Thank you for these characters and their stories, Kazuki Takahashi. Requiescat in pace.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Pharaoh

"So, is it time for you to explain anything yet? I mean, I did win the duel and all."

My partner's innocent grin could easily tame the fiercest creature and cause it to submit. Even though the tension in her body relaxed around Yugi when he smiled, Dria was still more than dangerous enough for him to be around. Although I felt such love towards her, I still had a duty to protect my young partner. She chuckled a little and stroked his head fondly. Perhaps that meant she would explain something.

I didn't understand her at all. Most people were very easy to read and understand. The glow in their eyes or the stance of their body quickly gave away thoughts in situations like this. Yet, here she was, sending completely mixed signals so no one could possibly follow what was happening in that pretty head. It was hard to think that she wasn't doing it on purpose; she had more control over her reactions than that.

"I suppose it is time to explain some things. But, it would probably be better if the group were here because I owe everyone this explanation. If good is truly destined to triumph, as I believe it always is, then it won't matter who knows."

Yugi and I looked towards one another for a moment. Did she really want to tell everyone? What if people thought she was more evil than Marik? What if my partner and I thought that? I didn't wish to bear the agony of losing her again, but what if it was for the safety of the others? Could I do it?

"Are you sure? Some of the others will probably be afraid and think that you're working for Marik or someone worse. I don't want you to have to leave us."

Dria looked at the both of us, all traces of mirth replaced by true seriousness, "What do you think?"

I felt the thoughts of Yugi's mind banging back and forth around in our head. He sincerely believed she was honest and true, but he, like me, was afraid she would have to leave to find peace away from those who would accuse her of being evil. We had already accused her once before in Duelist Kingdom. My partner was terrified of making that grave a mistake again, especially since it had led to her being in danger. Yugi was about to speak when a loud voice called for all the duelists to gather together again to see who would be chosen for the next duel.

Something was different about her. No matter how blinded I may have become by my feelings for her, I could not ignore that difference. As she and Yugi walked back to the selection room, with me following as a ghost, I carefully observed her. While her form was gorgeous, I tried to ignore the beauty and look deeper, considering what words and actions had been meant as clues.

Tristan and Duke had mentioned something from their side quest: her skin had been darker, and she had been adorned in a white dress. I also couldn't possibly forget the duel against Bakura, how she had somehow merged with Slifer the Sky Dragon. She had mentioned something about being a magician not long ago, but I had not truly believed it. Now, it was different.

Perhaps she had been telling the truth when she said she had magical abilities. But, how could that possibly be true in this modern age? Magic was very limited and nearly suffocated beneath the influx of magic-like boxes Yugi kept calling television or the transportation monstrosities known as cars.

I contemplated everything Dria had said, the little hints she had dropped, her knowledge of the Items. She had said that she was older than she appeared, but was it possible that she was near my own age?

"Mr. Wheeler's opponent in this duel will be number 7, Marik Ishtar!"

My thoughts refocused on the scene before me. Joey would be facing Marik; just when I thought Dria's secrets would be our biggest problem. The worst part was that Joey was ready, though not for a duel, but rather a fist fight. He had a score to settle with Marik, but I didn't think a duel with holograms was quite what he had in mind.

I reached out for Dria's hand with my ghostly one as we headed up to the dueling platform. She smiled lightly as her hand gently curled around mine, and even though it wasn't truly there, I could still feel the warmth from her hand. The wind blew fiercely up on the platform where the duel would take place. Joey was clearly zealous about this matchup. He stood in the center of the arena, shuffling Marik's deck, perhaps a bit too long. Dria giggled as Joey growled at Marik loud enough for us to hear.

"I hope that Joey's ok." Joey's little sister was finally watching her brother duel for the first time.

"I'm sure with you here, there's no way he'll lose!" Serenity smiled at Tea, thankful for the kind words. Dria smiled and patted the girl on the back, simply offering her smile as encouragement.

"According to my math, you're gonna be all washed up in 9 turns!"

I felt a drop of sweat run down the side of my face. Joey was so fired up about this that he was letting his mouth control his thoughts. Being controlled by Marik had been bad enough, but this situation could easily become even worse than that. Dria laughed and turned to Kaiba across the platform.

"Seto! I think we should take that. Let's make a bet. You lose, I give you a makeover!"

Kaiba scoffed, "You know my opinions about gambling, particularly against you. I don't think I've ever won a bet against you."

Dria pouted, her lower lip quivering and her big green eyes sparkling, but Kaiba only covered his eyes and turned away, saying, "Your puppy eyes can't affect me if I can't see them!"

She huffed, but the twinkle in her eye showed that she was not offended by his comment. I chuckled a little; Kaiba was no idiot. Something told me Dria could twist the bet so that she won no matter what happened. She sent me a playful glare in response to my chuckle.

Marik suddenly pulled out his Millennium Rod. I knew he had no hope of winning without it. He must have been planning on using it against Joey so he could gain an easy victory. How dare that coward worm his way into this and cause all this trouble. I saw Dria narrowed her eyes at Marik, disappointed in his tactics as well.

Then, he put it away. Perhaps he was not as much of a coward after all. He might have not believed Joey was true competition, like Kaiba, but at least he wasn't going to simply force Joey's hand. My ghostly form turned back to Dria for a moment; she was still glaring at Marik. He had done nothing wrong yet, but something about her expression told me the problem hadn't been resolved.

Dria

Why was Odion's Rod so strange? It looked like the real one, but the faint scent of oranges wasn't coming from Odion's direction. I turned my head slightly towards the real Marik. He was the source of the orange scent, which must have meant that he held the true Rod. Was Marik really such a coward that he would let his loyal servant take the fall for his actions? What could have possibly happened to him to make him act like a lunatic?

I turned my head back towards the duel. There was nothing that anyone could do for Marik now, except pick up the pieces later. Hopefully, those pieces wouldn't be too hard to find. I'd hate for this to end up like Humpty Dumpty, where not even super glue could put Marik back together again.

The duel began. Joey's first move was to promptly chase after his cards. A sudden gust of wind rose up and pushed his cards out of his hands and into the gust. He reacted so quickly that I didn't have time to think about helping with my magic. Instead, I covered my eyes with my hand and sighed in both relief and distress.

Finally, he summoned a monster, and the duel actually began. Joey didn't play much after his first monster, but it must have been a part of his '9-turn plan'. Odion didn't seem threatened at all by Joey because he simply played face down cards for multiple turns. He was far more patient than Joey ever had a hope of being, which meant that Joey would jump into an attack, no matter how obvious the trap. Sadly, Odion's first round of traps smacked Joey hard. Now he was down 2000 life points.

"The trickiest and most dangerous cards in Duel Monsters are trap cards."

I laughed at Yugi's incredible compliment towards my most unpredictable type of cards. I turned to him and bowed sarcastically, "Why, thank you, thank you very much. I tried so hard to make them unbearably complicated and confusing."

He lightly pushed my shoulder in response, smiling widely. I smiled as well, trying to lighten the mood of this suddenly sour group. Joey would be just fine, but if his friends began to lose hope, then Joey would crash and burn. I didn't need to know the future to know that. We had to keep our spirits up for him, even if there was no chance. Thankfully, the group hadn't lost hope yet. Serenity was afraid for her brother, but no one seemed to believe that Joey was about to lose. We couldn't think that just yet.

"I was just testing you to see if your dueling skills were any better than your sense of style. And it looks like you passed my exam."

Oh Joey, that was the way to fight, I suppose. No matter how silly his lie was, it showed that he was not out quite so fast. He still had some fight left in him. Darling Serenity didn't seem to catch the bluff, but I smiled widely as she continued to cheer for her brother. Having her there was a huge impact on Joey because she would follow him to the ends of the Earth, supporting him the entire way.

Unfortunately, this had to be the most boring duel I'd ever seen and one of the most predictable too. Odion would play face down cards, Joey would play a monster, and then nothing. It was a very good thing that Joey had absolutely no patience. He would bring himself to the edge and somehow not fall off it. That was where the strength of his spirit and of the bond he shared with his friends came in. No matter how hopeless things seemed, his friends were always there beside him.

After the Pharaoh brought me back into the palace from two years in exile, he decided that I should take lessons in magic alongside his son to hone my special abilities. Though training the simple basics again would drive me insane, I was once again allowed to spend time with the Prince. I was never told why the Pharaoh brought me back. Master Shimon had said that I had a friend speak up on my behalf after I had shown no intentions of retaliating against those who had mistreated me and I had defended the palace on multiple occasions despite my young age.

"Listen up you two! Today is your first lesson in magic. Now, magic is a difficult element to control. The worst you could do is to allow it to overpower you. It is very dangerous and unpredictable. That is why magicians always work in teams within the palace."

I rolled my eyes at Master Shimon. I had never worked within a magician team. The mages I had trained with always worked alone, and I myself had always worked alone. Hopefully, man hadn't gained a fear of magic. If magic sensed any fear within the wielder, it would quickly overpower and destroy him. Perhaps that was why this great Egyptian kingdom had decided to create groups of mages.

We spent much of the time reviewing basic forms: hand placement, foot placement, breathing. If he asked me to breathe deeply one more time, I didn't think I could handle it.

"Very nicely done, little Prince. That's the exact form you need to use. Very well you two, we are done for today. Now run along."

I dashed out of there as quickly as I could. I hated their form of magic. It was too methodical and strict. Magic was a flowing element, and a magician must flow as well. It was no wonder that these mages worked in groups. One alone could never handle the strain of controlling his spell so rigidly.

I made my way out to my favorite garden. No one disturbed this garden since I had started coming here, so I knew no one would bother me. Master Shimon had been attempting to show us how to conjure light, pure child's play. Ignoring everything Shimon had shown me, I used my own method to practice my magic. Light shimmered out from my fingertips, sparkling wildly as it danced across the walls of the palace.

"Lady Dria?"

I froze, the light immediately fading. Someone had been brave enough to follow me into the garden. I turned slowly, preparing to be exiled from the palace once more. It was the Pharaoh himself. He stood in the doorway, confused and amazed at what he had seen. I bowed my head low and didn't dare to look him in the eye. I was in trouble again.

"That magic. You did it on your own."

I nodded my head. It really wasn't that difficult, but sometimes you just had to take risks to reach your goals. Unfortunately, my practicing was probably going to force me to leave this place, and more importantly, to leave the Prince again.

"Not many magicians are able or even allowed to use magic alone. Yet, here you are, merely a child, performing magic alone with no fear.

I felt my fury rising. This was becoming ridiculous, and I made my thoughts known to him, "Yes, I am a mere child, yet I know I could defeat any mage in your court. You treat magic as if it were a deadly substance that can't be touched, as if it were one of the creatures in the Nile waiting to strike. But a mage must become one with magic, showing no fear and instead embracing the magic."

He was silent for a few moments, before a mischievous gleam arose in his eyes, "Perhaps we should allow you a duel against the highest-ranking mage we have."

I raised my eyebrow, "Who in this entire kingdom would not only allow it, but would still think you sane after such a suggestion?" He merely smiled in response and beckoned me to follow him.

A few days later, my duel had been arranged. I had no idea who was to be my opponent, but to me, it didn't matter if it was the Pharaoh himself, though perhaps I would regret thinking that if it turned out to be him.

I spent most of my time in the garden, preparing myself for my duel. The Pharaoh refused to tell me my opponent, saying I would never know who an enemy might be until I looked into another person's eyes. In response, I stared at him for quite some time, until he realized what I was doing and gently shoved me into a fountain.

When the day of my duel finally arrived, I stood before the mirror in my bedroom. As I gazed at my 10-year-old self and wondered if I should be following through on this. But what was I thinking? If I didn't take this opportunity, chances are I'd get married off in 2 more summers and then I'd be trapped, likely in a place away from those I considered my family with a man I barely knew.

"I hope you know what you are doing, Urbi."

I turned to see the Prince standing slightly behind my curtains. He had grown taller and stronger in the years we had been forcefully separated, yet his eyes still held sadness. I was told he had been very depressed when I was kept away from him.

I smiled as I walked towards him, "Don't fret, my Prince. I'm almost positive that I know what I am doing."

"Almost positive? My father has arranged for you to face one of his top mages. You must be more than almost positive. This man could easily kill you without a second thought."

I could see worry and fear coating his sunset eyes, and though I hated causing him such stress, this was something that I needed to do. I grabbed his hand and held it tight in my own.

"I will not lose, as long as you promise to be there."

He smiled gently, "I will be there until the very end."