Revised

~§~

Chapter 7: Soul Rooms

~§~

It was a sunny and pleasantly warm Sunday and the group of school kids had agreed the Friday that had just passed that they would meet up at the grand opening of a new exhibit at the locate museum. The idea had stemmed from Yugi, who's Grandpa was friends with the main archaeologist that had found the tomb that all the artefacts had originated from. Yugi had mentioned that he and his Grandpa would be going to meet the man as he was a close friend and to congratulate him for his discovery.

While Lailat, since discovering who she was, disliked the idea of disturbing the resting places of those that had been laid to rest- she also found the idea of visiting intriguing.

"Mr Muto!" A voice called.

The group all turned to see who it was that was greeting them. Sugoroku grinned as the older man with grey hair and well-trimmed moustache moved to greet them. "There he is!"

"Sorry to keep you waiting." He apologized.

"Don't worry about it. Thank you for the invitation!" Grandpa waved off, then turned to the group of six teens. "Kids, let me introduce Professor Yoshimori!"

"Nice to meet you." Professor Yoshimori greeted warmly.

"So, he's the famous archaeologist?" Honda questioned, amazed at the sight of him.

Lailat nearly snorted at his idiotic, obviously.

"And who is this?" Sugoroku questioned, seeing another man walk up to them. He was wearing a mustard yellow suit with a red bow tie and white hat. He was a fairly large man in weight and short in size.

Lailat was a great judge of character and immediately didn't like him.

"Yes. This man is the keeper and the organizer of the museum's exhibition. He's also the sponsor for the digs that were done in Egypt." Professor Yoshimori explained.

"My name is Kankura." The Keeper introduced himself, smiling widely. "Welcome to my museum!"

A glint of gold from the corner of Lailat's eye had her turning her head. She frowned but couldn't see where it had come from, her eyes scanned for a few more moments. She turned back around when Professor Yoshimori spoke again.

"Mr Muto… you told me about your grandson. The one who managed to solve the Millennium Puzzle's riddle."

Lailat found her eyes narrowing. Not at the Professor Yoshimori but at the Keeper, whose eyes widened in excitement at Yoshimori's words. Something about that man stunk of distrust.

"I talked to you about it?" Sugoroku laughed slightly, obviously having forgotten.

Hearing about his Millennium Puzzle meant, Yugi turned to look at the Professor.

"Are you Yugi?"

The Keeper was suddenly in front of Yugi, invading his personal space. "So, that's it… the famous Millennium Puzzle?" The Keeper took hold of the puzzle, lifting it up and unfortunately strangled Yugi a bit from the lack of length of the string. "It's splendid! It's a priceless cultural Egyptian treasure!"

He definitely can't be trusted, Lailat tilts her head with half-lidded eyes. She didn't like the way he stared at the Puzzle. At Yami.

"Mr Kanejure is an expert when it comes to the value of artefacts." Yoshimori commented, smiling softly, oblivious to what the man was trying like no doubt.

Yugi managed to get a hold of the puzzle again, he stared at it with amazement. Was it really?

"Would you allow me to show your puzzle as a part of my exhibition?" The Keeper suddenly asked, bowing deeply and clasped his hands together. "I'm begging you!"

Yugi looked blatantly unsure about the idea of parting with his Puzzle, Lailat narrowed her eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder. Yugi glanced at her and she gave him an unsure expression, but clearly said it was his decision – that they can't force anything on him.

"Hmmm… all right, but only for one day." Yugi agreed hesitantly.

Lailat almost wants to throttle poor Yugi but it's his decision, she just has to trust him.

"Re… Really? Thank you, Yugi! I'll take really good care of it!" He said as Yugi hands him the golden artefact.

~§~

"Look at this! It's so beautiful…" Anzu awed over a table that depicted something she recognized.

"It's depicting the judgement of the dead." Lailat explained as she wandered over for a better look.

After starting to have the dreams when she was a lot younger, she'd become fascinated by it all and started researching all about Ancient Egypt.

Yoshinori chuckled and asked: "You seem to know a lot about it, would you like to explain?"

Delighted, Lailat took his offer, she'd always loved its history. "Ancient Egyptians believed that if you wanted to continue to the next life, you first had to be tried by Osiris to see how heavy your sins committed in life were. To do that your heart would be weighed on a scale against the feather of Ma'at. If your heart was lighter than the feather, you'd pass."

"What if your heart was heavier?" Jounouchi asked, glancing at the ravenette in nervousness.

Lailat turned to him, staring him in the eye as she answered. "If so, your heart would be eaten by the demon Ammit and your soul would live in eternal damnation."

Jounouchi paled, he looked like he was going to collapse to the floor had Honda not held him up.

"Lailat!" Anzu scolded.

Lailat blinked her charcoal eyes in confusion. "What? I just answered his question."

The group, minus Jounouchi who was too scared, sweatdropped.

Yugi smiled sheepishly. "But look at how scared Jounouchi-kun is."

Lailat did and frowned, he looked like his soul had been sucked out – or maybe as if his soul was next to be weighed, which was a scary thought. Lailat just blinked and shrugged. "I answered his question. Not my fault he takes everything so seriously."

"How about we move on? The mummies are next." Yoshinori chuckled again, finding the entire situation funny.

The scene that happened next was just downright hilarious that if Lailat wasn't so apathetic she'd have started laughing.

Miho had screamed and Honda thinking she'd have been scared, opened his arms for her but instead of Miho, it was Jounouchi that leaps into his embrace in fear, muttering about mummies and curses.

The group of four moved on leaving Yugi and Lailat at the mummy. Lailat frowned, pursing her lips together. As much as finding out about what sort of life ancient Egyptians had, she found it disturbing that they disrupted something considered sacred to them to learn about them.

A man walked to the other side of Yugi, he was wearing a white cloak and a turban with a white feather attached to it. A golden Ankh hung from his neck as his eyes seemed empty as they stared at the mummy and soon tears began to fall.

"Why are you crying?" Yugi asked hesitantly.

"These are not my tears." The Egyptian explained. "The rotten figure… it's almost like a puppet of dirt. Despite that, the soul of a great Pharaoh lives within it. Prevented from its internal slumber-" Lailat tuned out from his words as her charcoal gaze landed on what was in his hand. Scales, they seemed familiar to her. Very but she couldn't figure out why.

Lailat looked up to see him looking at her. For a moment, she thought that he recognized her by the flicker in his oddly blank eyes but before she could really tell, he was walking away. Yugi shouted back at him.

"Look! Yugi's puzzle is on display!" Jounouchi shouted, distracting Yugi and Lailat. They wandered over.

Lailat watched at the Keeper swiftly moved along, pushing what looked like a businessman with him. Her eyes narrowed.

"Hey, Yugi, that's great! Your treasure is going to get famous thanks to this exposition!"

Yugi chuckled sheepishly. "Do you really think so?"

"So? Let's take a picture as a souvenir!" Anzu beamed.

Yoshinori approached Yugi, who turned to the Professor when he started speaking. "Yugi, I'm sorry I had to separate you from your Millennium Puzzle. Without the help of Mr Kanekura, my archaeological dig could never have taken place. I'm in his debt."

It seemed that Anzu wanted to take the photo now. Lailat pulled a face but didn't protest. She held up a peace sign but didn't smile, her familiar apathetic look making the sight quite funny.

By the time the group finished the tour, it was half an hour from closing. Lailat, since she hadn't liked the Keeper at all, decided she'd stay behind with Yugi in case something might happen.

Once the half hour past, the duo made their way back inside to meet with the Keeper, only to see the familiar Egyptian walking towards them with Yugi's puzzle in his hand.

"My Millennium Puzzle…" Yugi noted as he spotted the item.

The man stopped abruptly. "You're the boy I saw earlier."

"Yes, that's me... but why are you holding my puzzle?" Yugi rubbed the back of his head.

Lailat noticed the Ankh again but this time it seemed to glow, hover and head towards Yugi. As a reflex, Lailat reached to pull Yugi back just as the key touched Yugi's forehead. The world around her just seemed to stop and suddenly a sensation of falling hit her.

~§~

"Good luck." Yami wished the intruder as he vanished, travelling to another part of his soul room to hide from the intruding man. However, he paused when he noticed a hallway that he was unfamiliar with. Strange. This… isn't part of my Soul Room… or Yugi's.

Yami followed the hallway until he came to a door. Unlike the other doors in his Soul Room, this one had a head of a cat craved into it with wings either side.

He opened it with caution, unsure what would be the other side. He blinked, another hallway but there was another door just a few feet away. He frowns and pulled that one open too.

Immediately he was met with an open hallway – one that would greet you when you enter a home. It looked bare and had a cold feeling to it, one that could possibly be described as loneliness.

He ventured further, he noted the drawings on the floor. They looked like they were done by a child. Yami knelt and brushed his fingers against it. The floor was large sandy coloured tiles, much like the ones in the entrance to his Soul Room.

He noticed that despite the modern look of the room, like something from the present, there were hints of Egyptian things. Pillars, decorative ornaments- there were small statues of cats litters about.

Yami stood upright and tensed when he heard walking, not of two feet but four. From a doorway on his left out came a lynx, an elegant looking beast. Sharp claws and a lovely sandy tone pelt but what stood out were the folded wings on its back.

"Greetings, Pharaoh." The beast spoke. Yami stood, turning towards it. His heart pounded at the unfamiliar creature but he felt like he'd seen her before. "My name is Cath. I mean you no harm if that is what you believe."

Yami nodded, relaxing his body. "Where am I?"

Cath looked fairly surprised by the question but it was replaced with understanding. "You have no memories, do you?"

Yami simply shook his head.

The lynx sat. "As expected but this Soul Room, it belongs to Lailat."

"Lailat?" Yami frowned, his eyes glanced around again, even more curious than before.

Cath jerked her head to the closed door straight on from the entrance. "You'll find her through there. I want to give you some advice, Pharaoh. You'll always trust Lailat and there is a reason for that. You two share history. I'm not allowed to tell you much but tell her that I told her to speak to you. Just be mindful that she is just as confused as you are."

Yami, honestly, had no idea what was going on but Lailat and he shared history? What on earth did the lynx mean by that?

"Share history?" Yami questioned, having to know. Having to know if this explained why he felt so comfortable around Lailat, like he'd know her forever, like he cared for her the very moment she'd first touched a piece of the puzzle and clicked two pieces together.

Cath sighed, like she regretted saying it. "She is a… dear friend from your time reborn, does that answer it?"

It certainly did… well, at least a small portion but he could save his questions for later.

Yami turned towards the door that Lailat was behind and immediately goes for it. Pushing it open to reveal another room but this was a bedroom. It was dark but had it been lit properly, he was sure the room would have looked like an average bedroom.

The was Lailat, sat on the bed crossed legged. She was facing him.

"Greetings." she actually gave a crooked smile, a small one but a smile nonetheless. He was right, a smile suited her and she smiled at him.

"Hello." he returned, glancing about the room with fondness. "This is your Soul Room then?"

Lailat nodded. "Did you meet Cath? She keeps me company when I spent too much time thinking." There was a humorous tone.

She was actually expressing emotion. Was the world ending? Yami pondered in amusement.

"Why don't you express emotion in the real world often, but in here you do?" Yami questioned, stepping further into the room.

"The way I was raised?" It was more of a question, she sighed and closed her eyes. "Honesty? I'm positive I have alexithymia, which means I have an inability to identify and describe emotions. I can lack emotional awareness, social attachments, and interpersonal relating. So I come off as apathetic to a lot of people but internally I'm more… aware? Doubt that's the right word- but I have trouble identify feelings in certain situations. It also means I have trouble connecting with people." Lailat chuckled humorlessly.

It's also something Rania had too.

"Anyway, Cath told you about my dreams or memories or whatever the hell they are right?" Lailat questioned.

Yami nodded. "Yes, but you can tell me when you're ready, Dove. I'm not going to force you to do anything."

Suddenly, Yami twists his head to the way he came. He pursed his lips in disappointment at their time being cut short. "It seems the intruder is getting close to my actually Soul Room." He turns back to Lailat. "We'll no doubt see each other soon."

And he was gone, leaving Lailat to stare at the spot he'd been, she smiled sadly but there was gratitude behind it. Maybe she'd finally have someone she could trust completely and without judgement from them.

The door opened wider and Cath entered, hopping onto the bed and curled up behind Lailat, acting as a backrest.

"I wonder what's gonna happen now?" Lailat questioned allowed.

"Plenty of things, we both know that." Cath hummed.

Lailat sighed.