Yugi felt a cool breeze gently brush against his face. It took him a few moments to register he was no longer in the dark, and his eyes were simply closed. When they flickered open, he was greeted by the bright light of the warm sun, a sun he had taken a seemingly sudden dislike to. After a moment of having his eyes opened, he felt a dull throbbing in his head, which seemed to worsen as he regained consciousness. Whether it was the sun inducing this head pain, or an extraneous variable, remained unclear to him.
Yugi was certain he had not fallen asleep. He didn't feel the simple grogginess, or his body slowly awakening, or the will to roll over and mutter 'just five more minutes'. Instead, he felt nothing but pain, like he had been knocked to the floor or had even tripped. His muscles protested against movement, too sore to even think about budging. Even his eyes started to hurt from keeping them open. And this heat was not helping.
He couldn't remember where he was, what he was doing, or where he was going. Yugi barely knew who he was. He knew his name, and...his last name? Were they his only two remaining memories? He attempted to search the crevices for his mind for something, anything he could remember. It hurt to think, the throbbing picking up the pace if he tried harder. It hurt to do a lot of things, but he knew, in the back of his mind, he had to do something important. It wasn't safe around here, and he had a job to do. He just didn't know what it was anymore.
As his eyes began to shut again, he felt a soft hand on his shoulder and a voice. It was feminine, he could tell that much. It sounded oddly familiar, as well. Yugi thought he could hear his name, but could not fully recognise it. His head, his body, his mind...his entire being weighed down flat on the hard, unforgiving soil. All he could muster was a low groan as he tightened his eyes shut, blocking out more of the irritating sun. Yugi felt a pair of arms, thin, yet somehow strong, lift him up, and he let himself lay limp and still, thinking it may help. The last thing he thought of before drifting back out of consciousness was the smell of cherries, most likely a perfume on the neck of his saviour.
When he regained consciousness, he did not feel fresh air brushing past his skin, nor the earth beneath him as he had last time he awoke. He felt the softness of a bed beneath his weary body, and sheets gently laid on him, as if he was a child who had fallen asleep in an odd place. Yugi sat up and opened his eyes, blinking a few times to allow his eyes to adjust. This was no longer the sunny field he woke up in what felt like moments before. It was a darker home. He didn't mind the darkness; he welcomed it after the field and the sun, which Yugi swore had burnt into his retinas. A fire crackled in the fireplace opposite the bed. Its yellow flames touched the top of the fireplace's cavity and darkened the stone, the red and brown and orange highlights caught his eye. The wood crackled and was alight with flecks of embers around the edges of the now-charcoaled wood. Its warmth radiated around the room, and he could feel the gentle heat against his face just as he had before.
With a still-heavy body, he sat up in the bed and let the covers drop from his body. He did not recognise this place at all. The walls were seemingly made of mainly wood, or the wood was at least a decoration against stone. On the wall facing him, what he thought was a painting hung. It was only a window, and he noticed he must have passed out for a while; the sky was now black, with tiny dots of yellowish light dotted in the background and white stars accentuating the sky, with the crescent moon joining them.
The door creaked open, causing Yugi to flinch and jump, ready to jump out of the bed at any moment. He shuffled backwards as he jumped, but his back only hit a wall. Realising he had nowhere to hide, all he could do was sit there, stunned, a child caught doing something he knew he should not have. A white-haired person stepped inside the room, but stopped when they noticed Yugi was awake. Instead of appearing worried, however, he broke into a soft smile.
Yugi had no idea what to feel. Who was this person? Was he the person who saved Yugi from wherever he was? There was something inside his heart that told him no; it wasn't the same person. He had no other choice than to heavily rely on gut instinct. After all, what else could he trust? His own mind was deceptive, and his own thoughts were murky. All he could do until he could trust his memories not to fail him was to trust his heart.
"Yugi?" he asked, almost hesitant to even ask for his name. Despite a lack of knowledge, Yugi could guess something was wrong. Perhaps he wasn't sure whether he would be known, or maybe he always seemed so shy. He doubted it was the latter.
Nevertheless, it bothered him; how did this stranger know his name? "...yes?" His eyes were locked onto the stranger, subconsciously watching, waiting for some cue that he would be a threat. But his mannerisms did not signify enemy; they signified a good friend. And all Yugi could do when it came to these new people was trust based on mannerisms.
"You don't know who I am, do you?" Yugi shook his head. The stranger frowned a little bit, concerned. "I'm Ryou Bakura. But, I have a feeling you don't remember a lot of other things, do you?"
He shook his head. "No. I don't remember anything. Can you tell me?" Ryou bit his bottom lip, trying to think of a way to explain, or at least try to detract from the topic.
In the end, he must have guessed that telling the truth was a much better idea. "It's...well, it's a long story. And it's not really my place to tell you, either. You'll have to figure out your memories on your own, I'm afraid," he replied, still frowning a little.
"Oh, alright," he sighed, but allowed himself to relax a little more around Ryou. "But, where are we?"
"This place?" Ryou asked, "Unless you mean my inn, this town is Premiantis. It's just a small town; there isn't much to say about it, really. But this is my home, so I can't really complain."
"Small things aren't always bad," Yugi smiled at him.
"I'm just happy you're okay. Would you like something to eat, or drink?" he asked. Yugi shook his head again.
"No, it's okay. I don't wanna be a bother," he laughed awkwardly, his hands playing with the edges of the bed sheet.
"Don't be silly, Yugi. You're always welcome in my home," Ryou reassured him. "Oh! Hold on. There was something I needed to give to you."
Ryou gently opened the door, closing it quietly behind him as he left the room. In all honesty, Yugi felt relieved; he had been rescued by a mysterious stranger as far as he was concerned, and he had been looked after by caring people, who appeared to be his friend. Whether they were really friends or not was something he could not remember, nor would he try to. He counted himself lucky; he could just as easily have been taken in by a darker crowd, or just killed where he was. That was a terrifying thought, Yugi had to admit. With a stretch, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed. His legs extended out over the edge for a few moments, before letting them flop back down once more.
After a few moments, he heard someone knock three times on the door as a warning, before opening it up again once more. It was only Ryou which, although was not surprising, still startled Yugi a little bit. Folded up neatly on Ryou's left arm seemed to be, upon first glance, a wad of dark sheets. But, as he fully entered the room, Yugi realised they were, in fact, items of clothing. Atop the pile of clothing sat a pair of rather comfortable-looking black leather shoes which had been placed carefully to not fall as Ryou walked.
"You'll need these," Ryou informed him, placing them on the bottom of the bed. "They're new, and I think they belong to you, anyway. You'll need them to fit in with this place."
"Thank you! Your help means a lot to me," Yugi smiled up at him as he stood up from his post on the bed.
"As I've said, it's not a problem. I'm always here if you need me," Ryou returned the smile, before turning away from Yugi.
Without another word, Ryou left the room, shutting the door behind him as he had earlier. Yugi looked down the outfit he was wearing. It was much unlike the outfit given to him from what he could tell, and yet it held a familiarity to him. The darkish blue jacket, left undone to reveal a black shirt, the darkish blue trousers, which matched the jacket. Was this a uniform? It appeared to be one, due to its lack of vibrancy, or a lack of interesting designs. And something about it reminded him of boredom and hours wasted in a certain place that he would probably never remember.
Ignoring his current outfit, Yugi cast his attention to the clothes Ryou had placed on the bed. It seemed to be a whole outfit, and all the same colour - black. Admittedly, he wasn't too fond of the colour black, but there was no need for objections. After all, he was grateful he could even get clothes that may fit in with his new atmosphere and new place. The last thing he wanted was to cause attention in a town he assumed he was just a guest in.
Yugi put the shoes aside carefully grabbed the top of the pile, which was apparently folded and separated out for him. He unfolded the first item, which appeared to be a tunic, seeing as it was not fitting enough to be a dress. The second item was a pair of rather tight-looking trousers, which struck him as odd, but shrugged it off regardless. The third item was what seemed to be a cloak, which completed the outfit.
He shed his old clothes and laid them carefully on the other end of the bed, taking them away from his new clothes, which he wasn't even sure if they were fully his. He took his time to dress and adjust to the new clothing. As he put on the tunic, he found that a belt sat in belt loops on the waist of it, unfastened. This outfit was becoming more girlish by the minute, and he wasn't sure that he liked it. The trousers were fine; they were much looser than first anticipated. However, he did enjoy the cloak. The sleeves were long, and hung loose at the bottom of the sleeves. The back of it, which nearly reached the ground, swished with each step, which kind of amused him. The hood managed to conceal and flatten out his impossible hair, which he had found amazing. Afterwards, he slipped on the shoes, which felt nicer than he had already anticipated and hugged his feet in a soft embrace.
In his excitement, Yugi didn't notice a scroll at the bottom of the pile of clothing. Although small, it was still noticeable against the bed sheets. He picked it up hesitantly. Maybe it was a message to someone else. It would be rude to open it. But something inside of him told him to do it, it was somehow important and he had to uncover its secrets. He unrolled the piece of parchment. There was bright writing on the scroll, which seemed to glow like ember on coal. The writing itself was small and illegible to most likely most people, but somehow, Yugi could read it. The letters made sense to him, despite not understanding what the language even was. Perhaps it was the written language of this land, or it was something else that he did not know. Not that he knew a lot in this place.
It was, from what he could gather, instructions. Instructions for some kind of basic fire spell. It didn't appear too complicated. Perhaps Ryou put it there for him to use, or it was simply a happy accident. With a shrug, he placed the scroll back on the bed, which curled back up nearly instantly, which seemed to be a protective mechanism. He could at least give the spell a shot. Maybe if Yugi could read it, he would have the ability to cast it.
He remembered the instructions quite clearly. He cupped his hands, one on top of the other, forming the shape of a ball and leaving enough space to hold an imaginary ball. He closed his eyes, focused solely on the empty space in his hands; the size, the volume, and the circumference of the circle. As he took in a deep breath, he felt a surge of power flow deep within the veins in his arms, which had felt like crackling of sparks inside them, and empty out in the air-filled sphere his hands had created. Yugi felt an odd warmth beginning to gather in the centre of his hands, but did not break his focus, his eyes still shut. There came a point where no more was able to fill his hands, and that was the point he opened his eyes to examine his work.
There in his hands, which once contained nothing but air, burned a ball of reddish, orange fire. Nothing was aiding this burning, and it did not have anything fuelling it. Yugi almost lost his focus, startled, before realising the ball was not hurting him. It was not touching his hands or any part of his flesh, it appeared repelled by it. He stood there, staring at the fiery ball which he had formed. Had he really done that? It didn't seem possible; he was no mage, yet there he was, a spell cast and ready to be thrown. And that was when he realised - where was he going to put it?
Yugi's concentration slipped as he looked around for a place to put it, and his hands momentarily moved out of position. His gaze flickered over just as the ball fell in slow motion, his entire body no longer able to function, or even attempt to catch it again. The ball fell onto the wooden flooring, setting it alight instantly. In a panic, Yugi tried to stomp on it, to suffocate the flames, anything, but the fire only grew and spread throughout the flooring. The heat made him dizzy, and the smoke filled his lungs. He had to get out of there.
Yugi grabbed the scroll and swung open the door, thundering downstairs to try and find Ryou. What he found was something he had not expected. There were more flames lapping up the wall, engulfing it in charcoal black. No one was left in the building. This could not have been him. Could it? The flames were too big to be him, and had spread too far. It was not as recent as his accident. He covered his face with the sleeve of his cloak to try and save his lungs as he dashed out of the burning inn.
Outside, Yugi watched other buildings burn around them. It wasn't his fault; it was terrible timing on his part. Regardless, he was faced with confused townsfolk and angry stares at him, as if it was his fault. It looked like his suspicions had been falsely confirmed. He bowed his head in shame, feeling the guilt that was not meant to be his own. A gentle hand grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it softly. He looked to his side, and found Ryou standing beside him. He smiled reassuringly at Yugi.
A scream alerted the small crowd and Yugi, shaking them from their focus on the inn. A guard, clad in copper armour, ran up to the group by the inn. His breathing was shallow and quick. He slumped to his knees by the outskirts of the group, chest heaving for breath. It was then that Yugi noticed that his armour wasn't copper-coloured; it had been covered in blood. Something had stabbed through the man's armour.
"Her Majesty, the princess," he choked out, struggling with even the simplest of words. "She's gone."
The crowd went silent. Not even a whisper or a mutter came from the group, it wasn't needed. They all had a similar mindset; and that was to act fast. The group dissipated, moving swiftly and spread along the town with one objective – find the princess, safe and unharmed. Even Ryou had left Yugi to go and find her. He found himself alone in a strange town he had no idea how to navigate. This night was going swimmingly.
Yugi found himself aimlessly wandering around the town, hunting for a princess he did not know. In fact, what did she even look like? He didn't even know what kind of clothes this mysterious girl wore. At least it could take the blame off of him for a while. Not that it was his fault to begin with; people were just hell bent on believing this.
In his mindless wandering, Yugi realised he was in the centre of town, or at least, where he assumed the centre was. Beside him stood a large, running fountain, with the shape of what were most likely three people in the middle as statues. A few feet away stood a large, white, old-looking building. The white stone had begun to crack; most likely from years of being around. The ground floor had arched entrances, hiding anyone who may have stepped under them.
And at that point, as if right on cue, someone stepped out from the shadows. The first thing Yugi noticed was the smirk, which managed to gleam in what little fire light was around them. His hair, long and white, had been tucked away neatly in the clasp of a deep purple bow, which matched his shirt. Over his shoulders, a similarly-coloured cape was draped, trimmed with the fur of a small, snowy animal, one which had a black-tipped tail when alive. Brown trousers tucked into black boots shielded his legs, and on his fingers were far too many jewels to even begin counting. The first and only thing Yugi could think of - what a walking fashion disaster.
"I'm so sorry that this place isn't what you expected," he began, the smirk audible in his speech. "But it's better than a straight ticket to the shadow realm, isn't it?"
"Who are you?" Yugi asked him.
"I didn't think you were one for clichéd lines, Yugi, but, alright, seeing as you asked so politely. Just call me Bakura, and I'm one of the two kings of this world. Not to be confused with that other nightmare, Ryou."
"Wait, you're behind all of this, aren't you?" This was a wild shot in the dark. This Bakura could have easily just been at the wrong place and time. The never-diminishing smirk said otherwise.
"Well done. I knew you were smart." Yugi did not respond, and only stared up at him. He took it as a cue to continue, and gestured in the general area of the town. "This entire world is of my own construction. And with some help from your memories and some alterations, of course. But sadly, that came at the cost of losing your memories."
"Wait, so you-"
"That's right. Blame me all you like, Yugi. But that won't change a thing."
"I don't understand. What's the point?" he asked. Bakura shook his head before replying.
"And more clichés, I see. I'm disappointed. You'll know soon enough, providing you survive. But, for now, I can see you've got people to answer to," Bakura replied.
Yugi turned around, assuming someone was behind him. He assumed falsely. When he turned back to face Bakura, he had disappeared. Honestly, he expected no different from him. Instead of lingering, he decided it was best to return to the inn. At least then there would be some sanity and comfort, and maybe Ryou would be around. There was a chance he would know about this Bakura. He turned away, and pulled up the hood of his cloak over his head, which somehow flattened the spiked nature of his odd, tri-coloured hairstyle. As he walked, he had become engrossed in his own thoughts. He did not hear footsteps sneak behind him. He did not hear the hushed whispers. He did not hear a sword being brandished only a few inches away.
In an instant, he had felt cold, sharp steel pressed against his throat, an attack from behind. The sword had cut him out of his thoughts, and tugged him back to reality. He froze completely, afraid to even breathe too heavily. He needed to gulp, but if he had, the blade would have most likely cut him. He tried to remain calm, but his entire body shook. It took all the effort he had to not scream, to not move even by a millimetre. His mind became numb, whatever thoughts he may have had in that moment vanquished. In that moment, his senses shut down in order to cope.
"Where's the princess?" the voice behind him, his attacker, asked. If Yugi did not fear for his life before, at the very least, he was fearing for his then. He managed to gulp down a tiny bit of his nerves.
"I don't know," he replied, his voice wavering as he struggled to keep his cool. He didn't know anything; not about the princess, or about where she was, or even who she was.
"That ain't an answer." The blade pressed harder into his throat, but still not enough to cut.
"Look, maybe he doesn't know," another voice said. "You know as well as I do that they didn't just have black ones. Quit discriminating."
"It was mainly black, and there ain't any black mages that live here. I'm not taking any chances," his attacker replied.
Yugi was ready to accept his demise. Of course, it wasn't what he wanted. He had questions to answer. But this man was not going to let up. He was expecting an answer from Yugi, yet he had no answers to give. His eyes closed once more, and he relaxed. Maybe that would make it much less painful. He still shook as he stood, but he was ready.
"Hold on!"
The voice was familiar, and he was certain he knew it. Yugi opened one of his eyes slightly. He was greeted by the sight of a snow-haired young man dashing towards him. With a blink, he opened both of his eyes, and let the relief wash over him. It was Ryou; he had come to help him. The sword did not move, however. Regardless, he was still glad to see a friendly face.
"Please, leave him alone. It wasn't him. He was one of the people at my inn, he couldn't have kidnapped her," Ryou pleaded with his attacker. There was a pause, and none of them spoke. Finally, the sword was swiftly taken away from his neck, and placed back in its sheath.
Yugi had never felt so glad to be alive. His fingers traced along his neck, not catching any blood that could have stuck to his fingers, or any cuts that would have stung with a touch. He turned on his heels to face his attacker and companion. Their armours matched. Perhaps they were hired mercenaries to help protect and serve the town. However, they both looked different. His attacker's hair was blonde and had been windswept from the action he must have gone through, whereas his companion had brown hair, which protruded a little in front of him. Yugi would call it odd, but after the events of today, they were most likely two of the most normal-looking people, despite the pair of them looming over his tiny frame.
"I'm Jonouchi," the blonde gestured to his companion. "And that's Honda."
Yugi smiled at the pair. "My name is Yugi Muto; it's nice to meet you."
"Where are you from?" Jonouchi asked. He felt a lump rise in his throat. There was no way he could lie his way out of that one.
"Nerudge," Ryou answered for him. "He's not from this kingdom. He's an old friend of mine, and he was just passing through." He was Yugi's guardian angel, and he would owe Ryou. Jonouchi seemed to readily accept this alibi.
"I've been there before, actually. Too rich for me, though," Honda replied.
"Sorry to be a bother, Yug," Jonouchi apologised. "Dammit. Looks like we're gonna have to go through with Plan P."
"Plan P?" He felt rude asking, but he was curious.
"Plan Pilgrimage. It's used when an important person's gone missing'," he answered.
"Can I join you guys?" Crap. It just slipped out. He had to go along with it. "I mean, just until I get back home. I-I've been meaning to travel the world, and it's good to have company, right?"
Jonouchi smiled at him. "Sure. We could always do with a magic boost. What do you say, Honda?"
His eyes flickered between Yugi and Jonouchi, letting out a soft hum as he thought. "Hey well, if my bud's cool with you, then so am I."
"We'll be off tomorrow," Jonouchi said. "Meet us here, yeah?"
"Right!" Yugi nodded. "See you guys tomorrow."
The quartet divided into two groups, and split off their separate ways. Yugi followed Ryou back to the inn. He honestly didn't mean to offer joining their 'Plan P', but it was something he felt compelled to say he wanted to. Why were they so eager to let him into the group? Jonouchi clearly wasn't too sure about him at the very least, and he knew he didn't trust Yugi, unless they still suspected him. Did they expect to be led to the princess by him? Because Yugi could do no such thing.
At least, when they had returned to the inn, it had not been too burnt down. The beds were still usable, and some of the rooms were fine. However, due to health reasons, the beds from the burnt rooms were out of action and unusable. Much to Ryou's happiness, for once, not too many people were staying at the inn, and there were enough rooms to go around. Yugi had one of the smaller rooms, but he didn't mind too much. It was better than having to share, at least. And he still felt partially responsible for the fire.
As he lay in the bed, it dawned on him; he wasn't tired. In fact, he was wide awake, despite the commotion. He felt like he could still do so much. And he knew there was so much to do, as well. A world of opportunity was open for him, and he was somehow wasting his time by sleeping, or, at the very least, attempting to sleep. However, he could not sleep. He watched the inky sky from his window shift from its colour to lighter shades of blue, mingled in with some orange. He watched as the sun rose from the horizon and the stars began to disappear. He still felt just as awake. And that was when he realised something was wrong with him.