A/N Sorry for such the long wait! Hope it was worth it heh. Just an update though; I have got this finished, the last two chapters (6 and 7) are with my editor Sparkles-san so yeah. Once she had them edited they shall be posted! YAY

Kiyo smiled; Marik was easily pleased. There was no doubt he wanted Namu related tales- tales she would have to censor in order to not make herself feel even worse than she did, 'Just don't tell him how Namu died'. Yeah, that would solve it. "Okay then, I'll tell you how Bakura and I first met,"

Kiyo sat in a cluster of rocks in the outskirts of Kul Elna, some bread and a bag filled with water being her only companions. She'd stolen them from the city; stealing from a city of thieves appeared somewhat ironic in the young child's mind but as if she cared. It was needed for her to survive. Her parents had abandoned her long ago and she was made to fend for herself.

Her head perked up and ears pricked at the sound of horses coming closer, instinct took over and she hid behind the largest of the rocks.

"The city is just there; remember what we must do- the Pharaoh must never know about this. Get the villagers and lead them into the chamber. We need them in order to construct the Items."

The young girls brow creased in confusion. 'Items', 'the people'… How were they going to make people into Items?

Akhenaden led the troop into the city. The final few on horseback weld torches blazing and began to set fire to buildings.

Kiyo sat shaking in fear as the screams began to sound throughout the nearby city. Tears started stinging at the edges of her eyes and she huddled her legs into her chest. She was confused as to why she was crying. Why would she care about the people of the Kul Elna? She lived alone, she had nothing to grieve over so why was she crying? Fear. That's what. Fear: fear that Akhenaden would find her and kill her as well- that was if he was killing those people. She had no idea what was going on yet it must have been bad, judging by the screams.

She must have fallen asleep as when her eyes opened the sky had blackened to a dark mix of blue and purple. Just a short distance away her ears alerted her to the sound of bare feet hitting the sand at an alarming pace.

Curiosity urged her to step out and begin walking towards that of the now hollow Kul Elna. Kiyo hadn't made it further than several steps until her body collided with another of her size, both plummeting backwards into the sand.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, please don't tell them I'm alive. They've taken everyone already, my family, my friends; I don't want them to take me! I don't want my blood used to make some shiny toy…"

It was only then that Kiyo's mind clicked. The child was from the village, the boy to be more precise. Tears were streaming down his face, hair in a frenzied mess. What he had said played over in her head. No wonder the guy was stressed- he'd just witnessed his family and friends being killed in cold blood.

"I won't hurt you, I promise, I have no reason to. If what they say about your village is true then we are one of the same."

His sobs stilled as he moved to sit in the sand beside her,

"Touzoku?" his query stumped her train of thoughts, her initial response being a shake of the head.

"No: Sozoku. I only steal to survive, for I too have been left alone." the boy let out a small 'oh' sound and nothing more for that small moment, silence cascading upon the pair.

She pushed a strand of her brown hair behind her ear, watching the small boy out the corner of her eye. He wasn't small, he was slightly bigger than her. An immediate guess would place him around her age,

"Touzoku, when did the guards leave?"

He looked at her with a frown on his face, eyebrows tightly knitted together, "They haven't left, they're waiting for those stupid Items to materialize,"

Not knowing how else to respond, she gave him a simple nod.

"My name's Bakura by the way,"

'Bakura…' "I'm Kiyo," she extended her palm towards him and he eyed it weirdly. "No traps, just shake it."

Hesitantly he outstretched his arm and clasped his hand around hers, two shakes and let go.

"Are you hungry? Thirsty?"

The boy, Bakura, nodded slowly.

"I'll be right back, or you could come with me. Might be a bit safer than here; Akhenaden can easily see us here if he wants."

At those words Bakura shot straight up and grabbed onto Kiyo's arm despite being taller than her,
"Please don't let him get me. Please- I'm begging you."

Kiyo began running towards the rocks which were her home that night, Bakura hot on her tail. The pair quickly leapt over the smaller rocks and hid behind the large one which concealed what Kiyo labelled as her treasures.

"I thought you said you were Sozoku?"

She let out a small giggle as she handed Bakura some of the bread, "I am, these are necessities; it's only bread and water."

Bakura nodded swallowing hard before he spoke, "Yes but no petty thief would take this; they'd take things like an apple not a half a loaf of bread and someone's water."

"It's my water –well, is now. I stole that a while ago… the bag I mean. Every time I head back into Kul Elna I fill it up. Sometimes I walk away with only an apple like you said but as far as I'm concerned, I am nothing but a petty thief. You might as well address me as Sozoku-sama."

Bakura let out a small laugh and she found herself smiling at the sound he'd made, "I'll stick with your name provided you don't call me Touzoku-sama either."

her subtle smile broke into a grin and she broke off some of the bread for herself, "You look exhausted Bakura. Sleep. I've had my rest I'll watch out for you."

Right on cue he let out a strained yawn raising his arms high above his head, "I suppose that is an offer I can't refuse Kiyo-chan."

Bakura lay on his bed, eyes staring up at his ceiling. He wouldn't admit it to her but he was listening in on the tales Kiyo was telling Marik.

He remembered that night at Kul Elna too well, the flames and smoke would never escape his senses, etched into his mind forever. Yet one good thing had come out of that night: Kiyo. The only reason he didn't decide to do away with himself after the massacre and instead enacted a revenge plan against the Palace.

He remembered how they had barely any self-defence. Two young children wandering the Egyptian sands, their Ka's not even strong enough to defeat something like a snake or scorpion if it threatened them. So they had to train… and train they did.

"Kiyo hurry up!" he thumped his foot in the sand watching as she came closer,

"Not my fault you're faster than me 'Kura-san,"

He chuckled and ruffled the young girl's hair, "Try running faster then? Well," he turned around taking in the surroundings. They'd finally gotten far out enough to not cause danger to any villages. "Show me your Ka, Kiyo-chan." He watched as the colour slipped from her face.

She was intimidated by the power the boy held and she'd told him that yet he insisted in helping her strengthen it. The air around her rippled as the monster came forth. They'd named it Necrofear. Ra knows why, it seemed cool and after all they were only in their young teens.

"You did it," he smiled.

She looked up at him and shrugged, "It's not nearly as powerful as your Diabound. You could crush it in minutes…"

Smile faltering he let his own Ka branch out, the white shaded snake like creature acting as a sort of umbrella over the pair protecting them from the harsh Egyptian sun. "I promise you that one day you will be as strong -if not stronger- than I am. I promise," he whispered quietly in her ear, a tiny laugh being what she gave back.

"But 'Kura, that'd be silly, then what good would the future 'King of Thieves' be if he could be defeated by the Ka of a mere girl?"

The older of the pair laughed quietly, his eyes veering to the shadow monster behind the girl,
"As long as I put up a fair fight towards you, then that is all I care about."

Not long after, they were able to tear down anything that came their way.

In the beginning she had helped him: where to find food, water, best places to hide during sand storms, how to protect oneself at night. After all, she was the one who had been abandoned as she'd told him. Yet their roles reversed, his shady memory coming to the conclusion they were eleven or twelve- him eleven or twelve, her around ten or eleven.

He sighed rolling over to stare out the window. It wasn't long until they'd return to Egypt (and possibly) return to the way things once were.

Marik was staring at her on full alert, she'd managed to grab his undivided attention with only a small part of hers and Bakura's past. "So if that's how you and Bakura met," he began, she watched his expression shift as he spoke, "How did you two meet Namu?"

Kiyo blinked several times in shock. Sure, she had expected the boy to ask her sooner or later how she and the grumpy guy next door had encountered his past life, but what shocked her more was his somewhat shyness in the question. "I think 'Kura-kun tells that better than I do,"

His face lightened considerably at her words.

"Oi, Bakura! Get in here and tell Marik!"

Moments later a show of white hair and pale skin joined them in the room. "Tell Marik what?" he smirked, slurring his words slightly.

"Don't play with me; I know you were listening. Tell him how we met Namu." She snapped at him, noticing Marik observe the both of them as they spoke.

"Fine if you insist, but it was due to your mistake," he smiled sheepishly and she rolled her eyes.

"Well Marik are you sure you want to know?" he queried leaning close to the Egyptian who showed no signs of discomfort.

"Yes Bakura, I do because I'm curious you limey." Marik replied bitterly, Bakura snickering at his choice of words.

"Ryou is the British one, not me. Though I will admit I have grown rather accustomed to the accent I know possess." He retorted hissing with the sounds at the end, "Alas, on with the tale I suppose."

Marik sat up eager to hear what Bakura was about to say.

Bakura looked over to Kiyo smirking before he sat on the bed, "But as I said, it was all Kiyo's fault,"

She bent forward to slap him across his forearm making him elicit a dark laugh.

"Okay I'll stop. I'll stop. Just… calm down. Anyway," He cleared his throat and leant back against the head board. "It began one night when Kiyo and I were out doing what we did best: stealing…"

He felt the constant grip on the sleeve of his cloak as a way of her letting him know she was right there, the pair of them going through the village surrounding the Palace Court and taking anything they could land their fingers upon.

The two halted in their tracks as a scent flew past them. Food. Someone was cooking and their window was wide open. The stark patch of light on the dark sands certified it for them.

"Let go but follow me, remember who's more experienced here?" he added the last part sarcastically hoping to make her smile and erase some of her nerves.

Instead, all she did was roll her eyes and spit something right back just as sarcastically. "Remember who has the scar under his eye from getting caught?" she chuckled with her own words and he sighed.

"Shut up and stay put then." He crouched down and began to move along the wall towards the open window. Once below it, he began to feel something crawling up his leg. Warily he peered down- a scorpion. "Shit!" He whispered, gently pulling it off and throwing it away… only to have it land right next to Kiyo.

"FUCK!" Her voice echoed in their surroundings.

"Namu go check to see what that noise was. I'm in no mood to deal with bandits tonight." A woman's voice was heard above him followed by a 'Yes sister' from the boy she must have been talking to.

Bakura glanced over at Kiyo and motioned for her to come join him where he was. They listened quietly as footsteps could be heard on the sand.

"There's nothing here Isis." The voice came from a boy roughly Kiyo's age. He had blonde hair down to his shoulders and his clothes were much cleaner than Bakura's own.

"Just look anyway."

Beside him Kiyo looked up at the windowsill with a worried expression.

"She hasn't seen us so it's fine," he muttered to her, immediately regretting not lowering his tone.

The boy –Namu- if he remembered correctly, looked over in their direction, purple eyes staring at them in shock.

Upon reflex Bakura tackled the boy to the ground poising the knife just under his captive's neck before dragging him into the shadows. "Kiyo."

The boy struggled against his grip and he pressed the knife closer as a warning.

"What do you want me to do?" She asked making sure to keep her voice low.

"Get cloth and gag him, we can't afford to have him scream that'll only cause the sister to come out." At that moment he was using his forearm as a gag to keep the captive quiet which was resulting in bite marks upon his skin.

Kiyo tore off part of her skirt and brought it to where his arm was. "Okay; go," she whispered, jamming the cloth in place before the boy had a chance to scream.

Bakura used his body weight to keep the boy still as the moved further into isolation. "Now when I let you go, promise not to run, and when I remove the gag, promise not to scream."

"Otherwise that pretty little knife will go right through your neck and these white sands will turn red, you got that?" Kiyo finished his threat with the same devilish tone.

The boy began to whimper in his arms and nodded slowly.

"Okay, I think we can let him go Bakura,"

The boy made a noise at the mention of the Thief King's name yet it went by ignored. Bakura let him fall to the ground leaving Kiyo to remove the cloth and check for damage. He leant back against the wall wiping his dagger on the cheaply made shenti around his waist before holding it up to see the blade glint in the moonlight.

"D-Did you say your name was B-Bakura?"

The thief peered down at the captive whom had finally plucked the courage to speak. "No, I didn't- she did. But despite that, what on Earth does it matter to you?" He kept a stern expression as the man fiddled with his own clothing shrugging.

"B-Because there's talk around the village about a thief called Bakura, and I was wondering if it was you a—"

"What about a girl, do they talk about a girl?" Kiyo cut off the boy's sentence before he could finish.

"Kiyo, let the man finish his sentence," Bakura spat at her and she rolled her eyes in response.

"I'm allowed to be curious; I do just as much as you and get out clean but you get all the recognition,"

He sighed at her bitter tone before turning his direction back to the other. "Captive, what's your name?" he queried.

"Namu… and I'm not your captive." The look on Namu's face was one of determination.

"Seems like you are and you'll be dead by sunrise unless you're of some value to us. Kiyo," he motioned for her to search Namu for anything worth the slightest bit of value.

"Don't squirm and I won't take as long,"

Bakura watched on as usual as her fingers danced over the boy feeling for traces of jewellery or valuable cloth.

"Nothing 'Kura." She spoke bitterly into the sands.

"Kill him," He snickered chucking her the dagger.

"NO, NO… my-my sister, she has the Millennium Necklace, she works for the Pharaoh, please… don't kill me."

Bakura lifted a hand to stop Kiyo's movements, the blade mere centimetres away from the boy's neck.

"The Millennium Necklace you say… Do you have any idea how those items were created, Noble?" He bent down to speak right in the man's face, if he was aware of the somewhat noble status he would have killed the boy straight away.

"I'm not a noble, my sister may be but I'm not. As for your question, they were said to be made by some magic the—"

"If by magic they mean the souls of my village, then yes."

"Mine too."

He ignored Kiyo's small interjection and was instead focusing on watching Namu's face screw up in discomfort below him. "That Pharaoh massacred my people to get those items, but… I can exact revenge on him you know. If you can help us, then I'll let you live. You see, young No-Namu." He corrected himself. Now was not the time for insults; he was attempting to gain the boy's trust not scar him for life with fear. "If the seven Millennium Items are placed in the table used to create the Ra damned things, then the souls of my people can be laid to rest. You can be of assistance to us, Kiyo and me, seeing as we can't exactly get the items ourselves without a great deal of injuries." He pointed to the scar on his face, out the corner of his eye he spotted the smirk on Kiyo's face, she knew exactly where Bakura was headed with his words. "So if you want to live and be on our good side, you can help us get them. After all, you must be a little be terrified, surely you've heard more than just a few tales in order to remember my name," Namu nodded as Bakura rose back onto his feet.

"So you'll help us?" Kiyo questioned, Namu responding with only a nod. "Get whatever information you can, meet us out here again in a week's time. See you then," she purred walking off, Bakura giving Namu one last glare before following.

Bakura watched as Marik took in the entirety of what he'd just been told, finding it hard to suppress his laughter at Marik's first question.

"So my past life… became friends with you… after you tried to kill him and then threatened him?"

"Yeah basically." Kiyo bluntly responded. Bakura let out a yawn and stretched his arms above his head.
"I'll leave you two for now. I was getting to sleep before required to tell the tale of Kiyo's scorpion fear." He chuckled to himself at the look on her face- one filled with pure hatred and disgust at his choice of words.