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Chapter III: Carpe Diem

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There was something heart wrenching about this. The second the spirit stepped foot in the palace, he felt ill. At first all I sensed was his nerves acting up, for I myself felt fine. He kept murmuring how he would rather endure the pain than I and refused to switch us back. Each step he took was heavier than the last, but all I could do was stare and wonder what by Ra was wrong with him. By the time he sat upon my throne, his fingers were curling into the stone and he had little ease trying to keep himself awake.

Mahado summoned his Millennium Ring in order to seal the evil ka of the man in front of us, but it did even more. He, the spirit, screamed at the top of his lungs and I panicked, having no idea what was going on. His entire being split from me and I felt bare without his essence. And...I saw him. I saw his mouth, his lips, his ears, his beautiful cheeks, his hair, his dainty fingers, his strange clothes and…

Those eyes. I saw the beautiful eyes crooning with pain in the presence of…of…the Millennium Items!

"Mahado!" I pushed myself out of my throne. "Recall the Ring! You are hurting him!"

My priest did as he was told, eyes widening in terror with five other shocked faces watching the boy clad in strange clothes waver at my feet. Breathtakingly gorgeous eyes with the rare violet seen only at sunset gazed upon my pendant and his breathing staggered. He was in severe pain.

"My Pharaoh!" Isis looked to me, eyes doubling in size.

I didn't hear her. I barely moved, my eyes never leaving theone in front of me and never shall I forget the fear that ran through him. "You're alive," I murmured softly. "You truly do exist, my light..."

He looked at me, face contorting as his unique ivory skin paled even deeper. Small fingers reached out to grab my beloved antique, but accidentally brushed against my own skin instead. I felt a sudden jolt, his pain-inducing headache giving me one of my own. His aches and bruises littered my body and my head was ready to burst. I collapsed back in my throne, accidentally hitting my head but I'd already blacked out.

littleone.

I'm convinced that I woke up far too soon when moonlight crept into my doors. Two candles lay on my windowsill already lit. I caressed the pendant in my hands, running my finger across a pathway for the umpteenth time. Despite the shock I still carried, it seemed all I could do while the image of the beautiful boy locked in my millennium item flashed in my head. 'Twas the first time I'd seen him and it seemed as though the mere sight of me was enough to kill him.

How was it that he who resided in the Millennium Pendant was not strong enough to be in the presence of its sister jewels? I must have racked my brain for hours simply trying to reason with it. For the first time the metal was cold to my touch and never had I ever felt so empty. From what I suspected, Mahado had driven him out of the puzzle at the same moment he tried to seal the man's evil ka.

Though normally safe in the sanctuary of my pendant, the spirit and my light had been exposed to the powers of the millennium items. I couldn't even recall a time where he stood in my place while at my court and now I knew it was for a very good reason. His beautiful eyes haunted my mind and it pained me to have someone as he so close and feel so numb between my fingers.

Could a spirit die after already being dead? Was he put to rest because of Mahado's dark magic?

"Please, my light, please answer," I begged it softly. From the corner of my eye I could already see the two wicks melting, finally at the stem of their wax. I sighed and turned my head to the knock on the door. "Come in."

The door peered open with Mahado's hesitant eyes peering in. He looked onward and to my form as I kicked away the sheets. "Are you awake, my pharaoh?"

"I'm moving…aren't I?" Yet I felt dead. There was a piece of me missing, the piece with my light, with the young, little boy who resided in my pendant. If he truly was gone, then I was ready to give myself to the claws of Osiris.

"I am…terribly," Mahado appeared in front of my bed and bowed before me, "terribly sorry!"

"'Tis alright, Mahado." We entered a silence, my eyes never leaving the pendant in my grasp. I hitched a breath once I felt the warmth teeming throughout; almost like a heartbeat that assured me he was okay. A smile played across my lips. "You saw him, didn't you? I told you I was not lying when I said there was an entity residing within my pendant."

He looked at me, eyes flickering with the hesitation he'd shown me all these years and years to come. Always would he make the attempt to spare my feelings in fear of rejection. "Pharaoh…" He finally said with an even voice, "I know you far too well, my pharaoh; my most cherished friend. I am also a Priest and am able to sense these spirits and--"

"And you saw him, right?" I lacked the restraint to hold back my excitement. Another breath of relief left my lips as I inhaled the scent of the pendant. "Only for a moment--he split from me, Mahado. Beautiful, jewel-like eyes that rival the sheen of amethysts, and gorgeous ivory skin." Ivory… I had never seen skin so pure and glowing. I felt a small tug weighing at my chest as that face flickered in my eyes once more…the suffering they felt. It hurt the little spirit to be out in the open. What if he was too scared to leave it now?

"I…" The reluctance yet again crossed Mahado's face. Each time I spared him a glance his eyes would fall to my pendant with my same wonders and possibly even more. As his eyes crossed mine, I suppose he saw the determination in them. "Yes, my pharaoh."

"This is sheer proof, Mahado. The spirit of the Millennium Pendant exists." I released my tight clinch and pushed myself off the bed. The warmth of the pendant briefly left me and I only watched it dip into my stomach. "I…have so many questions for it." For him.

"I know you do," he murmured softly. "But for now I think that it is best that you sleep, my pharaoh. When the tips of your fingers met his, all his suffering seemed to transfer to you."

"Which is more the reason for me to be concerned." My eyebrows furrowed. I picked it up by its lace and let it dangle in midair. "He has shared my body with me, but his immunity is not as matured as mine. How is it that someone as powerful as he can't withstand the powers of the Millennium Items?"

Mahado had silenced. No rebottles, no arguments, and no trying to be like my conscience.

"What about a better question, my pharaoh?" he finally asked. "Why does a spirit reside in the pendant that once belonged to your father?"

All thoughts halted from my mind. My eyes fell back to the puzzle and the crest of Ra's eye at the very center. Mahado was right--the spirit of the Millennium Pendant had been residing in there for ages; I could not recall a time where I did not sense his presence. Except now.

My fingers brushed across one groove and I contemplated Mahado's words. The spirit--my light was the one anomaly that I had ever faced as my time as the Pharaoh. His appearance was that of an outsider and at the face of Egypt, he was not the Pharaoh. At first glance no one would notice; we were the same person.

At second he was just my "other" person. At third, it was so much more. Yet the people of Egypt would not see that. No, if they were to ever find out of his existence, then they would kill him. To everyone he brought joys and smiles; it enticed me the way he was able to captivate so many people while bare of power and for years that was my drive. My light was the person that I was never allowed to be. While Mana was given a new doll to play with, I was given the crown of Egypt. He was the borderline who met everyone in the middle.

With a hardy sigh, Mahado knelt beside me and flashed kindness through the lucid, liquid eyes he'd shown me for years. "He does not feel like the dark entity prophesied to be sealed in your pendant, my pharaoh."

The prophecy…to put it in simple words, it spoke of my Millennium Pendant. He who is seen fit to wield the Millennium Pendant shall release the dark entity that resided and lay dormant for many years and set the spirit free. That was the simple translation. The words were uttered by the Gods themselves; speaking of the one who solved the powers of my pendant and put the soul to rest. I did not know if I was worthy of this mission, but I knew that I had to try.

"No," I agreed wholeheartedly, "he does not and is not a dark entity, Mahado. He is light." The words ran through my head over and over and I nodded. "My Akhu."

"That feels more appropriate," Mahado murmured softly. "Good night, my pharaoh."

"Mm. Mahado?" I looked back to him once he gathered his things and inched toward the door. He turned back, eyes flickering with curiosity. All I could do was smile and chuckle softly. "Thank you for not wearing your Millennium Ring."

Red subdued his cheeks. He smiled softly and slowly nodded. "Anything for you, my pharaoh."

littleone.

Mahado was right when he said that I should be more careful around the spirit of the millennium pendant. I knew for sure that if these circumstances were reversed, I would warn him just as much not to trust a spirit residing in his Millennium Ring But what separated logic from instinct was when I first became enticed by my millennium pendant. It was a beautiful thing, something that I saw on my father's neck constantly even when I was a baby.

He never took it off. Although I had six sacred guardians, my father could easily be considered the seventh and perhaps my greatest guardian. I was nine when he was first confronted by the gods and nearly two years later, he died and I was the rightful heir to the throne. In those almost-two years, the higher education given to me had become more intense, a new piece of knowledge always being shoved in my face before the first could be processed.

And then…he died. I woke up one morning dreading the thought of having to learn more magic and before I knew it, I was mourning over his death.

For the rest of the day, it was as if I'd been locked in an hourglass hearing nothing but the distant noise of annoying guards. My psyche had been shaken and with each grain of sand that came left another grain of my sanity.

But I remembered Mana, cheeks round and plump with a bright pink blush and a mess of brown hair she could never straighten out, with her small hand tugging at my own, tears shimmered at the creases of her eyes. "Atemu?" she squeaked. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Do I look like I'm gonna be okay?"

"I hope so…"

I looked at her, eyes flickering with so many emotions flashing through my mind that my head was spinning. Before I even realized it, I'd pushed her to the ground, tears blazing at my eyes. "Don't just 'hope'! My father is dead, Mana, DEAD. He's to be buried early tomorrow morning and right after that, I'm to deliver a speech and tell them how I am the new ruler! You could never understand the pain that I'm going through!"

Mana's mouth was left open and agape. Her eyes crinkled and hands balled into fists as she trembled. Immediately, she pushed herself off the ground and shoved me instead. "He was a father to me too! He was a father to everyone, and he loved all of us like we were his children!"

"Hah!" I bitterly laughed and turned away. "But are you really his child, Mana? Are any of them really his children? No, Mana, they're not, and I'm the one who will be up there tomorrow because I am his son and sole heir to the crown. You're not even royalty; you're just some lost, lonely peasant girl who we picked up off the streets!"

"Prince Atemu!" Mahado, who had been ignoring our petty arguments for quite some time now, turned my way, appalled.

I heard a soft sob and then light footsteps rushing away from the scene.

Mahado looked to me, eyes flaring with more anger than I could ever imagine. He slapped me across the face; the first and only time he had ever given me an injury since I've known him. "Why?" he snapped. "Why do you possibly think that the only one who could be mourning the death of your father, Prince?"

"I…I…" I knew he was right. Every single part of me knew that he was right because my greatest fault always lied in the fact that I allowed myself to be blinded by this one goal to realize what was going on around me. The anger continued to bubble in my stomach where everything seemed hollow and numb. I was ready to throw up.

"Please," Mahado said when he realized what he'd done. His tone was soft and underlying with tension. "Go apologize to her. She only wished to help you through painful times, my prince."

"And if I refuse?" It was wrong of me at the time, and now that I realized how foolish I'd gotten that night, I only wished for time to turn back so I could mend the mistakes my anger caused. My eyes met with Mahado's coldly and for a second I contemplated how the only reason why I was able to stand up to him was because I was of a higher rank. If it was simply on the streets of Cairo, one my age would brutally be beaten by another three years my senior.

The flicker appeared in his eyes again. Mahado's mouth hung open and he only stared at me, but we were both thinking the same thing.

"Next time I see you, you better know your place." With the twist of my foot, the corridors moved behind me and I made my way to the room. This was it. I was the new pharaoh and tomorrow soon after my father's funeral, the appointment of the new pharaoh would occur. "Me."

I was the new pharaoh and I was scared. And this…this thing around my neck; it did nothing for me. My eyes fell on the Millennium Pendant, my father's most prized possession. He told me to keep it safe and one day it would help me. Today, tomorrow, any other day. This thing…

"You are of no help to me!" Without a second word, I threw it from my clutches.

It collided with the wall and broke into a million pieces. I gasped, eyes falling onto the retched jewel. No… "No!" I pushed myself off the bed and fell to my knees in front of the thing. My father's treasure! I'd… I'd broken it!

Piece after piece, I picked it up and tried to fit each bit into a chasm but I was failing. Great Ra, how I was failing--first my father and then I committed the sin of this? Tears fell down my face and I stared at what little I had done. All I managed to put together were three measly pieces out of so many more fragments.

If I could not even solve a proper enigma like this, how was I supposed to rule an entire country?

Long before I realized it, my eyes fluttered closed as my clumsy fingers tried to reconstruct the thing and I was already asleep. My dreams were filled with my father; how he'd taken me through the long journey before we arrived at the Temple of Ra where he admitted to his sins and pleaded that I wasn't the one who they would punish.

I wasn't fit for the role of a Pharaoh. I didn't want to grow up. I didn't want to be the prince of Egypt, I was just a young boy of eleven years who missed his father dearly.

"Oh, wowzers. This is a little weird, huh?"

He was here.

When I was little, I was convinced that this part of my night was only a dream; that I'd wished for the presence of my father so much that I needed him here to comfort me. I looked up from the spot where I laid and someone I'd never seen before caught my gaze. When I saw him, I saw me.

A taller, older me who had the most languid smile I'd ever seen cross my lips. The look in his eyes held innocent wisdom, like not even he had a grasp of what was going on. He crouched over me with a duplicate crown across his forehead. My eyes fell to the item in his grasp and I gasped. The Millennium Pendant…looked like a pendant!

"Who are you?" I asked and sat up across from him.

He relaxed and set the thing in his lap. Around him were scattered pieces of the little devil item, but not as many as I'd originally had. He laughed softly and shrugged. "The other you, I guess. Are you okay?"

I snorted and looked to the ground. "Do I look okay?"

"Oh, uh…" His eyes widened with surprise and his eyebrows furrowed considerably. "Right..."

The silence enveloped us. Time passed and neither one of us spoke, but my eyes returned to the item in his hands as soon as I heard metal clink around each other.

"So I bet you're going to give me some big inspirational speech then, huh?" I asked. "This is a sign from the Gods, right?"

I'd startled him. He flinched, briefly dropping the pendant out of his hands before he picked it up again and a spare piece he wasn't able to safe.

"Erm, no." He laughed awkwardly, eyes falling back to the ground and a blush fell across his face. "It's this thing."

"That thing? What does this hell jewel have anything to do with it?" I stood up and jabbed a finger to the retched locket laced in his fingers. "It isn't even strong enough to hold together!"

"Well in its defense, you threw it against the wall."

"I see no difference."

He blinked, staring only at the finger I still had directed at him before he smiled. Laughter soon filled the room despite the searing anger burning in my chest and soon, I was smiling with him.

"You could say that my heart shattered when you broke this."

"Your heart? By what means?"

"W…well…, you know…" I frowned at his tone. This was not me--this was not the tone of a ruler. He finally sighed and stood up parallel to me. Red teemed at his cheeks and he closed his eyes. "Your pain woke me up. I've been watching you, and every time your heart wrenches, mine does too. I…I just had to come see you."

Oh. My hand fell limp next to my side and I watched how his nimble fingers worked its way through the many still-open crevasses.

"How did you do it?" I whispered. "How is it that you are able to get so much of that conundrum done in such a short time while I cannot? I'm not worthy of it, am I?"

"…you're scared." His touch tingled my skin as he rested a hand against my shoulder. "You don't believe you can rule Egypt, can you?"

"I know not another solution, Other Me!"

"Hey, don't do that." He stopped me from shoving him by grabbing my wrist and gently guiding me to the bed. I sat there, legs dangling as he stood in front of me. He laced the pendant around my neck. "Aggression doesn't solve anything."

"I--" I resented that. All of my thoughts halted at that very instant and I looked away. "I know."

"That's right, you know better. In the eleven years of your life, you know exactly what your father has taught you. Actions speak louder than words." He went back to the small pile of gold pieces and randomly stuck it in the pendant. To his delight it fit perfectly.

"There are many good pharaohs and many bad pharaohs! I will be harassed for each decision that I make!" I glared at him angrily. Did not even my other self know what could happen?! The tension built up in me and at any moment I was ready to explode, but all I did was crumble. Warm tears dripped to my lap and I etched my fingers into my lap.

"Yeah, I know." His voice was quiet now. He raked a hand through his hair and put in the last gold trinket of the jewel. "I was harassed a lot, too…I think. The important thing is that you have friends, little prince."

He turned around and knelt in front of me.

My eyes widened. "What on earth are you doing?"

"Head up." Never had the optimistic words spoken by many ever had the effect that his was having right now. "You're the new Pharaoh of Egypt, my prince. Isn't it only natural for me to bow before him?"

"…you aren't allowed to look me in the eye, either," I murmured softly. He looked at me inquisitively and did so. Quickly I straightened up and brought his face to mine. "But I demand you do. Continue."

"It's only in human nature for people to make mistakes, my young prince." He petted a hand on my head and softly laughed. "You're going to go through a lot of wrong doors before you get to the right one. Until you learn from your mistakes, you have to go at it with your friends. They will always be there for you."

"And…you?" My entire stature faltered. "You, the other me, are suffering. Why?"

"Dunno. But all you have to do is look at this puzzle if you seek comfort, my little prince." His entire complexion had become whiter than his tunic. His eyes fell, half-lidded and sweat matted both the crown and his bangs to his face. He held the pendant between his hands and gestured to the gap at the very center. "The last piece."

My hand squeezed the final and probably largest piece of the entire item. The eye of Ra imprinted itself on my hand--a small, bitter laugh left my throat as I gave it to him.

"Thank you," he murmured. He caressed my cheek gently with one hand and fiddled with the last piece with the other. "Don't ever think back to your old memories with a sad face, new pharaoh. You have all the strength in the world."

"But…"

"Ah. If you keep having doubts, everything jumbles and becomes a disorganized mess. But if you put it together…" He put the small piece back in my hand and forced that last piece into the pendant. "It fits together like a puzzle."

He was right. It glowed faintly in my hands as I clenched it tighter. I looked back at him and the grip over my heart had loosened considerably. I felt…relieved. "You never told me how you were able to fix it so fast."

"Head up," he repeated and demonstrated for me. "I dunno. I think somewhere in a past life I just really, really liked puzzles. All the pieces just called me together."

"You…have to go now, don't you?"

"Yeah." He rested both of his hands over mine as his eyes fell to the eye of Ra in the middle. "But I'm here to talk to whenever you need me. Heck, I'm you, aren't I?"

"I…yes. You're right." I slowly nodded and admired those beautiful, nimble fingers. They were amazing.

"Aplogize to Mana, by the way. I like her." He laughed softly again and the glow of the Millennium Pendant enveloped the both of us. Blinded, I shut my eyes and clutched my father's precious item--my precious item closer to my chest.

When I finally opened my eyes, the sun was peering through my window, dream in the furthest depths of my mind. I went straight to Mana's room to apologize and the last thing in mind was the pendant all in one piece and how the eye of Ra still left an indent in my hand.

littleone.

Perhaps it was wrong of me to wake up so early--maybe it was even more wrong that I actually never got any sleep. I sat there for ages and caressed the gorgeous jewel between my hands. My fingers interlaced with each indentation. I knew the artwork of this particular millennium item so well that each curve and crevasse came to no surprise to me.

He was asleep. Or at least, I assumed he was asleep. Ever since that fateful night in the back of my head I suppose I always considered that this inanimate object really was alive and full of life--sort of. The husky magical air around it polluted my nose, but the fragrance of Akhu overpowered all.

This breathtaking antique was all that needed to be called my greatest weakness. He was my weakness. Akhu was always in the puzzle, but it was only recently that I would stare at his essence for hours trying to find out what made him who he was. Today was no different and probably even worse. I was always conscious of his presence to the point that I considered him the skin to my skin.

But Akhu's existence could not be sensed. Was he afraid? Was he frustrated? Was he hurt? Why would the spirit not talk to me? Why…did he never talk to me? I sat in my bed with the pendant in my clutches thinking only of him. The warmth faded long ago and left me nothing. I felt numb.

The first thing I did that moment before even bathing was go down the hall. My body had a mind of its own as it went through several entryways and paths before settling at one door. I knocked at the door and a light "oof!" echoed through the palace walls.

A feminine groan. "Who is it?"

"Who do you think?" I snorted. So very few people ever got up at this hour in the morning that I would think that she'd realize I was the only one to ever knock on her door.

Mana's next moan was audible again. She yawned loudly before peeping her head out and frowned. "Why, Atemu? I'm so tired!"

"He hasn't come out yet, Mana."

Immediately, her eyes fell to my millennium item and she fell silent. She ushered me into the room and sat me on the bed before placing her hands on the item herself. "So," she awkwardly said, "why come to me then?"

"You two are very close, aren't you?" I arched an eyebrow, thinking that at least this part would be obvious. "Can't you drive him out?"

"Atemu…" Mana nestled both hands on her hips and looked at me like I was crazy. "I don't call him the Nice Atemu just because he's absolutely adorable! He's a respectable person, humble and very sweet. You'll scare him if you just force him out that way!"

"I know." I nodded in agreement, but the wedge between Akhu and I was becoming deeper. "But I have not sensed his warmth the entire night, Mana."

She sighed softly. "What…happened, exactly?"

"Mahado was separating an evil ka from an unfortunate soul with the Millennium Ring. He'd used the divine powers to split them and I suppose in the process, he split both my light and I as well." I didn't like this. It was horrible being separated from him for so long.

"So there really is another Atemu, huh?" Mana smiled softly and hugged me dearly. "Congrats, best friend of mine. Now you can have fun with your inner child!"

"I…yes." My eyes fell back to her and I abruptly stood up from her bed. She looked at me curiously, but I only helped her up as well. "Come with me, Mana?"

"To where?"

"Just come with me." She obliged, of course, after changing out of her night gown and into her normal ensemble. Ra had barely peeked through the sky as dawn sat at the palace's windows. Mana followed me, making little conversation, but all questions were on my light. One of her most intriguing was how he would possess my body and all I could do was sit back and watch. Truth be told, I never knew when my light possessed my body, I simply knew that once he did, my compassion for others would increase, the need to be a great pharaoh decreasing and compassion for others being my main priority.

Mana wouldn't stop staring at my arm. I looked back at her questionably and flexed it in front of her face. "Is there a problem, Mana?"

"Have you seen a soft blue cloth, Atemu?" She pointed to my bicep. "Did you take it off?"

Soft blue cloth? "I…don't recall ever putting one on my arm, Mana."

"Oh." Her eyes widened with surprise and she shook her head. "Maybe Nice Atemu has it with him."

I arched an eyebrow. "I am not lying when I insist he exists, you know."

"I know." Mana nodded sincerely and shrugged. "So where are we going?"

"Here." I halted in front of one of many doors in this particular hallway. It was rare for me to ever prance around in this part of the palace; the Magic Wing. All six sacred priests had a room in this hall. "Shada? Are you there?"

"Shada?" she repeated. Emerald eyes flickered with utter confusion as she rudely jabbed my head in attempt to see if I was drunk. "What on earth do you want to see Shada for, Atemu?"

"Because."

A few moments later, the door creaked open. I looked up to the man with the hood around his head. Shada bowed in front of me and my eyes fell to the Millennium Key hanging from his belt. "My Pharaoh?"

"I wish to use the powers of your millennium item on both Mana and I, priest." I looked back up. Mana tugged at my arm, confused, but I gave no answer.

Shada looked at me with the same surprise Mana had across her face. "May I ask why, Pharaoh Atemu?"

"I want to enter my soul room." My impatience got the better of me. After all the years I was told to stay strong and assertive, I was far too concerned about Akhu's wellbeing to do anything else.

Mana gasped. "Atemu…but…"

"If I enter my soul room," I continued, "then I should be able to enter his, too."

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Author's Note:

Oh, shizz. Atemu's always thinkin', huh? He's a little OOC in the memory, but it's just perspective of a young kid who just lost his father. I think he'd be really angry and stuff like that and it was really cool writing the big brother figure for Yugi. Even though he doesn't get to show it a lot, I'm sure it's there in the series."Akhu" just means light, and in a sense of the "roles being switched," Atemu is just calling Yugi his light the same way Yugi called him his darkness. Thanks so much for all the reviews and favorites and alerts! Reviews would be nice. C: