Chapter 23

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Yami caught himself before completely reaching the ground. Set loomed above him, scowl on his face. Finally Kaiba was able to will his body into action. In his mind the 'Pharaoh' deserved much more, but Tea's yells were beginning to annoy him. He held the priest and dragged him back to Sarah.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tea shrieked again. Kaiba gave her a glare warning her to back off, but as usual, she refused to listen to him. "You finally get your body back and the first thing you do is sock someone?" She hollered at him.

"I just wish I could do to you what you did to me, cousin." Set spat the last word as if the taste of it burned his tongue.

"I... I'm sorry." Yami said faintly from the ground, trying to find the wind that was once in his lungs. Set paused. "I don't remember anything. I don't even know my own name." He said, looking sorrowfully up at the tall man. Set was baffled. He opening his mouth and closed it many times, looking more and more angered as he did it.

"You would love to forget. Forget everything you put me through, everything you put us through. " He yelled down at him. "You son of a bitch!" He yanked forward to kick at him, but Kaiba was his match, and held him back. Tea helped Yami to his feet, and moved between him and Set.

"What do you mean?" Serenity piped up. "What do you mean, what he did to you?" Yami looked up as well. He wanted to know about his past more than anything. Set stiffened, glancing over at Serenity, then instinctively towards Sarah. Sarah had her head hung low and was far in the back, trying to be invisible, but when Sets eyes made contact everyone else's followed suit. Serenity approached her and put her hands on Sarah's arms trying to make her more comfortable. "Sarah... Are you ok?" before she could answer Set cut in.

"You didn't tell her..." He said. Kaiba released him and he just stood there, deciding what to do next.

"Set... Tell me what I did. I want to make it right." Yami tried, but Set's dangerous glare was on him.

"You want to make it right? There... There is no way." Set's anger took the better of him once again and he stormed forward. Kaiba again attempted to restrain him, but Set was ready for him. He would make it to his target no matter what. A swift movement sent Kaiba off balance and preoccupied him with an attempt to right himself or fall. By the time Kaiba successfully regained balance, Set had thrown Tea out of the way and grabbed Yami by the collar. He slammed him against the Obelisk and raised him, making the pharaoh look him directly in the eye.

"You killed her. You beat her and broke her and you made me watch." Yami's eyes widened. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Then, you banished me. Your cousin. Your blood! I spent three years in the deserts. Three years lost in those hellish burning sands." Set slammed his fist into the obelisk next to Yami's head. Set began to shake, loosening his hold on the pharaoh, and dropping his head. His breathing became rough and uneven. "And... And when I finally returned... I... I couldn't even beat you." Set dropped him, whipping his body away and turning to hide his emotions, but Sarah stood in front of him. "I couldn't avenge you..." he lifted his hand to her cheek and she hugged him.

"I'm ok, Set. I'm here. I... I'm not hurting anymore."

Yami sat within himself. Could he really have done what they say? To hurt...To kill someone. Then banish his family... The one's he is supposed to care about. He couldn't accept it. He wasn't that person. They were wrong he would never... He had no way of knowing. He needed his memories back. And maybe... no. Why would Set ever in a million years help him? But he had to know.

"Why?" He asked quietly from behind them. Set turned to face him and Sarah averted her gaze to avoid eye contact. "Why did... why would I-"

"Because I loved her." Set answered simply. Because he loved her? That hardly seemed enough to warrant a punishment so brutal. "Beyond that... well, you'll have to tell me." Yami could feel his glare. He had to get his memories back. He had to know why. He refused to accept that that was the only reason.

"Ishizu." Yami called, finding motivation in his plight. "The healing ritual... when it binds my soul to my new body... will I gain back my memories?" He asked, desperate.

"It is possible. I'm not entirely sure that the loss of memory was caused by the soul being stored in the puzzle, but there are still many mysteries to the millennium items that have yet to be solved." Ishizu said hopefully.

"Are you done publicly assaulting people yet?" Kaiba asked towards Set. Set glared at him but made no reply. He was finished. Kaiba snapped open his cell phone and called the airlines to order three more tickets to Philae, then the hotel for an extra room to hold the expanded group. Ishizu thanked him and he simply grunted.

The rest of the day was spent split up. Ishizu, Yugi, Tea and Yami in the newly booked room, and Kaiba, Serenity, Set, and Sarah in the other. Serenity and Ishizu often visited the other room, but beyond that no one traveled the halls much. Kaiba made sure dinner was delivered and took care of any needs anyone seemed to request.

Knocking on the room door would normally have woken Kaiba at this hour, but he and the rest of his room mates were already awake. As a matter of fact, the knock reminded Kaiba to turn off the 6:45 alarm he had set, then he answered the door. Ishizu stood before him, bowing her head slightly.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you, but a thought had crossed my mind." She said, not yet sure who had answered the door, but hoping for an answer. She lifted her head to a completely awake, dressed and ready to go group of four. Her words caught in her throat as curiosity took over.

"Please." Kaiba said leaving the door to close his briefcase. "You don't think I'm an idiot do you?" Set stifled a chuckle, and Kaiba shot him a dirty look, then returned to Ishizu. "I booked them a private plane and set up reserves for a small hotel just down the street. You cant honestly think I'd have an exact duplicate of myself running around next to me could you? No, we take separate planes and stay in separate hotels to avoid confusion." The explanation visibly calmed her.

"I take it you're ready to leave?" They all nodded. Serenity glanced about and giggled a bit. It was weird seeing Set dressed in Kaiba's clothes. They were near identical. And Sarah wasn't bad either. They had already tried to play switch on the boys, but Kaiba wasn't fooled. Before anyone could even say anything, Kaiba had glanced between the two, and shot the real Serenity a questioning look.

…

"How did you know?" Serenity said, frowning. Set smirked.

"Because- "Kaiba started.

"Sarah is more shy than you." Set helped. Kaiba nodded while the girls shifted gaze between them, then at each other.

"And Serenity isn't afraid of eye contact with me." Kaiba finished. Sarah smiled, but still averted her gaze. The boys shook their heads and continued to get ready while the girls pouted that it didn't work.

…

Ishizu, Kaiba, Serenity, Yugi, and Tea bid the three farwell.

"We'll see you in a few hours." Tea promised. Set rolled his eyes, Sarah nodded and Yami waved goodbye.

"Do you think they'll survive the flight?" Serenity asked Yugi, and he gave a worried smile.

"They've come this far right?" Yugi said hopefully.

After joining up with the rest of the class, and being treated like they had the plague, they continued their stay in Cairo in classic field trip fashion. They walked the streets led by Ishizu and a few other Egyptian experts from her resources, and visited old ruins that the city had preserved. One being the obelisk. Kaiba, Serenity, Tea and Yugi were a little less than interested to hear information that they had not only studied prior, but had been a part of. The group found their way back to the hospital and made sure they had everything packed and ready for their flight to Aswan.

Once the plain finally landed, they made their way to their new hotel, and all unpacked. Serenity, Yugi Tea and Kaiba didn't bother entirely unpacking, and left quickly for the hotel just a few streets over. Ishizu made an excuse that they were not entirely well yet, just no longer contagious, and needed to be checked up by a doctor due to customs.

When they got to the hotel room, Kaiba let himself in with an extra key that he had made sure to ask for when he booked the hotel. Set and Sarah were sitting at a small table against one of the walls of the room, and Yami had occupied a bed.

"I'm surprised you played well." Kaiba shot at Set.

"I'm no child, I have control... No matter how tempting it's been to forget that." Set shot a sideways glare at Yami. Ishizu stepped up before an argument took off.

"We should get moving. We have a ferry to catch, and if we want to return before the last one leaves, we need to go now." Everyone nodded and filed behind her, following her to the dock. Ishizu introduced the group as a 'twins' field trip and hoped the ferryman didn't recognize Kaiba. If he did, he was quiet, and that worked too.

The island was filled with ancient beauty. Yami felt a pang of something within him. The old stone, the old structure, everything... it just seemed to hum. He could feel it in his very core.

The temple was large, and had a courtyard like many of the ancient Egyptian buildings. Ishizu walked to the center, and approached the ruins of a raised platform, about six feet by twelve feet, that was off to the side. As the entered, Set felt his stomach turn. He looked back and saw Sarah halt just outside the edge of the courtyard. He returned to her side and held her hand.

"Just this once more, then never again." He said soothingly. She hesitantly stepped forward. Ishizu took the ankh and raised it to Yami, then Set, and finally Sarah. She began murmuring an ancient prayer and the ankh glowed.

Somehow, Set felt... alive. He felt every breath, like the first time. His fingertips were over sensitive and his skin tingled. He was in his body. Not just inhabiting a vessel, but actually alive. He looked to Sarah, who also seemed happily bewildered by the sensations of it all. Suddenly their attentions were ripped to Yami.

"Oh... Gods... I'm sorry." He had fallen to his knees and was holding him self up. Tears lined his cheeks and his head hung low. All Set could do is glare. He didn't care how sorry Yami was. Nothing would ever make him forgive him. "Ishizu... Set... Sarah... We need to go to Thebes." Set raised an eyebrow in similar fashion as Kaiba.

"Why would I go anywhere with you?" Yami- no, Atem, lifted himself.

"It's something you need to see. Something I had to do... For you. For my cousin." Yami walked to the docks, Tea, Yugi, and Ishizu following. Set, Sarah and their reincarnations stood in silence for the better part of an hour, then Set stalked off towards the docks.

Yami looked up as they approached and the others fell into a silence.

"So... Will you come?"

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Hi all. So I've noticed, I have so many hits to these stories, so many visitors, but I don't even get 10% of those numbers in reviews... I'm a sad panda. Thank you so much to all of you who do review. I love hearing from you.

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