"It's about time," Kaiba grumbled to his brother as they were finally allowed into the event room to do a microphone check before the big show tomorrow.

The hotel's Maiogi room had been divided into two, and he could hear another event going on on the other side of the divider. The bamboo screens lit up the wall's fanlike designs in a beautiful shade of orange.. Ten tables, each seating ten people, were off to one side, while the other half of the room was set up and ready for the Duel between himself and Yugi tomorrow.

That was not what caught his attention, though. Along the wall, where it would be clearly seen by cameras during the duel, was a row of ancient looking stone tablets.

The center one was the biggest and had what was clearly Yugi and her Dark Magician, facing down someone who looked like him, backed by a Blue-Eyes White Dragon. To 'his' left were the Monster Reborn symbol and Battle Ox; to 'Yugi's' right, Swords of Revealing Light and Gaia the Fierce Knight.

He approached slowly, unnerved by the fact something about it felt familiar, even though he did not recognise the three monsters surrounding the Millennium Puzzle at the top, nor could he easily read the hieroglyphs embedded in the stone, but given a chance to study them thoroughly he probably could. That made him distinctly uncomfortable, though few would be able to read that in his body language.

"Niisama?" Mokuba asked with a frown, looking between the stone and his brother, noting the unusual shakiness.

"I'm fine, Mokuba. It's an impressive fake, nothing more," the elder Kaiba reassured the younger, trying to ignore the sadness that settled in when he realized how damaged the tablet was and that it was not just paper mâché, but actual sandstone. It was not his emotion, after all. He had never seen this tablet in his life.

"Kaiba Seto, it's a pleasure to meet you." The CEO of Kaiba Corp managed to hide how startled he was by the sudden, heavily accented voice behind him. When he turned around, it was to find an older Arab man, possibly in his late forties or early fifties, brown hair beginning to grey, brown eyes sharp, dressed in a white thobe robe and turban, accompanied by a woman of the same descent in a pale blue abaya dress and a hijab in the same colour, with brown hair that poked out from underneath in places and wise green eyes. That was not what caught his attention, though.

What did that was the golden necklace around the woman's neck. It radiated Shadows and had the same Eye of Anubis symbol that was on every other Millennium Item he had run into.

Immediately he pulled Mokuba behind him. "Who are you both, and what do you want?"

"My name is Karim; my wife is Azra." The man nodded politely to the teen. "And I think it's what you want from us."

"I want to get on with what I came for. I don't have time for magic," the CEO huffed, trying to ignore the curious way his brother poked his head out from behind him.

"Would you be more interested if I told you I could provide you with an Egyptian God Card, a card so powerful even Crawford was afraid to use it?" Karim's question made Seto pause.

"I'm listening, but first sign of you casting anything without my permission, I'm walking out," he warned Azra, who just nodded without saying a word.

"I suppose you're curious about the tablet?" Karim moved alongside the Kaiba brothers, his wife following with her arm on her husband's, and gestured to the stone tablet behind them.

"Not really," he lied as he turned to look once more, "but I get the feeling you're going to talk about it anyway."

"Indeed." Amusement was evident in the man's voice. "This is the 'Tablet of the Pharaoh's Lost Memories'. My tribe has been protecting it for a very long time. Industrial Illusions decided it would be a fitting backdrop for your exhibition match, considering they're coming clean about where they got the inspiration for their game."

Seto heard Mokuba let out a sharp hiss at the name of the rock before them.

"And what does it have to do with me?" the CEO bit out, untrusting of the man and his wife after past experience with Item holders.

"You had it made three thousand years ago." Karim's words made him scowl.

"I don't…"

"You have past experience with the items, do you not?" the woman asked softly, her voice soothing, despite cutting him off. "May I use mine to show you the past? I cannot show you what happened while you were holding a Millennium Item, as the Items provide their wielders with some protection from the powers of the others, but I can prove you were there at least."

"Not without me." Mokuba grabbed his brother's arm, shaking slightly. "Show us both."

"Mokuba." The slight snap in the elder Kaiba's tone went unheeded as the younger glared at the woman, not backing down.

"Brave one, I would no more harm your brother than I would our Pharaoh," Azra promised, "but if your brother allows, I will show you, too."

"And if I say no?" Seto glared at her.

"Then we will continue with our own plans and find another to carry the God card." Karim shrugged. "It would be a shame to deny you, but…"

Kaiba hesitated. The lure of a card so powerful that even the game's creator was afraid of it was too much for him to turn away…

"I promise you, Kaiba, I will not harm you. I just want to show you the truth," Azra said, her voice still soft, almost in defiance of the glare.

He nodded, just once, and suddenly the world went white.

When it faded back in, he was in a bright, sunlit courtyard. Grape vines and trees grew in a cultivated garden, surrounding a shaded pool of running water. At the pool's edge sat two Yugis, both with their feet dangling in the water, both of whom could be no more than ten, one male, one female. Not far from them, keeping watch was an older teen, probably about thirteen or fourteen, who reminded him of the Dark Magician, and by the steps leading inside the palace, talking to a brunette girl of the same age as the Yugis was… him. Darker skinned and dressed in Egyptian priest attire, but it was unmistakably him.

"Seto…" Mokuba gasped.

"Seth back then." Azra's soft voice still broke through Seto's stunned staring. "He would become the Sacred Guardian of the Millennium Rod, just as Mahad-" She gestured to the Dark Magician lookalike-"would become the Sacred Guardian of the Ring."

"He did a lousy job." Seto's snort made his brother chuckle. "What about Yugi? Why are there two of her?"

"The boy is the Pharaoh's brother. You inherited the Millennium Rod before he was killed. At this point in history, he's still alive," the Necklace Bearer informed them. "He was going to be Pharaoh, but his sister, the Pharaoh you know, had to step in when he died."

That made sense, even if Seto did not want it to.

"This is real?" Mokuba's expression was torn between awe and distrust as he listened to the murmuring of Seth talking to the girl and the sounds of trickling water from the pool.

"It was, many millennia ago," Azra clarified as the images shifted to an older, more distraught-looking Seth, looking over the construction of the tablet, the same girl he had been talking to before, now older herself, standing at his side, as worn down and tired-looking as the man, who was now dressed in royal regalia. "You were the Pharaoh's cousin. You inherited the throne after she sacrificed herself to put a stop to Ba-Khu-Ra and the demon and hid the Millennium Items. You had this tablet made so when she returned, as you knew she would, she would be able to regain her lost memories and power."

Seto's eyes narrowed as he saw himself order the obscured hieroglyphs in the oval shape underneath the Pharaoh be destroyed, the girl's protests of 'if you take her name, she'll never reach the afterlife' making him quietly glad Yugi was not here to see this.

"Her name is the key to the seal," the Bearer of the Necklace narrated. "With it the Shadows can be safely released. Control over what comes through from the darkness and what does not would belong to the one who held it. I believe you erased her name from historical records to prevent it falling into the wrong hands." The images soon faded away, revealing that they had never left the event room and letting Seto feel less like an asshole.

"What does that have to do with the modern day and Duel Monsters?" he asked, his deadpan tone hiding the emotions flickering away under the surface.

"Crawford, guided by one of our own, created the game of Duel Monsters based on the images on the tablets my tribe has been protecting since the time of the Pharaoh," Karim said. "He restored many monsters to a summonable state, including your Blue-Eyes White Dragon and the three God Monsters."

When Karim gestured to the tablet again, Seto looked to the three monsters surrounding the Puzzle at the top.

"The Sky Dragon Osiris, Obelisk the Tormentor, and the Winged Dragon of Ra." With Karim's words came a flash from the Necklace and the vision of the three Divine Beasts, a great red serpentine dragon with huge red and black wings, a big blue muscular humanoid, and a golden beast that was a mix between an armoured phoenix and a dragon.

"So, which one are you giving to me," Seto asked, "and why?"

"For you, the God of the Obelisk." Karim held out Obelisk's card to the CEO. "Because the best Duelists in the world should have the best cards."

That was probably entirely bullshit, but Seto could not resist the lure of such an incredible monster. He took the card from the man and immediately he felt power jolt up his arm, an earthy strength that spoke of destruction and new growth.

He swallowed hard and nodded, putting the card in his pocket next to his deck box.

"What's the real reason?"

"You were a Sacred Guardian once, Kaiba." Karim stared at him, unblinking. "A sworn protector of the Pharaoh. You were the only one who was at her side when she gave her life and the only one who tried to take her fate from her and take it upon yourself. Danger approaches her again, and if it wins, the entire world will lose. I want to believe that you will be there again."

"Mutou Yugi is my rival, nothing more. I will defeat her and take her place. You said I took her throne in the past? Then I will take it once again." Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "You trusted me with this 'God' to back her up, but I will use it to defeat her myself. Understand?"

"I cannot control what you do with it. You asked why I gave it to you. Now you know." Karim had to control the smirk he could feel forming. Kaiba was doing exactly what they wanted. The more he challenged the Pharaoh, the stronger she got and the more ready for her fate she became. "There are two more."

"Where are they?" Mokuba asked, not entirely happy with what was going on.

"Osiris will be returned to its true Mistress," Azra said softly, "when we see her tonight or tomorrow. Ra…"

"Was stolen by one who betrayed her highness and the entire Tomb Keeper tribe. A patricidal maniac who will do anything to kill her majesty." Karim's tone darkened. "It is in Domino City right now, though I don't know its location."

Kaiba huffed dismissively "And thus you plan to use myself and Yugi as bait to draw out the thief. How very hypocritical of you."

"What?" Karim bristled.

"If you were really concerned about your Pharaoh, you'd be finding the traitors before you gave us the Gods. Instead you're using us and them as a lure to drag them out of hiding." Seto smirked at Karim, well aware he was poking the right button to antagonize them man. "Still, now I know that Ra is in Domino and Osiris will be coming my way shortly, I will be acquiring all three of them soon. Now if you'll excuse me, I have real work to do."

Leaving Karim irritated and Azra a little disappointed, he strode past the pair, and his brother followed, still looking troubled.

Gekko Tenma was not pleased to be waiting in the lobby for the arrival of the other two businessmen who had taken horrible advantage of Industrial llusions' recent downturn.

He had hoped that neither of them would attend the event, which would have allowed him and his brothers more time to decide how to deal with them.

Not that the first to arrive was too much of an issue. The young man of around nineteen, who had long pink hime-cut hair and aqua blue eyes, and who was wearing a purple suit with a black lapel, in which was tucked a purple rose, bowed formally to Gekko before smiling. "Ah, Herr Tenma, it is a pleasure to meet you."

"Herr Schroeder." Gekko offered his hand, trying to keep his tone cordial with the CEO of Schroeder Corp, who had seized three percent of Industrial Illusions' stock during the downswing. "I'm surprised to see you here. I would have thought you would be too busy to attend, considering you have a new game just three weeks from release."

"How could I miss such a spectacle?" Zigfried von Schroeder asked with a flourish, sounding far too amused. "And does it not look better if I am here? It is known that Schroeder Corp bolstered Industrial Illusions when it was faltering. It's only fitting that we're here."

"We're?"

"Hello." A young boy, possibly barely eleven or twelve, stepped out from behind his older brother. The boy's hazel eyes sparkled with excitement beneath dark maroon bangs, and his hair was pulled back into a ponytail, rather than left loose like his brother's. "I'm Leon."

"A pleasure to meet you. Again." Gekko remembered Leon. His father had received letter after letter from the child, not long after Gekko and Yakko had been adopted. The letters all had the same request: for a new archetype to be created, one based on fairy tales.

And unlike so many other requests, his father had created a deck specially for the boy and hand delivered it. Or rather, he had hand delivered it to Leon Wilson, the lonely boy's cover name for the tournaments he had been entering without his family's permission.

"Leon is a brilliant child, and we've worked together closely since you last met," Zigfried stated defensively, his eyes narrowing at Gekko.

"I would hope so." Gekko kept his tone devoid of emotion, hoping it was true, but also aware that Zigfried was obsessively competitive and entirely focused on overcoming past failed attempts to out-perform Kaiba Corp. "You'll need to go to the Maiogi rooms for the event. It starts officially at midday tomorrow."

"And when will I get to meet die Konigin?" Zigfried asked, the line of his lips tightening as he noted the jab.

"The Queen of Games may have time to meet with you after the event, but that's entirely dependent on how long the interviews go on."

"Very well. I suppose I will see you later." The German teen glared at his American counterpart and turned to stride away. "Come on, Leon."

"Bye, Herr Tenma." Leon waved and scurried after his brother.

Gekko took a breath and shook his head, seriously hoping Zigfried was better for young Leon than their father had been.

"You know, Mr. Tenma, I have plenty of hotels this whole thing could have been held in."

Gekko quickly schooled his expression into one of pleasant surprise as he turned back to face the man who had seized seven percent of Industrial Illusions, which was more than any one of Pegasus's children held, putting him as the third highest shareholder, beneath Seto Kaiba and Pegasus Crawford himself. "Ah, hello again, Mr…"

The pale-blue-haired man gave Gekko a wry smile, yellow and green eyes watching him with clear amusement. "Vasillikos, Azaes D. Vasillikos, CEO of Paradius Inc. I hold seven percent of your company, though I would have liked to have more."

Gekko's eyes narrowed at the reminder that Paradius, who made its fortune buying stocks in other companies and either helping them grow or crashing them into the ground, had only been stopped from grabbing more of his father's company because Kaiba had seized twenty percent. In one way, he almost preferred having Kaiba as secondary shareholder. At least he needed Industrial Illusions too much to ruin it.

Deciding that the lilac suit the other man was wearing made him look ridiculous for no reason other than Gekko did not like him, the Tenma twin offered his hand. "Of course. It's a pleasure to have you here, Mr. Vasillikos."

"A pleasure to be here." The CEO nodded as he shook it. "I will be meeting with your new little showpiece before tomorrow, I assume?"

"Actually, no. She has an important meeting to attend before tomorrow and will be available to meet with you after the event." Gekko shook his head, glad that he had loaned Yugi his limo so she could visit with her friend's sister in the hospital, giving him the excuse to keep Vasillikos away from her. "If the interviews don't run on, of course."

"I don't believe I made myself clear, Tenma. I will be meeting with Mutou tomorrow. Understand?" For a brief second the green gemstone ring on his finger glowed and his eyes lit up with power as he let his aura flare out.

The intimidation tactic worked and Gekko took a step back, though he would deny it later. "Of course, Mr. Vasillikos."

"Good. Now, excuse me, I need to check in." Paradius's CEO stalked towards the desk, waiting until he was past Gekko to smirk slightly.

Tomorrow he would find out if he was correct and the Pharaoh, whose soul he had been chasing for Millennia, and her primary Guardians, whose souls were much older than Egypt, once again roamed the Earth.

Katsuya looked nervous as they pulled up outside of the hospital and exchanged phone numbers with the driver before they got out of the car.

This was it. Years of saving and scraping, years of actions that he had not been entirely proud of, and now Shizuka was going to get the operation she needed. Her eyesight was finally going to be fixed.

Hopefully.

Yugi put her hand on his arm, smiling slightly, wanting to support her friend as they headed inside.

Kawai Sakura, Jonouchi's mother, was waiting for them in the reception area. Yugi started to bow as the woman approached, but the normally sharp-worded, stand-offish woman cut her off by hugging first the Puzzle Bearer and then her son, delight and relief on her features. "Jonouchi-kun, Mutou-chan, thank you. Thank you so much."

The smile on her face really made the usually sour woman look brighter as a subtle blush coloured her face and she backed up. "Sorry, sorry, I just… I'd begun to worry this day wouldn't come."

Katsuya could not blame her for that: Duelist Kingdom had been their final shot. If Yugi had not walked away with the prize money, there would have been absolutely no way to save Shizuka's eyesight. His sister, his bright, joyful little sister, would have been lost in a world of darkness, without colour and feature forever. No more words, only braille. No more freedom without a guide dog or a cane…

There was nothing he could give the Mutou twins that would repay everything they had done for him and his sister.

"Okaasan." Jonouchi nodded to his mother, feeling awkward about the first hug he had received from the woman since she had taken off on him back when he had been eight, and wondering what, exactly, gave her the right to hug him considering that she had no interest in him other than as a money provider.

The smile turned a little sad as Sakura let out a soft sigh. "Sorry, I assume you're here for Shizuka. She's on the third floor, room six. I can show you the way."

Katsuya bit back his response of 'who else would we be here for?' Instead he followed his mother to the lifts, which were tucked away in an alcove behind the reception desk and tried to focus on what was important. Who was important.

By the time they had reached the room in question, he had managed to push most of his irritation away, and the bright grin he got from Shizuka as he entered the room flipped his mood entirely.

"Oniisan! Hi!" Shizuka cheered, relieved and delighted that her brother could make it. "You're here!"

"I promised, didn't I, Imoto?" He took a seat on the bed next to the nearly blind girl and took her hand, his voice gentle. "I might have to leave tonight, but I'll be back in the morning to see you off."

The way Shizuka's shoulders sank made Yugi bite her lip for a moment, hesitant to interfere. Then a pair of spectral hands on her shoulders shoving her forward gently made up her mind for her.

"It's okay, Katsuya," she said as she entered the room. "You stay." Shizuka startled at the unexpected voice and turned back towards the door. Yugi gave her best friend's sister a quick smile and wave and added, "I'll be fine. I'll just stay in my hotel room tonight, away from trouble."

"Something I should know?" Sakura asked, frowning slightly as Yugi went to take the other seat in the room, realized that there were no other chairs, and gestured for the older woman to take it.

"It's nothing important." The Queen of Games shook her head as she sat on the window ledge. "I've just had a little problem with people wanting the prize money, so Katsuya's been helping me stay safe."

"That's so cool." The upswing in Shizuka's posture and tone helped Yugi decide that she had made the right decision as the girl turned back to her brother. "You're the best."

The former gang member could not help the sheepish grin as he ran a hand through his hair. "I mean, of course. I'm your invincible Oniisan after all."

As Shizuka latched on to him in a huge hug, the blonde looked over at the Puzzle Bearer with a grateful, if slightly worried, smile.

Yugi waved it off, not able to talk about the real threats around Shizuka and her mother. While they planned to let the girl in on the secrets of the Puzzle sooner rather than later, now was not the time for it. There was just too much resting on tomorrow for them to put more on her right now.

"So… there's a party tomorrow?" the auburn-haired girl asked, needing something to take her mind off the biggest day of her entire life. "What's that about?"

Katsuya gestured Yugi forwards to talk about the party, noting that his mother looked uncomfortable. When he angled his head towards the hallway, the woman nodded and headed out. While his sister was distracted, he followed their mother out and shut the door behind them.

"Is it true?" Kawai asked her son. "You've had to protect Yugi from thieves?"

"Yeah." He shrugged, deciding he was not technically lying. Ba-Khu-Ra was a thief after all, and so was the thing latched on to her soul by association. "I mean, what did you expect? Three million yen's nothing to sniff at."

His mother nodded, acknowledging the point before she grimaced slightly and gulped before looking him in the eyes, her voice cracking slightly. "Jonouchi… Katsuya… I want to apologize."

"Oh?" Considering everything, she had a lot to apologize for.

"I haven't been fair to you," the woman admitted, hands grasping her skirt and twisting slightly. "I can't change the past and I know I don't deserve to be in your life after some of the things I've said, but…"

Katsuya leaned against the nearest wall, trying to process his mother's words. He had been thinking about his interactions with his mother ever since he had found out why he had been abandoned by her. He had already come to the decision that he hated her less than he used to. After all, she had been forced to make a difficult choice.

Knowing that Kawai Sakura had been forced by the man she had once loved to choose between leaving her son with him and being chased for so much money that her daughter might not be able to get the medication she required... It just made him despise Jonouchi Goro, his father, that much more.

It did not change her dismissals and harsh words over the years, nor did it heal the hurt caused by her attempt to keep him from his Imoto-chan even after they had come up with the operation money. It all still stung, and he was still angry about it.

"Look… I'm willing to try to get along with you," he decided finally, pushing himself away from the wall and looking back through the window into the hospital room, where his best friend and his sister were excitedly talking, "for Shizuka's sake. But it's going to be a while before I can trust you. You've kind of been…"

"A bitch?" The Duelist stared at his mother when she called herself a bitch, shocked. "What? I have. I could have treated you well when I was allowed to see you. I didn't, and I acknowledge that I was in the wrong."

Jonouchi took a deep breath, having not anticipated her words. He had to ask one thing, though: "Why now? Is it just because I got the money?"

"No… I mean, the money helps, because it takes some of the pressure off your Otosan's threats," Sakura admitted, uncomfortable, "but Shizuka wants you here with her tonight, not me. And your friend? Mutou-Chan? She made a point that I've not been able to stop thinking about. You're not your Otosan. You've not done anything to deserve my wrath. Plus, you and Shizuka are related by blood, and I can't and shouldn't change that."

He nodded. "So, it's just for Imoto-chan then?"

The woman shook her head. "Not really. Once I really processed that you're not Goro, I realized that I had let him get between me and my son and that I was still letting him hurt me and Shizuka. I don't want that. I don't want our entire lives to be defined by how much damage that prick can do. Not mine, not Shizuka's, and certainly not yours."

He could not deny that his father had spent most of his time hurting others. Jonouchi Goro was still a self-centred prick who did not seem to care about who he hurt as long as he got what he wanted - even now. Katsuya had learned a long time ago that if he did anything relating to his Okaasan or Imoto when his Otosan was in the residence, something would get broken. More than once it had been him.

He still could not entirely bring himself to trust his mother. Not after how much emotional pain she had caused over the years, but she at least had never, ever hit him. Plus, some of the things she had said about him had been true.

He could not deny that he had been going down a dark path before he had tried to go down the straight and narrow. He could not even protest that he would have stayed legit without help from the Mutous. He had not been the sort of teen that Shizuka would have been safe around. Even now he was still learning to control his occasionally violent temper.

If she wanted to be his Okaasan again, if she wanted to start again and try to make things right, then he could give her the chance. And he would continue to do his best to become someone the Kawais and the Mutous could be proud to consider family. That way, if things went wrong between him and his mother, it would not be his fault.

He gave her a watery smile. "I'm willing to try the whole 'family' thing, but I'm not moving out of the Mutou's place. They've been awesome."

"I understand." She did, too. The Mutous had been his family when she had not been. They had never abandoned or betrayed him. He knew he could trust them. "The apartment isn't big enough for another person anyway. It's barely big enough for us as it is, but I might pop over to Domino more in the future, so I can see you. And I'll bring Shizuka. If that's okay?"

"Yeah… yeah, I think it is."