DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Text in bold is being emphasised.
Chapter 8: Mysteries of Fire and Ice
By Shadow's Mirror
"F… Father! N… no!"
There was such pain in the soft, sobbing cries. Fire Sorcerer whimpered and tossed restlessly, his unconscious mind lost within the tormenting dreams his fever was inflicting upon him. The Spirit of the Books pulled his chair closer to the bed and gently smoothed the covers over the child, his eyes reflecting the pain in Fire Sorcerer's voice.
"He's crying for you." A low voice spoke up from the doorway.
"No. He is not." The Spirit of the Books looked over at the visitor, a sad smile curving his beak.
The Dark Magician sighed. "Well he should be." He crossed the room to the small desk and sat on the edge of it, then bowed his head, the action shadowing his eyes so his expression could not be seen. The tension seemed to drain out of him and he suddenly looked very tired. "You're more of a father to him than that fool ever was!" There was a trace of contempt in the tone, and just a spark of anger.
A soft chuckle made the mage look up in surprise. The Spirit of the Books had turned and was smiling at him. "Perhaps. Fire Sorcerer may be the son of my heart, however…" His smile faded and he turned back to the boy as another whimper shook the small figure. "However, Valen was Roland's son by blood. Such a bond is not easily forgotten. Nor should it be."
The Dark Magician smiled slightly. "As usual, old friend, you are far wiser than I."
"If only that were true. Then perhaps I would know of a way to prevent this." The Spirit of the Books' voice trembled almost as much as the taloned hand that continued to smooth the unwrinkled covers. The hand paused in its movements and suddenly clenched into a fist. "Why? Why must he always be the first to suffer, and why so greatly?"
"I do not know." The Dark Magician hesitated and then sighed. When he spoke again, his voice was very soft. "However… I suspect that it is because, of all of us, he was the only one who came here from beyond the boundary of life."
The Spirit of the Books thought about that for a moment before nodding slowly. "Yes. The Shadows restored his soul. Such a thing creates a powerful bond. I see." He sighed. "I cannot regret it though. Because of that, he lives."
The Dark Magician smiled gently. "Because of you, he lives."
"Me? No. I merely did what I had to do. To save him, I would have given my own life in exchange."
"Instead… you gave half of your soul."
The small figure in the bed stirred, his eyes weakly fluttering open. He blinked for a moment before his gaze settled on the Spirit of the Books. "Papa…"
"I am here, my boy. You are safe. Rest now." Fire Sorcerer obediently closed his eyes again; slipping into a deep sleep as a taloned hand lightly stroked his hair.
The Spirit of the Books looked over his shoulder at the Dark Magician. He smiled, despite the tears that were dampening the feathers beneath his glistening eyes.
"I would have given all of it. Gladly."
Yami eyed his light with concern. After saying that there had been something else that he'd had to tell him, Yugi had fallen silent. Through their mind link, Yami could sense worry and confusion, but there was also quite a bit of stunned surprise. "Yugi? What is wrong? What else did you and Téa speak of?"
"Well… after she told me about the new exhibit, she asked me if I'd had any luck with my history assignment. I told her it was all sorted out, thanks to the Spirit of the Books. Then I told her all about how you had taken me to the Shadow Realm and showed me the Library, and how the Spirit of the Books solved my problem." Yugi looked up and smiled, his warm gaze meeting Yami's for a moment before the seriousness of the situation pulled him out of his happy memories again. "Then I told her about Fire Sorcerer. How he was ill and what the Spirit of the Books had said about it."
Yugi dropped his gaze to the floor and fell silent. Yami waited for a moment, but Yugi only sighed. The dark spirit shifted uncomfortably as the silence wore on his nerves. He could be patient, when he had to be, but there was only so much anticipation he could stand! "And?"
The smaller boy jumped in surprise, his head snapping up. He blinked at his darker half for a moment, his eyes wide with shock. "Oh! I'm sorry, Yami. I…" Colour flooded Yugi's cheeks.
Yami frowned uneasily. Whatever the problem was, it must be serious. His light had apparently been so focused on it that Yugi had not only forgotten that he was in the middle of a conversation, but that Yami was even in the room! "Yugi? What was Téa's response? It has obviously disturbed you."
Yugi took a deep breath. It seemed to calm him a little, although the blush was still lightly staining his cheeks when he replied. "Not… disturbed exactly. More like confused. I mean… I trust Téa. I believe her. I know she would never lie to me. So she must have seen it. But… what she saw… It's just so incredible. So unbelievable. She can't be right." He shook his head. "No, there has to be some sort of explanation. I believe her. But I saw him. I know he was real."
By this point, Yami was completely bewildered by his light's words. "Yugi? What are you…?" He trailed off as his light suddenly shifted, moving to his knees and then leaning forward. Yami suddenly found himself caught by a pair of wide, anxious eyes.
"You saw him too, right Yami?"
"I… Yugi…" Yami leaned forward, his hands reaching out until they rested on his distressed light's shoulders, the touch causing Yugi to blink and go still. "Yugi, please, you need to calm down. I do not understand. Who are you asking me about? What are you trying to tell me? What did Téa say?"
The concern in Yami's voice seemed to get through to Yugi. He took a shaky breath and released it as an embarrassed chuckle. "I'm sorry, Yami. I didn't mean to overreact. I guess it shook me more than I thought."
"Whatever it is, Yugi, we will deal with it. Just as we always do. Together." Yami gently rubbed his light's shoulders, trying to ease the boy's tension. He was rewarded with a small smile.
"You're right, Yami." Yugi looked into his darker half's eyes with the intensity that he usually only showed during very important duels. "During Battle City, do you remember when the Kaiba Corp. blimp was hijacked by the Big Five and we were forced to duel them?"
Yami blinked, the change of topic catching him by surprise. "Of course. What of it?"
"When I told Téa that we'd met Fire Sorcerer, she told me that it was one of her favourite cards. I asked her why and she said it was because it had been such a help to her during her duel against Penguin-guy." Yugi paused as Yami snickered. "Hey, that's what Téa calls him! Don't laugh, this is serious!"
"Sorry, Yugi. Go on, Fire Sorcerer helped Tea during her duel… and?" Yami tried to keep his amusement in check, but the image of the large Penguin form that one of the Big Five had chosen to use kept popping into his mind.
Yugi sighed and gave his yami a slightly irritated look. "It wasn't that funny. Anyway, Téa was really worried about 'that poor little girl' being ill." He paused, waiting for Yami to realise what he'd just said.
Yami blinked and then chuckled. "Ah! Téa mistook Fire Sorcerer for being a girl, did she?" He grinned at his light. "I can see how some people would be confused. He does look somewhat feminine."
"So you're certain that Fire Sorcerer is a boy then?" There was an odd gleam in Yugi's eyes and something about the way he'd said that made Yami suddenly wary.
"Of course, Yugi. Even if there had been any doubt, the Spirit of the Books referred to him as such several times. He even called him 'my boy' twice, as I recall." Yami frowned slightly as he sensed the whirling chaos of Yugi's thoughts through their mind link. It had calmed a little, but now it was stirring again. "Yugi, what is this about? What is troubling you so greatly? Is it because Téa believed Fire Sorcerer to be a girl?"
Yugi shook his head. "It's more than that. When I told Téa that Fire Sorcerer was a boy, she gave me a description of the Monster she'd dueled with." He gazed anxiously into the other boy's eyes.
"Yami… Téa's description… It didn't match the Fire Sorcerer we saw tonight."