I would just like to start this chapter with a little explanation of sorts. The ancient history in my story has changed. All will be revealed in time, I'm just letting you know that in case you're all like "Pwar? But that's not canon!" Yeah, it's not.

Chapter 19

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Kaiba, Yugi, Tea and Serenity all sat in the boys hotel room. They were wrapped in towels and Yugi was being inspected by a doctor. They had already taken car of Kaiba's head and the girls were next. Ishizu finished a conversation with Ms. Hamond in the hall, then came in to the room and asked the doctor if she could have some privacy. Once the door closed, her attention was on Yugi.

"Is it true?" She asked. "Is my brother working with Bakura?" Yugi nodded.

"They wanted my puzzle." He clarified.

"Yes, I see you brought the ankh back too. You don't think-" Ishizu started

"Yes, I do. They were after their own bodies." Yami had taken over to talk more directly with Ishizu.

"What are you talking about?" Kaiba asked, tired, hurt and frustrated. "This bull again? Is that what this is all about? I cant believe this."

"It's not bull, it's true Kaiba." Tea said. "And it's a much bigger deal than you think it is." Kaiba scoffed at her. He had remembered Yugi spewing some nonsense at battle city about this kind of thing, but he didn't believe a word of it, no matter how convincing Yugi was at the time... Kaiba shook his head.

"You weren't able to get the ring then?" Ishizu assumed. Yami closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Bakura pulled out a gun, it would have been impossible to get close." A sigh escaped his lips. After a few moments of silence, Ishizu spoke up again.

"Do you think they'll return?" She asked, looking to Yami. He nodded.

"They need the millennium puzzle and ankh. They'll come again. Bakura is desperate. He'll do anything." Yami said.

"This is ridiculous." Kaiba stood suddenly, which probably wasn't the best idea. He immediately felt dizzy, but he wasn't going to let them know that. "Tell me you don't believe in this crap too." he said, glancing at Serenity.

"Seto..." Serenity looked to Yami. She had gotten quite close to him, and considered him a great friend. She knew the difference between him and Yugi, and was almost better friends with Yami then Yugi. There was no doubt in her mind the difference in person, and the magic in the puzzle.

"I see." Kaiba started for the door.

"Seto, this is really important. Ya-" Serenity started.

"It doesn't matter anymore. We're canceling the trip." He said, still facing the door.

"No, you cant!" Tea shouted, now getting up as well. Yami fell into himself, not knowing what to say or how to speak to get to where he needed to be.

"Seto!" Serenity ran up to him, stepping between him and the door. "Please, Seto-"

"Serenity, are you insane?" He said coldly as he looked down at her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her as far away from everyone else in the room as possible, making their conversation more one on one. "Didn't you just hear what he said? For some damned stupid reason, the guys that attacked us before will probably come back and do it again. The men that assaulted us, threatened us, shot at us- For fucks sake Serenity, one tried to rape you!" He was speaking in only a whisper, but his tones were loud enough for everyone to hear.

Ishizu stood, torn. Being an expert in ancient Egypt and the millennium items, Ishizu's entire being screamed for them to be able to stay. But also being a friend of Yami, and Yugi, she couldn't let harm come to them. Suddenly something in the millennium necklace screamed out. She felt it quiver and shake on her, pulling just enough for her to notice. She looked to Tea and Yami for one of them to notice, but they were focused on Kaiba and Serenity. She then looked back at Kaiba, who had been threatening Yami's dreams. Then she looked to Serenity. The girl who Kaiba seemed to be protecting the most. The necklace screamed again.

"Seto, this isn't about me. It's about so much more. It's about life-" Seto shook his head.

"Serenity... "Seto started warmly, but returned to his 'public' cold self. "The problem is, I don't give a damn about anything else." He caressed her arms that were still in his grip, but she pulled back.

"I do." Kaiba couldn't understand why she would ever put herself in danger for anyone else.

"Excuse me," Ishizu said, walking toward Serenity. Kaiba glared at her. "But I think it might have just become about you." She reached up and unhooked the necklace, held it forward, and placed it on Serenity, who stood confused and uneasy. The necklace flashed briefly, and Serenity collapsed.

"What the fuck did you just do to her?" Kaiba demanded, holding the unconscious girl so she didn't get hurt. Ishizu was kneeling beside him, attention focused on Serenity.

"She is fine, she's just meeting her companion." Ishizu said warmly. Kaiba looked at her as if she had had three heads.

Serenity woke in a large circular bed. The mattress was like none she'd ever felt before. The sheets were perfectly silky and soft, in shades of gold and blue. Thin gold tinted fabrics hung from the high ceiling surrounding the bed. The room was huge, walls lined with a patterned trim and beautiful storks and cats painted across the bottom of the smooth stone walls. There was a doorway on the wall across from the bed, but despite the light illuminating the room from seemingly nowhere, the doorway was black and covered in shadows. There were large windows on the wall just to the right of the bed. As Serenity got up and approached them, she gasped. A great city of ancient times stood before her. Large stone and clay buildings still young and in their prime stood around her and she could see a river in the distance.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" A voice from behind her asked. Serenity jumped and spun. The girl in front of her was a near mirror image with only slight differences. Her hair was cut roughly, and was a darker shade of red-brown, and her eyes were more brown than Serenity's golden hazel. The girl smiled as she looked around. "This was our room." She said, touching the fabrics of the bed. "This is where he saved me." She added before looking back at Serenity.

"Where are we?" She asked the girl. The girl patted the bed after sitting, offering Serenity a place to rest beside her. Serenity took the offer.

"We are in my mind. Inside you. Inside the millennium necklace. But, if you're referring to the view, we are in Thebes, the Royal Palace of the Pharaoh, though, what you see now is all there is to see in this place. My freedom does not extend past the door." The girl said, looking towards the doorway. She had a look on her face Serenity couldn't discern.

"Who are you?" Serenity asked tentatively. She knew how much it affected Yami not knowing who he was.

"My name is Sarah. I was a slave in the palace, though my master gave me as much freedom as he was able." Serenity watched Sarah's features brighten. Serenity was taken aback. She knew the spirits of the millennium items were from Egypt, but the thought hadn't crossed her mind that one of them would be a slave.

"Who was he?" She asked, still a bit shocked by her recent discovery.

"High Priest Set." She said, pausing a moment. "Can... Can I see him?" The girl asked. Serenity was confused for a moment, but a thought dawned on her. If this truly was a spirit of the millennium item, she should be able to allow her to take control like Yugi and Yami. The girl smiled, realizing her dilemma. "Just relax..."

Serenity's eyes fluttered open, and Kaiba could feel himself be able to breath again. She smiled warmly, and raised a hand to his face, tears lining her eyes. He looked at her questioningly and gripped her hand, but something was wrong. She didn't look quite right. Something was off, and he couldn't put his finger on it. She sighed deeply, and widened her smile.

"It's ok." She said, pulling her hand back and wiping some of her tears away. "I understand. You look so much like him, but... you're not him. And I cant help but see him in you, but..." She sat herself up, putting a little space between her and Kaiba. "You're just not him." Now Kaiba was deeply confused.

"What did you do to her?" He asked. He was kneeling on one knee on the floor, head dipped low and eyes shut, but he aimed his question after the fact by glaring up at Ishizu.

"This isn't Serenity." Ishizu explained. "It's the spirit of the millennium necklace." Yami nodded when Kaiba scanned the other faces in the room looking for something different.

"What is your name?" He asked kindly to the girl within Serenity. Her eyes fluttered over to him, then widened and darted away. Her head dipped low and she assumed a submissive position.

"M-my name... is Sarah, my lord." She said humbly. Kaiba looked skeptically from Sarah to Yami. Yami breathed out and gave a sad look to her.

"Sarah doesn't sound very Egyptian." Tea thought out loud. Yami nodded.

"That's because it isn't. It's Hebrew." Yami knelt before Sarah, who was curled low on the ground. "You don't have to bow, I am no longer pharaoh." He lifted his hand to place on her shoulder but she flinched away from it. Kaiba, confused by everything that was taking place in front of him, was not at all confused by what just happened. His stomach flipped and out of instinct his hand shot out. He gripped Yami's wrist, and gave him a look that said 'back off'. Yami simply nodded and when Kaiba released him, pulled his hand back. The girl was literally shaking.

'It's ok, Yami is our friend.' Serenity's voice echoed from the back of Sarah's mind. Sarah shook her head and decided to sink away into her body and let Serenity have it back.

'You don't understand' She said, now in the safety of the necklace. 'And I'm not yet comfortable enough to say it...' Serenity could feel hurt and fear in Sarah, and couldn't imagine Yami causing it. She lifted herself up and gave a sympathetic smile at Yami.

"I see." He said, realizing Sarah had left. He looked saddened. Serenity knew he couldn't remember what happened in the past, but also knew she could never understand how painful it was to not know who you are, or were in his case.

"You all should get some rest. I'm going to request Yugi and Serenity be separated from the group, for their safety and the safety of the group so that you can continue to enjoy the field trip as if nothing had happened." Ishizu suggested.

"Hell no, I'm not leaving Serenity with him so long as those psychos are after him." Kaiba demanded.

"Seto, I'm going with Yugi. This is one thing I need to do." She said, thinking of her friend and Sarah. She liked the idea of getting to know someone from such a distant past, but preferred to keep her body to herself. She didn't know how Yugi did it.

"And I'm here for Yugi as well! I'm not leaving him." Tea said more to Ishizu than anyone else.

"Well, I could tell them you've all come down with an affliction, and let them know you'll be joining back up with them later." Ishizu tried. Kaiba looked less than happy. Tea, Yugi, and Serenity looked up at him hopefully. His eyes flicked between them, finally resting on Serenity, who approached him.

"Seto... Please." She said, taking his hand and looking into his eyes. He sighed, folding. How was it she had this power over him?

"I'm with a loon." He said quietly. Serenity smiled, turning towards the others and they brightened.

"I'll make sure the class is not without escort." Ishizu said, stepping out and closing the door behind her.

'What am I getting myself into?' Kaiba thought to himself, thinking back on the day's events.

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So, drastic changes taking place to the ancient history plot line. Sorry if this bugs you, but it's part of the basis of the story. Hope you all continue to enjoy this fic.

R+R+E ~3