Disclaimer: I do not own yu-gi-oh or any of the characters. I do however, own Kara. She is mine! Ahem anywho, the reason each chapter consists of many POV changes is because this is really meant to be one story, but the file would be too big in one piece and is therefore split into chunks. If the point of view changes confuse you, I'm sorry, but I really felt like writing the whole story in first person and I figured this was a good way to do it. Hope you like.
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Kara
Sounds slowly came back into focus in my ears. Two voices conversed quietly in the background, one gruff and one defensive. They were arguing, but I didn't make an effort to find out what about. 'How am I still alive?' I wondered vaguely. 'And where am I?' The last thing I remembered was lying in the sand under the harsh sun. This definitely wasn't sand. I was covered in some semi-coarse material that kept the heat of my body around me perfectly. 'How long have I been here?' I glanced down at my watch only to find it missing. 'Must've fallen off in the sand.' At the very least, I could tell it was dusk. A small window in the wall told me that much along with the fact that it was exceptionally cooler than what it would be during the day. How long had I been unconscious? I tilted my head to the left and spotted a white-haired boy in another bed near me. 'Who's he?'
"So you're awake now?"
I jumped at the sudden voice. The room had gotten considerably quiet while I had been gazing around and I hadn't even noticed. I could tell this was one of the voices from before. Standing at the edge of my bed -as he probably had been for the past few minutes- was an important looking boy with the iciest blue eyes I had ever seen. His stern gaze unnerved me. "Ano…Y-yeah. Where… am I exactly?" I asked as I glanced around. Something just didn't seem right.
"The healing ward." Supplied a defiant voice from somewhere behind the boy. "Hey, is that-?" The question was cut off by a cold glance from the brunette. He meant business.
"What were you two doing outside the city walls at that time of night?" His piercing eyes bored into mine, forcing mine to flicker from his to the floor and back.
"How did you get there?"
"I-I got lost."
"T-to be honest, I don't know myself. All I remember was passing out in the desert." I closed my eyes in an attempt to recollect more from that day.
"And do you know the boy next to you?" He asked coolly, inclining his head towards said boy. My eyes fell on his sleeping figure and, though he looked remotely familiar, I couldn't place him.
"I'm... not sure." I replied quietly, letting my chin fall so that a few stray locks of white gold obscured my face. Anything to get out from under that stare... The brunette teen paced between mine and the other bed before stopping back in front of me.
"As innocent as that sounds," He began, his voice oozing sarcasm. "I am placing you two under temporary confinement to this room." He turned to leave the room, his cloaks a flutter. So arrogant. I was starting to really hate this guy. He stopped in the doorway to speak to the owner of the defiant voice I had heard earlier, a blond boy in his mid-teens. "Mutt, you found them. You guard them. Don't let them out and don't do anything stupid." Then he just left, sealing the stone door behind him.
Jou
"Stupid priest... calling me a dog again..." I muttered, slouching against the wall angrily.
"Um... Excuse me?" The girl questioned softly. She seemed a little nervous, but who wouldn't be around that guy. I didn't answer at first. She tried again. "What was up with that guy?" This got my attention. What was she speaking? It sounded sort of foreign.
"What'd you say?" I asked, tilting my head in confusion.
"What was that guy's problem? I didn't do anything to him." She repeated in Egyptian.
"Oh. Priest Seth? Don't worry about him." I replied dismissively. "He's always a stick in the sand. No manners whatsoever."
The girl stared at me with amusement.
"I have to deal with him everyday."
"Well, I think you were trying to ask me something before when he cut you off."
I pushed of the wall, my mood improving slightly.
"Me? Yeah. I was wondering about your necklace?"
She blinked at me, her hand straying to the golden amulet around her throat.
"Oh, this? I found it in a really cool old box in the ground. I was messing with a metal detector in my backyard and..."
I stared at her in confusion, causing her to stop.
"Oh, wait. You probably don't know what that is, do you?"
I shook my head.
"Well, anyways I found it and I was so amazed! I couldn't believe I'd found something so beautiful! I think it's supposed to symbolize Isis' power... or something like that. Egyptian lore. I don't think it's real or anything... It'd be way too valuable."
I gaped at her in complete shock.
"Isis' necklace..." I breathed excitedly.
"W-what? What's wrong?" She asked nervously.
"Wrong?" I broke out into a huge grin. "There's nothing wrong, this is perfect! There's no way you can be arrested now. You're her! You're-!" I paused, blinking. "What's your name?"
She laughed. I think she was relaxing a bit after waking up in somewhere completely strange to her and being interrogated. I couldn't blame her.
"I'm Kara." She supplied happily. "I'm a bit of a new citizen I guess."
I nodded my head in understanding.
"No problem. I'm Jounouchi, Jou for short if you want. Nice to meet you." I grinned, but it faltered slightly. "So... how did you get here?"
Kara laughed nervously.
"You're probably not going to believe this so let me tell the whole thing first." She sat up, telling me all the things that had happened the day before. It was actually really confusing. Something about a place called America and a thing called a motorcycle. She was right. I had a lot of trouble believing this.
"America? Is that a foreign city? And what's a motorcycle?"
Her green eyes stared at me in confusion, probably the same amount that I was feeling. She suddenly leaned back heavily against her bed.
"Kara?"
She looked worried and uncertain.
"Wh-what year is it?" she asked, wincing slightly.
"... 1335 B.C., why?" I responded curiously.
"Oh, no..." she groaned.
Kara
"Oh, no." I groaned. It couldn't possibly be, but it was. We were in the past. Not just the past but Ancient Egypt. Way in the past. My head was swarming in confusion. "I-I need to lie down." I murmured, doing just that. Jou watched me nervously. My gaze flickered towards the still unconscious boy on the bed next to mine. 'Him too? He looks like he's wearing modern clothing...' "Wake him up." I commanded weakly.
"Uh, yeah..." He hesitated, but complied, walking over and shaking the white-haired teen's shoulder tentatively. He seemed intrigued by my predicament, but I didn't have the mind to worry about it now. He woke with a start, causing both me and the blond boy to jump.
"Let me go! I-!" His short quick breaths slowed as he focused on the room around him. He sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Bad dream..." He glanced over at me in relief. "Good, you're ok. I was afraid you got hurt in the fall. How did you get out there anyway? And where are we now?" He looked around in slight uncertainty. I swallowed. Hard.
"You're-"
"Hold on. First, who are you?" I asked, deciding to answer the easy questions before trying to explain the craziness.
"I'm- No, don't!" The teen flailed slightly before falling silent. "I'm Malik. Pleasure, I'm sure." I did a double take. 'Did his voice just change? And his eyes... There's something that wasn't there before.' Malik reached down to his belt, letting out a stream of curses. "That's what I thought. Here, Marik, you can have control again." He turned his purple eyes to me. "We'll be meeting again soon, I'm sure." His lips curled into a smirk, which quickly faded. The boy's eyes lightened slightly. "Oh, goddess, what did he say?"
I blinked in shock.
"By him, you mean you right?" 'Great. I got sent back in time with a schizo...'
He winced.
"This is going to sound pretty unbelievable…"
"Trust me, I could believe it right now." I retorted, quite interested in what that whole changing eye color and voice thing was about. He glanced nervously at Jou.
"Basically, I have another soul living inside my body. My name's Marik with an 'r', his is Malik with an 'l'."
This whole name thing was turning out to be the harder answer to come up with to me. Marik gave me this look in his eyes that clearly said he'd rather talk about this later.
"So, where are we?"
"We're in Egypt." I finished simply. "Ancient Egypt."
"Ancient?" Jou asked.
"I know it sounds insane and I'm not even sure I believe it myself, but we're not in 2005 anymore." My explanation continued, leaving his question unanswered. Marik stared at me in disbelief.
"I-I'm not dreaming?" he stammered.
"If you are, we're both having the same elaborate dream."
"Wait a second!" The blond servant had been quiet for so long, he'd almost disappeared from my radar. "What in Ra's name is going on here?" He shouted, his caramel eyes flashing confusion.
An hour or so later, I had explained all I knew and Jou was still asking questions. Has he ever heard of curiosity killed the cat… or dog in this case. "Look, Jou, I don't know anything else about our situation that I haven't already said so enough with the 20-questions already." I finished tiredly.
"What's-?"
"It's a game from our time." Marik prompted quickly, which was good. I was getting tired of answering questions. I sighed, shaking my head.
"What I still don't get is why my necklace is so important."
Jou's features shifted seriously for the first time since I'd met him.
"That necklace was said to have been given to Isis' one and only heir who was born with great powers. The holder of the necklace, or the heir, is destined for great things, so yes, it's very important." His description silenced me in awe.
"B-but… I don't have any powers or anything special like that. I'm just a normal teenage girl!"
Marik shook his head solemnly.
"You couldn't have found that necklace by sheer accident." He seemed to know more about this thing than I did. Note to self: Ask Marik about necklace.
"If you really don't think you have powers, the seven priests could test you." Jou suggested, leaning back against the wall. "That is, when that idiot gets back here. You should know though, if they test you and find out you're not the heir it could… complicate things."
I nodded silently in thought.
"I'll deal with the consequences and the punishments, whatever they may be." I decided to change the subject before my brain racked itself anymore over my predicament. "So, why are we being temporarily confined in the first place? What did we do wrong?"
The servant boy huffed in annoyance, not directed towards me, but at his tormentor.
"Nothing really, except being strangers. That's all. I'm sure the pharaoh will understand."
"We get to meet the pharaoh?" I exclaimed in excitement.
"Probably not. Usually the priests are the only ones ever allowed to—" Jou's explanation was cut off by the heavy stone door sliding open.
"Mutt, bring the prisoners with me. The pharaoh wishes to speak to them." The cold priest Seth drawled from the doorway. I practically had to bite my own tongue to prevent myself from squealing as we left the room. We were off to see the pharaoh!
Jou
Kara seemed like she was floating with happiness at getting to see the pharaoh, but Marik with a 'r'…. or was it a 'l'? Anyway, Marik didn't look to sure that seeing him was a good thing. Of course, I was just as curious as worried. Pushing off the wall, I stood with my staff weapon and nodded towards the door. "You heard him. Let's go." I hoped I sounded authoritative without sounding too callous. To tell you the truth, I was mostly confused. Why would the pharaoh want to talk to them let alone invite them into his presence? They were complete strangers and, though I didn't think it to be true, they could be thieves. What would cause him to take such a risk? I shook my head, walking behind the group while Seth took the front. We arrived at a set of looming doors that I knew lead to the royal chambers. The stone was painted a brilliant crimson, the color of newly spilled blood. All along the edges and throughout the middle gold engravings and embossings intertwined, weaving a tale fit for the gods. Though I had been there but a few times, I made a point to study and memorize the story, often causing it to replay in dreams. It told of how each god was born and how they each chose something distinctly of their own creation. It also told of one particular goddess whose folly it was of choosing a mere mortal for her life mate. Ra, the main god, grew angry and tried to convince him otherwise with harsh words. Nothing could prevail over their love and so, left with no choices, he made it so that no mortal and immortal could touch, thus never allowing the mistake to happen again. Distraught with loss, the goddess withered away dying, but never truly being dead. My eyes flickered quickly over the design, images flashing through my mind. I looked back down to see that Seth had let the others through but halted me.
"Do you know why they're here?" He questioned in that cool voice that told me he knew and expected that I was inferiorly clueless. I shrugged, pretending I didn't give a damn.
"The pharaoh wants to speak to them, what more reason does he need?"
"The necklace." He interjected simply as though it was common sense. And it was. I knew why they were there.
"You knew? But you didn't-"
"Of course I knew, idiot. I'm one of the high priests. I'm not uneducated like some people…" There it was again. Those ice shards piercing my eyes as though I were nothing more than mud. "Now stay, mutt." He ordered with a smirk, turning to enter the room. I was seething, no, I was fuming. My hands were balled into tight fists just itching to slam into his face. I had to look down and glared daggers at the ground to prevent myself from acting on my anger. I was surprised when there was no door slamming in my face. Instead, I heard a deep commanding voice beckoning me in.
"Enter, Jou."
My head snapped up. I was being invited in the pharaoh's quarters as well? What had I done to receive such an honor? Hesitantly, I entered the room which was just as amazing, if not more than, the doors at the entryway. I instantly knelt in reverence, being absolutely sure to show the proper respect. After all, he was offering a great opportunity.
"Rise, fair servant. You are invited here as an equal guest. I understand that you, too, know of the necklace that this young girl is gifted with?"
"C-correct." I answered nervously, kicking myself for stuttering. I gazed around in wonder. I was being considered an equal with the priests? Seth was probably going crazy. 'I might just have to… bring this up later on.' "It is Isis' necklace. It marks it's wearer as the heir of her powerful magic."
"Kara… Is that her name?" Pharaoh replied with interest.
"Yes, I was gathering information from the two during their confinement." I told him with a slight bow.
"And what is your name?" The pharaoh asked the white haired teen.
"I am called M…Mosi." His answer confused me considering he had told me earlier that his name was Marik. Speaking of, the pharaoh's guard's name was Marik. Weird. Kara glanced at him in confusion as well. Good, I wasn't the only one confused.
"How did you two end up traveling together? Or more so, laying together?" The teen king chuckled and Marik's eyes glittered with laughter of his own. Did I mention I was confused?
"That was quite an accident. You see, I was riding towards town for a place to stay and dropped my water flask."
Kara looked at him questioningly and Marik gave her a let-me-do-the-talking look. She nodded discreetly, but I winced mentally. The priests would find out that he was lying and that wasn't good. He continued, unhindered.
"I had gotten off my horse to retrieve it and I turned to remount my stead with great haste. In my rush I did not see Kara standing behind me, ready to offer me help. Unfortunately, I ran into her head on, knocking us both unconscious." He chuckled lightly. "I believe my horse ran off."
One of the other priests, a turban-clad man named Shada, stepped forward to protest like I expected he would, but the pharaoh waved his hand dismissively.
"And you knew of her necklace as well?"
"Yes, as soon as I got a good look at it, I knew it was none other." Marik replied truthfully. The pharaoh stood slowly, stepping down onto the stone floor.
"One last question, traveler. What do you wish to do now?" The white haired teen stared emotionlessly.
"I was hoping to continue my travels-" He began, looking pointedly at Kara who looked faint at the idea of him leaving her here alone. "but with all that is unfolding here, I would like to stay. I wish to see the direction of this girl's fate." He looked to her again, giving her a smile and a nod of encouragement. She smiled back weakly, shuddering at the feeling of so many eyes on her. Seth eyed her warily. He didn't believe her for a second and I think she knew it. She fidgeted nervously as if she expected someone to speak against her, condemning her for all eternity.
Priest Mahado stepped forward. His dark eyes held hers, almost binding her there as if by spell. His gaze was so calculating, taking in everything and missing nothing. After what seemed like hours he finally spoke, allowing Kara to release a breath I hadn't known she was holding
"I am the priest Mahado, keeper of the Millennium Ring. I am also the teacher of magic and will be testing your skills and your honesty." She winced at his referral to their story. The pharaoh nodded.
"That is good for now. Return to your chambers and in the morning, Mahado will fulfill his duties." With that, Seth and I lead them back to their room where I was once again forced to stand guard. The girl lay awake shifting nervously for a time before she fell asleep. I could understand why. Tomorrow would tell the real direction of her fate.
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Jou: What's gonna happen to her?
Seth: Hmph. Serves her right.
Dia: 0.o Shouldn't you already know, Jou?
Jou:….. Maybe…..
Seth: Baka.
Dia: Don't make me write you two in a yaoi.
Seth: ….. 0.0
Jou: -.-'