!
"What? Why? Ah, I mean, okay, sure," Bakura stammered, as the man gave him a quizzical look. "Right. Time to visit Yugi. Definitely."
In his mind, he added, Why are we doing this?
Because I want out of here! Why else? Did you think I was just going to sit here for the rest of the trip? Use your mind for a change, so you can be of some help to me.
Why would I want to do that? he answered tiredly, but he got up and followed the suited man.
Their paths led up and down and around through the castle until Bakura was thoroughly baffled; he was certain he would never be able to find his way around such a place, even if he had years to study it. He could feel another presence in his mind, however, one that took in every detail and filed it away in places he wasn't sure he'd be able to find them later. He didn't like thinking that there were parts of his brain that were blocked off from him. There were times when he might block out things from himself, but the idea that someone else could do it for him was disconcerting.
At last, they reached a hallway lined with closed doors. The serving man rapped on one of them, and Bakura heard Yugi's voice saying, "Just a minute!"
Bakura turned to his guide and said, "Do you mind if we have a few minutes alone?"
"I'll have to escort you back," said the man.
He heard his own voice say, "It's all right. I can find my way back, I have a good sense of direction." Bakura wanted to scowl. What was the Ring-spirit up to now?
"Well..." The man looked suspicious. "I'll wait for you at the end of the hall."
"That will be fine."
The door to Yugi's room opened as the guide wandered away down the hall.
"Bakura!" said Yugi. "There you are! I was worried about you!"
"Don't get too close!" Bakura hissed. "The... the spirit in the Ring is here with me. I don't know what he's up to, and I don't want you to get hurt."
Yugi backed off a little. "I thought it might be something like that. How did that happen?"
"Don't ask me to explain! It's too complicated. I just know he wanted to be in this castle for some reason, so he dragged me down here. He's probably here to look for the Millennium Items."
"Isn't there anything you can do to get rid of him?" asked Yugi. "Or... could my other self help?"
"Last time that happened, I nearly died," Bakura pointed out. "It would be better if you just... left me alone for a while. At least until he's done whatever it is he's trying to do. He says once he's finished, he won't have a reason to bother us anymore."
"And you trust him?" Yugi asked.
Bakura winced. "Please, Yugi. I... I know I can't get away from him. He follows me wherever I go. I hear him in my mind, even when I'm not wearing the Ring. It's not about trusting him. It's just that... I have to believe something. Even if it's not true."
Yugi was quiet a while.
"I understand," he said at last. "Maybe you'd better go now, before... well, you know. And good luck."
Bakura nodded, and resolutely pushed Yugi's door shut. He turned and began walking away.
Now at least I've warned him that you're here, and told him what you're up to, he thought.
As if I care. If I cared, I wouldn't have let you say a word.
Why didn't you say anything? I thought you wanted to talk to Yugi, thought Bakura.
I didn't. I just wanted to get out.
The next thing Bakura felt was a jolt, and suddenly he was not in his body anymore. The Voice had taken over.
"All right," he said. "Let's get to work."
He walked up to where the guard was waiting for him.
"Are you ready to go now?" the man asked.
"Yes," said Bakura, and kneed him very hard in the groin.
The man doubled over, gagging with pain, and Bakura struck him again. He fell to the floor, whimpering, and the thief leaped over his body and sprinted into parts unknown.
A brisk rap on the door woke Yugi from his doze, and he sat up and looked around, momentarily unable to remember where he was and how he'd gotten there. Then it came back to him: he'd been flipping through his cards, trying to reassure himself as he mulled over his situation, and he had slipped off into a dream. He supposed it was natural, considering the chaos of the previous night.
"Mr. Mutou?" asked a voice. "Dinner is being served in the grand dining hall. Will you be joining the others?"
"Yeah, I'll be right there!"
He bounced out of bed, quickly picked up his cards (some of them had fallen off his bed and onto the floor) and hurried to answer the door. He found the rest of his friends waiting for him.
"The other two competitors have already gone down," the servant explained. "You'll meet them there. Follow me, please."
They were escorted back to the lower floors. Yugi suddenly found himself wishing he'd taken some time to spruce himself up instead of sleep, and regretted he had been unable to brush his hair. Not that it ever did any good, but he was about to come face to face with some of the best duelists in the world, and he wanted to make a good impression. It was very tiresome, being treated like a weakling just because he was a bit short for his age.
Then again, if they think I made it this far just by a fluke, maybe they'll underestimate me, he reassured himself.
They reached the dining hall, and the servant flung the doors open. In a carrying voice, he proclaimed, "Finalists Yugi Mutou and Katsuya Jonouchi, and their companions."
"Well, what do you know?" a voice drawled. "I thought you'd get here, sooner or later."
"Mai!" Jonouchi exclaimed.
"Yes, it's me," she replied. She leaned forward in her chair to have a better look at them all. "I told you I'd make it."
"I'm glad you're here, Mai," said Yugi. "I knew you could do it."
"Please, please!" Pegasus had been listening in on their conversation from his place at the head of the table. "Conversation is all very well, but we'd appreciate it if you'd sit down first, so we can begin our meal. It's not polite to start eating until all the guests are seated, you know."
"So get a move on," an unfamiliar voice chimed in. It belonged to a rough-cut blond man in sunglasses and an American flag bandanna. He smirked at everyone as if he thought he'd said something witty.
As they took their seats at the grand table, Jonouchi pointed at the stranger and whispered to Yugi, "Who is that, and why shouldn't I smack that smile off his face?"
"He looks familiar, a little," Yugi admitted. He frowned in thought. "Wait, I know! I saw him in a gaming magazine once. I think his name is Keith. That's right, Keith Howard. He's a duelist from America."
"I can see that," said Jonouchi.
"You might want to be careful around him," said Yugi. "He's supposed to be very good. He takes the top prize in every tournament he enters. They call him Bandit Keith."
"They might call him that in America," said Jonouchi, "but here, it's a different story. He's never met any duelists like us before, I'll bet!"
"There aren't any duelists like Yugi," said Anzu positively.
"You could be right," said Yugi softly, running his fingers over the Puzzle.
Dinner was served. Waiters appeared and handed out bowls of soup to everyone. Honda looked in dismay at the array of forks and spoons that had been set out in front of him and reached tentatively for one.
"Not that one," Anzu hissed. "The big round one. You start at the outside and work in."
"Oh. Thanks," said Honda. "Why can't people just use chopsticks? It seems like it would be a lot less to clean."
"That's rich people for you," said Jonouchi. He dipped his spoon into the soup bowl and took a sip. "Ack! This soup is cold! Damn, you'd think in a place like this, they could at least manage hot soup."
Mai gave him a withering look. "It's vichyssoise, you idiot. It's supposed to be cold."
"Oh. Is that what it is?" said Jonouchi lamely. To Yugi, he whispered, "I'd rather they heat it up and just call it potato soup."
Yugi privately agreed, but he put his spoon into the soup anyway, and encountered something that felt out of place. Looking around the table, he noticed that some of the other guests appeared to be having the same experience.
"Ah, I see some of you have found my little surprise," said Pegasus. "If my finalists will take a moment to look at their food, they might find a little something looking back at them."
Jonouchi prodded tentatively at his food, and scooped up a golf-ball sized lump. As the soup dripped off, it became more distinctly visible as...
"An eye!" Jonouchi yelped. He gave an involuntary jerk, and the metal eye, along with a certain amount of soup, was flung across the tablecloth and everyone in the nearby area. Anzu gave him a withering look, picked up the eye, wiped it off with her napkin, and handed it back to him.
Mai was scowling at her own dish; she didn't seem to like finding an eye in her food any more than Jonouchi did, even if she was quieter about expressing it. Yugi picked through his own bowl and found a surprise of his own. Bandit Keith shot a look at the head of the table, where Pegasus met him with a calm stare.
"What's all this about?" Keith demanded.
"Just my little way of keeping things fair," answered Pegasus smoothly. "If you'll notice, each of those charming baubles is hinged. Before dinner began, I wrote numbers on four slips of paper and hid one within each of those trinkets. They were turned over to the waiters, who placed one in each finalist's dish. They had no way of knowing which lot was in which eye - thus, complete randomness and complete fairness. If you will be so good as to open them now, you will see who your opponents will be in the coming duels."
Yugi flipped open his capsule and had a look. A folded piece of paper had a number "2" written on it in purple ink. He looked at Jonouchi; his friend had drawn a "1". Mai also had a "1". Keith didn't display his number, but it was obvious who his opponent was going to be. Yugi offered him a smile and got a smirk in return.
Something tells me this isn't going to be fun, Yugi mused.
"Well, now you know!" said Pegasus brightly. "The suspense is over; your minds can rest. Now you can all enjoy your meals in peace."
Yugi privately didn't think that the suspense was anywhere near over, but he kept his thoughts to himself. At least it was shaping up to be a good meal. Much as he appreciated Bakura's efforts to cook for them over an open fire with limited resources, there was something to be said for a real sit-down meal. He slurped his soup and watched Pegasus berating a waiter for bringing out the wrong kind of wine, and sending him back for champagne.
"That's more like it!" he declared, as the beverage was delivered. "For a festive occasion, you need something festive! Would anyone else care for some? I'm asking only those of age, of course."
"All right, but just one glass," said Mai.
Keith gave the bottle a dubious look.
"Damned if I'm drinking any sissy pink drink," he grumbled. "You got any beer?"
Pegasus winced. Pressing his lips tightly together, as if fighting to restrain himself from saying something, he shot a look at Keith and took several deep breaths, his shoulders trembling. At last, he was able to say in a reasonably steady voice, "I do not keep such things on hand for myself. However, it is possible that there may be some in the servants' quarters. I will have someone make a search. After all, it would be rude of me to disoblige a guest."
"Whatever. Just get it," Keith muttered.
"Sheesh! What a boor," Anzu muttered. "I wish I was still in this tournament, just so I could take him on!"
Jonouchi chuckled. "You'd clobber him. Looks like it's Yugi who's going to have that job, though. Do us all a favor and put him in his place, huh?"
"I'll do my best!" said Yugi.
He glanced up the table, where Keith was attempting to make conversation with Mai.
"Did I ever tell you," he was saying, "about the time I had sex with a ten year old?"
Mai gave him a stunned look.
"Of course, I was only nine at the time. I liked older women." He chuckled coarsely, pleased with his joke.
Yugi watched as Mai scooted closer to Jonouchi and began talking to him instead.
I've got a really bad feeling about this...
Any good thief knew that the best hour to go poking through someone's rooms was during the dinner hour. Silly law-abiding people always seemed to think that the dangerous time was at night when they were sleeping. As if any smart thief would go through their bedrooms while there were actually people inside - people who might not be all that deeply asleep and could wake up at any moment! It was better to strike when everyone was almost guaranteed to be all downstairs together, talking and laughing and making a lot of noise, and not paying attention to someone upstairs who was stealthily going through their jewelry boxes and making sure nothing interesting was hidden in their sock drawers.
Of course, this particular thief wasn't interested in making a fortune just now. If he'd wanted to, he could have easily made off with any number of valuable trinkets that could have probably seen him comfortably through several years. The objects he wanted were proving extraordinarily difficult to find.
Out of sheer frustration, more than anything else, the thief reached for his Ring and held it up. Immediately, the pointers stirred, exactly as they had the last few times he'd tried. Just like all those other times, they pointed and waved in all directions. The message was clear: there were several Millennium Items in this castle, a prospect that made the Spirit of the Ring positively shiver with excitement - but they were scattered throughout the building, and they were too close by for him to get an accurate fix on them. He dropped it with a snarl.
"There must be something..." he said to the empty room.
In his desperation, he had resorted to searching through Pegasus's private papers, in hopes that he would find some mention of the Items. The search was turning up nothing, and he was starting to lose his temper. Annoyed, he shoved a metal bust of some long-dead but doubtless important personage off a shelf. It bounced on the thick carpeting, making little more than a dull thud that probably wouldn't be heard from the rooms below, but Bakura winced a little anyway.
He immediately went to work removing the evidence, and as he moved to put the bust back on its shelf, he noticed something peculiar. He shook the statue. It made a soft noise, the sound of something shifting slightly inside. On closer inspection, he discovered that the bust was held to its marble pedestal by four small latches, which looked from normal viewing range to be nothing more than decorative flourishes. Only a painstaking inspection would reveal that the could be moved. Naturally, the thief moved them.
A book fell out. It was a slim, hardbound volume, bound elegantly in green leather. There was no title, only a circle of vines and flowers stamped in gold on the front.
"Well, well, what have we here?" he murmured.
He flipped the book open, eager for anything that would tell him something useful about the enigmatic Pegasus. He was rather disappointed to find that most of the entries in the book seemed to be letters written to someone called Cyndia. He read a few.
"...My darling, every minute I spend without you is a torment. Nights like this are hardly bearable. How many times have I awakened from dreams of you, ablaze with the fire that only you can quench, only to find myself alone in the darkness? Even so, I pray for such torment, for it is in dreams that I can see you and hold you again, but for a moment...
Bakura recoiled. How did people stand this kind of thing, reading or writing it? If anyone ever sent him such a letter, he'd hunt them down and silence them permanently, just so he'd never have to listen to it again. Even so, he found a strange kind of fascination in this outpouring of raw emotion, and he read on. If nothing else, perhaps it would give him a clue to the inner workings of Pegasus's mind.
On a page near the front of the book, he uncovered a clue.
Father was buried today, said the matter-of-fact notation. Not that I really mind, though I am careful to show the correct amount of sadness when I am in public. I make it plain that I am simply devastated to have lost the last of my family, because it is what everyone expects of me, and I must make it clear to the world that I am respectable so that they will put their trust in me. My plans must be fully underway soon, and for that, I will need the trust of the populace. The only thing I would not do for publicity's sake was to visit your grave. Crocketts suggested I should, to emphasize the poignant picture I am trying to make just now, but I can't bring myself to do it. That is not where you are; I know your soul lives on outside of that plot of cold earth, and I will find the means to bring you back...
"This must be it," Bakura muttered. "Idiot! The power to rule the entire world, and he's collecting the Millennium Items just to bring back a dead woman. One woman! He hasn't got the faintest idea what it's like to truly suffer, but to hear him talk, you'd think he was the most tragic figure ever to walk the earth!"
He scowled at the little green book, wishing for the opportunity to seal Pegasus into something for a few thousand years and see how he liked it. Perhaps he would, later on, just to give him a lesson. The first thing he needed, however, was to find the Millennium Items themselves. He skimmed the book and found vague references to having found Items, but no details as to where they had been stored, other than some brief mentions of the Millennium Eye being put to use. Obviously Pegasus kept that one very close at hand. But for the rest of them...?
Obviously he is too wary to write such things down where someone might read it. Damn him for being intelligent in the one place most inconvenient for me!
Well, now what? Obviously he would find no clues here. If the locations of the Items weren't written down, as Pegasus had obviously been careful to ensure, then Bakura would have to find them the old-fashioned way: by methodical search. He knew how to do that kind of thing, but he'd never been called upon to do so on such a grand scale. Searching a tomb was one matter; they didn't have things on top of things, piled into every nook and cranny. Their contents were generally located in a central spot, and were nearly all valuable. Searching a castle that was crammed with objects, some of which were obviously not what they appeared to be, in search of a handful of treasures would take even a skilled thief months of searching.
Maybe if I got Pegasus alone and chatted with him a bit, I could squeeze some information from him?
He quickly discarded that idea. If Pegasus was carrying more than one of the Items on him, it would give him powers that Bakura couldn't accurately gauge without experiencing them firsthand. He didn't want to do that and find out too late that it was something he wasn't ready to cope with. There had to be some other way...