Disclaimer: All Yu-Gi-Oh! characters and references belong to their respective owners. The song Ahead of the Game belongs to the artist and the company that recorded it and was used in this story with the best of intentions. Story elements © Hideki LaShae. No money was gained in the writing of this story.

WARNING: This story contains sensitive cultural practices and references that might offend some readers. The views and opinions of the cultures which condone these practices are not shared by this author, but they are included in this story for awareness purposes only.

Time to Duel, Mariko!

By

Hideki LaShae

Chapter Seven

Burning Desire

Marie steps into Seto's room with him following just a step behind.

Seto takes Marie's clothes from Mokuba and carries them into the room. "Get some rest, Mokuba. I will see you in the morning."

"Be careful with Marie, big brother," says Mokuba with a mischievous smile.

Seto glares at Mokuba. "I can do nothing with her, so there is no need to be careful, Mokuba! Where do you get these ideas?"

"TV!" exclaims Mokuba.

"Remind me to preview everything you watch from now on!" exclaims Seto, "By the way, have the computers finished translating that Egyptian text from the Winged Dragon of Ra card?"

"Not yet… The bottom line isn't being translated. Our computer can't do it," says Mokuba shrugging his shoulders.

Seto sighs and nods. "I'll try to go down tonight after Marie falls asleep. Get some sleep, Mokuba."

"I'm going to go and try to finish translating," says Mokuba, "Then I'll get some sleep." He smiles at Seto. "Good night, Seto! Good night, Marie!"

"Good night, Mokie!" calls Marie from inside the room.

Mokuba turns and walks away down the hall.

Seto steps into the room and closes the door tightly behind him. He turns towards Marie and sees her standing with her back to him. He drops her clothing in a chair as he moves to stand behind her. "The doctors informed me that they…"

"Yes," interrupts Marie.

"Are you in pain?" asks Seto.

"Intermittently," says Marie stepping over to the bed, "They gave me some medicine for the pain, and it works quite well. However, I think I have stood too long since they removed the stitching. I must have aggravated it somehow." She sits down on the edge of the bed with her legs spread apart.

Seto moves over to sit down beside Marie. "I'm sorry to have hurt you."

"You haven't… You had to hurt me in order to heal me," says Marie looking into Seto's blue eyes, "You have no reason to apologize. I know that you have work to do tonight… to prepare for the next round of the tournament, but would you stay with me until I fall asleep?"

Seto smiles. He stands up so that Marie can lie down. "Of course I will. You never even had to ask."

Marie flinches in pain as she moves to lie down on the bed.

Seto lies down beside Marie and pulls himself close to her. He places his arm over her chest and snuggles up to her. "I love you, Marie…"

"Oh, Seto. I love you," says Marie.

"The doctors told me that you weren't nearly as injured as you believed… They said your clitoris was intact, and they expect that your enjoyment will not be reduced," says Seto, "You apparently didn't have the Pharaonic circumcision like they were planning to give you. And I'm glad. I want you to be able to enjoy it when I make love with you."

"I want that too. Thank you, Seto, for all your help," says Marie smiling.

"Did you almost win out there today?" asks Seto.

"Yes, I did. If you had attacked with Obelisk, my trap card would have destroyed your monster and the rest of your life points," says Marie, "but my trap card wouldn't work against your Blue-Eyes, so you won."

The game's not over,
It's up to me…

Seto rests his head on Marie's shoulder.

"It will take a while for my body to completely heal," says Marie, "but they think I might be able to…"

"To what?" whispers Seto starting to kiss Marie's neck and suck on it lightly.

"They think that soon I might be able to make love to you," says Marie blushing, "but they said that it would hurt."

"I told you already, I can wait for you, Marie," says Seto, "I want to give you pleasure, not pain."

"Seto… no matter how long we wait, you are going to hurt me the first time you make love to me. Not because of my injury, but because I am a virgin. You will hurt me because my body will not understand what you would be doing to it," explains Marie, "So, don't you dare worry about hurting me. Our first time together will be painful for me no matter what."

Seto sighs and rolls over onto his back slightly away from Marie. "I never thought about it that way."

Marie props herself up on her elbows. "I'm sorry… I've given you too much to think about. You need to focus on the duels."

Seto turns his head to look at Marie. He smiles. "I like thinking about you."

Marie pushes herself into a sitting position. She sighs and fans herself with her hand. "It's rather hot in here."

Seto chuckles. "Would you like me to turn on the air conditioner?"

"Not yet. Just help me." Marie pulls her cream tank top over her head.

Seto's eyes widen as he takes in the view of the newly exposed flesh. His cheeks turn bright red.

Marie looks at Seto. "Help?"

"Yes!" Seto reaches up behind Marie's back and carefully unclasps the cream colored bra she wears. He swallows hard as he pushes the shoulder straps down her arms.

Marie takes the bra and flings it along with her tank top to the side of the room. "Now is where I will really need your help."

Seto nods as Marie lies down on her back with her arms crossed over her breasts, which he notices are a few shades lighter than the rest of her skin. He slowly removes the loincloth style skirt from Marie's body, and he sees for the first time the bandages that the doctors placed upon her after removing the stitches. He swallows hard as he looks at Marie, and he feels his arousal starting to come. He closes his eyes and takes several deep breaths to try to calm himself and his now raging hormones.

Marie lifts her hands from their position hiding her chest, and she takes Seto's face with them, placing one hand on each cheek.

"Are you cool enough now?" asks Seto breathing deeply as Marie pulls him down towards her. He keeps his eyes clamped firmly closed.

"I'm getting hotter by the minute," whispers Marie kissing Seto. She slides her tongue along his lips.

Seto moans softly as he opens his mouth. He opens his eyes for a moment to look down at Marie as she kisses him. He feels his pants getting tighter as his body reacts to seeing the object of his desire so willing beneath him. He closes his eyes again and relaxes into the kiss.

Marie slides her tongue into Seto's mouth and teases him slightly until he starts to fight her with his own tongue.

Seto presses his hands to Marie's breasts and starts to massage them gently.

Marie moans against Seto's mouth as they continue to kiss.

Seto slides closer to Marie and leans over her so that his chest presses her upper body back into the bed. He moves away from her kiss and lowers his attention as well as his lips to her chest. He pulls her nipple into his mouth and sucks gently.

Marie moans her enjoyment.

Seto licks his way up Marie's body to her lips and kisses her again.

I'm here to say
We're far from done…

Seto's pants feel tighter than ever as he pushes himself away from Marie.

"Seto?" asks Marie looking at him with wide, almost pained eyes.

Seto breathes heavily as he quickly unzips his pants, kicks off his shoes, and pulls the binding garment off to relieve the pressure that they had been placing upon his body. He drops his jacket to the floor before pulling his mock turtleneck off and letting it fall. He climbs back into the bed beside Marie and wraps his arms around her as he begins to kiss her anew.

Marie kisses Seto back and holds him close to her.

"I don't want to wait another moment!" exclaims Seto resting his head on Marie's chest. He runs his fingers over the mound of her breast as he listens to her heart pounding. "I must have some satisfaction tonight! I want you now! But you haven't even had a chance to heal!"

"Then let me satisfy you!" exclaims Marie, "Not with my body, but perhaps with my hands or… or maybe even my mouth!"

"Yes!" exclaims Seto looking at Marie lustfully. He moves to lie down on his back and he pulls the boxers down his legs and hurls them away from the bed.

Marie looks at Seto's erection as she moves towards him. She kneels below him and keeps her legs spread as far as she can to prevent her legs from placing pressure upon her groin. She lowers her mouth slowly and starts to lick him before slowly sliding her mouth over his penis.

Seto starts to moan quietly as Marie begins to suck and tug upon his body. He closes his eyes and relaxes as the tension and pressure build up within him. He gasps out her name, "Marie!"

Marie works as diligently as she can to bring pleasure to Seto. She finally crawls up beside him and falls at his side.

Seto wipes the last bit of his bodily fluid from Marie's lips before pulling her into a long and lustful kiss. "Thank you, Marie…"

Marie breathes deeply. "You're welcome…"

"Now you must rest. You need to get some sleep," says Seto.

"As do you," says Marie resting her head on Seto's shoulder.

"I still have work to do tonight," whispers Seto, "but I will be here until you fall asleep, and I'll try to be back before you wake. I'm used to long hours."

"At least try to get some sleep tonight," whispers Marie.

Seto nuzzles Marie with his head. "I'll try," he whispers chuckling lightly, "If I hadn't become so horny, I probably would have had time to sleep tonight since I wouldn't have needed your body so desperately."

"Maybe this will teach you not to be horny then," whispers Marie giggling.

"That's your fault. If you hadn't taken off your clothes, I wouldn't have gotten aroused," whispers Seto.

"If it hadn't been hot in here, I wouldn't have removed my clothes," says Marie blushing. She shivers slightly. "Actually… I wasn't hot. I just wanted to undress for you, and I needed an excuse. The reason I wasn't ready to show you myself earlier was because you didn't know about my circumcision or about the tattoos that Ishizu forced me to get. She wanted me to be a guardian of the Pharaoh's tomb, and so she had the secret written on my body. I was ashamed to tell you about it at first. I'm not ashamed to tell you anything anymore. I'm sorry I ever was in the first place."

"I'm glad, and I forgive you, Marie," says Seto. He sits up and grabs the blanket from the foot of the bed. He pulls it up over them as he lies down beside Marie again. He wraps his arms around her. "Now… go to sleep."

Marie closes her eyes and cuddles up to Seto.

Seto sits down in front of his computer, with his little brother Mokuba sleeping in a chair not far away, and he tries to focus on the Egyptian God Card. Part of his mind, however, still remains back in his room with the now sleeping young woman.

Little does he know that soon, his entire world may be turned upside down by everyone and everything that he holds dear.

All my technology,
All my smarts,
My creativity
Will rip you apart…

Marie pulls her clothes on and stumbles awkwardly over to get a drink of water. She takes another of the pain pills with her water. Then she hears the knocking on the door. She doesn't even bother looking at the door. "Since when did you knock before you come in?"

When all Marie gets in response is another knock, she snaps at the door. "Come in!"

The door opens, and Yugi steps shyly into the room. "I'm sorry to disturb you so early in the morning, Marie."

"Oh, Yugi… Sorry, I thought you were Mokuba," says Marie trying to move back over to the bed. She stumbles and falls to her knees. She gasps quietly from the now searing pain shooting up her body from her swollen groin.

"Marie! Are you okay?" asks Yugi rushing to her side to help her to her feet.

"I will be in time," says Marie as Yugi helps her to the bed. She collapses onto the soft mattress. She looks up at Yugi's worried face. She smiles. "Seto's doctors got a hold of me. They removed the stitches from my circumcision. I'm in pain now, but I have medicine to make it go away. I'll be fine. I just need to heal now."

"Oh… I'm glad that Kaiba's trying to help you," says Yugi shuffling back and forth upon his feet.

"Sit down, Yugi, and tell me what's bothering you," says Marie.

Yugi sits down beside Marie and notices how, even sitting, she's taller than him by at least two inches. "Well… it's not so much bothering me as it is bothering Yami. From the moment he first saw you… he thought you looked familiar to him, but he couldn't place where he had seen you before."

"I know… Part of me, some part of me that I didn't know existed before I saw you, recognized you as well. Maybe we are just recognizing ourselves in each other," says Marie, "but I don't think that's it."

"If it was that way, I would recognize you, and not Yami," says Yugi.

Marie takes a deep breath and leans against Yugi so that her head rests on his shoulder. "Mariko… I had a dream about Mariko after Yami had banished him to the Shadow Realm…"

Yugi's purple eyes widen. "You what?"

Just you wait,
Then you'll see…

"I had a dream about Mariko," says Marie, "He told me a lot of strange things, but what stuck with me the most, and what I don't understand about the dream is… well, it's like this… In the past, Yami loved me above all else, but I was in love with someone other than Yami. So we had a love triangle going. Then Yami imprisoned several people into the Millennium Items, including himself."

"I don't understand it," says Yugi.

"Well, Ishizu once told me that the most influential people didn't go to the world beyond when they died. She said that they were reincarnated into future generations so that they could once again help humanity like they had done before," explains Marie, "So according to that belief, Yami would have been reborn in your body, and not trapped within the Millennium Puzzle like we think. Maybe he wouldn't have been able to come out if it hadn't been for the Millennium Puzzle, but perhaps he was within you all along."

Yugi nods his head for Marie to go on.

"Well… when I saw you for the first time, some part of me yelled out that she knew you from somewhere. I heard the voice within my mind, and I've never heard it before or since. It was a stranger's voice within my mind. So what if… just what if you and I were reincarnated from the past. What if the Pharaoh's spirit is in you and not the Puzzle? What if there is the spirit of someone that Pharaoh Yami loved dearly in me?" asks Marie, "That might explain everything about how we recognized each other."

"Yami wants to talk to you," says Yugi.

Marie nods her head.

"Yu-Gi-Oh!" Yugi closes his eyes. When he opens his eyes again, he is no longer Yugi, but instead he is Yami. Now, his height diminishes Marie's stature. "Marie… I understand what you are saying, but I don't understand just whom you would have been reincarnated from. I know very little of my past, and I don't know anyone whom I would have loved. Do you know who…?"

Marie shakes her head. "Mariko might. He seems to know who I was in the past. He might tell you, but I can't promise that he will."

"I would like to speak to Mariko then," says Yami.

Marie holds out her hand and the Millennium Scale flies across the room to her fingertips, and she catches it with ease. She holds it above her head. "Ma-Ri-Ko!"

Yami watches Marie expecting to see her transform into the malevolent being known as Mariko.

Marie gasps quietly and a glowing hieroglyphic eye appears in the center of her forehead. She looks at Yami as if seeing him for the first time. Yet she hasn't really changed so she doesn't appear to be Mariko. Her voice shakes slightly as she speaks with a soft, feminine voice, "I have not seen you in many eons, Yami. Do you really not remember me?"

Yami looks at Marie in confusion. "I do not remember anything."

"You were once… I dare not say the word," says the girl, "I'm sorry, my Pharaoh, but I never loved you, not once. I'm sorry."

"Who are you?" asks Yami.

"I was your most beloved… wife… Princess Nefertiri, named after another Egyptian Princess from a time before," says the teenaged girl before Yami. She closes her eyes and falls backwards to lie on the bed as the Millennium eye vanishes from her forehead.

"Princess Nefertiri?" asks Yami.

Marie's triple colored, spiky hair flares out within the confines of her ponytail holder as if a lightning bolt had just hit her. Her bangs stand up into high, arched spikes. Her white T-shirt shortens and appears to crawl up her stomach to reveal her tanned skin. The purple jacket with the white cuffs and collar grows longer to extend to the middle of her thighs instead of her waist.

Marie's pants transform themselves into a deep purple set of hip-hugger Capris, and the white pumps she wears change into a set of white stiletto heels that would add a good four inches to her height if she weren't lying down.

"So… you've met the stupid bitch!" exclaims Mariko with a deeper, more masculine voice. "Ever since Ancient Egypt… She has been nothing but trouble."

"Who is Princess Nefertiri?" asks Yami, "And what does she have to do with my past?"

"She told you," says Mariko sitting upright, "Yami married Princess Nefertiri. That's how she became a princess. Yami… you loved her dearly, but she didn't love you. She was in love with a Priest… And I was in love with her. I was also a Priest, and a powerful mage, but I wasn't the one that Nefertiri loved. She was married to you and bedding the one she loved. You were completely unaware. Then there was the final battle, and Nefertiri was hurt. You trapped me in the Millennium Scale, yourself in the Puzzle, and five other spirits, one for each Millennium Item. You even trapped the Spirit of the one Nefertiri loved the most." She sighs and turns away from Yami. "I have no desire to talk to you further."

"Mariko!" exclaims Yami as Marie's clothing and hair return to their normal state.

"I'm sorry about that, Yami," says Marie, "but he doesn't like you. He still wants to oppose you and rule the world, but I agreed to help him get power, financial power, if he agreed to let me have his power over the Millennium Scale."

"You have given me a lot to think about," says Yami with a sigh, "But it seems that for each answer I get pertaining my past, a hundred new questions arise."

"I know," says Marie nodding, "and it certainly doesn't help that the events of the past are actually trying to repeat themselves. Mariko said that Nefertiri was hurt in the final battle between good and evil. I think she died because of those wounds she received."

"He also said that the Priest who Nefertiri loved was trapped within a Millennium Item," says Yami. He pulls the Millennium Necklace from his jacket pocket.

"Ishizu gave you the Millennium Necklace?" asks Marie with widening eyes.

"She said that it would not work for her anymore," says Yami nodding his head, "I sense no spirit within the Necklace. I can sense Mariko within your Scale, and when I was near it, I could sense the spirit within the Ring, and one in the Rod."

"What about the Eye? When you were near Pegasus at Duelist Kingdom?" asks Marie.

"I didn't sense anything then," says Yami. "I didn't sense anything when I met Shadi either."

"Shadi? Is that the name of the robed one? The one who possesses the Millennium Key?"

Yami nods.

Marie takes Yami's hand. "We'll figure it out. I promise. I don't know how, but we'll figure it out."

"Thank you, Marie," says Yami, "Yugi has a wonderful sister in you." He closes his eyes and reverts back to being Yugi.

"Are you okay, Yugi?" asks Marie.

Yugi opens his eyes. He smiles at Marie and squeezes her hand. "I'm fine. How are you doing?"

Marie chuckles lightly. "I'm fine. I just think that maybe everything that has happened to us in our lives has been a game, a test to see who will make it to the end."

"And what would that end be?" asks Yugi, "Hopefully, peace."

Marie smiles.

'Cause I am ahead of the game,
And nothing will be the same…

"We should be landing on Kaiba Corp Island soon," says Marie, "We should go."

"Kaiba Corp Island?" asks Yugi standing up and releasing Marie's hand.

Marie climbs off her bed, thankful that the pain medication has started working wonderfully. She giggles. "You'll see!"

Noah sits alone in a control room watching the blimp approaching. He smiles and laughs. "You can't win!"

I create the games we play
Every detail is mine to say.
You might have luck,
You might have skill,
But when you lose
You'll say that I have the will…

"You're at my mercy now, Seto Kaiba!" exclaims Noah.

Seto and Mokuba stand side by side as they watch the tall building on Kaiba Island getting closer.

'Cause I am ahead of the game,
And nothing will be the same…