Chapter 2

Yugi had chosen the Mena House by the simple expedient of it having been the first hotel listed on the web page when he arranged his trip. He hadn't considered price or location, his only real concern having been getting to Egypt as fast as possible. Built in the 19th century as a royal lodge for the Khedive Ismail, the Mena House wasn't exactly economy lodging, but you couldn't beat its location.

He stared in awe at the view outside his window. The Great Pyramid! Wow, he thought, gazing up at the man-made mountain of stone. The sky behind the pyramids shifted to azure as the day faded, turning them to mysterious silhouettes in the falling dusk. He could feel the weight of thousands of years of antiquity settling like a mantle across the plateau. He had never been to Egypt before, but he knew now a part of his heart would always call it home.

Reluctantly, he turned his gaze from the magnificent view and back to the small stack of letters he had retrieved from his bag. His grandpa's spidery handwriting sprawled across the pages, interspersed with rough sketches of artifacts and tomb walls. Yugi studied one such sketch, scrunching his nose as he tried to decipher the hieroglyphs Sugoroku had inscribed next to a drawing of a sarcophagus.

Let's see... Sedge plant, bee, sun disk... Is that supposed to be a duck? Yugi shook his head. His grandpa's kanji was hard enough to read -- the hieroglyphs were next to impossible, and Yugi only knew how to read a few basic ones anyway.

Giving up for now, he carefully returned the letters to their envelopes. Each one was a testament to Sugoroku's obsession with the Millennium Items. Yugi berated himself. Why hadn't he noticed it was getting worse? He should have insisted Sugoroku come home sooner. Now... His hands trembled and, afraid that he might tear the letters, he hastily put them down. Fresh worry surged inside him. What if he never got to see his grandpa again?

No. He couldn't think like that. He would find his grandpa. Hadn't Dr. Viridian promised to help? Everything was going to be all right. Yugi was sure of it.

Hugging that assurance close to his heart, he curled up beneath the covers on the massive four-poster bed, and went to sleep with visions of Dr. Viridian's intriguing brown eyes dancing in his dreams.

Morning found Yugi anxiously dividing his attention between desultory attempts at eating breakfast and staring at the phone, which (despite his best efforts at telepathy) remained stubbornly silent. He tore his gaze away from the uncooperative phone and returned to reading the morning paper.

Most of the front page was devoted to the earthquake, though nothing in the articles gave him any clues that might lead to his grandpa's whereabouts. A tiny article buried on page four mentioned the theft from the Museum of Antiquities of several papyrus scrolls comprising an obscure text called the Book of the Nameless Pharaoh. It quoted Dr. Viridian, the Egyptologist who had discovered the papyri several years ago, and mentioned Sugoroku's sudden absence from the Institute. Yugi's stomach clenched. He didn't like the suggestion, insinuated but never stated outright, that his grandpa was a suspect. Did Dr. Viridian believe Sugoroku had stolen the papyri? If he did, it would explain his apparent reluctance to help.

He shivered and shot another look at the clock. It was after seven. He debated calling the hotel operator again and asking if there were any messages. There hadn't been the last three times he had called, but he remained hopeful. Instead, he took a tiny sip of the thick, dark coffee that had arrived along with his breakfast tray. He could practically feel the caffeine jolt along his nerves. Probably not a good idea, as high-strung as he already was. He set the coffee aside and nibbled on a piece of toast as he turned to the next page in the newspaper.

Another news item, with a small blurry photo, caught his eye. He read the caption beneath the picture: Unique amulet stolen from Cairo Museum of Antiquities.

Yugi choked on his toast. He coughed, but that only made things worse because he ended up inhaling more bits of partially masticated bread. Scrabbling a hand across the table, he latched onto the first cup he came to and chugged the contents, hoping it would clear his throat. It turned out to be the coffee, which burned like napalm as it seared its way down his esophagus. In too much distress to curse -- not that he could, because by that point he was finding it impossible to breathe -- he grabbed the water pitcher and up-ended it over his mouth. That soothed the burn, but almost drowned him in the process.

After he got his breath back, and mopped up the mess, Yugi snatched up the newspaper and glared at the offending article. A quick scan told him that a priceless artifact, a one-of-a-kind necklace, had been stolen from the jewelry exhibit at the museum.

He studied the photo. It wasn't very clear, but the detail was enough that he could see the center part of the necklace was in the shape of a golden eye. Could it be the same piece of jewelry he had seen Dr. Viridian slip into his pocket? He remembered thinking perhaps the Egyptologist was taking the necklace for further study. Would he have done so without telling anyone? It didn't seem likely, now that Yugi thought about it. Why had Viridian taken the necklace?

More importantly, why was Yugi hanging around his hotel room, finding new and exciting ways of accidentally killing himself with food, waiting for a call that seemed as if it would never come?

Yugi made up his mind. He was through waiting around. He was going to go find his grandpa! He surged to his feet with a new determination -- and stopped when he realized he was still soaking wet. Okay. He was going to change clothes! And call the museum to see what was keeping Dr. Viridian! Then he was going to go find his grandpa.

Satisfied with his new plan of action, Yugi hurried to set it in motion.

The call to the museum had not gone as planned. The words of the woman who had answered the phone were still ringing in his ears. "Dr. Viridian will be in Luxor until further notice."

The hell? Viridian had left without him? That jerk. To say that Yugi was not happy would be an understatement on a par with "Seto Kaiba is not laid-back." He wasn't sure which was worse, the feeling of betrayal from someone he had thought he could trust, or the hot flush of anger still coursing through him. Moving stiffly, he retrieved the phone from where he had flung it across the room and carefully returned it to its place on the bedside table.

He froze as a new thought occurred to him. He might be the only person in Egypt who knew that renowned Egyptologist Dr. Daniel "Yami" Viridian was, in reality, a thief. That thought led to another, even more disturbing notion. What if Dr. Viridian had stolen the necklace in order to point the blame at Sugoroku? Maybe Dr. Viridian was the one who had taken the Book of the Nameless Pharaoh, and he wanted to throw everyone off his tracks by making it look like Sugoroku was the real culprit. And Yugi had caught him in the act!

It all made sense now. Dr. Viridian's strange awkwardness, the way he had stared so intently at Yugi. It was nothing but the man's guilty conscience at work. No wonder he wanted Yugi to stay in Cairo -- Yugi was the only one who knew what Viridian was really up to.

Well, if Dr. Viridian thought his nefarious plan was going to work, he had another think coming. Yugi wasn't going to just sit by and watch Viridian frame his grandpa. Now more than ever, Yugi was determined to go to Luxor and find Sugoroku so he could clear his name. Unfortunately, the only lead Yugi had at this point was... Dr. Viridian. He sighed. Fine. If he had to follow the man to Luxor and then staple himself to Viridian's hip, he'd do it, just so long as it meant finding Sugoroku.

Decision made, he dove for the phone and called the airport. He had to be on the next flight to Luxor.

Another airplane. Just what Yugi hadn't wanted to see for about a million years -- or at least until after he had found Sugoroku. But he boarded the small plane anyway, even as a little puddle of dread settled in his stomach. It was the first flight to Luxor that day. It didn't matter that the plane looked like the prize from a box of Cracker Jacks.

Yeah, muttered a voice in his head that sounded an awful lot like Seto Kaiba. You just keep telling yourself that. I'm sure it'll be a great comfort to you when they're fishing your toy airplane out of the Nile.

"Shut up," he hissed, drawing strange looks from the passengers already seated on either side of the central aisle. Yugi tried to pretend he didn't see them. It got a lot easier when he suddenly noticed a familiar head of auburn hair at the back of the cabin. Everything else temporarily forgotten, Yugi rushed straight to the last row of seats and, with a scowl that would've made Seto proud, leaned in and growled, "Forget something?"

Dr. Viridian shot upright in his seat, brown eyes widening at the sight of Yugi looming over him. "Wha-- What are you doing here?"

"Sitting," Yugi informed him, and proceeded to do just that.

He left Viridian no choice but to shift his legs so that Yugi could scoot past him into the window seat. The seats were very close together, and his thigh brushed against Viridian's as he settled. Yugi tried to ignore the electricity that raced through him at the inadvertent touch. He stowed his small bag under the seat and looked around for something, anything to distract him from the way Viridian's hip pressed against his in the cramped space. There was nothing, not even a manufacturer's label on the seatback in front of him.

"Relax."

Yugi peeked sideways from under his bangs to find Viridian watching him with a strange expression softening the sharp angles of his handsome features.

"I hate flying," Yugi confessed. He had jumped on a plane to Egypt without a second thought because Sugoroku needed him, but that didn't mean he had enjoyed it. He shivered, and started in surprise when a long-fingered hand reached over to gently cover his.

"I've flown on this airline for years without any problems."

That means they're about due for some, Seto's voice snarked.

Yugi squinted his eyes shut and mentally chanted, Shut up, shut up, shut up! He opened his eyes to find the other man staring at him. "Sorry. I'm a little distracted. Look, Dr. Viridian--"

"Call me Yami." The offer was accompanied by a dazzling smile that undoubtedly knocked women over at twenty paces. Yugi felt his cheeks flush and silently cursed his fair complexion. "Sugoroku always does. And I've thought of you as 'Yugi' for years, even though we'd never met."

How nice for you, sneered the Seto voice. Yugi resisted the urge to pound his head against the back of his seat. How had his mental receiver gotten set to Radio Free Seto? Tell me you're not falling for the charm act, Mutou. Remember he's the one who stole that necklace from the museum.

Good point, but he didn't need Seto (even an imaginary Seto) to tell him that. Yugi closed his eyes and concentrated. If you don't get out of my head, I swear I will personally redesign every dragon in every version of every Duel Monsters game you own to look like Kuriboh.

...You wouldn't dare.

PINK Kuriboh. With little bows.

Silence. Radio Free Seto was off the air. Yugi sagged in his seat.

"Are you all right?"

He looked up to find Yami staring at him again, and forced a tiny grin. "I'm ...very tired, actually. I just want to find my grandpa, go home, and sleep for a month."

"I'm sure Sugoroku is fine. Like I said, he's simply enjoying some time off before the Institute dig starts up next month." Yami smiled. "We'll find him at the Institute's field mission headquarters or out in the Valley of the Kings, talking about his theories with anyone who will listen."

"So, you are going to Luxor to look for him." Yugi pounced on the admission.

Yami looked startled, then tried to cover it with a strained laugh. "Look for Sugoroku? No, of course not! He knows Egypt better than I do. Trust me."

The transparent denial hit Yugi like a slap to the face. He drew as far back from the other man as he could in the limited space. Trust him? That was a laugh -- a bitter, mirthless laugh that, for a second, made him wonder if he had tuned back into Seto. "So why are you going to Luxor?"

"I'm doing some preliminary work for the upcoming dig," Yami said, settling in his seat and folding his arms over his chest as if preparing to nap. Yugi couldn't help noticing that his arms, bared to the elbow by his rolled up sleeves, were lean and bronzed by all those hours of working outside on excavations. "I'll also be checking for earthquake damage at Karnak."

"Oh, I see." Yugi fought to keep the dismay off his face. Why was Yami lying to him? Was he responsible for Sugoroku's disappearance? Yugi didn't want to think that might be true, but he had to consider the possibility. More importantly, he couldn't let Yami know that he knew Yami wasn't telling him the whole truth. "I'm sure that's an important job."

From the look on Yami's face, that had come out sounding more dejected than Yugi had meant for it to. Yami's expression softened again. "I'm sorry I didn't call you, Yugi. Last night, I realized that Sugoroku wouldn't be too happy with me if I let you roam around Egypt trying to find him. I'll tell him you're looking for him, and he can join you back in Cairo. You can take the flight back first thing in the morning."

"I'd like to look around Luxor, maybe spend a few days seeing the monuments." Yugi didn't have to fake wide-eyed curiosity. "Grandpa's told me so much about Deir el-Bahri, the Valley of the Kings, and the Temple of Karnak. It would be a shame to leave without seeing any of them."

"Uh--"

"Can you suggest a good place to stay?" Yugi continued in the same innocent tone. It was a stretch, but he thought Yami was buying it. "Hey, maybe Grandpa will turn up on his own. Right?"

"...Yeah, maybe." Yami didn't look happy. His gaze had grown chilly, and the down-turned corners made his mouth into a thin, almost cruel line. "If you insist on remaining in Luxor, I suggest the Old Winter Palace. With your interest in historic hotels, I'm sure you'll enjoy staying there."

"Sounds great." Yugi didn't bother to correct the misconception. He put his head back on the seat and closed his eyes. Jet lag dragged at him. He barely noticed when Yami leaned over and fastened his seat belt for him.

Before long, the drone of the engines lulled Yugi into a restive doze. With it came a faint sense of... Grandpa? Yugi reached out for that beloved presence, comforted by the knowledge that at least his grandfather was still alive. He tried to curl around Sugoroku's presence, tried to draw it to him -- or find out where Sugoroku was -- but all he succeeded in doing was drifting deeper into dreams.

"...Yugi? You need to wake up now. We're in Luxor."

Yugi stirred as the deep voice continued to murmur, gentle and low, into his ear. He nuzzled against his pillow, trying to get comfortable, but the voice wouldn't let him go back to his nap, and his pillow was surprisingly unyielding beneath his cheek.

"Can you hear me, Yugi? It's time to get up..."

Yugi mumbled something and rubbed his cheek against the firm surface on which it rested. A faint, clean scent clung to it, something spicy that reminded him vaguely of temple incense. He reached up and gathered a handful of... Yami's shirt?

His eyes flew open and he shot back into his own seat. He blinked up at Yami, noticing the way his lips twitched, as if Yami was suppressing a smile. Yugi mentally smacked himself. He had been using Yami's shoulder as a pillow. He had probably drooled on the man. He felt like such a spazz.

"Come on, Yugi." The smile finally broke free, but it was gentle, not mocking. "We need to get off the plane now."

Still tired despite his nap, Yugi allowed Yami to lead him through the airport formalities, and then out into the hot sun. Summer in Luxor was sweltering, the heat oppressive even where they stood in the shade of the overhanging roof of the terminal. People jostled round them, vying for taxis to take them into the city. When Yami hustled him into a cab, Yugi didn't object, merely slumped in the cracked vinyl seat, and wished for air conditioning.

"So," he mumbled, when he had mustered the energy to speak. "What now?"

"I'll drop you at the Old Winter Palace."

The curt, clipped tone seemed at odds with the man who had let Yugi use him as a pillow all the way from Cairo. Yugi sat up straight and frowned at him. "What about you? Where are you going?"

"I have Institute business to attend to."

Other than a brief conversation in Arabic with the cab driver, that was the last thing Yami said as they rode toward the city. Yugi sighed, resigned to a silent, sullen companion, and turned his head to gaze out the dusty window at the bustling streets. Cars, trucks, and motorcycles mingled with horse-drawn carriages in the traffic along the Corniche el-Nil. There were crowded, colorful bazaar stalls alongside modern hotels and fast food restaurants. There were women in black veils and men in loose cotton jalabiyas, as well as young people in jeans and slogan laden t-shirts.

The taxi pulled up before a dusty building that radiated a kind of genteel decay. Once in the lobby, Yugi caught a glimpse through open double-doors of a bright, well-tended garden that promised a haven from the heat of the city. Yami dumped Yugi's luggage at -- almost on -- his feet.

"Take care," Yami called, whipping around on his heel and striding back toward the waiting cab before Yugi could even yelp in surprise. "I'll be in touch!"

Remembering the last time Yami had promised to call him, Yugi didn't waste any time dithering. With no time to spare for niceties, he shoved some money at the concierge. "Watch my luggage -- I'll be back!"

He raced outside and jumped into the first taxi in the hotel queue. Feeling like a character in a cheesy movie, he shouted, "Follow that cab!"

The driver gave him the "oh, look, it's a crazy tourist" stare until Yugi thrust a handful of crumpled bills at him. "Please."

The baksheesh disappeared. The cab took off so fast Yugi ended up in a tangled heap on the floorboard. He hauled himself up and managed to wedge himself into the corner of the seat, where he hung on for dear life as the taxi roared through traffic. They careened through the streets, heading away from the glistening ribbon of the Nile and into the city.