Lonely Heart In Egypt Chapter 23: Disaster Strikes, a yu-gi-oh fanfic

(Yami enters the room to find Angel laughing hysterically while coming dangerously close to falling off her chair, Yami Ang laughing so hard she has to use the desk to support herself, and Crystal rolling around on the floor laughing)

Yami: What the hell? O...o;;

Girls: (continue laughing hysterically for several minutes)

Yami: (sweatdrops) Ok, I think I'm going to leave now.

Y.Ang: (stops laughing for a few brief seconds) Yugios: They're Yugi-licious! (collapses in laughter again)

Yami: (MASSIVE sweatdrop) I'm worried...

Angel: (wipes a tear away from her eyes, and somehow stops laughing) Sorry Yami, but one of my friends recently showed me the most hysterical series of YuGiOh parodies I have ever seen. Its one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time.

Crystal and Y.Ang: All hail LittleKuriboh! (still laughing hysterically)

Yami: (still sweatdropping) Who gave you girls sugar?

Angel: I was home alone this morning, and raided the freezer for ice-cream (giggles)

Yami: -...- Oh great (sighs) Suppose I'll have to be the sane one that introduces this story then?

Girls: (have started watching another episode, and are thus ignoring Yami as they laugh some more)

Yami: -...- Fine then. I'm sure that if she was currently sane, Angel would like to apologise for the no doubt long wait, and thank those of you who stuck by her and are still reading the story. Also, I'm sure she would organise someone to do the disclaimer...

Atemu: (bounces into the room, beaming) Angel no own YuGiOh! She owns Mama, Granpa, Charlotte, Granpa's home, the bad guys, and me! (collapses with giggles and bounces over to the computer with the girls)

Yami: -...- I suppose I should be glad that at least one of our offspring didn't inherit Crystal's strangeness...(eyes widen as Charlotte enters the room) Oh please, please don't start acting like your mother!

Charlotte: (eyes widen) Huh? I'm only a baby in the story at the moment! Besides, we all know I'm the one most like Crystal (looks at Yami as though he is the living incarnation of ignorance)

Yami: (sighs) Anyway, moving right along...Angel said earlier to me (when she was still somewhat sane...) that she thinks this chapter will be a rather long one too – which it is. 15 pages on her computer in fact, so she is quite proud of herself. Though, I'll warn you now, the ending is nothing like the beginning...(is prevented from saying more as Charlotte puts her hand over his mouth, reminding him not to give away the plot)

Angel: (recovers sanity for a few brief seconds) Oh yeah, remember how I said in my profile that I wouldn't be posting until the holidays? Well, today is the first day of holidays, and I'm posting the chapter! I kept a promise regarding a fanfiction. Yay for me:D (starts laughing at computer again)

Yami: (escapes from Charlotte and sighs) Yeah, about her profile, Angel said that she might still update that with news and that every now and again, even when she isn't posting stories. Just to let you guys know she's still alive, and let you know how her stories are going. Anyway, on with the story!

Charlotte: Enjoy :)

Lonely Heart In Egypt

Chapter 23: Disaster Strikes

Crystal raced through the palace, her dress billowing out behind her as she chased her energetic almost-9-year-old son through the corridors. "Atemu, you'd better stop running and go to your lessons, or you're going to be very sorry!" she screeched as she rounded a corner, almost running headlong into Seto. She skidded to a halt. "Oh, sorry Seto! I was just trying..."

"To catch Atemu?" Seto finished for her, looking amused. He then nodded in the direction of the large ceramic pots to his left. "Try there, my lady," he murmured, before hurrying off to escape being caught in the storm about to strike the unsuspecting Prince of Egypt.

Crystal moved over to the pots, a disapproving expression already set on her face as her lips turned down in a definite frown. After studying the pots for a few moments, she suddenly leaned over one of them, raising her eyebrow as she peered down at the guilty expression of her son. "You wouldn't be trying to hide from your mother would you?" she asked sternly, though amusement coloured her tone as her son guiltily tried to remove himself from the pot. To her great amusement, he somehow got himself stuck half way.

He had managed to get his head out of the pot, but his shoulders were stuck. He then frowned; he'd been sure the pot was large enough. One glance at his mother proved his suspicions. "Mum! Let me out!" he protested, knowing that she had magically shrunk the hole to keep him trapped.

Crystal's eyes twinkled. "But you were so eager to avoid lessons, I thought you would want to stay in that pot," she said playfully, making no effort to release her son from his prison.

"Mum!" he whined, and she unsuccessfully tried to keep from smiling. The thing was, Atemu looked so funny with only his head sticking out of the pot.

She ended up chuckling and ruffled his hair, something the young Prince hated. "Well, maybe you won't be so eager to hide from your lessons now, huh Atemu?" she said teasingly, grinning at her son's look of annoyance.

"But Mum!" Atemu whined again, struggling to escape his prison. Crystal then suddenly felt a small tug at her skirt, and looked down to see her little 5-year-old daughter looking up at her. "Mama, why is 'temu in a pot?" she asked seriously, her large blue eyes staring curiously at her brother.

"That is a rather good question, Charlotte," a new voice said, coming up behind the small Princess and sweeping her up into his arms. "Hello Princess," Yami said as he smiled at his young daughter.

"Hello Daddy," she said happily, throwing her little arms around his neck. Yami then moved her so that she was settled on one hip, and stepped forward so that he was beside his wife. "Seto passed me earlier and said I should continue this way to try and stop a thunderstorm. I told him I doubted such a thing was within my capabilities," he said doubtfully, looking meaningfully at his wife. She blushed. "Well, if you didn't annoy me so much," she muttered, knowing he referred to his complete inability to get her to do anything simply because he 'ordered' it.

Atemu let out another wail of protest then, causing both his parents to look at him. Yami just shook his head, and handed Charlotte to his wife. "Well, Atemu, I'd say this is a pretty good reason to go to lessons," he said in amusement as he bent over so that he was eye-level with his distraught son.

Crystal raised an eyebrow at that. "Yami, I have rather reliable sources that you did the exact same thing as a child. In fact, that's where your fear of snakes comes from – you jumped, without looking I might add, into a pot once, and a snake bit you," she said, and smiled as Yami looked rather sheepish. "Who told you that?" he asked. (1)

"Shimon told me the story of how you always used to hide in pots to get away from your lessons. He also told me the snake story," she said, still sounding amused. Charlotte seemed to flinch as Crystal mentioned 'snake', and Crystal soothingly rubbed her daughter's back. Since an attempted assassination on the little princess the year before, she was absolutely terrified of snakes. Someone had snuck a snake into her bed, but Charlotte had somehow managed to escape both her bed and her room without being bitten. Crystal had a strong suspicion that Charlotte had somehow magically stunned the creature in her fright when she realised it was about to bite her.

Anyway, back to Atemu's current drama. Atemu appealed to his father, his eyes pleading. "Dad, can you please make Mum let me go?" he whined, looking over at his sister. "Charlotte, help me!" he pleaded.

Charlotte frowned at her brother, the image of her mother. "You shouldn't be in the pot anyway, 'temu," she said crossly, and Crystal stifled a chuckle at the astonished looks on both Atemu's and Yami's faces.

Atemu looked indignant. "But Charlotte!" he howled, looking rather upset that Charlotte had sided against him. Yami was just shocked at what Charlotte had said.

Meanwhile, Crystal beamed at her daughter. "Aww, she is just like me!" she said proudly. "I really do finally have someone on my side!" she said in delight, and Charlotte smiled happily. Both women then turned back to face the boys; Atemu still looked indignant, and Yami was staring at them with his mouth agape. "Oh gods no, there's another one!" he moaned, and Atemu winced for his father as the eyes of both women turned wrathfully on him.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Crystal said warningly, eyes narrowing. Yami gulped at the look in her eyes. "I was merely joking, my love," he said hastily, appealing to Atemu for help. Charlotte was also glaring at her father. "You shouldn't say things like that to Mummy!" she said sternly, narrowing her pretty eyes. Although she wasn't sure what the meaning of her dad's words were, her mother's tone of voice told her that it hadn't been that nice, and thus she was angry with him.

Yami quickly admitted defeat, and came over to kneel in front of his wife. "Oh my beautiful darling, I pray that you will find it in your ever-suffering heart to forgive me my harsh, thoughtless words," he said, staring up at her with a wounded, puppy-dog-eyes expression.

Crystal gently put Charlotte on the ground, and the small girl hurried over to her brother's side, poking the pot as she tried to figure out what had happened to it.

Meanwhile, Crystal looked down at Yami, who had just taken her hand in his and kissed it. "Well, I'm not sure I can forgive you just yet," she said, pretending to be haughty.

Yami kissed his wife's hand again. "Oh my beautiful darling, would more compliments ease your coldness towards me?" he asked, still looking up at her with the same expression, though she could tell he was struggling not to laugh. But still, he had learned over the last few years that no matter how mad she was at him, she just couldn't resist those eyes.

Hey, she was only human.

She shrugged. "Oh, it might," she said casually, cursing inwardly as Yami smirked at her. He knew that he'd got her with his eyes, and that whatever slight anger she'd felt towards him had all but disappeared. 'Damm him,' she thought, though she didn't really mean it.

"Oh my beautiful angel, you who mean more to me than life itself, I pray that your kind and loving heart will forgive this poor wretch in love," he said clearly, staring up at her with that expression again. "I love you so much, my Queen. You are more beautiful than anything I have ever seen before, and I am honoured by merely being allowed to look upon that gorgeous face – and honoured even more so to be allowed in your presence," he said, kissing her hand again.

She pulled her hand out of his reach, rolling her eyes at his over-exaggerating. "Flattery will get you anywhere," she said, though she still smiled. 'If this is how he acts over a minor thing like this, it makes a girl think what he would do if I was really angry at him,' she thought with a playful grin. "Alright, I forgive you, you rogue," she said, and he got to his feet and kissed her. "Thank you, my beloved lady," he said, grinning at her. Seto had warned him years ago that Crystal would be a handful, but Yami had learned ways to deal with her. She didn't win every single argument now – Yami would often have the upper hand, though he only achieved this by melting her anger towards him (something he was quickly becoming an expert at)

Meanwhile, Charlotte and Atemu were both completely ignoring their parents, as Charlotte tried to figure out a way to rescue Atemu. She eventually gave up, and started to stare sorrowfully at her mother.

"Mum, let me out!" Atemu suddenly shrieked, and both his parents turned around to look at him. Seeing the puppy-dog eyes on both her children caused Crystal to finally give in. "Alright, alright! But Atemu, if I catch you trying to avoid lessons again..." she said warningly as she cast her spell and enabled her son to escape his temporary prison.

Atemu nodded, though he was looking sulky again. "Yes, Mother," he said, the look on his face identical to his father's infamous scowl. Crystal just shook her head in amusement at that, and pointed to Charlotte. "Atemu, please take your sister to the nursery before you go off to your lesson," she said, and Atemu grudgingly took his sister's hand and took her off to the 'nursery', which was actually just the children's play room.

Crystal chuckled. "Those two are both exactly like us," she said in amusement, remembering Atemu's scowl, and Charlotte's reaction to Yami's earlier words. "Atemu especially is like you – his scowl is just as cute," she said with a teasing grin.

Yami's scowl was fixed on her. "My scowl is not cute!" he protested, glaring at her.

Crystal grinned. "I will be the judge of that, dearest. And it is."

"Is not," he replied, sulking. "Anyway, I should be off to greet Ishtar, as I was originally doing before Seto found me," he said, feeling cranky again. He hadn't slept well the night before, and it was showing.

Crystal laughed, proving that she wasn't angry at him. "Darling, your fuse seems to be so short at the moment that you're more likely to kill him for some off-hand comment than greet him. How about I go meet Ishtar, and you go have a nap?" she said teasingly, poking her husband in the ribs.

Yami glared at her, feeling sulky again. "It's your fault I didn't get any sleep," he grumbled, and she grinned. "You didn't help matters much yourself, you rogue," she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

Yami blushed, and coughed. "Fine, you can go and meet Ishtar. But try to stop that casual flirting with him – I'm sick of people gossiping that you are having an affair," he said with a frown, the slightest hint of jealously colouring his tone.

Crystal sighed. She just treated Ishtar as a dear friend, but so many nobles read far deeper into that than she liked. She knew that Yami didn't believe the malicious gossip, but he still felt slightly jealous of the attention she spent on Ishtar – after all, his wife was quite good friends with the man, and had almost married him several years earlier. "I am sorry," she said simply, before kissing his cheek. "Let's go see which festival he kidnapped this time to announce his arrival," she said dryly.

Yami smiled slightly at her reference to Ishtar's entrances – he sometimes brought so many people with him, that each such entrance was like a festival on its own. He then yawned, causing Crystal to laugh and kiss him again. "Aww, poor baby," she said sympathetically. "I order you to go have a nap while I meet Ishtar," she said, poking him in the ribs again as he opened his mouth to retort.

Yami glared at her, feeling sulky again. "Don't order me around," he said crossly, looking rather adorable with his pout, and Crystal said as much, earning her yet another scowl.

She kissed Yami's cheek again before bounding off down the corridor. "Try not to be so grumpy all the time!" she called back cheerfully as she disappeared around the corner.

Yami scowled again. "Hrmph, I still maintain that last night was entirely her fault," he said crossly before turning to go have a quick rest in his quarters.

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Crystal slowed her pace as she entered the entrance hall of the palace, and caught her breath before she moved outside. Her timing was impeccable, as Ishtar was just climbing down from his carriage. He looked over at her and smiled warmly. "Ah Your Highness, it is wonderful to see you again," he said pleasantly, calming walking to her side and bowing as he kissed her hand.

Crystal smiled. "Oh Ishtar, how many times must I tell you to call me by my name?" she asked as she curtsied in reply. "It is good to see you too, King Ishtar," she said cheerfully, before kissing his cheek.

This action stirred a response among the servants, and Crystal glanced over at them. "You know, you could at least wait until I'm out of earshot before you start spreading nasty rumours about my honour," she said pleasantly, and several of the servants ducked their heads and looked away nervously.

Ishtar chuckled. "Ah, how I have missed your blunt and refreshing sense of humour," he said dryly, as they began walking towards the gardens – Crystal, as Queen, was often expected to entertain guests until Yami could see them.

She glanced over at him. "I think that if Yami hears you calling it refreshing, he may force you to see several of the palace's physicians," she said dryly, and Ishtar laughed.

He then waved a finger at her in admonishment. "Nonsense, I'm sure Yami is far more endeared of you and your odd ways than I," he said seriously. "The Pharaoh loves you, and thus he accepts and appreciates every part of you...some more than others, I hear," he said playfully, his eyes flicking up and down as he watched her.

Crystal blushed, and casually swatted him. "Rogue! You are as bad as he!" she half-shrieked in outrage, though her antics made him laugh again.

"Well, at the very least you are very entertaining to be around...of course, I'm sure that Yami knows that far better than I," he said with a sly grin.

Crystal's blush deepened. "Married for over 9 years, and people still make jokes about us," she muttered, pretending to be cross as she swatted Ishtar again. He ducked out of the way, still smiling at her.

And so it was that some time later, Yami found the pair reminiscing; sitting side by side in the gardens. Crystal glanced over at him as she heard him arrive, and her face lit up with delight. She ran over to him, kissing him in greeting. "I see you have recovered from your earlier tiredness, my lord," she said playfully, and Yami frowned lightly at her before kissing her again.

She then glanced at his earrings. "I've told you countless times, my love, to change those earrings. They are far too like the ones you gave me for my birthday two years ago," she said with a pout.

Ishtar walked over to the couple, smiling. "Well, Yami, you should know better than to try and upstage your wife," he said, and Yami returned his smile.

"Hello to you also, Ishtar," he said before turning his attention back to his wife. "Darling, I am not to blame for traditional garb. I already changed enough of my attire and the clothes of my court to suit your desires," he said, frowning again. He knew perfectly well that she was merely trying to aggravate him, as she had said to him often enough that he looked rather handsome in his traditional dress.

In case you're wandering, Yami had changed his daily outfit not long after his marriage to Crystal. He now wore a small crown amongst his unruly bangs, dangling gold earrings from his ears, a white shirt and robe with gold embroidery at the neckline, golden shoes/sandals, a flowing violet cape, gold armbands, and gold attachments to his shoulders. (In short, Yami's outfit as Pharaoh in the Memory World/Egypt arc)

Crystal frowned at him, absently fingering the locket he'd given her as a birthday present the day they got engaged. "And so you should," she said at last, and Ishtar chuckled.

"Well, Crystal, as enjoyable as it is to watch you chastising your husband, I'm afraid that I must steal him away from you to discuss the fine print of our latest trading agreement," he said with a grin at the Pharaoh.

Yami rolled his eyes. "I have told you time and time again Ishtar that we do not seek to cheat you in any way. Not only do I wish to preserve the current prosperity of Egypt, but I also do not wish to incur the wrath of my wife," he said dryly, glancing at said Queen.

Ishtar smiled. "I understand Yami – after all, you get into enough trouble with her as it is. You certainly don't need my help to incur her wrath," he said with a chuckle, but it faded as Crystal turned her gaze on him.

Fortunately for Ishtar, he was let off the hook...this time. Crystal eventually smiled sweetly at him. "Anyway, I'll leave you gentlemen to your haggling. I have no wish to sit in on this particular council. However, if I find that you have raided the kitchens for wine again..."

Yami hastily spoke over her. "Don't worry darling, it won't happen again," he promised quickly, knowing full well what would happen if Crystal found him and Ishtar completely drunk again. Crystal had a rather nasty sense of humour at times, particularly when Yami was drunk. She seemed to like punishing him.

Crystal rolled her eyes. "See that it doesn't. Remember, the servants are all on my side, and will report you!" she said cheerfully before kissing Yami's cheek and escaping towards the couple's private library.

After Crystal left, Ishtar turned towards Yami. "She can't be serious, can she?" he asked questioningly.

Yami nodded regretfully. "I'm afraid so. The servants would rat us out if they saw us. Looks like we won't be able to hide it this time," he said with a slight pout.

Ishtar snapped his fingers. "Damn. She's taking all the fun out of it," he said, sighing in regret.

Yami shrugged. "Oh well. We'll survive."

Ishtar suddenly grinned. "Yami, do you still remember that spell Isaac told us about – that one that erases the effects of drunkenness?"

Yami stared questioningly at his friend, then gasped as he realised what he meant. "Ishtar..."

"What? We could easily hide it then. Get some of the servants loyal to you to bring us some wine, and then use that spell. Even if Crystal finds out the amount of wine we 'drank', we'll still be able to hide it from her, and then she can't get mad at us!" he said excitedly. Ishtar seemed to enjoy pushing Crystal's buttons.

Yami groaned. "Ishtar, if we're caught..."

"We're so dead? Don't worry so much Yami. What's the worst she can do to us?"

Yami's only response was to look at Ishtar like he was crazy. "A certain incident, about 3 years ago, is ringing some bells," he said at last, and Ishtar sweatdropped.

"Ok, maybe she can punish us. But only if we get caught. Come on Yami, live a little!"

Yami sighed, and finally admitted defeat. "Alright Ishtar, you're on," he said at last, and Ishtar whooped and departed for the council chambers at high speed. "We're going to be so dead," he said regretfully before following his friend.

Meanwhile, seemingly unaware of Ishtar's scheme to defy her, and her husband's slightly willing participation in this plan, Crystal had immersed herself in the library near her quarters – Yami's former private library. However, since their marriage, the library had grown much larger, with works from around the country and other palace libraries joining the original pieces on the cool metal shelves.

Crystal moved to the back of the rather large room, eyes scanning the shelves as she tried to find something to capture her interest – and keep her entertained for a few hours while her husband and Ishtar got drunk and tried to cover it up (which she knew full well they would do over the course of 'negotiations')

Eventually, she came to a collection of dusty old chests which had been found in one of the palace's immense storage rooms. No-one had bothered to catalogue the contents inside, but they had still been placed in the library after it was revealed that there were several parchments inside.

Crystal opened the first chest, and brushed away some of the cobwebs as she extracted a rolled-up piece of parchment from the top. Unrolling it, it became apparent that these documents were from Yami's father's time at least, as this parchment looked newer than the rest, yet it detailed the historical details of a war that had occurred when Yami was barely more than a baby.

She continued to shuffle through the papers, trying to find something to capture her interest. She didn't feel like reading detailed histories that day.

Eventually, as she was inspecting the carvings of the newest looking chest (coincidentally, the first one she had opened), she can across a hidden compartment in the top of the chest. As her fingers ran along the carvings, they brushed a catch of some sort, and a compartment opened to reveal a scroll of parchment.

Intrigued, Crystal pried it loose from its hiding place, and carried it over to one of the cushions nearby, in order to read it in the light.

To whomever reads this,

I pray you to be on the side of good – or at least on the side of my dear son, Atem, whom I pray is Pharaoh at this time. I hope that you, the reader of this document, will be able to save my son from the incredible dangers foretold in his future.

Below is recorded my thoughts from the time over which I realised the truth of a prophecy I heard in my youth – a truth which could destroy my son.

Crystal glanced up then, realising that the document she held in her hands was a diary entry written by Yami's father – the previous Pharaoh. She wondered what the prophecy was that he spoke of, and it hit her that it was most likely her own. If she died (which was apparently the only way to stop the prophecy from being fulfilled) she knew Yami would be devastated. She glanced down at the parchment again, and decided it couldn't hurt to know the actual details of the prophecy which told of Rames's (though she didn't know then that it was him) demise.

She had no idea how wrong she was.

By the time you are reading this, whoever you are, I will be dead. I will soon be going to war, and I do not expect to survive. Indeed, I do not even want to. I tried to save my son, but, not knowing the details of the prophecy as I do now, have in fact doomed him. I tried to save him, but instead have forced Rames's hand. Yes, I discovered that the prophecy that speaks of the demise of the one who is trying to destroy Egypt is actually describing a councillor of my friend, Isaac. Unfortunately, I cannot warn him. I have caused enough damage as it is, and time is short.

Crystal's eyes widened. "Rames? He...he is the one...trying to kill me? Oh, by the gods! Father! He might be in danger!" she cried, about to stand up when she realised that Rames had mysteriously disappeared from her father's court not long after her marriage to Yami. But she had thought nothing of it at the time. "No doubt the two events are connected. He was probably brewing mischief, even then," she said bitterly as she returned her attention to the parchment.

I know my wife would try to stop me going to war, but sadly, she is no longer in this world. Many moons ago, an attack was made upon Isaac's daughter, Crystal, and my wife was killed in her defence. And I have recently received word that the young Princess was attacked again, and this time her mother paid the price. I thought I could forget what I had done when my wife died – though it hurt so much, and still hurts now, almost a year later – but now I cannot forgive myself. It is all my fault – my beloved wife and the wife of one of my dearest friends are both dead, because of me.

Rames tried to kill Princess Crystal when she was a child to stop a prophecy he heard about that said that she would be the one to stop him and save Egypt. My wife and her friend, Charlotte, discovered this prophecy, and sought to protect the child ever since. That is why they were both killed – they were defending her, believing her to be the one to save Egypt. But they are now both dead, and it is because of me.

You see, I was the one that told Rames of the prophecy.

I was the one that told him that Crystal was the one destined to stop him – I tried to prevent what I knew was coming. I tried to save Atem by telling Rames a different version of the prophecy – one that would actually make it come true. At the last minute, I realised that if Crystal died, my son would still suffer – the prophecy could only come true one way, and I had nearly prevented that. In trying to save us, I may have instead killed us all. I told my wife of what I had done, and told her the truth of the prophecy – not the warped version I had given the others before. She, like me, was very upset at what it meant. But still, she forgave me.

I had betrayed us all, yet she forgave me. But I digress.

Below is the true translation of the prophecy – not the one I told Isaac.

Crystal read on there, and felt tears spill from her eyes as she realised the truth. Somehow, she had known all along, but had tried desperately to deny it. She wanted to scream; wanted to defy the truth. But she knew she could not. But she didn't want to accept it.

She didn't want to lose Yami.

Sometime later, Yami and Ishtar were sitting in the small room set out for their 'negotiating', and both were rather drunk. Yami had never been able to hold his drink well anyway, so it usually took very little to get him drunk. Ishtar's alcohol tolerance was much higher, but he'd drunk a lot more than Yami. So it balanced out. Anyway, the two of them were completely drunk. (2)

Crystal, who had recently left the nursery after talking to her children, felt a frown cross her face as she heard loud singing. A few seconds were all it took for her to realise the culprits. Sighing, she headed in the direction of the rather bad singing, and was confronted by the sight of her husband and Ishtar, arms around each other's shoulders, swaying from side to side slightly as they sang.

Crystal faltered as memories of the last hour came crashing back to her. But she pushed them aside, and summoned her resolve. Puffing up slightly, she bellowed. "What in the name of Ra is going on here?!"

The sudden outburst from the Queen had a rather comic effect on the two men. Ishtar swore and tried to jump backwards, but as it is rather difficult to jump backwards when seated, he merely succeeded in knocking the chair, and himself, over. Yami, with the classic 'deer-in-headlights' expression, was then knocked over in turn as Ishtar's flailing limbs caused Yami's already rocky balance to make him fall off his chair, and straight onto Ishtar.

Crystal merely watched the scene in amusement as, with much swearing, Ishtar and Yami disentangled themselves, and somehow got themselves upright on their chairs again. From the way Ishtar was swaying, Crystal considered it a remarkable feat that he was even still conscious, yet alone able to stand for a short period of time.

After this rather comic scene ended, Yami turned to look at his wife with wounded, yet slightly unfocused, eyes. "Darling, did you have to yell so loud?" he said eventually, swaying dangerously on his chair. Crystal just shook her head in amusement at how low her husband's tolerance for alcohol was, and didn't move forward to help him.

Ishtar on the other hand looked perfectly fine...except for his rather alarming sense of balance. He was leaning rather heavily on the table, and Crystal suddenly had the urge to nudge it with her foot and see what happened. But she didn't.

Ishtar grinned at the Queen. "Hey Crystal, what's up?" he slurred, and Crystal considered it a miracle that he was even able to form complete sentences. The Queen then shifted her gaze over the table to see how much wine they had actually drank.

Yami's wounded gaze had faded, and he looked like he was about to lose consciousness at any moment. He was staring at the table, in particular at one of the wine bottles. For you see, a drunk Yami was not necessarily a smart Yami.

The Pharaoh then somehow managed to extend his hand towards the bottle, and after a few misses, managed to grab hold of it and bring it to his mouth. As he drank a few more mouthfuls, something in his foggy memory tugged at him, telling him that something was wrong. He blinked rapidly, and eventually realised that continuing to drink was not a good idea.

He glanced over at his wife, who was still watching Ishtar attempt to grab the wine glass right in front of him with clear amusement. He blinked as he tried to focus his eyes – since when had he had two wives? "Crystal..." he slurred at last, his brain doing its best to elude him.

Crystal then turned her gaze back to Yami, and spoke in a slightly raised tone of voice. "If you're wondering why I'm not stopping you Yami, it's because you are so drunk that more wine isn't really going to hurt you...now. However, in the morning, you are both going to have a massive hangover...and I'm going to hide both the medicine and healing spell," she said sweetly, causing both men to gasp and gape at her.

This gasping also made Ishtar fall off his chair, but he didn't seem that fazed by that small detail. He was too busy staring at Crystal in sheer horror – his expression mimicked by Yami.

Crystal then chuckled. "Serves you both right for drinking so much," she said cheerfully. "Now, it's almost dinnertime, so I'll get some of the servants to bring you some food. You're both too drunk to move to the dining hall for dinner, and would only embarrass yourselves further. I might come back later to torture you further," she said sweetly, before slamming the door on her way out.

Meanwhile, Ishtar and Yami were still staring at each other in utmost horror. Yami opened his mouth to speak, forgot what he was going to say, and tried to lean on the table. Of course, his sense of balance was rather off, so he completely missed and toppled off his chair. Ishtar stared at him, unfazed, and picked up the wine bottle again.

Oh, were they both going to pay in the morning.

Yami groaned as he woke up to blinding light shining right on his face. He groaned again as he opened his eyes slowly, and immediately rolled over away from the gods-cursed light.

A cheerful voice then spoke up. "Ah, so the great Pharaoh is finally awake! Did you have a good night's sleep, darling?" she asked sweetly as she pushed him over to face the sunlight again.

Yami moaned. "Crystal, please!" he whined, trying to fend her off while covering his eyes and trying to prevent his pounding head from moving.

He heard her sigh, and felt her move off the bed. A shadow then crossed over the sunlight, and he opened his eyes to see her standing in front of him, blocking the sunlight. An oddly sympathetic look was on her face, and she looked quite sad. But as Yami's eyes focused, the look vanished. "You know, it's your own fault for drinking so much," she scolded gently as she sat down beside him.

He was about to protest, when she handed him a glass. He sat up slightly, still trying to ignore his massive headache, and looked at the glass. He then looked back up at her, surprised. "I thought you were angry at me," he said softly, wondering at her sudden change of heart.

She smiled, though there was a hint of sadness to it. "I was. But I forgave you," she said softly as he started drinking the potion – a hangover cure.

After a few moments passed, he sighed in relief as his headache began to fade. "Crystal, I love you," he said weakly, staring up at her with something quite akin to worship in his eyes. She laughed, and he winced as the sound cut through his head. "Well, it's your own fault for looking so darn cute when sleeping...and looking so hot without a shirt," she said innocently.

Yami blushed at that, but refrained from replying by taking another drink. After he had swallowed, Crystal pulled the glass from his hands, and cut off his protests by kissing him.

Now, normally Yami wouldn't have protested to this in the slightest, but he still had a headache, it hurt to move, and Crystal, most likely on purpose, was taking full advantage of that. He made a slightly muffled protest, and she pulled away to grin at him. Despite the fact that he was trying to look annoyed at her, she could tell he was enjoying it. She just laughed again, and turned around, facing her back to him, as she tried to levitate the glass far out of Yami's reach.

Surprisingly fast for someone with a hangover, Yami sat up and wrapped his arms around his wife, gently preventing her from concentrating on moving the glass from his bedside table. However, his brain caught up with him then, causing him to wince.

Crystal chuckled again, looking amused. "Let me guess, you protest to my removing your hangover cure from you?" she said, smiling as Yami merely tightened his hold on her.

"Not really. You're my cure, all by yourself," he murmured softly before kissing her neck, causing shivers to run up her spine. It never failed to amaze her how after years of marriage he could still make her feel like a young girl experiencing her first kiss.

She tried to swat him away, knowing as well as he did that her neck was a particular weak spot of hers, and he merely shifted his head to bury himself in her hair. Which, in addition to 'annoying' her, shielded his eyes from the sun.

Sighing, and blushing slightly, she gave up. "Anyway you, we should get to council soon. That cure should have kicked in completely by then, and you will at least be able to walk. Nevertheless, you'll still have a headache and the likes. I'm not letting you off that easy."

She heard Yami groan, and felt him bury his face even further into her hair. She sighed again before grinning. "However, if it makes you feel any better, Ishtar has no such cure, and should have trouble speaking, let alone standing."

Yami chuckled, the sound slightly muffled by her hair. He then un-buried himself, speaking close to her ear. "Crystal, you are positively evil," he murmured, and she grinned before turning her head to face him. "You love it," she said with a smirk, before giving a muffled shriek as Yami pushed her backwards and captured her lips in his as he pinned her under him.

She squirmed against him, trying to escape. "You're not much better than me, rogue," she declared the moment she could, and Yami responded by smirking and kissing her again.

She then used the moment while he was distracted to push him off the bed, and he hit the floor with a dull thud. She chuckled as he moaned in pain. "Crystal, that was cruel," he whined, and she poked her head out over the bed before smiling sweetly. "Oh, you'll get over it," she said before rolling over to help him up and get him presentable for council. Of course, as the hangover faded rather quickly after that, it took a little longer to get Yami out the door. But she didn't really mind.

A week or so later, after a rather similar scenario occurring as Crystal tried to leave their room, the royal couple were sitting and listening to their advisors prattle on about the current issues of Egypt. Crystal was looking slightly flustered, and Yami kept smirking every few moments. Mana had already picked up on this, and had snuck up behind the Queen to tease her. But Crystal was saved from further embarrassment as Charlotte came running over to claim her mother's attention.

Ignoring the argument now ensuing between Seto and Mahaado, Yami turned his head to look at his wife, his playful smirk fading into a contented smile as he watched his youngest offspring playing with her mother's hair. Yami had noticed that over the last week or so, Charlotte had rarely left her mother's side, and Atemu was nearly always with her too – and thus all three were nearly permanently attached to him. Charlotte had also been suffering from nightmares for the last few nights, and Crystal had been spending quite a long time calming the young girl down. Yami had reasoned that she was just scared and needed her mother.

But now he wondered if Charlotte had merely discovered that something big was going to happen soon. Children were very good at picking up on portents and feelings, and Charlotte, with her gifts of magic and close connection with her mother, would be even more attuned than other children to the feeling of 'something is wrong'.

The lack of any news about Rames had Yami worried. Sure, they had lost track of him quite a few years ago, but he still worried. However, he had to wonder what was provoking this out-of-the-blue panic – nothing had happened recently that should make him worried again.

He didn't know how wrong he was.

Just then, one of the servants came running into the room, looking rather frantic. Mahaado recognised him as one of his agents, and quickly walked over to meet him, looking concerned. All talk in the hall ceased as everyone turned to face the young man.

Mahaado's face then became impassive. "What has happened?" he asked quickly, snatching the parchment from the man's hand.

The servant clutched his side as he tried to regain his breath. "Master, what we have feared has arrived. Even as we speak, the army must prepare for war! Our enemy has returned, and bought his army here by magic!" he said at last, his words carrying around the silent hall.

Mahaado's eyes widened and he turned to face the equally wide-eyed guards. "What are you waiting for? MOVE!" he shouted, and his words broke the spell of the hall. People started talking and a few women screamed as the guards departed at top speed to deliver word to marshal the army.

Yami stood up, staring at his friend. Unspoken communication passed between them, and he turned to his wife, who was staring out blankly at nothing, a sad expression on her face. She had tightened her hold on Charlotte enough to almost hurt the little girl, but Charlotte was too busy clinging desperately to her mother to notice.

"Crystal, you must stay with the children in the nursery," Yami said at last as the throne room became a bustle of activity as the various nobles rushed to their positions and the like.

The Queen stood up, balancing Charlotte on her hip. Atemu clung to her skirts, looking rather afraid. "No Yami," she said sternly, and Charlotte whimpered, burying her face in her mother's shoulder.

Yami's eyes narrowed. "There will no argument, Crystal! Take the children to the nursery, now!" he snapped, his voice thundering with authority.

She glared at him. "I will not, Yami! You know that you need me for this fight. The children will be safe. But you need me!" she snapped back, refusing to be intimidated.

Yami moved forwards, looking as though he was about to strike her. He would do whatever it took to keep her out of this war – he would not let Rames harm her. But Charlotte stopped him as she let out a sob. "No! Papa, you must let Mama go! She has to help fight! She can't stay here!" she sobbed, and Atemu gave a quiet sob, muffled into his mother's skirts.

Yami's eyes hardened at that, but after a short staring competition between them, he gave in. "Crystal...I wish you wouldn't," he said at last, admitting defeat, but trying to change her mind.

She nodded. "I know. But this is something I have to do," she said softly, and Yami looked at her for another long moment before turning to find Mahaado and get a few things straightened out.

After he had gone, Crystal knelt down, and found herself being fiercely hugged by both children. "Mama, please be careful!" Charlotte begged, sobbing.

Crystal felt her own eyes filling with tears as she looked upon her children. "Charlotte sweetie, I will be. But you must remember what I told you last week. You must be strong, like Papa. You know what is coming – I wish I could spare you this, but I can't. I'm so sorry my darling," she murmured, hugging her again. She then turned to Atemu. "Be brave, and look after your sister, ok?" she said before hugging him too.

Atemu nodded before hugging his mother fiercely. "I will Mama," he said at last, trying to look as brave as possible so Mama would stop crying. "And even though you said what's coming, please be careful! And take care of Papa too!"

Crystal nodded as she hugged them both again. "I will my darlings. Remember what I told you before, keep each other safe, and do what the nurses and guards tell you."

Kissing both her children on the forehead, she then turned and walked away with a pride that almost hurt to watch. She knew that after this fight, her family would never be the same. Inwardly, she cursed the timing of the gods – her family deserved to have a few more years of happiness. But at least she knew what was coming, and had prepared for it as best she could.

Sighing, she turned her thoughts away from her children, and walked off to find Yami.

Meanwhile, in the throne room, Atemu was trying to get his sister to move. He tugged on her hand. "Charlotte, we have to go now! You heard what Mama said!" he cried, still trying desperately not to cry.

Charlotte didn't respond to her brother. Tears fell down her face as she watched her mother go. When Crystal was out of sight, she sat down and started crying again, burying her face in her hands. Atemu put his arms around his sister. "Hey Charlotte, it will be ok. You'll see," he said bravely, trying to comfort her.

She gulped, and turned to look at him, her pretty blue eyes filled with tears. "I know, but it still hurts!" she cried, but also tried to hide her tears.

"I know," Atemu said sadly. "Come on, we have to go find Ishtar – Mama said we should go stay with him," he said, gently pulling his sister to her feet. Still crying softly, she followed him.

Sometime later, Crystal, Yami, and the army had all gathered outside the city, engaged in combat with the enemy. Yami had refused to let his wife move from the very back of their line – he said she could work her magic just as easily from there, and that he would divorce her if she moved to the front. She knew he didn't really mean it, and was just concerned for her safety, but she was worried about him too. She told him that she would be careful, and he simply kissed her and said that he loved her before running off to lead his troops as their Pharaoh.

Sighing, she turned her attention to the large flaming boulder that had just been thrown via catapult at a squadron of guards. Concentrating, she felt the boulder connect with the shield she'd just created, and it bounced back to strike at their enemy. Crystal didn't feel any joy though – instead she felt slightly sick. She was beginning to understand why war was truly a horrible thing.

She was also quite worried – this was supposed to be Rames's army, yet there had been few magical attacks (from his minions) upon the Egyptian army. She knew he was here somewhere, and wondered what he was doing.

Another boulder came hurtling towards a closer unit, but Crystal let her husband's priests deal with that. On instinct, she then glanced out towards the front lines, searching for Yami. In his place was Seto, who was yelling orders at the troops. But she couldn't see Yami anywhere. Feeling afraid, she then glanced wildly around her. Somehow, through a combination of her own feelings and her magic, she somehow teleported near him – to a place relatively distant from the battle, and facing Rames.

Her father's former advisor looked a lot different than he used to, far more 'evil', but she still immediately knew it was him. Neither man had noticed her yet, so she merely stayed put, listening to the words they shouted at each other across the space between them.

Rames was the first to speak after she arrived, his expression twisted with hate. "How dare you, Pharaoh! First you take away my wife, and now you're trying to stop me taking over Egypt – stopping me from having what is rightfully mine. You are really becoming quite a bother," he shouted angrily.

Yami didn't even flinch. "I won't let you destroy Egypt – and I definitely won't let you have Crystal," he snapped back, and Crystal felt her heart constrict slightly at the words. She turned to Rames, almost afraid of his next words.

Rames glared at him. Judging from the frustrated expression on his face, Crystal gathered that the two had been yelling at each other for some time. "How dare you have what should have been mine!" he shouted, causing Crystal's heart to stop. She had heard those words before – in her nightmares (3). She knew what was coming, but the tears falling down her face showed how much she didn't want it to happen.

Yami sighed, looking almost calm. "Because what I have now – my wife, my family, my home, my country – never belonged to you. You never even had a chance," he replied, and Crystal could feel his energies trying to construct a shield. But she had watched her Pharaoh fighting before, and knew his magic was next to exhausted.

Apparently Rames knew it too, because he smirked briefly before his face twisted in rage again. "How dare you! You have no right! Everything you have, it should be mine!" he roared, gathering his own magic to obliterate this sorry excuse of a Pharaoh. Really, the boy had no right to try and stop Rames getting what he wanted – controlling Egypt, and eventually, the world. All he had to do was crush the Pharaoh and he would win.

Crystal, knowing what the spell would do, ran forward, unable to sit and watch anymore. She ran forward, her mind furiously trying to conjure a spell, rather than sit and watch. Rames then released his spell as she screamed Yami's name.

When it connected, three people screamed. One screamed in dying pain, another in horror, and the last...the last screamed in triumph.

(1) I have since learned, through watching some episodes of the Egypt arc, that Yami was actually almost bitten by a snake as a child, but Mahaad (or Mahaado as I call him in this story) pushed him out of the way and got bitten instead.

(2) Hmm...am I the only one who finds the idea of a drunk Yami totally hilarious? Sure, I can't write it well, but I'm sure you guys can use your own imaginations to come up with better stuff than me :P

(3) I told you I left hints! And yes, Crystal did have that dream in the actual story – see the end of chapter 16.

Angel: (is long gone)

Y.Ang: (sweatdrops) In the sense of self-preservation, Angel has left the author's notes to me. Yami and Crystal have been hidden away to prevent anyone questioning them on what happened, and I believe Atemu and Charlotte have also been hidden away to prevent them giving out the answers too, as Crystal told them this morning. So yeah, it's up to me to face the wrath of the readers for her overly dramatic and angst-y ending to this chapter (basically the last 3 pages)

Mai: (pops her head into the room) Somebody call for a temp?

Y.Ang: Yes, you get to help me do the author's notes. Please, put on this suit of armour (hands it over)

Mai: (puts it on, looking confused) Ok...wait, what did Angel do this time?

Y.Ang: (gestures to cliffhanger)

Mai: Oh! I see...so, what do we do now?

Y.Ang: (shrugs) We sit here and prevent any readers killing my hikari or attacking her computer to find out what happened – or just trying to completely destroy her for making a (so far) pretty happy story so horrible and angst-y -...-

Mai: Oh joy -...- Please review!