I'm back! Apologies for the delay had to get a new computer and figure out how to use it but was also incredibly busy working with a certain red-nosed, jolly fellow and so shall make no promises on the next chapter. Hopefully, I will see you all soon!

To avoid confusion:

Words Yami speaking mentally

Words Yugi speaking mentally

"Words" Characters speaking Japanese

"Words" Characters speaking Ancient Egyptian

"Words" Characters speaking Arabic

"Words" Characters speaking Akkadian

"Words" Characters speaking Old English

It was not often that Yugi was shaken awake in the middle of the night, and never for a good reason. His new room in the Palace Dorm had been redecorated more along the lines of his room back home- the red and gold had become a little too garish for him and after the discovery of Harry going through his things, he had been wishing for home and his friends all the more often. Marik and Ryou were good friends but he just wasn't as close to them as he was with Joey, Tristan and Tea. And as for Kaiba… well, he seemed closer to Yami than he had ever been to him. As for the other two that shared this dorm, he still wasn't sure where he stood with Akhefia and Atem was a whole other issue altogether. The other boy was nice enough, but there was always some kind of barrier kept up around him, a wall that Atem seemed reluctant to let down while he was around Yugi.

So, it was all the more surprising to find that the person who had woken him up, was none other than Atem himself.

He was dressed in his usual robes for visiting home, the navy robe over rough cream cotton, the headwrap covered in sand suggesting that a storm had been blowing while he was at home. Atem had said nothing of why they had gone back out there to visit and Kaiba was as tight lipped about his cousin as always. Even Marik had been somewhat cagey when asked and Yugi had just decided to let it go. There was obviously something that they wanted kept from him and he could respect that. After all, they were quite happily preventing Harry from causing trouble for him and Yami while they were here.

"Atem?" Yugi asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes and noting that the time on the clock read 3:56. Why did everything bad have to happen at three in the morning? "What's going on?" Because it had to be something bad right? He wouldn't have been arbitrarily woken in the night for no reason.

"There's been an attack," Atem said grimly. Yugi noted that his voice sounded slightly husky, like he had a cold or something. "But… that's not what I need your help for." He looked a little too serious.

"An attack?" Yugi asked, cursing the fact that he had never been a morning person. Unlike Yami, it took his brain more than five seconds to wake up. "Is everyone alright? Where? What-"

"Yugi, calm down!" Atem cut him off, looking slightly startled but he knew that look. Yami did the same thing- a stern tone but a softness around his usually sharp eyes showing that he did care. It was startling, sometimes, to discover just how similar the two were. "It was no one at home for you," he started slowly. "Bill's father, Mr Weasley, was attacked while he was at the Ministry, but I've already sent Mana to collect Neira. She's our best healer amongst the Tomb Keepers." Yugi blinked and it took a few moments for his sleepy brain to remember that Bill's father was also Ron's.

"Does his family know?" That was the worst thing- being away and not knowing when something bad had happened to your loved ones. Being unable to do more than hang about the phone, waiting for that terrible update.

"Yes," Atem said softly. "The Headmaster was informed in time and he is currently in their hospital here. Mr Weasley will be fine." He was oddly fiddling with the hem of his robe and Yugi then remembered that Atem seemed to have come to ask something completely different. After all, he could have waited until the morning to tell him about the attack. It wasn't as if it was anyone Yugi knew, as callous as that seemed.

"So, what do you need my help for?" Yugi asked quietly.

"It is to do with Harry," Atem started and Yugi felt himself clam up immediately. He had yet to forgive Harry and his friends, no matter how repentant Hermione was looking. Well, ok, maybe he had forgiven her considering she actually seemed sorry for her actions, while Harry was still defiant. Poor Ron looked like, for once, he was the one stuck in the middle and didn't know what to do, trying to appease both sides and failing at both. He got the feeling it was usually Harry breaking something up between him and Hermione, and that now those two were at odds, he was a little lost on what to do. And really, Ron now had bigger things to be worrying about right now. "Yugi, I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't necessary." Well, it looked like Atem was quite capable of reading him.

"You just said that your friend's father was attacked! I don't see what this has to do with Harry," Yugi snapped. If it had been for Ron, he would make an exception, but Harry still stared at him like he was some kind of victim. For once, it was Yami preventing him from doing something.

"Because it was Harry who raised the alarm." Yugi blinked, suddenly confused.

"But I thought…"

"There's… something wrong with him," Atem said reluctantly. "The Headmaster thinks that giving him lessons in Occlumancy will help but he's wrong." Yugi had no idea what Occlumancy was but decided it didn't matter. Atem would have explained if it was. "I think there might be something that we could do for him but I'm going to need your help." He paused a moment, glancing down towards his hands. "Both of your help." Yugi blinked.

"Both of us? What do you need Yami for?" That got a queer look from Atem and Yugi blushed. "I, er, gave him a name."

"You shouldn't have." Yugi flinched at the sharp tone. "Names have power Yugi. You've studied our history, as has your grandfather. And that name… it was forgotten for a reason."

"But-" he cut himself off at the look Atem gave him, frowning. At the time, he hadn't been thinking when he had named the Pharaoh, a still indistinct part of his mind. Now it seemed natural, and it had pleased the Spirit to have a name of his own. To have an identity. But the way Atem looked at him now… it made him reconsider the wisdom of that. "You didn't answer my question."

"You'll see," Atem promised, rising. "I'll see you in the morning."

There was something going on here that Raphael just couldn't quite pin down. After that first, disastrous lesson with the transfer students, he had started canvasing the other teachers' opinions on them. Most were apathetic- they turned up for lessons and made no trouble, they were helping build inter-house relationships far better than any of their own students and they weren't using any of their political power except to help better their own community. But others had less wonderful reviews to give. McGonngal was often found ranting about them not turning up to certain lessons, while Umbridge fumed that they never attended given detentions. Raphael had been attempting to scope them out, but even gaining a glimpse of them was difficult.

He had met the two pale haired Egyptians. Marik Ishtar and Akhefia Kheti. The former was the more tolerable of the two, the latter… he didn't know what to think of Akhefia. Whenever he had met with him, the teen had given him a sneer, disbelieving of the history he was teaching. Not completely odd- he was, after all, tearing down all his preconceptions over the Shadow era. However, after that hair raising first meeting with Haphiri Enheduanna, he wasn't too sure anymore. The boy hadn't stopped laughing, merely walked away, still giggling to himself. As for the others… Kaiba sent him deadly glares, Mutou and Bakura seemed oblivious, despite the vile ghost following the tri-colour haired duellist around. The last, he had yet to see. He was either hidden behind Kheti's bulk or non-existant. All he had was a name, Atem Menes, and a warning to stay away from the Prince of the Tomb Keepers. Initially, Raphael had sneered at the very concept.

Then, the Egyptian Ministry had gotten involved.

Dartz had been rather blasé about the whole debacle, but Raphael could still remember the cold stares and magic blasts that chased the entire company of Paradium- involved with the Orichalcos or not- out of the country. A small woman, dressed in cream robes and a headscarf, had named herself Hakmit, Minister of the Egyptian Ministry as she threw spells at them. Raphael had noted that their master was notably quiet about that, especially here in the midst of Voldemort and his followers.

It didn't matter. They would all be food for the Leviathan eventually.

He turned his eyes instead towards the trio Snape seemed to think he was subtlely watching. Potter, Granger and Weasley. The teachers had been far more forthcoming about those three and the adventures they got into. Especially Potter. This morning, however, they all seemed subdued, the red head picking at his food where normally he would be eating with gusto. The other boy wasn't even pretending to eat. Mutou was sat with them, watching with wide eyes while the ghost leant against the far wall. It was all incredibly suspicious. He made a mental note to try and catch up with them during the day. An opportunity that wouldn't be long coming considering that Fifth Year History of Magic with the Gryffindors was in the second slot of the day and they were coming up to the death of the Pharaoh. He couldn't wait.

Raphael muddled his way through the first lesson, not particularly bothered by the small First Years. He taught them normal history, mixing in the small amount of research required for this subject. He had never been a part of the magical community but some quick reading and the fact that he set the end of year tests for Fourth Year and down anyway meant it wasn't a problem. He just needed to sell it enough and only to the end of this year.

This would be the year where everything changed.

The Fifth Years slowly made their way into the room as the bell rang. The trio were near the back, pale and quiet, unlike their usual selves. Even the girl, Granger, was watching the redhead with concern, eyes wide. But they were key into getting that foul creature into his grasp. And perhaps, Haphiri as well. He noted how she slipped in through the doorway at the last moment, eyes narrowed and fingering her dagger. He wondered if the so-called Pharaoh knew what it was and laughed internally.

"We will be covering the end of the reign of the Nameless Pharaoh today and it's connections to the Akkadian Empire," Raphael started, watching Mutou intently as he sat up in near surprise. The boy hadn't been paying attention until that moment. Even the so-called 'Golden Trio' looked a little more animated, unlike the rest of the class who were just sleepily pulling out notes or fiddling with things. Good.

Enheduanna had narrowed her eyes.

"Now the Akkadian Empire had been linked to Egypt in a series of wars during this time period, a war which only ended with the recorded wedding of an Akkadian Princess to an Egyptian Prince, who then went on to become Pharaoh. We do not have his name, but he is likely to have been the Pharaoh preceeding those of the Shadow Era." Granger was scribbling down notes like crazy, Mutou as well. Haphiri shifted, frowning. "During the time of the Nameless Pharaoh, an Akkadian Princess was sent to the Royal Court, no doubt in the hopes of rescuing her younger cousins from the tyrant ruling the country at the time. Her name was Haphiri Enheduanna, for the Egyptian Goddess Hapi and the Akkadian God An." Mutou paused, head cocked, no doubt speaking to the Spirit currently hiding in the Puzzle. Granger continued to make notes. Haphiri's lips twitched almost into a smile.

"Enheduanna is known to have visited the Egyptian Court many times in her life and was most likely related in some way to the Pharaoh at the time. Her involvement in the crisis that caused the Pharaoh's name to be removed from history is key to the end of his tyrannical reign." Mutou was not looking convinced and Enheduanna was no longer possibly smiling. Her face was now hard.

He continued anyway.

"The records are incomplete for this era," unless your boss happens to have lived through it he thought sardonically, hiding the smirk, "so I cannot answer to what vile evil the Pharaoh conjured but it was only through the bravery of the Princess that the world survived. Unfortunately, her great deed has not been remembered favourably over the years as she was put to death soon after for her act." Enheduanna pushed herself away from the wall, stalking down the aisles, invisible to near all but a few who stared as she approached, leonine as a cat, eyes narrowed. A heavy silence sat in the air, the class waiting with bated breath to hear what he had to say. Enheduanna opened her mouth to speak.

Raphael didn't wait to hear what she had to say.

"Haphiri Enheduanna is known to have plunged her own ceremonial dagger into the black heart of the Nameless Pharaoh, saving us all," he said as she drew up to him. Startled, he noticed fury raging in those eyes.

It was the last thing he noticed that day.

Saturday could not have come soon enough for Harry. After the collapse of Professor Schiavone during their last History of Magic lesson, pandemonium had broken out. It took five whole minuets for them to contain the other students panic and for Ron to run to fetch a teacher- by which time, Yugi had left the classroom. He wasn't sure why, but he was certain that it had something to do with the spirit that lived permanently within the other boy's head.

Atem had barely spoken a word to them either in that time. He seemed to be avoiding almost everyone, apart from perhaps, oddly enough, Snape. The supposed acting head of the Tomb Keeper clans had started spending an odd amount of time with the Potions Master, conversations that seemed to involve much hand gesturing on Snape's part accompanied by a disapproving scowl. Bill sometimes would be hovering in the background, face blank. Harry was starting to wonder exactly what the other boy had planned for him tonight.

"Mum says Dad is going to be fine. Apparently, that Tomb Keeper lady is a master of snake bites, both magical and Muggle caused," Ron said oddly quietly over breakfast. "She wants us all to come see him, even you two." Harry nodded numbly, swallowing. Hopefully, whatever happened tonight wouldn't be incapacitating to him, or land him in the Hospital Wing.

"That's good," Hermione stated, placing her book next to her gently. She and Ron had been having far less arguments recently, espcially regarding Harry and his mood swings. She was currently trying to look up the term 'horcrux' along with trying to cross-reference what Professor Schiavone had taught before his untimely collapse. She insisted that the name 'Haphiri' was familiar somehow.

Harry couldn't disagree with her, but also couldn't put his finger on why the name was so familiar.

Usually, on a Saturday, they would participate either in a combination of studying and Quidditch practice, but Harry wasn't in the mood for his favourite sport and none of them were truly able to concentrate on school work. It wasn't even a Hogsmeade weekend either, so they couldn't run down to the village without it being seen as suspicious. And Harry would rather keep the secret passages a secret for now. That meant that most of the morning was spent holed up in the Common Room, staring at each other, both Harry and Ron having long given up on the game of chess that neither had been too involved in anyway.

"Oh, this is ridiculous!" Hermione snapped eventually, slamming her book down in frustration. "Are you sure we couldn't have moved the DC meeting to earlier today?" Harry shrugged.

"Sorry," he said blankly, "McGonngal was pretty insistent that we couldn;t use the room during the day." Apparently, Peeves had decided that their usual meeting spot needed dousing in ink and Filch was still scrubbing the walls of the magically enhaced stuff. Hermione sighed.

"Well, moping is getting us nowhere," she noted, glancing down briefly at her book. It appeared this, too, was a dead end for horcruxes. "And I'll need to return this to the library."

"I'll come with you," Harry said, already standing. It wasn't as if he had anything else to do. Ron just silently stood as well, tapping the chess board so that the figures stopped chatting to each other and went back to their starting positions. With a quick spell, the chess board packed itself up and zoomed up to join the rest of their stuff strewn over the dormitory floor.

The walk to the library was equally quiet. Ron was still in a state of shock about his father but had perked up a little with the knowledge that he was no longer dying. It didn't help the gloom that had settled over them however, because they couldn't escape the fact that somehow, Harry had known. It sat between them all, a heavy weight to add to all the others, and for the first time, Harry had no interest in discovering why this had happened. He was just glad that Mr Weasley was alright. No doubt, the idea that he could see in Voldemort's head would have been far more enticing had it not been revealed with the attack on a man he not only liked, but looked up to. Arthur Weasley, along with his wife, were the first parental figures Harry had had, the first ones to treat him like a person even when they first met. It worried Harry just as much as Ron that they had been attacked.

Their musings were broken by the sound of arguing.

"What do you mean you have no idea how it got there?" a voice that sounded suspiciously like Kaiba hissed from around the corner. "I left it in your room, and once again, it was right where I found it the first time!"

"I mean, I don't know," came the exasperated voice of Yugi Mutou. "And before you ask, neither does Yami. But the Items have always had a mind of their own- for example how the Eye somehow appeared in my bag. I thought it was missing after the end of Duelist Kingdom, but no, it was hiding in plain sight." Kaiba gave an ugly snort as the three of them stopped and, with a silent look a agreement, hid behind a statue as the pair rounded the corner.

"I wouldn't rely on that assumption with the King of Thieves running around," he muttered. Yugi, looking oddly frustrated for once, gave him a uncharacteristic frown.

"Are you saying Akhefia just left it in my bag without telling me?" Kaiba said nothing which was an answer in itself. Yugi sighed, uncrossing his arms and stopping to turn to look at Kaiba. "Look, Kaiba, I don't know how the Rod keeps ending up in your room. Last I knew, it was in that same bag. It could mean that it has chosen you as it's owner, much like how the Ring keeps ending up with Ryou." Kaiba's scowl deepened, obviously not liking that answer.

"I knew I should have asked Atem," he stated, a if the other boy was able to give a more satisfactory answer. Yugi scowled right back, throwing his arms up in the air.

"Well, why didn't you do that in the first place?!" the other boy half shouted, irritated. Harry wouldn't have believed that Yugi could be this confrontational on his own if he wasn't seeing it first hand. Kaiba, on the other hand, had gone oddly blank-faced.

"He has enough on his hands right now," the CEO stated forcefully. There was something off about that statement, something that even Yugi seemed to catch on to, as his face softened.

"Does it… have to do with why he's been avoiding me?" Yugi asked, shuffling awkwardly in place now. Kaiba stiffened, looking anywhere but at the shorter duelist.

"It's not my place to say."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Yugi asked, now frowning in confusion.

"It means, I have nothing more to say to you, runt," Kaiba stated, suddenly shoving past the smaller boy, causing him to stagger slightly, as he he stalked away.

"Kaiba!" Yugi shouted, once more frustrated. "Kaiba!" From the sudden deepening of his voice, Harry got the feeling that he had swapped with the Spirit, but it was difficult to tell with his back to them. The height difference was miniscule since Yugi had had a small growth spurt during November and Harry got the feeling that it would soon be Yugi who would be taller than the Spirit.

The pair disappeared down the corridor and they finally poked their heads out from behind the suit of armour.

"What was that all about?" Ron wondered out loud. Harry shrugged but Hermione was frowning.

"Ron, didn't you find a golden eye in Yugi's bag?" she asked. Harry blinked in surprised- since their detention and thorough telling off by the teachers, she rarely referred to the incident which had caused them to end up there. It was odd for her to suddenly bring it up out of the blue now.

"Um, yeah?" Ron said.

"But there was nothing else really heavy in there?"

"Unless you count those books," Ron stated.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" Harry asked, curious. She shrugged, still frowning.

"Nothing really, it's just… now that I think about it, that bag made a much heavier noise than it ought to have done if there was only a small eye and necklace, along with books and a wooden box in it," she said, sounding lost in thought. "And… well, Professor Schiavone did say a couple of weeks ago that the Shadow Era saw the forging of the dark magical objects that aided in the Nameless Pharaoh's reign." Harry blinked. It was true- the teacher hadn't said what they were exactly, but enough that they knew that they were dangerous and most of all, missing.

"You think that this eye and rod they were talking about could have been some of them?" Harry asked, feeling dread pooling in his gut.

"I think… I think that we might have entered something that is far bigger than what we originally thought it was," Hermione said quietly, turning back to the library. "After all, why would they have originally turned down coming to Hogwarts if all they had to do was what they said?" She was right, Harry realised. Since Yugi and his friends had come to the school, they had been introduced to the Tomb Keepers, royalty that shouldn't exist anymore, strange ghosts and the Spirit that followed Yugi everywhere. Not to mention, the involvement of Bill and Snape in whatever they were scheming and the odd battle the Spirit had had with that man in the last Hogsmeade visit.

"You know, maybe this is something we should stay out of," Ron suggested, sounding slightly numb to the strangeness of it all. Harry nodded silently, not mentioning that that might not be possible anymore.

Yugi had been feeling jittery for the past few days, heightened now as he descended into the depths of the dungeons. Atem had insisted on doing this in a warded area, and Snape had offered his office as a meeting place. It was odd to the the infamously short-tempered and intimidating Potions Master so open with his privacy, but Yugi supposed that that was what happened when you had a student in need of help from Shadow Mages. He was accompanied by Kaiba and, oddly, Marik, although he had a feeling the Tomb Keeper was merely there for guard purposes, a suspicion that was further confirmed when he refused to move further than the door.

"Sorry Yugi," he half whispered, glancing around carefully, "but they were Atem's orders." He sighed and nodded. Atem had been absent more recently lately, avoiding him once again and this time, it was for his own benefit. Yugi had yet to speak to Yami about the whole issue of giving him a name and the Pharaoh had been quiet since Haphiri had half-killed the History of Magic Professor. He knew that the man was in cahoots with this Dartz character, but he still felt it was unnecessary to banish him briefly to the Shadow Realm. There had been a short, whispered argument in Coptic between the two spirits before she had dragged his soul back and stormed out, magic crackling from her hands. The students closest to them had shuddered at the wave of malicious energy the ghostly woman was pouring out into the world.

He was still trying to make heads or tails of what had been the truth and lies within that lesson in the first place. He had asked Akhefia about it, rehashing the details the man had taught, but the thief had done nothing more than from deeply and mutter something about twisting facts. Yugi had swallowed heavily, a deep pit forming in his stomach. Was it true? Did Haphiri, an ancient Priestess of Isis and apparent friend to Yami, actually kill him? But why?

You're thinking too much Yami noted quietly in the back of his head and Yugi jumped.

But aren't you worried? Yugi wondered back to his partner, his best friend, his literal other half. Yami phased into existence beside him, face grave.

I have felt nothing dangerous from the Priestess until that day. If she meant us harm, she would be doing more than warning us off this Raphael Schiavone Yami stated calmly, but Yugi could tell he was disturbed somewhat. Anyone who might have answers, were not speaking and none of the books even mentioned her. He supposed he could ask Bill one day, but the man spent most of his time with the Tomb Keepers and might be bound to say nothing at all. It was all they could do to just wait this out and hope for the best.

They finally arrived at Snape's office. It was clearly not where they would be doing… whatever it was that Atem needed them for. The prince was dressed in his navy robes, his ever present shadow of Mahad poised behind him. Kaiba stepped around him to place himself on Atem's right side while Bill hovered cautiously in a corner. Snape was sat at his desk, marking a stack of papers and ignoring them all, including the nervous-looking ghost girl sat on his desk.

Harry was nowhere to be seen.

"So, what are we doing?" Yugi asked, shifting uncomfortably on the spot. This could go bad very quickly, he could see it in everyone's stances.

"Currently, we are waiting for the famed Boy Who Thinks He Can Be Late," Snape stated from behind the pile of paper, not even looking up. Bill rolled his eyes in the corner, mouth quirking up briefly into a smile. It dropped a moment later.

"What Professor Snape means to say, is that once Harry has arrived we'll be heading to the dungeon that has been set up for this. Did you bring the Rod?" Atem asked, aiming this last question at Kaiba. In answer, he pulled the golden Millennium Rod out of the back of his belt, hidden under his robes. Atem nodded and they fell back into silence.

There was a crash outside and Yugi jumped. Yami disappeared through the wall briefly before reappearing, looking oddly amused. A moment later Harry crashed through the door, his collar held in the triumphant grip of Professor Umbridge, a sheepish Marik peeking out from behind her.

"Professor Snape-" she started, cutting herself off at the sight of the rest of them. Kaiba had already hidden the Rod once again.

"Ah, Potter," Snape stated silkily, as if he had arrived alone. "Late as usual. Tsk, tsk, that will not do for the rest of our Remedial Potions lessons." Harry flushed scarlet, looking angry as Umbridge recovered and cleared her throat.

"Hem Hem. I see you were expecting Mr Potter?" she said somewhat awkwardly.

"Yes. As you can see, we are having some trouble with certain… students, who are in need of remedial sessions. Clearly, fame is more important than grades," Snape stated, still not looking up at her. Yugi got the sense he was deliberately ignoring her. Umbridge blinked and then smirked.

"Ah, of course. The resident… trouble makers. I shall leave them in your capable hands then, Snape." She turned and strode away then, as if it had been her idea all along. Marik watched her go incredulously.

"How dumb do you think she is?" he asked once she was presumably out of earshot.

"Very, luckily for us," Snape intoned. "I believe you have somewhere to be." Marik nodded and disappeared again. "Hurry up, Potter." Harry scowled at the back of Snape's head as the man swept out of his office. Atem followed quickly and Yugi hung back to speak with Harry. It would be the first time in a while since they had spoken properly- that time at breakfast when they were all in shock over the attack didn't count.

"Hey Harry," he murmured as they left the office. Further up the corridor, he could see Marik speaking quietly with Akhefia, a subtle aura of Shadows surrounding them.

"Hey Yugi," the other boy muttered. "Any idea what we're doing?" Yugi shook his head, grateful that he had apparently not noticed the two behind them. Kaiba shooed them forwards and they followed the quickly retreating forms of Atem, Mahad and Snape further into the dungeons. There was an awkward moment of silence before Harry cleared his throat. "I, er… I'm sorry I went through your stuff," the other boy said, still sounding slightly standoffish about it. "Some of my friends have been possessed in the past."

"I know," Yugi said quietly, feeling rather sad. "Dumbledore said as much to Yami. But I told you before, I'm not possessed." Harry gave him a flat look that said he clearly didn't believe it. Yugi sighed and fiddled with the chain to the Puzzle. "He… he's trapped in this," he explained quietly as Harry watched him. "Has been for five thousand or so years now. It's… a long story."

"And still none of your business," Kaiba snapped from behind them, causing Harry to jump. He probably hadn't noticed him there.

"Considering how we've all been summoned down here, I think he needs some kind of an explanation," Yugi snapped back. Kaiba looked set to argue but was stopped by Atem.

"Yugi isn't wrong," the other boy said as they came to a halt outside of a door. Yugi didn't need the Pharaoh's heightened senses to feel the sheer amount of power pouring off just the symbols on the door. "What we will be attempting will involve the Pendant, Rod and the Spirit. Some explanation isn't unwarranted." Snape ignored them in favour of doing… something to the door. Yugi would never be sure how exactly he opened it.

They walked into a fairly bare room. Inside was three chairs, a cushion set on the floor and some kind of circle made up of flowing glyphs, only some of them familiar. There were heiroglyphs, runes, what looked to be Arabic and even some Kanji scattered within the writing so condensed it might as well have been cohesive. Candles were set strategically into the walls to ensure that the room was well lit. Bill whistled behind him.

"That's some spellwork," the wizard noted, glancing around. "Did you set the wards into the school itself?"

"The school has a myriad of different magicks worked into it. This room is hidden to those who cannot work more than one of them, to protect those stupid enough to attempt to meddle with such power without knowledge. Even so, I had to chase out several broken souls and dispose of the remnants of those who still attempted such a venture," Snape said, speaking casually about the disposal of corpses as if commenting on the weather. Yugi glanced at the man, seeing nothing but a blank face. He didn't think he wanted to know what could numb a person like that so thoroughly. Harry looked horrified.

"And what, I'm just supposed to step into that?" he asked, backing away slightly. Kaiba stood in the way of the door, preventing the teenager from leaving.

"The circle will not harm you Harry," Atem stated, stepping over the carefully scribed words and settling into a kneeling position on the cushion in front of the chair. "It is intended to prevent anything from getting out."

"Anything like what?" Harry asked suspiciously, eyeing Kaiba as if trying to think of a way round him.

"Like an accidental summoning of the Dark Lord," Snape stated derisively. "Or something worse. You'll notice that the Princess Nofret was unable to follow us here." Yugi had noticed that the girl had suddenly disappeared. He eyed Mahad questioningly.

"I summoned Mahad here," Atem stated, raising his left arm to reveal a golden device strapped under it. It comprised of three wings, each holding an eye, only one currently filled in, showing a small form of the Master Magician. "He will only be banished if I let him go or our link is broken." Was it just Yugi or was Atem looking pale in the light of the room. He was certainly looking incredibly tired considering the large bags under his eyes.

Harry stared, eyes wide, aware that there was no going back. It was now or never.

"What do I have to do?" he asked warily, not edging any closer to the circle.

"Sit in this chair. The rest will be done by myself or Yugi," Atem stated. "Hopefully, it will be no more than closing a door. If it isn't…" he trailed off moving to glance behind them towards Kaiba, Snape and Bill. "Well, they'll know how to deal with it." Harry frowned but finally stepped over the edge of the circle and Yugi followed. It was an odd sensation to walk through the wards and they fluctuated a moment, fighting Yami as the Spirit jumped in through the Puzzle and back out into the open once more. Harry sat warily in front of Atem.

"What do I need to do?" Yugi asked, wondering if this would be where he and Yami would need to swap. Atem pointed to the chair placed just behind and slightly higher than Harry.

"Sit there. The Pendant allows access to the soul. I will help you to use it."

"And Y-" he cut himself off at Atem's sharp look, a reminder that a name was an identity and the Pharaoh could not have one here. "And the Pharaoh?" he corrected himself. Harry blinked between them.

"Nothing, for now. Seto, sit behind me and keep a close eye. I'll need you this side of the wards." Kaiba nodded settling into the final chair. Yugi found himself resting his hands on Harry's shoulders.

"Now what?" Harry asked, sounding more alarmed by the minuet.

"Now, we begin."

So this was orginally going to be longer, but we started reaching nearly six to seven thousand words and you've been waiting a while. Also I got majorly stuck in the middle of this chapter regarding both Raphael and how I was going to get to a future point in the story. I think I've fixed it now but I make no promises.

I'm so glad I have an outline for this because I would be lost without it. If you can't tell, I got a little stuck halfway through, deleted half of the chapter because it wasn't feeling right and then came back to it recently to decide how to fix it. Writer's block is an arse. Then I got stuck on Snape because I keep adding bits to him (and accidently adding in little Merlin points too- I'm going to have to add that as a tag someday if I don't slow down) and going over those notes helped me scale it back a bit. As much as I know Snape is powerful, we don't need OP Snape when we already have the Nameless Pharaoh in the mix and I was getting carried away. He has a purpose and I will be giving him a better ending than JK Rowling and that is all I am going to say on the matter.

Anyhow, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter, my apologies for the shortened notes, I am super tired so the next couple of chapters will also be less dialogue heavy from me regarding this little aspect of the writing process. I just don't have the energy for long speeches so apologies to those who enjoyed reading about my inside thoughts and writing processes!

Side-note however, Raphael continues to be an arse to write from his point of view, but I need it. :(

To reply to those who reviewed (oh so long ago now apologies):

sourcerousfang: Thank you so much for both your encouragement and your review! I was actually finishing up writing my dissertation/uni work when I was writing this and I had just got out of a really tough job I had been in (long story) when I received your reviews and it honestly made my day. I thank you for the comments regarding art and I have to find some time to update the image on the front of this- I promise I have done more to it XD Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter as well, sorry for the absence of Bakura. Unfortunately, like the anime, I need him there for the end but am still figuring out the part in the middle. This is actually about the midpoint of the story (there's 32 chapters planned) so we shall see more of him in the future I promise!

foxchick1: I hope this satisfies your curiosity, I have more in the running not sure when it will arrive though!

Maatkare of Egypt: I'm glad you enjoyed the Dumbledore-Yami interaction (that whole chapter was very cathartic) and my apologies for not really going into detail about Yugi settling into the Palace Dorm. There just wasn't a place for it within this section of the story and I had a few other things to work out as well, so unfortunately that got left on the wayside. I hope you enjoyed this chapter regardless!

Az-Bebere: You know what, I did not think about that point of Raphael and Harry. I do have a future scene between them somewhat planned but it was not that. I'm glad you are enjoying this story and the characterisations though and I hope you continue to do so! I will have to consider that point however within this cannon... it has given me an idea of some sort for the future. Thank you for your lovely review and making note of that!

CybeastFalzar: I am glad you enjoyed that and I hope that future scenes of that ilk will also be enjoyable for you! I hope you enjoy this one too!

Fireking492: Like everyone else I am glad you enjoyed the Dumbledore blasting and, I too am a Hufflepuff so I wish you luck with all your stories as well! Thank you once again for all your wonderful reviews they are great for motivation when I get writer's block... again XD