Shroudshipping (Atem x Thief King Bakura x Priestess Isis)

Atem's grief hung over him like a shroud: transparent, and not always visible, but always there. It had been two weeks since the death of his father, but he still felt the loss as keenly as though it were yesterday. But he was not allowed to let it show; he was the pharaoh now, after all. He must be a beacon of hope to his people. He must make them believe that he could defend and inspire them, even when he didn't believe in himself. So he placed the shroud of the pharaoh over his shroud of grief, only thinly masking the broken boy underneath.

"No, no, no, the weather conditions and bandit attacks are too much for the workers to handle. I'm calling off construction; the location was poorly chosen anyway."

"But Pharaoh, your father himself chose the location –"

"My father is dead, Akhenaden. And he never had the chance to see the place himself; I'm sure he would understand."

"The new temple to Ra is an extremely important project –"

"The foundations hadn't even been built yet. It is simple enough to choose an new location and move construction. I won't put the lives of my people at risk to put a few blocks of stone in place."

Atem broke off the conversation, noticing for the first time that Isis was standing outside the room. She caught his gaze for the briefest of moments, and nodded towards the hallway. Then she vanished in a flick of canvas-colored robes.

"Pharaoh, perhaps we –" Akhenaden began.

Atem felt bad for continuing to cut him off, but this was ridiculous. There were three temples to Ra in the kingdom already. He had no idea why they needed another one.

"I'm sorry," he said firmly. "Could you excuse me for a moment?" Translation: this conversation is over and I won't hear another word about it, understood?

Akhenaden clamped his mouth shut, nodded stiffly, and turned away.

Atem sighed quietly to himself. His uncle could be so stubborn about things. But he brushed the thoughts aside and stepped softly out into the hallway. Isis was waiting for him, the half-light of the far away windows cutting a striking figure against the dark.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

Isis rarely came to speak with him. Despite being one of his seven guardians, she was often an unseen shadow behind him, except during special occasions. He understood her reasoning. She owned the Millennium Tauk, giving her the ability to glimpse the future. Being surrounded by people might interfere with her concentration or interrupt a vision. And despite her soft, elegant looks, she was a ferocious fighter. Anyone that tried to pick a fight with the pharaoh would come across her before they met any of the other guardians.

"No, not particularly," she said, in that lilting tone of hers. "But I caught something of the future, and I thought you would want to know about it."

She paused.

"Did I...interrupt?"

Atem shook his head, smiling slightly.

"Not at all. Akhenaden was being difficult again. You actually gave me a good excuse to leave the conversation."

She smiled quietly. It was the closest she had ever gotten to a laugh – he wondered, sometimes, if she was brighter and more open when he wasn't around, and she wasn't on duty.

"So, what news?" he asked.

She hesitated for a brief moment.

"I saw...a shroud of mist," she said. "I believe it to be a sign, rather than a true vision. Something is concealing itself from us...the Tauk is trying to warn of the dangers."

Atem frowned. Shrouds again...he had just been thinking about that earlier.

"And?" he prompted.

Isis might have spoken, but something caught her attention. She shifted ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly, but Atem recognized the motion.

Someone was here that shouldn't be.

Quietly, he reached for the Millennium Puzzle, as Isis slid fluidly to a spot between the Pharaoh and –

"Oh, how adorable. Is this a lover's meeting, perhaps? Oh, never mind, it's just you, Pharaoh, and your little pet cat."

The voice was all too familiar, and Atem stiffened as Bakura practically appeared out of thin air, smiling that mocking smile of his.

"Bakura," he said, speaking the word like a curse. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know, this and that. Spying on the Pharaoh, scoping out the security...things like that."

He said it in such a bored tone that it made Atem's blood boil. Isis still remained between the two shadow magicians, watching Bakura carefully.

"What's that look for, little cat?" Bakura said, sneering. "Don't imagine that you can fight me alone. You can't."

"I don't pretend that I can," Isis said, smoothly. "But I thank you, for you cleared up the mystery of my vision to me."

"What? The mists mean that I am able to hide among you, in plain sight?" he jeered.

"No. They mean that you are simply..."

And with a sudden whirl, she knocked Atem back towards the wall and caught the edge of a knife in her cape. It tore a long rip down the side, but the blade clattered to the ground harmlessly.

"An illusion," Isis finished.

Atem's eyes flashed to the space where he had been before. Bakura stood only a few feet off, looking absolutely stunned.

"I have already alerted my fellows," she said to his frozen face. "The rest of the Guardians are coming. Do you think you can handle seven?"

She whirled again suddenly, this time whipping off her headdress and using the gold piece in the center to deflect another knife.

"Or rather, can your illusions handle seven magicians?"

Atem looking all around, trying to pinpoint the location of the real Bakura. Once he thought about it, he knew Isis was right. Bakura's aura was not emanating from these copies, although they appeared to be able to hold their form long enough to throw a knife. Isis had thought quickly; Atem shuddered to think what might have happened if she had not. But despite his search, he found Bakura's aura nowhere to be found.

"Isis, he's not even here," he said.

Isis nodded in agreement and deflect yet another weapon.

"This is quite the harmless attack," she said softly, as another illusion vanished. "Is it a distraction, Bakura, or were you truly unprepared?"

One more illusion appeared, a half-smile twitching across his lips. The sound of footsteps far away became evident, but he didn't even glance back.

"Neither," he said softly. "I was simply curious as to how strong my opponents are. One can never know too much."

He smiled again, a dark, twisted grimace.

"Although I did underestimate you...you are no cat, Isis. You are a cobra."

And the illusion vanished.

They were left alone, as the remaining shroud of magic lifted and disappeared.

A/N: Geez. This sucked. I'm really trying to do my best, but maybe it's not quite good enough. Well...whatever. I can redeem myself on the coming chapters...I hope. Next is Shrimpshipping (Haga x Ryuzaki).