Bakura: Where's PhantomBrat?

Yugi: Still trying to wake up.

Ryou: So we're posting this for her.

Malik: Hope everyone enjoys this update!

Yugi and his fellow Hikaris were leading Isis to the garden to gather some herbs and medicinal plants for a tonic meant to relieve an upset stomach. Apparently, Ron and Joey had eaten too much too fast in their unannounced eating contest. Ishizu had to put the pair on a rare restricted servings order. Joey whined at the thought of having only one regular-sized serving of food for three meals.

Isis was rather pleased to learn that Ryou had a basic understanding of herbal combinations and had praised the young Supernatural for his skills and exceptional tea-making abilities. She was amazed that the youth could tell what someone might need and be nearly accurate in giving the person in question the tea he felt they needed. Had the boy been born when she was the palace healer, he would have been apprenticed to her. But fate had deemed another, her own descendant, to take the boy on and teach him how to aid others in healing.

The female vampire had a faint feeling that Malik and Marik were not her brother's descendants, but her own. She remembered that Mariku hadn't married nor was he engaged or dating when he was assumed dead like the Pharaoh and Akefia, but she hadn't the heart to tell them that fact. So long as Mariku was happy, she was as well. Mahaad had made mention that he would be writing the headmaster to request an end to their arrangement to stay at Hogwarts to protect the children within its walls until such a time that they felt it time to move on.

Her husband felt that they were needed to aid in the care of the three younger Supernaturals, but Isis knew that he was intrigued by their uniqueness and wanted to 'study' the Hikaris to understand what set them apart from the rest of vampire-kind. Mahaad had been informed by Atemu that Yugi had the ability to use magic and was suspected of being able to wield the most powerful forms of it, Light and Shadow. The ancient Spellcaster had decided that he wanted to take over training the boy how to handle the purest of Magics in a responsible way.

Isis watched as Yugi and Malik decided on the vegetables they wanted to prepare for their meals. "Miss Isis," Ryou started, "did you need a specific herb for the tonic you wanted to make for Ron and Joey? If it was peppermint or ginger, we've discovered that Joey is allergic to ginger. I'd suggest peppermint for Joey and with Ron's temperament ginger would be best. Both with stevia as sweetener."

Isis smiled at the Hikari, "Very well. Shall we gather the required herbs?"

Tea had been in the room that that Malik had likened to the watchtower from his favorite comics monitoring the constant updates for possible Hunts in their sector. She paled when an alert flashed on the screen in pale blue. She immediately hit 'Print' and read the sheet as it was ejected from the printer.

Pale blue meant a child under ten was a victim of a Supernatural attack. This particular alert was rather upsetting as a few children had vanished over the weekend in the same area. The youngest victim was two, the eldest was eleven. Their mangled bodies were found at the bottom of a ravine, little to no blood where they were found or in their tiny bodies.

She knew that they needed bait but didn't know what else to use since the Hikaris were outside of the age range being targeted.

Mahaad had overheard the devastating news and decided to intervene. He knocked on the doorway before speaking, "I know of a spell that can alter the age of the one using it. Unfortunately, it only works on those who are as near innocent as possible. This is because it is a 'Pure of Heart' spell."

Yugi, Ryou, and Malik instantly became the focal point in the room. Atem sighed, "We won't force you three into something you don't want to be a part of."

"I want to help catch whatever it is that's hurting innocent kids," Yugi cried out. Ryou and Malik echoed his thoughts.

Mahaad explained the spell and what it entailed. After gaining the approval to go ahead, Mahaad took the Hikaris to an empty room and cast the spell. The boys were engulfed in a purple mist instantly. Once it had cleared, a tiny toddler clutched the hand of a boy not much older than four. Malik had only regressed to the age of seven. "Crap," he complained.

The toddler looked up at Mahaad with wide amethyst eyes as he began sucking on his thumb. Ryou stared at him with amazement, "It really worked! But what's wrong with Yugi?"

"I think it affected him too much," Mahaad admitted. "He's too innocent and I didn't want the spell to go under the age of a toddler. It's affected him mentally as well."

Mahaad gently picked up Yugi and lead the other two to the meeting room. "Uh, Pharaoh, there's been a slight issue with my spell."

Everyone looked and noticed Yugi sucking on his thumb as he sat in Mahaad's arms. Atem quickly reclaimed Yugi, "We are NOT using Yugi for bait in this condition! He won't even be able to defend himself to a degree like this! Ryou's staying home as well. Malik is best suited for this mission."

Atemu sniffed at the air nearest Yugi and blanched, "We need to get some supplies for the Young Ones immediately. Yugi needs tended to."

Ishizu took the toddler from Atem and headed to the infirmary to clean him and find a makeshift diaper.

By lunchtime, everyone had learned of the spell used on the Hikaris. The girls wanted to hold Yugi but Atem told them no. Even if he wanted to let them hold his brother, Yugi's tiny hand seemed as if it had been glued to his shirt. Yugi only wanted his brother and ancestor to hold him.

Atem had been rather upset when Mahaad admitted that he didn't know how to break the enchantment and any spell used to reverse the one he had used on the hikaris would make the first permanent.

Yami: The next update will be 'Fractured' unless something comes up.

Marik: Until next time!