HI It's me.

Me andmy friend KimberJim are co-writting a Ryou/Bakura Yugioh story Via DeviantART, and we'd like to share it wth you!

I disclaim yugioh, blah blah blah

Enjoy the Tendershipping Goodness!

Chapter Seven

Bakura stood near the entrance of the temple's antechamber, watching with a grin as his hikari practically bounced from wall to wall with an excited gusto. His attention had been utterly captured with the numerous paintings and engravings on the walls, telling the widely-travelled stories of the gods, with a particular emphasis on Anubis himself, of course. It was HIS temple after all. He especially seemed drawn to the statue of the Death God. The polished, black marble gleamed with an almost ethereal light. The god's great,jackal head stared to the horizon with an intensity that sent a shiver through Ryou'sspine. It's jeweled eyes glinting.

Others stalked past the bubbly hikari, haughty disdain evident on their faces. Bakura contemplated cutting the visit short before Ryou disturbed the prayers, but upon catching sight of Ryou's enraptured expressionprojecting pure joy, Bakura shrugged and leantback against the wall, smiling.

He could deal with anything that might happen anyway...

The priest of the shrine decided to put that theory to the test as he walked over to Ryou, a serious expression on his face.

"Sir! This is a holy place of prayer!You should show the proper respect for the gods!"

Ryou's smile suddenly melted into a submissive, guilty look, "I-I'm sorry, I just...I didn't mean..."

Bakurahurried over, wrapping an arm around his middle, "Please excuse him, your honor, he's never seen a real temple before. He's just a little excited, that's all. It's his first time being able to see such a magnificent structure. He comes from a very poor village where they couldn't even afford proper shrines."

The priest's expression softened, "Well, I suppose I can excuse him then...But try to keep your voice down, and don't make so much noise in the future."

"Yes sir," Ryou said nodding, "I'll be quiet, I promise."

The priest gave a grunt and continued about his business. Ryou let out a whoosh of air, "I didn't mean to cause trouble..."

"You didn't" Bakura assured him," He's just a stuffy old priest. I'll give you the grand tour, maybe we can move onto another temple after lunch." He pointed to a large tablet covered in hieroglyphs. "Now, this tells the story of how Anubis was placed in charge of the underworld, where all souls go when they die..."

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Ryou relaxed into Bakura's side as the thief led him through the winding streets of the city. They'd only visited three temples because Ryouspent so much time buzzing around, trying to memorize every detail. It was late afternoon and people were finishing up the days shopping, vendors were closing their market stalls. Ryou felt Bakurajerk to a stop, his body stiffening.

He glanced up to see a stony expression on his face, his gaze set dead ahead. "Something wrong Bakura?" Turning his head to look along the street, Ryou'sgaze found that of a tall girl, her hair short and brown and her blue eyes wide in surprise.

"Tea?" Ryou's voice almost a whisper.

Ryou felt a sudden tug on his arm and Tea was lost from view as Bakura dragged him into the next street, getting lost in a crowd and walking briskly back to where they'd left Bakura's horse.

Atem and Mahaadweredeep in conversation as the brunette servinggirl burst into the room, breathless from running.

"Pharaoh!"

"Teana? What's wrong?" Atemasked rising and walking

Tea glanced up at him, still gulping in lungfuls of air, coughing raggedly "Ba-Bakura! Bakura...in city...saw...him...and Ryou!" She inhaled deeply, her eyes rolled back in her head. Atem rushed towards the girl and she collapsed on the rose from his throne, and spun to face a servant who was arranging some flowers nearby. "Inform Seth and Kalim to meet me outside immediately! And prepare some horses for us, quickly! Time is of the essence!"

'This is my chance to stop him, I can't let him get away this time!' The young pharaoh thought as he rushed from the room, leaving Mahaad to tend to Tea's unconscious form.

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Mahaad looked confused after his pharaoh as he hurriedly left. He knew Bakura was the thief kings name, but who was this 'Ryou' Teana had mantioned? The pharaoh seemed to know exactly who she had been talking about. Just what was going on here?

Mahaad had a feeling something big was happening he didn't know about. Something dangerous.

Ryou held on tightly to Bakuraas he urged the stallion over the dessert sand, "Bakura, what's going on? Why did we leave so fast?"

Bakura said nothing, he just continued riding the horse until, after two hours of hard riding with little rest for the horse, they arrived back in Kul Elna. Bakura dismounted the horse. "Damn it all!" Bakuraswore, kicking up some sand, "What the hell is SHE doing here?"

"Who?" Ryou asked.

"Tea!" Bakura growled. "That damned pharaoh and his gang of cheerleaders must've discovered I was here somehow, and now they've come to stop me from fulfilling some maniacal plan."

"But you don't have a maniacal plan..." Ryou pointed out, "we're here by accident."

"Yes, but do you think THEY will believe that? I've done nothing wrong, and once again that blasted pharaoh has managed to muddle up everything!" His eyes were fierce andbitter, his teeth ground together as his exhales turned to ragged growls. Ryouwrapped his arms around Bakura's shoulders, "Bakura...please don't be so angry..." He leaned against the thief, his forehead against the nape of his neck, "It scares me..."

Bakura inhaled deeply, forcing himself to calm. He placed a hand on Ryou's shoulder, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

Ryou just clung to Bakura. They were here...His freinds were here...It seemed like a wish come true for him.

But Bakura...

Bakura didn't want them here. He seemed anxious, angry and worried. Worried about what though? He wasn't up to anything apart from stealing...What was so important that he'd just run like that?

Then it hit him.

Him. Bakura was protecting HIM.

If the others came, they might try to take Ryou away from Bakura. They'd certainly tried multiple times before. Especially after Bakura and Atem had been given their own bodies. Ryou remembered thatday well. They'd arrived at the pharaoh'stomb so he could make his final stand. He and Yugi had seperated through the power of the combined millineum items. And so had he and Bakura. A bakura that had been cleansed of Zorcs presence. He was also unconcious. Ryou had watched over him as Atem and Yugi dueled. But it seemed Atem wasn't ready to pass on. He'd won the duel.

It was a bittersweet day for everyone.

But no matter what the others said, Ryou had stayed by Bakura's side. Bakura had always been protective of him, even when it came to furthering his own dark goals. But thiswas different...Bakuragenuinely CARED about him... And caringabout anythingwas not something Bakura did easily or often.

Andthe spell book! Bakura'sprecious spell book. Spells of power and healing and so many others that would surely be misused in the hands of the wrong people. If the man who had destroyed Bakura'speoplegot hold of the book...

But Bakura would never let that happen... He was too smart for that...

He tightened his grip on Bakura. He reached up and tangled his hands in his wild hair, pulling Bakura's face down and pressing their lips together in a hard, passionate kiss. The thief king looked surprised "Ryou?"

Ryoujust shook his head, tightening his grip on the man he'd once called his Yami. He'd never been so turned on in his life.

"Bakura..." he said, pressing their bodies together. There was no mistake in what he wanted. Bakura let out a soft sigh, the tenseness leaving his body as Ryou stood on his toes to reach his lips. Bakurachuckled. His strong arms woundthemselves around Ryou, enveloping him in a warm cocoon. Ryou gripped Bakura'sshoulders as he felt him return his kiss. He wrapped his legs around Bakura's middle as the thief lifted him up and carried him inside the hut that had once been his childhood home.

Atem hoisted himself into the saddle of the powerful white horse, turning to see Seth and Kalim arrive with a group of soldiers. Kalim heaved shuffled his chestnut stallion over andturned to the young pharaoh, his expression serious. "My Pharaoh, a small group of city guards stationed on sentry at the east side of the city say they saw two men on horseback heading east, around the time the girl informed us of the Thief King's presence."

Seth, astride a black charger, turned the horse to face the group of soldiers. " Then we are heading east, mount your horses and check your weapons, we have no more time to waste here!" After a moment, when Seth was satisfied that the soldiers were fully prepared, he nodded to Kalim, who in turn gave the affirmation to the Pharaoh.

Atem turned to stare out at the horizon. 'There's no room for failure..."

He dug his heels into the horse's flanks andcharged from the palace gates, the horse's hooves kicking up large clouds of sand.

"To Kul Elna!"

Ryou clung to Bakura tightly as the thief rocked their bodies back and forth with his thrusts, giving moans and grunts of pleasure.

"Bakura..." he groaned, scratching his back. Bakura hissed at the sensation, pain and pleasure scorching the scratches, "Oh, gods Ryou! Say my name again, just like that!"

"Bakura..." Ryou crooned, louder this time.

"Ra, That's sooo sexy..." Bakuragrowled, nibbling Ryou's ear in reward. Ryou mewled in pleasure, thrusting up against Bakura, whimpering as Bakura thrusted into him harder and faster. "Oh, does Ryou like it?" Bakura asked teasingly. Ryou groaned loudly in response.

Bakura surprised him as he suddenly pulled out almost entirely, flipped Ryou onto his stomach andbegan taking him from behind, hard and fast; hitting angles Ryou didn't think he'd had.

"Bakura...! Hnn! Oooh! Umnn...'Kura!"

"Does little Ryou like it?" he crooned into the boy's ear perversely.

Ryou, who was already bright red, turned an even deeper shade as his body was assaulted with pleasure.

"'Kura..!"

Atem and Seth, along with Kalim, spotted the village at the same time.

Atem's heartbeat raced. It looked just like it had in his memory world...

And his vision...

He turned to Seth and Kalim, "I want the soldiers to wait here while we check it out."

Seth nodded, "As you wish, my pharaoh." He motioned for the men to remain motionless as he, Atem, and Kalim dismounted and headed into the village. Their Millennium Items began to glow, sensing the presence of the millennium ring. 'He's here...' Atemthought to himself. He followed the pull of the puzzle; it was coming from a hut just across from where they stood now. "There!" he said quietly, pointing.

"Let us sneak up on him," Kalim suggested.

"Right " Seth nodded, As they approached, the sound of whimpers and grunts caught Atemsattention. He stopped, listening.

'Ah...!'

'Say my name, Ryou'

'Ah...Bakura...Please...!'

'That's right, beg me!'

Atems mind jumped to the worst possible conclusion. Bakuramust be torturing Ryou!

He charged forward, kicking in the door, bursting in just in time to witness both whitenettes climaxing in the heat of passion. Ryou'sessence covering Bakura's fondling hand and dripping onto the hay below them.

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Atem stood frozen in astonishment, staring at the two males, panting come down from their euphoria, rolling onto thir sides, clinging to each other in a desperate embrace.

"Mm, Bakura, you're amazing..."

"You're not so bad your-

Bakuralooked up, noticing Atem standing in the doorway, flanked by Seth and Kalim.

"You!" He leapt to his feet, a furious expression on his face and a knife in his hand. Kalim dragged himself in front of the young pharaoh as the thief leapt for him, knife extended. He blocked the blow with his DiaDhank. Seth called to the awaiting soldiers, leaping out of the doorway to allow them entrance as they stormed in, weapons raised.

Bakura clearly wasn't going to go down without a fight. The thief was a blur of blade and limbs, spinning and lunging, striking and dodging. Half the battalion of soldiers had suffered injuries by the time they managed to subdue him, kicking him the the stomach. He doubled over, coughing. Atem paled at the overwhelming sense of deja-vu.

A large soldier stole the knife from Bakura's hand and laid his arm across the back of the thief's neck, forcing him onto his knees, head bowed to the ground. Two soldiers strode over to the younger male, still lying amongst the straw, eyes wide in fear. They grabbed his arms, pulling him to his feet.

Ryou struggled, "Let go!, let go of me!"

Atem raised an arm to Ryou as the soldiers marched him out " Wait a minute, why are you arresting him?

One of the guards turned to him "He is an accomplice of the Thief King, your highness. We need to question him."

"Don't you dareharm Ryou!"

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Atem turned to the seething Bakura. He was surprised to see not only anger on the thief's face but...anxiety. The young pharaoh stifled a gasp upon sighting angry tears in the thief's eyes as he watched Ryou being taken from him.

"Bakura, BAKURA!"

Bakura felt a weight deep in his chest. He closed his and turned away, tears slipping silently down his own cheeks, trying to block out the sound of Ryou's desperate cries.

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One of the soldiers grabbed a blanket from one of the horses as they approached the caravan, flinging it over Ryou's shoulders, "Cover yourself, boy."

Ryouclutched the blanket around his thin frame, shaking, "Please, let me go! I havn't done anything! I-"

The soldier holding him roughly clamped a hand over his mouth, "Be quiet! If you cooperate, you won't be harmed." Ryou continued to struggle, sobbing as his hands wereyanked forward and bound in iron shackles.

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Bakura glared up at the pharaoh as a soldier pulled him to his feet, yanking his millennium ring from his neck and handing to Kalim.

"Master Kalim, Master Mahaad's stolen item," he said. The priest nodded, taking it. "He'll be pleased to have it returned."

Seth held the Millennium Rod to Bakura's cheek, "Kneel in the presence of the Pharaoh, Thief King."

Bakura spat in Seth face, "Go to Anubis, priest!" A guard struck him with a small club, the thief hissed in pain. Seth wiped the saliva from his face with disgust, an outraged expression on his face. "Why you-!"

Atem approached Bakura, staring up at him. Why was he reacting so strongly to Ryou being taken? And why on earth had they just been making the beast with two backs?

"Bakura."

Bakura sneered at him, "What do you want?"

"I have questions to ask you."

"I will tell you NOTHING." The thief declared, narrowing his eyes, " And if Ryou is harmed in any way, I swear to Ra I'll-"

"You will do nothing, Thief King" Seth said as shackles were placed on the thief's wrists. Bakuraquickly pulled on his skirt as he was drug out of the building. He glared at the pharaoh as he thanked the gods he'd been smart enough to leave the spell book back in the tunnels where only he could pass. Only the strongest of magics could open the door without bearing the blood of his family.

Atem watched as the thief was led away. He turned to Seth, "Seth, I need to question Bakura myself, along with Ryou."

"You know that pale skinned boy with the white hair?" the guardian asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, and I don't want him harmed. He's a friend. Where will they be taken?"

"They will be taken to the palace dungeon until it is time to question them, my pharaoh."

"When we get back to the palace, have them cleaned and brought before me. I need to speak to them both...Alone."

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Bakura spotted Ryou being secured to another horse. He straitened, "Ryou!"

Ryouwhipped around at the voice, "Bakura!" He redoubled his struggles. His captor grabbed his arm roughly "Stay still!"

"No!" Ryou cried out. He twisted and bit down hard on the guard's hand.

"GAH!" the guard released him, clutching the slightly bleeding wound.

Ryou scurried to Bakura'sside, flinging his boundarms around his shoulders, his entire form shaking. "Bakura!"

Bakurawrapped his arms around Ryou's middle "Shh. Ryou, you will be ok. I promise, you'll be ok" Bakura whispered quietly to Ryou, attempting to soothe his fear. "The pharaoh wouldn't dare-"

He was cut off as the guard Ryouhad bitten struck the snowy-haired youth on the side of the head, untangling his arms from around Bakura's neck. He dragged him back towards his horse "Be still, wretch, or you'll be beaten anddragged behind the horses!"

Ryou kicked the guard in the shin in retaliation. The guard raised an arm to hit Ryou again. Ryou braced himself for the blow. The guard frowned with surprise as his arm was trapped within the firm grasp of the High Priest Seth.

"The boy is to ride on the horse with you."

"Wha-? Why? He's a prisoner!"

" He is a friend of the Pharaoh, and he does not want him harmed." With that Seth left the irritated guard to his captive.

'I will allow the boy an easy captivity... But I cannot allow the same leniency towards the thief. While the boy may be innocent, and we shall soon see if he is, it is about time the thief was made an example of. He has flouted our laws too long, punishment must be accorded...'

Casting a glance back into the village, Seth noted with satisfaction that Kalim andthe Pharaoh had begun an investigation of the village. Raising his right arm, he gave the signal for the guards escorting the captives to move out, watching in grim contentment as the thief's strong frame was pulled along by the strength of the horse to which he was bound.

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Bakura followed the horse pulling him along with surprising calm, glaring at the soldier that had struck and threatened Ryou. He was now currently keeping a tight grip around the teens waist as he urged the horse forward with his free hand. As much as he hated to admit it, he supposed he owed the relative care Ryouwas receiving to the pharaoh. Seeing the bruise on the side of Ryou's face, he narrowed his eyes, promisinghimself that at the earliest opportunity, he would punish the man responsible for harming HIS Ryou.

He had never allowed anyone to harm Ryou without feeling his wrath, and he wasn't about to start now. He smirked to himself, content with planning out the mans future punishment and demise.

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It wasn't long before the inspections of Atem and the other high priest revealed the cave in which the thief king kept his ill-gotten hoard. Kalims eyes widened, as he gazed upon the mountain of gold and treasure. "Look at all this, my king!"

Atem gaped at the piles. If a king's ransom was an actual price, there was no doubt in his mind this would be the right amount. "If we got this treasure back to the palace and distributed half of it amoungst the people, our tax problems would be over," he observed aloud. Kalim merely nodded silently. Atem turned, mounting his horse, "We can deal with this later. Fornow, we must return to the palace and question the prisoners. Perhaps Bakura will know why the bandits and thieves of the kingdom have been banding together recently..."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he had something to do with it" came Seth's voice as he approached on his own horse.

"Perhaps," Atemagreed, turning to his cousin. "We'll soon find out."

Mahaad sat beside Tea as she finally awakened from her 4 hour bout of unconsciousness, her eyes fluttering open and landing on the priest. "Are you alright, Teana?" He asked, "The pharaoh was worried. He left you in my care before he left to pursue the thief king."

Tea sat up. "The Pharaoh went after him?"

"Of course. The Thief King is a criminal and should be punished for his crimes." Mahaad's expression told her there was more to the subject than he was letting on

"Master Mahaad?"

"Yes?"

"Why did the Pharaoh go with them? Surely he didn't need to go search for a such a dangerous criminal?"

Mahaad smiled. "At least one of you four is intelligent. But I can't discuss council matters with a serving girl."

Tea stood, leveling a flat stare to him, her eyes flaming. "Master Mahaad, forgive me for speaking out of turn but I'm very close to the Pharaoh. I, err, he saved me from ... slavery when I was a child. And since then I've felt it is my duty to do the best I can to support him and keep him safe. I can't do that if I don't know what is going on with him, and it shames me to be useless to him!"

'I am getting far too good at lying.' She mused as Mahaad sighed " I'm sorry, but-"

"Oh, come on master Mahaad! came the voice of his bubbly apprentice as she appeared from nowhere. Mahaad turned to her, "Mana? Where'd you come from?

"I was hiding," she chirped, "Come on Mahaad, if the pharaoh trusts her, what's the harm in telling a few councilsecrets? Any friendof the pharaoh is a friend of mine!" she declared, giving Tea a wink. Tea cracked a smile. Too bad this Mana didn't know they were already friends. At least, in the memory world they were...

Mahaad heaved a heavy sigh "Alright...The thieves and bandits are beginning to come together in large groups. It seems as though they may be preparing for some kind of attack. We believe the Thief King may know why."

Tea took a seat in a nearby chair and listened as the sorcerer continued his tale.

BANG!

Joey's foot collided with the door again. Hard. "Damn it!"

Tristan and Yugi didn't bother looking up from the game they were playing. It seemed to be a hybrid version of both chess and mah jong, and they were havin difficulty playing it "Calm down Joey."

Joey rounded on them "Whaddaya mean calm down? Tea's been gone for hours!"

"I know man, that but there's nothing we can do while we're being kept in here," Tristan said, moving his piece

"Besides," Yugipiped up, "the pharaoh won't let anything happen to Tea."

"Grr! I don't care, I can't stand this!"

The door swung open suddenly, almost taking Joey's face with it. "Hey watch it! You nearly tore my face off with that-!" Tristan and Yugi leapt to their feet as the brunette stormed in, "Guys!"

"Tea!"

"TEA?"

"Teana!"

Joey and Tristan turned to him with inquisitive looks. Yugi shrugged."Well, they're watching us right?"

Bakuras every muscle tensed as icy water was thrown over him, rinsing the soap that had been roughly scrubbed over his flesh by his unwilling guard. "Hmph. The service around here stinks, I've gotten better baths from rain."

The guard swung the bucket around and caught him in the stomach with it before dropping it to the floor. Bakura held his composure. "Where is Ryou?"

The man slapped him. "Not your problem slug!"

Feeling the side of his mouth sting, Bakura raised a hand to his lips and pulled away, blood staining the back of his hand. He stuck out his tongue, licking the blood from his lip and turned his face to the guard, smirking darkly. "I wouldn't do that again if I were you..." he warned. He shook his head vigerously, flinging droplets of water in the guards face as he attempted to dry his sopping hair. "Must look my best for my audience with the Pharaoh, mustn't I? Bruises and cuts wouldn't do at all... Now I'll ask you again, where is Ryou? And do give me a REAL answer this time."

The guard wiped the water droplets from his face with a glare, "Your little bed whore is in another cell not far from here. We're under orders from the pharaoh not to harm him because they know each other."

"How considerate of his majesty..." Bakura said sarcastically. Without warning, he struck the guard in the mouth with his fist, hard, knocking out three of the man's teeth. "If you ever refer to Ryou as a whore again, mine, or otherwise, I will kill you, you loathsome cretin."

The guard groaned at the pain, spitting out blood as he hurriedly left the cell, cursing him as he ran for medical assistance.

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Ryou sat on the bench in the corner of his cell, knees pulled up to his chest. Like Bakura, he'd been given a bath by one of the guards, though his had been with moderately warm water. Afterwards, he'd been given a peasants tunic to wear, since he'd been naked when they'd brought him in. He sighed miserably. This was all HIS fault... If he and Bakura hadn't been making love they wouldn't have been caught... Now they were imprisoned in the royal dungeon, and their only hope was the pharaoh, a man Bakura hated with a passion.

A guard with one eye wearing a patch over his right eye came to his cell,"Boy."

Ryou glanced up at him,"Y-yes?

"Come with me. It's time for your audience with the pharaoh."

Ryou quickly stood as the door to his cell opened and only too eagerly allowed his guard to lead him out of the dungeon, ignoring the calls and comments of the other prisoners. The guard led him through multiple passageways until they finaly reached the brightly lit council room, where Atem sat at the head of the long table. Ryou took a step towards him, relief on his face "Pharaoh..."

He turned, hearing a door open. Bakura entered through the opposite door on the other side of the room, still shackled.

"Bakura!" Ryou cried, his eyes lighting up.

"Ryou. "

Bakura heaved a sigh of relief, seeing Ryou was indeed unharmed apart from the nasty looking bruise inflicted upon him when they had been captured.

Atem turned to the guards, "You may leave now. I must speak with them alone."

"But your majesty-" they protested.

"You may stand guard outside the doors," Atem assured them, "I can take care of myself, I assure you. I'll call if he tries anything."

His voice was insistent. The guardreluctantly undid Bakura's shackles. Bakura rubbed his wrists, "About time." Both guards scowled as they left the room, the heavy doors shutting loudly. Ryou ran to Bakura, who wrapped him in a crushing embrace. "Ryou," the thief king said softly, "Are you alright?"

"Yes, Bakura" he said nodding.

"Those fools haven't harmed you have they?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Good." He placed a chaste kiss to Ryou's forehead and turned to the Pharaoh, who was sitting there, silently observing them. "Alright Pharaoh, you got what you wanted. You've captured me and thoroughly traumatized Ryou. Now what exactly do you want?"

Atem raised an eyebrow at Bakura's blunt question. "What do I want? What do you think I want Bakura? I want to know why you're here! I want to know how you got here! I want to know what you are up to so I can stop you and go back to the present, where we belong."

Bakura raised an eyebrow of his own. "How did you even know I was here?"

"Shadi brought us here to stop whatever plan to destroy the world you'd concocted this time. He wants to know how you got here so we can stop you from coming back."

Bakura's face remained impassive. Ryou glanced between the two as they sized each other up, Bakura's face stoic and Atem's eyes narrowed into a hostile glare.

"How did you get here?"

Bakura remained silent, a somewhat smug expression on his face. "That would be telling, now wouldn't it?" Atem glared and stood. He strode down the steps to the thief and launched a punch at his jaw, stopping it just as the thief lifted his arms to block the blow. Bakura's block rose too high and Atem used the chance to launch his still cocked fist into Bakura's nose. Bakura stumbled, but recovered quickly and sent a heavy kick into the Pharaoh's midriff, knocking the air from his lungs.

"We don't know how we got here, pharaoh."

Ryou touched his shoulder as he clenched his fist to strike the Pharaoh. "Bakura..."

The Theif King looked at him. "Hmph" He took a step back "Consider yourself lucky that Ryou is here."

Atem gasped for air but continued to glare at the thief.

'Why does Bakura care so much about Ryou's feelings? Could he have fallen for Ryou? It would explain why they had been doing that when we found them...It's so unlike him though...Bakura never cares about anyone but himself.'

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Ryou was relieved Bakura had backed down. He knew it was only for his sake. He didn't bother wondering why Bakura had lied. He already knew WHY. It was to protect the spell book.

He turned to look at Atem, who was catching his breath. "Please believe me Pharaoh...Bakura didn't come back in time to do anything. It was an accident."

"Accident? I have trouble believing that, with Bakura's track record" Atem said crossing his arms.

"It's true! Bakura had a vision about his village so we came to Egypt to see what it meant and went into the caves when a sandstorm came up. Then we fell into a bright light and ended up here. He hasn't done anything apart from stealing. He's innocent."

"Bakura is a lot of things. 'Innocent' is NOT one of them." Atem said. He walked back over to his seat, his expression softening "However, Ryou...You've never betrayed us before. So I'll believe you...You've always been a great friend to me, Aibou, and the others."

Ryou gave a relieved smile."Thank you, Pharaoh..."

Atem smiled back at him warmly. Bakura looked at him sourly, rolling his eyes. Atem looked over at the thief, "However, you and I still have business."

"What for?" he asked, crossing his arms.

Atem brought his fingers together in a steeple and leaned back in his seat. "There's been...trouble in the kingdom...Thieves, Bandits, and other criminals have been gathering into larger and larger groups. They've been striking one village after the other, causing damage and destruction. Since YOU'RE the self-professed Thief King, I thought you might know what's going on... There's one other thing..."

"What would that be?"

"I've had a vision too...Of the night Kul Elna was detroyed."

Bakura froze. He hadn't been expecting that. "What did you see?"

"Horrible things," the pharaoh confessed, rubbing his temples, "Fire, people screaming. There was a little boy, and white haired man was pushed into a giant cauldron-"

Bakura held up his hand, "That's enough. I remember the event quite well, I don't need a refresher on the destruction of my village by the high priest with the millennium eye."

"Aknadin"

"Yes..." the thief hissed bitterly, "THAT one...The one who destroyed everything I knew and loved. Just because we were different and not technically part of your little kingdom. He thought it was okay to use us for his purposes... The boy in your vision was me."

" So the man was your father."

"Yes" Bakura said, "He was."

The emphasis was not missed.

"I'm sorry about what happened to your people" Atem said.

Bakura looked away " Too little too late, Pharaoh. I don't want your apologies." He cracked his knuckles "Now, I don't know about this gathering of thieves nonsense of which you speak. But I know how to find out...In exchange, I have only a few small requests."

"And what would those be?" Atem asked.

Bakura smirked

"Pharaoh I don't like this. How can we trust the thief?"

Kalim's uncertainty was shared by the rest of the council, but they chose to remain silent for the time being. Seth glanced up to gauge the Pharaoh's expression. The young man's face was set in a thoughtful expression. He stared out beyond the wide windows. deep in thought. After a moment, Atem turned back to face his council.

"We don't have any choice. Bakura is the only person who has a chance of getting answers. He knows their mindset; we can't even begin to think like them to understand their motives."

"But do you honestly think we can trust him my Pharaoh?" Isis spoke up, her voice soft, but firm.

Atem shook his head "Perhaps not...In any case, think of it this way; if Bakura betrays us or fails we'd still be in the same position as we'd be if we hadn't. At least by trying we've given ourselves a chance. Besides... I have a good feeling he'll return..."

"What makes you say that?" Seth asked.

Bakura rode alone through the desert. Ryou had remained at the palace upon his request. Bringing him would have been more than he'd dare risk. He thought back to the Pharaoh's promise to his request. His freedom and Ryou's protection in his absence. The pharaoh had promised him amnesty for all of his past actions, and therefore the bounty on his head would be lifted.

Oh, it had been marvelous seeing the looks on the other guardians' faces when the pharaoh had told them! And of course, the Millennium Ring had been returned to him. Mahaad claimed the item would only be furthur tainted by his evil but had still, somewhat reluctantly, given it back to Bakura. It was, after all, his trademark so to speak.

He rode onwards as night fell.

He spotted a fire in the distance, slowing to a trot as he approached. A group of bandits, 10 strong at least, rose as he entered their midst. He dismounted gracefully, wearing a cloak similar to the one he usually wore, with the exception of some purplish designs on the sleeves rather than white. It rather suited him.

"Oi! Who are you?" one bandit demanded, drawing his blade.

Another bandit elbowed the first in the ribs, "You blind, Derma? That's Bakura! The Thief King himself!"

Bakura smirked " I see my reputation precedes me...Might I join you gentlemen?" He took a seat on a nearby bolder. "I'm feeling a bit thirsty, Might any of you have some wine perchance?"

A water skin filled with the sweet red liquid was quickly handed to him as the others stared at him. Not surprising, he mused. He was, after all, a legend amongst their kind.

He gulped down the wine, taking several long draughts. he pulled it away, licking his lips to catch any spilled drops. "Tasty...Not quite as robust as that of the pharaohs personal store, but it satisfies the throat."

The man who seemed to be the leader of the group strode over, "To what do we owe this pleasure, Thief King? It is not every day one has the privilege to dine with a man of your esteem."

Bakura gave his customary smirk, "Oh, I felt like mingling with someone other than the pharaoh's guards and their pathetic bounty hunters," he said taking another gulp of wine. It get's so boring after a while..."

several of the men gave laughs at this remark. Bakura lounged comfortably against the rock, an arm behind his head." Riddle me this...I hear there's been some recent activity amoung the thieves and bandits of the kingdom...Anything to that rumour?"

"Oh, don't you know?"

"No. But do tell, I'm all ears..."

End of Chapter Seven