Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or Supernatural. This is a work of fanfiction.
Side note: I know that Chapter 13 was a little short, however, the reason for that is because I was already working on Chapter 14 and some of what was originally going to be Chapter 13 content ended up in Chapter 14 for reasons. Hopefully the length of this chapter will make up for the shortness of the last.
Also, for the ritual used in this chapter, well, I made the whole thing up. It wasn't easy to actually explain why the things that happen are actually happened but I hope it comes across as plausible and not completely ludicrous by the standards of, you know, Yugioh! and Supernatural.
If you notice typos, let me know.
Chapter 14
Sam and Dean had explained to Bobby about the strange shadow wall they saw the day the demon attacked. After a significant amount of research, Bobby turned up more information on Egyptian magic and multiple references to something called Shadow Magic. It was a dark and old magic, and the Millennium Items granted their users access to this rare and dangerous power. Perhaps that could explain the frightful barrier Sam and Dean encountered. Maybe it hadn't had anything to do with the demon at all. It was more likely, they realized, that the Millennium Puzzle had been behind the strange anomoly.
They would need Melanie's help to pull this off without alarming Yugi to their plan. They weren't sure of how aware Yugi was of the power of the Millennium Puzzle, but considering how long Yugi had owned the item, there was good reason to believe that he knew at least something. Why did he keep it? What hold did the Puzzle have on Yugi?
They'd have to break it's hold somehow. It was obviously controlling Yugi. The Winchesters and Bobby couldn't allow that to go on.
Fortunately, Bobby had a plan.
They waited two more days to put that plan into action. The binding ritual was difficult to complete, requiring several obscure and rare ingredients and the proper incantations in, of course, Ancient Egyptian. The most difficult part was setting the actual binding circle. The idea was like, but far more complicated than, the Devil's Snare they'd so often used to hold Demons. This time, however, the hieroglyphics and incantations were even more intricate and specifically aimed at holding Spirits and countering Shadow Magic. The hieroglyphs took the longest, as each one had to be exactly right. Bobby had to erase chalk marks several times before getting the symbols the way he wanted them.
Bobby wasn't even certain it would work. The spell had come from some abandoned tomb once occupied by a clan of Tomb Keepers. The clan had long since died-out, leaving their secrets to those few who might make use of them. The obscure ritual had passed through the hands of a few different Hunters before Bobby had managed to get a hold of it.
Melanie Mutou had been difficult to convince at first; however, when presented with the information, she had no choice but to participate. She had vowed not to let anything hurt Yugi and she could no longer deny his strange behavior. Melanie prayed that they were mistaken, that everything was fine with her son just as Sugoroku had aways insisted, but, in her heart, she doubted. That doubt was enough to ally her against her son in the hopes of saving him from unknown darkness.
Sugoroku, of course, had not been told of this plan. The old man was no Hunter, and everyone agreed that it would not do his aging heart any good to witness what they would be putting Yugi through. They weren't entirely certain what would happen once Yugi entered the binding circle. It was better that the old man not be around. It hadn't been easy, but Melanie had managed to convince him to run to the market and he grudgingly agreed.
As he left, Melanie steeled herself for what was to come. They were not sure what they were going to encounter today, but, as it concerned her young son, Mrs. Mutou felt her stomach tie itself in knots.
"Yugi?" She called loudly, trying to make her voice even and as normal as possible. "Would you come in the study? I need some help moving this box."Her hands shook as she heard her son bounding down the stairs in his usual, somewhat childlike, way.
As soon as Yugi had entered into the study, ready to assist his mother, Bobby slammed the door shut behind him. Yugi whirled in confusion, not understanding Bobby's sudden and alarming action. Then, as he was focused on Bobby, Sam and Dean swiftly tackled the boy, forcing him to cross into the strange circle in the middle of the room.
The effect was instantaneous. Yugi screamed and his voice seemed to double as he cried out. His amethyst eyes rolled back into his head as seemingly endless tears rolled down his cheeks. The teenager's small body collapsed beneath him and the Millennium Puzzle emitted a furious light.
When the light faded, Yugi was lying unconscious, his body halfway out of the circle, and where he had been standing there was…
Sam couldn't believe what he was seeing. In the middle of the Egyptian binding circle stood what appeared to be an older Yugi...except, that wasn't possible. Yugi was lying unconscious on the ground. His mother pulled him the rest of the way out of the circle and cradled his still form in her arms. She wiped the tears from his smooth face, fighting back her own. Her eyes widened and fixed on the too-familiar, and momentarily stunned, entity.
The Spirit that had come from the Puzzle wore traditional Egyptian garb, a long cape hanging from his shoulders.
His skin was deeply tanned and his features were more matured and angular than Yugi's, but it was still a remarkable resemblance. On his head sat a winged crown of gleaming gold and his body was adorned with golden jewelry, marking his high status. It was almost painful to look at him. His form seemed to shine and shimmer before their eyes.
The Spirit's eyes were the same shade of angry crimson that Sam had observed in the alleyway the previous week. His red eyes darted to Yugi lying limply on the floor and a low, rumbling growl emitted from his throat, echoing through the small study. The Pharaoh turned the full force of his wrathful glare on the Hunters now surrounding him.
Yami looked down his nose at the Hunters, fighting to compose his features into a calm mask. "That was an impressive bit of spell work." The Spirit raised his ethereal hand to the barrier and snatched it back as the slight contact made him feel as though his long, thin fingers had been engulfed in flame. He turned back to Bobby, "However, that was foolish. You have toyed with powers you barely understand and hurt Yugi in the process. I cannot abide that." He looked each of them in the eyes, making his displeasure evident. The force of his state was disconcerting.
Dean scoffed and clenched his fists, "Hurt him? As if something like you could care about Yugi. We're going to put you to rest so you can't possess him anymore. We're saving him from you."
The Pharaoh blinked rapidly, his thick lashed brushing his skin. He turned to Dean, regarding him with a withering look. "Yugi wanted to leave days ago. Perhaps I should have listened. I didn't think his own family would risk him harm so recklessly." He shook his head in disgust.
Yami could argue that he and Yugi needed and depended on each other, that their souls were tightly bound together, and that he would never harm Yugi...but he knew it would avail him not. To them, Yami was nothing more than an out-of-place monster and intruder. He could see it in their eyes.
He pressed his lips into a tight line and looked once again toward Yugi, willing him to wake up and fearful of what damage might have been done to the young soul. The pain had been excruciating as the magic forcibly separated them. He had tried to shield Yugi from the shock but had been unable to hold back the assaulting magic. Yami's mind was still swimming from the unceremonious tearing apart of their souls. It reminded him of his first memory. Back then he had found himself flung into darkness and despair, missing an integral part of himself. That same emptiness echoed within him once again.
"Is…is he breathing?" Yami tried to keep his face neutral but a fraction of his fear crept into his voice, causing it to waver ever so slightly. Yugi was so still and quiet. It seemed unnatural and wrong for someone so full of life. The violent magic surrounding Yami kept him from being able to sense Yugi, or anyone else, outside of the circle. It was an uncomfortably isolating – and familiar – sensation.
Melanie looked him in the eyes now and nodded. This spirit was not what she had expected him to be and it took her off guard. She expected to find some sort of vicious monster or the face of an ancient stranger, not the face of her own son. Not the same face that looked so much like her deceased husband in places. The enemy should look like an enemy. He seemed to relax at her response and sighed.
"All right, it's time to start talking. Who are you and why are you possessing Yugi?" Bobby demanded, trying to take charge of the situation. None of them had expected the spirit they were trying to capture to be the young man standing before them. The surprise had briefly disarmed each of them in a way. Had they accidentally torn Yugi's soul from his body? Did the spell backfire? No, this person favored Yugi, but he couldn't actually be Yugi. His presence was too different; more regal and focused. Bobby briefly wondered if Yugi had had an older brother before brushing the thought aside. He'd have known about something like a deceased older brother. Melly didn't have any other children.
Yami tilted his head and brushed one of his golden bangs behind his ear, carefully thinking of how to respond to Bobby's question.
"I do not have a name," he stated quietly. "Yami will serve as a name if you must have one. I exist within the Millennium Puzzle. Judging from the magic you've used to bind me thus, however, I would assume that you are already quite aware of that fact. There is little else I can tell you. This seems to be my truest form. The spells you have cast make it nearly impossible to hide oneself. It really is a remarkable, if dangerous, bit of magic." He was inspecting the back of his hand as though he was intrigued with his form himself.
This was the strangest specter Sam had ever seen. He was so…reasonable and calm. It was almost like talking to a living person, if a living person had a very ancient fashion sense. Yami did not fit the usual description of the vengeful spirit very well. He was too aware of himself. The Spirit was clearly conscious of the fact that he was no longer a living man, as well, which was another rarity among trapped souls and ghosts.
"What's holding you here? Why haven't you passed on like you're supposed to?" Sam asked gently, hoping to earn Yami's trust and, as a result, further information. Sam spoke politely to the Spirit, waiting patiently for his response.
Yami sighed, glancing at Yugi again as he did frequently to make sure the teen was alright. The color had returned to his cheeks, which was a good sign. Yami reached out to Yugi through their shared link by force of habit but could not reach him. The magic separating them was strong. Old.
He turned his attention to Sam, "That is a complicated matter. I, myself, could not give you all of the answers as my own memory is…sealed. I act as a guardian of sorts." The Spirit grew quiet for a moment, a small frown briefly flitting across his tensed features. He bit at his lip absentmindedly.
Yami wavered momentarily, trying to decide whether or not to share more with these men who hunted him and tore him from his brother. He did not…dared not…trust them now. Never in his wildest imaginings did he expect these people to dig up ancient magic strong enough to hold, and hurt, him. He would not entrust any more details than necessary to them concerning what little they had gathered about his – and Yugi's – destiny. They were dangerous.
The younger Winchester was quickly beginning to doubt the plan they had chosen. There was more to this than he had originally suspected. The Spirit seemed sad and concerned for Yugi. He was angry, obviously, for being captured and for the possible harm done to the teenager…but he did not seem malicious. Sam scratched his chin, trying to think of some alternate plan than what they had originally intended. It didn't seem right anymore. This spirit was an anomaly and they needed to understand him before they did something rash.
Dean, unlike Sam, felt nothing but contempt for the spirit standing before them. The ghost had stolen his little cousin's face and, quite possibly, a large chunk of his life over the past few years. That was unforgiveable. Yugi deserved better than to be someone's puppet. The thought enraged Dean further. He wasn't going to stand for it.
The others had all paused, taken in by the familiar face and the story the spirit told, but Dean would have none of it. He strode briskly and purposefully to where Melly knelt on the ground with Yugi, and quickly slipped the Puzzle from around the boy's neck. Yugi stirred and moaned slightly before stilling again. Dean began tossing the ancient Puzzle carelessly into the air, juggling it between his hands. Yami stiffened, his spectral body betraying his distress at the sudden threatening action.
"Dean, wait," Bobby tried to caution him, rethinking their earlier plans himself. The older man wanted to see what Yugi would say to all of this when he woke up. The boy had been out for about ten minutes already. Sam shook his head curtly, trying to signal for Dean to stop. Dean promptly ignored them both.
"You see…Yami, was it? You see, Yami, I don't think you're telling us everything we need to know." Dean began, fixing Yami with an unkind grin.
Yami quirked one eyebrow at the eldest Winchester brother but remained quiet. Of course, he wasn't telling them everything. That would be foolish. He watched Dean carefully as the Hunter tossed the precious artifact heedlessly. The Pharaoh fought the urge to snap at the young man for being so careless with the item that housed his soul, but he refrained, not wanting to fuel the fire he could see growing behind Dean's eyes.
"So, here's how this is going to work. I'm going to need you to tell us the whole truth, or I might have to make some adjustments to your Puzzle." He dangled the Puzzle in front of Yami's eyes, just outside of the circle and his reach. Yami pursed his lips in annoyance.
In the background, Dean heard Yugi groan quietly again, and heard Melanie whisper comfortingly to the teen, but he pushed concern for his cousin to the back of his mind. Yugi would be okay. He needed to stay focused on the spirit before him.
Yami had frozen, but kept his gaze fixed sternly on Yugi's oldest cousin. "I have nothing more to say to you." He spat the words with a defiance and finality that could not be questioned. His authoritative tone made it clear that there would be no argument. Dean had successfully pissed the Spirit off and caused him to shut down any further chances of communication. Sam rolled his eyes at his brother's lack of patience and tact, immediately regretting that he had not stopped Dean before he did something stupid.
But Dean wasn't making an empty threat, Sam quickly realized, as his brother held the golden Puzzle up in front of his eyes, admiring it as it gleamed in the dim light. "Have it your way."
Then, and with great force, Dean slammed the Puzzle into the ground. The impact broke several of the pieces away, causing a bright light to flash and die as the Spirit cried out in agony. He wrapped his arms around himself as if trying to hold his being together and sank to the ground on his knees. Yami's vision blurred and he felt his mind slipping and fracturing, his tether to the world having been so suddenly cut. It was as if someone had taken his soul and shattered it with a hammer. He moaned quietly and collapsed onto his side. The binding circle was all that held him together now, and soon that would not be enough.
Not again, he begged the gods silently.
"Dean! That's not…!" Bobby and Sam began to protest the sudden and brutal action. Dean was acting on emotion, not thinking clearly. Even Melly yelped in surprise and gripped Yugi's hand tightly as she watched pain and fear contort the Spirit's face. He looked so much like her son. Her mother's heart betrayed her and she wanted to reach out to him or to comfort him in some way.
Dean turned on the others with a dangerous glare. "This was the plan from the beginning. I don't see why we should wait. We got it away from Yugi and it's vulnerable. Time for this ghostie to say 'goodbye'."
Yami fought to keep his mind focused on what was happening around him, but Dean and Bobby's arguing voices sounded so far away…and in their place he could hear it: that awful whispering from the Shadows. They cackled in delight at his plight and he had to stifle a whimper as he felt them draw nearer, coiling around his soul.
Thanks for reading! Please review!
