Lemon- No.

Continuation From - None.

Warnings- character death.


It's a Halloween Fic, I don't really do seasonal fanfics but this year I decided I'd give it a go. It's also based a little of something I read elsewhere, but I've changed a lot of the plot to my own ideas that I doubt anyone will guess the inspiration-book. Hope it's good!


13 Quiet.

The graveyard was cold and damp when the three men arrived.

One had teal coloured hair with yellow eyes and white skin, he wore a flowing trench coat and held a camera. He also had a sketchbook and pen with him. He was the tallest of the three, and most elegantly dressed.

His assistant, a young man with white skin and whiter hair pulled his red overcoat closer as he worriedly eyed the fog. He had wide brown doe-eyes and carried some of his employer's equipment, and a notebook to take in any details they needed to remember.

Finally, the last man was an Australian with brown hair and blue eyes, he was dressed in worn clothes and held a shovel over his shoulder. "You chose a damn good time of year to come to the graves," he drawled, half complaining. "Coldest you can get before the frost hits."

Dartz, the teal haired man, snorted "I just happened to get word of it now. It's not my fault what the weather decides to do. Come on Ryou, we don't have all night."

Ryou jumped and nodded, stumbling forwards as they entered one of the older parts of the graveyard. The graves here were at least fifty years old, with some stretching to two hundred or more. They stopped at their destined one and Valon, the Australian, sighed "Here he is. Poor fella."

Ryou looked at the grave and read off:

Yugi Moto. Beloved husband, Father and Son.

May your past sins not bar your way to heaven. 1872-1894.

Ryou reached out and touched the strange words after the endearments "May your past sins not bar your way to heaven? What does that mean?" he asked softly.

Valon grunted "It's just a story. But I'm sure that's why you're interested in him, yeah?" he smirked. "I could tell ya while we dig him up for your drawings and photography, could fill in the quiet," he offered.

Dartz just glared "For?" he sighed, annoyed.

Valon laughed "Na, I'm not that cheap. Have a seat, I'll talk between digging," he offered.

Ryou sat obediently and opened his notebook.

Valon began to overturn the earth and move it away so they could get to the coffin. "Okay, the story should start with a bit about the poor guy. Yugi Moto, born into a rich business family, way before my time, or my Father's, but he wasn't very happy with his controlled life. His parents were strict and competitive, hell bent on being successful and popular," Valon began.

"But Yugi, their only son I might add, wanted nothing more than to get away from all that. When he was seventeen he fell in love. Only he fell in love with a man, and a poor one at that."

Ryou blinked "He was gay?" he asked.

Valon shrugged "Why don't you ask him?" he lightly joked "Probably was, but as you know, that wasn't something his parents liked, or what society liked at the time. Awful time to be living in."


Yugi closed the door to the shop and quietly made his way to the back door behind the counter. He pushed on it slightly, it was unlocked, then slipped inside and shut it tight. The shop was warm in the summer evening, he looked around but couldn't see his lover.

Yugi took a few steps forwards to admire the clocks being repaired, they were truly works of art in their own right. He brushed the polished wood of one with an index finger.

A warm hand caught his and an arm around his waist held him to a warm chest.

Yugi gasped, but looked over his shoulder and smiled "Yami …"

Yami sighed in tired, but happy relief. "Yugi, I missed you."

Yugi wrapped his arms around Yami's neck "Me too, I'm sorry, my parents took me out of town without any warning. I wanted to be with you, I swear-" Yugi whispered hurriedly.

Yami caught the sides of Yugi's face and pressed a quick kiss over his lips, "Shh, I believe you. Just hold me, I've missed having you in my arms." He held Yugi tighter, his muscled arms making Yugi feel so protected, secure, and loved he could only melt against him and smile.

"I've missed being held by you, you make me feel so special," Yugi admitted, the warm glow in the room, from the lights, making him feel sappy and say lovey-dovey things. Plus they'd been kept apart for over a week …

Yami chuckled and pressed a kiss over Yugi's lips again "You are special. And I'll say that every day until you believe it, Anku. You. Are. Special."

Yugi lowered his eyes and blushed "I love you."

"I love you too."


Ryou looked at the grave sadly "Who was the man?"

"Yami Atem, a local shoe and clock repairer and maker. Yugi was forbidden from seeing Yami, but he went anyway, they had an affair right under his parent's noses. I hate using that word, from what my Grandfather told me, they were soul-mates. But as you know, they weren't allowed to get married, or even admit that they were together to anyone but each other. In fact, many call just being in love with another man a sin, bull I think," Valon spat.

Dartz raised an eyebrow at his choice of words "Continue."

Valon saluted mockingly. "Well, sad to say, Yugi's parents did find out. And, man, were they furious. They threatened to disown him, cast him into the streets, but Yugi just stood there and said 'I love him' and asked to be disowned. If he was then he could be with Yami, see?"

Ryou bit his lip "Did he hate his parents?"

Valon shrugged "I think he hated what they did, not really them as people." Valon took a break and had a sip from his flask. "Well his parents couldn't kick him out after all their threatening. If they did they'd have no heir to keep their company going, and they'd just be giving him what he wanted. If he had no family he would be free from their control, he'd run away or move in with Yami. So instead they told him he was going to marry the family friend, a Miss Rebecca Hawkings I think her name was."

"Yugi refused, he was going to run away with Yami to Egypt. But, his parents got to Yami first, and killed him."

Ryou gasped "No!" he protested, even Dartz looked shocked.

Valon sighed and leaned on his shovel. "Yeah. Damn devils didn't give him a fair fight, he was beaten to death by their goons and left in a ditch until a passing dog and walker found him and took him to the Church. The church's assistant told Yugi and the poor kid was devastated." Valon turned over one more spade of soil before muttering "It's been said Yugi snuck out every night to cry by his lover's grave."


The Vicar looked out of his window when muffled sobs once again sounded through them. He sat up and lit his candle before going outside and seeing, as expected, the young Moto crying by the grave of Yami Atem.

Yugi was kneeling by the headstone with a hand pressed against his heart and another against the freshly turned soil. "Yami … oh Yami, I'm so sorry. I should have run away sooner," he sobbed.

The Vicar approached slowly and rested a hand on Yugi's back "My son, you should not be here this late. You'll catch a death of cold."

Yugi sniffed and looked up with red eyes, a pained expression, and a broken spirit "I long for death," he whispered, turning back to the grave he laid a red rose on the soil "Then I'll be reunited with the one I love."

The Vicar sighed, knowing full well that God would not allow them to be as one in his kingdom. Oh mighty Lord, have mercy on this one and his lover. Let them be together, if you cannot allow them into your kingdom. He was sure an eternity in prudery would be all the heaven they needed. "Come Yugi, let's go home."

Yugi looked up desperately "Let me stay, please don't take me away from him!" he clutched at the gravestone and wept again "I never go to say goodbye … I never got to say …" he trailed off before looking at the Vicar "Please, don't take me away yet."

… "Alright son, god bless you."


Ryou looked at his lap with a sad expression. He couldn't understand how anyone could do that to a person, how could anyone be so desperate to tear them apart like that?

Valon grunted as he slipped a little, he caught his fall and continued with only a slight clearing of his throat "Well, a year after that Yugi was forced into a marriage with Rebecca. They already had a kid when they were married, a bastard, but Rebecca swore she was a virgin. Yugi only said that the boy was his son, nothing about the Mother. I can't imagine he'd suddenly go and hook up a whore. Some say that the child was actually the son of Yami and Yugi both."

Dartz hummed slightly "They were in a male-male relationship, nowadays such a thing as male pregnancy is known and checked for and accepted. Plus if they waited a year to get married it must have been to hide the male pregnancy. I'm surprised that Moto's parents didn't strangle it in its crib."

Ryou squeaked in horror "Master Dartz!" he protested.

Valon shook his head "He's got a point there, you know. Why'd they let it live if it wasn't Rebecca's? I think the parents bargained or threatened, they'd let the kid live if Yugi married. And he did, so …" he shrugged slightly "Just my theory."

Dartz nodded "Sounds valid. If they were lovers he'd never willingly marry another, if he was as in love as they say. What happened after that?"

Valon frowned "Let's see. The marriage wasn't a very happy one. Rebecca was so possessive, possibly in love, with Yugi, but Yugi was not interested in her at all. They had three children along with the firstborn son. Yugi was always favouring the first son, called him Heba, I think. He loved all his kids but Heba was just special. In all his photos Yugi's holding him, not his wife or even the new born boy or girl, always Heba."

"Once, my Grandfather told me, they got into an argument so bad that Rebecca said something like 'what do I have to do to get you to be happy with me?'. I think Yugi said that the only thing she could do was leave him. But he also said that he couldn't ask her to do that, because that would make her a whore and their children bastards and outcasts in society. 'If I could turn back time and leave with Yami before all this happened, I would, then you'd still be an appealing young lady, and we'd both be happy with our lives and children', I think that's what he said."


Rebecca pulled on Yugi's shirt, shaking him roughly to try and get him to look at her. But his eyes looked through her, in an endless, silent, blank stare of pain and broken will. "Husband look at me!" she demanded.

Yugi put his hands on her shoulders "Calm down Rebecca."

Rebecca shrieked angrily "Damn you! What does it take to get you to see me? What do I have to do for you to make you happy with me?" she shook him again.

Yugi pushed her away, but not roughly, more like he was untangling two strands of hair. He sadly took her wedding ring and held her hand tightly "The only thing … the one thing that would make my life complete, would be the power to turn back time, to start over and run away before my parents killed my love." He touched Rebecca's cheek as she began to cry "Then you wouldn't be married to someone who can never love you in return, you wouldn't be forced to stay with me or be named a whore for leaving me, and the children wouldn't be bastards. I wish very much that you and I could have had our better men," he honestly said.

Rebecca slapped his hand away "You'd give up me? This wonderful house? This life? Our children? To have that peasant?"

Yugi nodded "And I'd do it in a heartbeat."

Rebecca sobbed and slapped him, but as always, he just turned his head and didn't make one move or noise to show it hurt. She glared "You have to stop living in the past. I'm your wife now."

Yugi closed his eyes and for a moment a small smile touched his face "I'm sorry Rebecca. It was in the past that I truly lived …"


Ryou sniffed a little "He must have missed Yami very much."

Valon nodded "Still went out to see his grave at night I think. But Rebecca was she ever mad. Went to Yugi's parents to complain and brought a lot of stress and hurt on everyone, little brat." He went back to digging "Some say she threatened to kill him if he didn't start loving her."

Ryou tilted his head. Doesn't that defeat the purpose? He thought.

"Now here's where the story gets even stranger. At their house, one night, they woke up to a loud crash from the kitchen, then another from the dining room. The mirror had shattered in the latter, and the entire kitchen was a mess with things on the floor, but everyone had been in bed. The next night, the children's bedrooms were nailed shut from the inside but the police said a child couldn't possibly do such a thing, only Heba was spared and he went to get help. Nights after; things broke, walls were scratched, eyes were drawn on the ceiling in paint or blood. Rebecca had them move house."

Dartz shivered a little "Sounds like those children weren't so angelic after all."

Valon shook his head "No sir, it wasn't any child's doing. Or an adult. They hired men to stand guard and they ran out in the early hours of the morning, screaming about seeing a monster with a third eye that shone like hells fire. That was the first sighting of the ghost, and it was also the first night Yugi got sick."

Ryou gasped, "He got sick?"

Valon nodded "Really deadly sick. It was a miracle that he survived that first night. The wife blamed the ghost-monster, saying it was an angel punishing Yugi for his sins, saying that they should sacrifice their firstborn's blood to quell its spirit, or get a priest to wash away all sin from him and Heba." Valon paused to brush away some dirt that now revealed the start of a wooden coffin. "Nearly there now."


Yugi lay in bed with a feverish sweat clinging to his temples and to his body, his breathing was deeply laboured and every inhale and exhale was joined with moans or gasps of pain.

Rebecca sat in a chair by his side, holding a cup of tea for him "Yugi? Sit up, you have to drink your medicine," she commanded.

Yugi opened his eyes and shook his head weakly "Please, I just want to be left alone, if I drink that I'll only throw it up again," he told her softly.

The door opened slightly and four small heads popped through "Father?"

Rebecca sighed "Hello darlings, Heba. Please leave your Father to rest. He's not well enough to have breakfast with us today," she told the children who hovered by the door.

Heba stepped forwards, holding a small plate with a single cookie on it. His younger step-siblings stood close to him as they worried for their Father, he meekly held it out "We brought this for Daddy. It's a magic-make-him-better-biscuit," he offered with a cute and shy smile. The younger siblings nodded with equally sweet smiles.

Rebecca sighed "Your Father doesn't want anything to eat. Henry, Victoria, Rose, thanks for the thought, you too Heba, but-"

Rose, the baby of the family, giggled "Heba told us the ghostie sent it."

Heba blushed and looked down with red cheeks "He put it on the plate and pointed to upstairs," he shuffled forwards until he was close enough to Yugi "Daddy, are you feeling better?"

Yugi reached out and brushed back a strand of hair gently "I am now I've seen you," he smiled.

Heba offered the biscuit again "I think the ghost wants you to get better, he wasn't scary this time, and I told him not to be mean to the others," he said proudly, his knees had been knocking when he has spoken to the ghost.

Yugi smiled and kissed his forehead, his lips felt hot against Heba's brow "I think so too. Thank you," Yugi took the treat and began to nibble. Heba smiled and reached across the blanket to hug his Father, Yugi hugged him back and then told the children to go and play.

Rebecca frowned at Yugi "So you won't accept your medicine from your wife, but you'll accept your bastard's generosity gift?"

Yugi glared at Rebecca "Heba's more my lawful son that you my wife, unlike what you think he's the one love of my life. Bastard or not, he's perfect," he swore before turning his back on his insulted wife. "Besides, we both know that those children aren't mine nor any less bastards than Heba. How's your lover?" he asked, to make her leave. He had never slept with her, he didn't consider her his wife, and knew that their marriage wasn't ever sealed because he refused to consummate it. It was one thing he had never wavered on.

Rebecca shouted angrily, threw her tea at him and stormed out of the room.


Dartz raised an eyebrow "What did Yugi have to say about it?"

Valon smirked "He flat out refused to see the priest. He said the ghost was his protector. A warning that someone was trying to hurt him," he looked serious. "There was writing on the wall the next day, in Egyptian, they got an expert to translate it, and found that the ghost was claiming to be Yugi's dead lover, and he had come back to warn Yugi that Rebecca was going to poison him and murder their son."

Ryou's jaw hung open "Is that what it really said?"

Valon shrugged "It was over fifty years ago, and I can't read Egyptian, and I'm not old enough to have been around back then," he pointed out.

Ryou blushed in embarrassment "Sorry … but was it really Yugi's lover?"

Valon shook his head "Who knows."

Dartz looked into the grave and thoughtfully tilted his head "Is there a chance that it could have been a big hoax?"

Valon looked thoughtful "Possibly. After Yugi got better they moved to the next house, it was fine for about a week, then the ghost started haunting them again and the next day Yugi was sick again. But not once was Heba or Yugi disturbed by the ghost. Rebecca could have screamed the house down with her nighty on fire, but only her children and the house staff would hear her, Yugi and Heba were completely undisturbed by the ghost. Some say the ghost even did things to help them."

Ryou jumped in "Like what?"

Valon sniggered "I remember this one story, it's the best of them all. It was bill day and Yugi had been so sick all week that he couldn't go to work the business, but for some reason all the bills were paid because treasure would be found on his bedside table. The wife demanded to know where he was keeping all these riches but Yugi had no answer, then she went down to Heba's room and brought him before Yugi, threatening to hurt him if Yugi didn't confess to where he was keeping the gold."

"She was just about to hit the boy when the shadows came alive and attacked her, she cowered in a corner and begged to be left alone. Yugi got up and helped her, still sick himself mind you, into a chair and Heba cried and asked the shadows to stop hurting his Step-Mother. Only after Heba started crying did the shadows stop."

Ryou smiled too, it sounded like she had gotten her comeuppance.


Rebecca sat by her sick husband's side. In the new house he had requested his own room, they had a master for show's sake. But everyone knew he never went to sleep in the same bed with Rebecca. The wife patted his hot forehead, gently dabbing it with a cool cloth while thinking about the gold he'd produced from nowhere on bill day. She sweetly smiled "Dear? Where have you been keeping all that gold? Why couldn't we have spoilt our children with it all?"

Yugi opened one eye "I haven't been keeping it. The ghost of my love gave it to me because I've been too sick to work, I don't want the children to be thrown into the streets, and he wants me to live and get better, so it's also gone towards medicine …"

Rebecca pouted, that wasn't the answer she wanted. "Yugi, you don't have to lie to me, if you were just keeping it for a rainy day, just say so."

Yugi shook his head "I have no gold."

Rebecca growled, her patience gone after asking for three days straight. "Fine. I'll just make you tell me," she decided and left the room with a sharp healed walk.

"Mrs Rebecca! Mrs Rebecca! Please! You're holding too tight! It hurts!" Heba's frantic and begging cries were heard down the corridor.

Yugi sat up, his head spun and he felt like gravity was crushing his insides and his head weighed three times its normal amount, but he tried to get up anyway. He couldn't ignore the cries of his son. Yami's son.

Rebecca dragged Heba into the room, shutting the door tightly behind her. She had her hand tightly around Heba's upper arm, the seven year old crying and scared, and confused, constantly begging her to let go, apologising for things he thought she was angry about. It broke Yugi's heart to hear him so scared, he swung his legs out of bed and nearly passed out from the painful spinning sensation that followed.

Rebecca smirked and held Heba in front of her. Heba's large amethyst eyes locked on his Father terrified "Daddy, Daddy, I didn't do anything, Victoria just had a big knot in her hair and the hairbrush pulled it and-"

Rebecca pinched him and he yelped before shutting up, only letting out a small whimper or scared sob.

Yugi swayed and trembled in weakness, but he managed a pretty fierce glare "Leave him alone Rebecca!"

Rebecca held the boy steady "Not until you tell me where the gold is. You have no right to hold it away from your family, we could have so much more if we sold it and got rich," she explained firmly.

Yugi shook his head and fell off the bed as he lost his balance, on the floor he struggled to kneel upright "I don't have any gold, that was just given to me as help, I don't have any riches beyond my income," he tried to explain.

Rebecca growled and raised a hand to strike Heba "You tell me right now or I'll hurt your boy so bad he won't be able to live a normal life!" she threatened.

Heba screamed and began to struggle again. Yugi hauled himself to his feet and clumsily reached out to them "Rebecca stop!"

A loud roar exploded through the room, the sound furious. Then all shadows in the room grew humanish bodies and hands and claws, with eyes that glowed gold with glares like wild lightning. They swarmed Rebecca like Parana's hungry for flesh and ripped and clawed at her skin and clothes.

She screamed and pushed Heba away to defend herself.

Heba fell to the ground but a shadow, this one in the shape of a fur ball with mini claws, caught him and lowered him to the ground nicely, before joining the other attacking shadows.

Yugi struggled over to Heba and hugged him quickly, whispering "Don't be scared, they won't hurt you," before setting him on his feet and reaching for Rebecca. Yugi took her hands as she cried and begged for mercy. Yugi hugged her as she clung to him in pure terror and said "Promise you won't hurt us, they'll leave you alone," but she was too hysterical to hear him.

Heba cried, upset because his Step Mother was bleeding, and he was scared "Please, please stop it, don't hurt her, she didn't mean it," he pleaded. The shadows paused in their swarming, all eyes turning to look at the youngest one in the room. Heba swallowed unsurely before whispering "S-stop it, please?"

The shadows relaxed and disappeared at his command. Yugi patted Heba on the head and let the boy cling to his leg. "Don't be afraid of the Shadows Heba, they'll never hurt you," Yugi promised, having seen someone else behind the shadows.

Rebecca kept sobbing and shaking, Yugi helped her to sit in her chair and then got back to bed. He smiled at Heba as he tried to climb in next to him, "Heba, could you please go and get the maid? I think Rebecca needs to lie down too."

Heba nodded but hesitated "W-will those Monsters hurt the others?" he whispered.

Yugi shook his head "No. They only wanted to keep you safe. To keep us safe, she was going to hit you, they stopped her. I promise they'll never do anything that upsets or scares you." Yugi vowed, holding Heba's hand tightly "Can you please get the maid?"

Heba nodded, his appearance all Yugi apart from tan skin "Okay. I'll go, then can I stay with you? I'll bring another Magic-biscuit," he offered with a small laugh.

Yugi smiled as he began to lose consciousness again "I'd like that very much."


Valon chuckled again before speaking "But, with Yugi being sick and all, he soon showed signs that he'd never recover, he was dying."

"He called a close friend to his deathbed and asked that they take Heba to Yami's relatives in Egypt, he gave them all the gold they could ask for and wrote his final will, then died," he sadly rubbed his hands together "Heba was devastated, the kids were all upset, even the cold hearted family was shocked by his sudden passing. Rebecca cried for a week before looking at the will, and did she get a shock." Valon smirked a little "Yugi had left everything he owned to the Church, asking in return that he could be buried next to Yami. The family was retired, his children, his wife, didn't see a single penny of their own company's savings under Yugi's name."

Ryou's jaw was open "Was that allowed?"

Valon nodded "It was. The church was powerful. They did as he willed in his final testament and Rebecca became dependant on her other family, miserable."

Ryou nodded slowly. He looked at the grave next to Yugi's, the stone was so vandalised that there was no way of knowing if it was truly Yami Atem's or not, however, it was comforting to know they were close again. "But … what happened to Heba?"

Valon chuckled "Well, as it was, a war was going on in the continent and it wasn't safe to travel from England to Egypt, so Heba was raised by the trusted friend, who vowed to get Heba there once it was safe for him to travel. Heba didn't get a penny of his Father's money either, but the ghost stayed with him." He looked around eerily. "Whenever someone tried to hurt him they'd end up insane and punished for their greed and darkness."


Heba ran from the market, his arms wrapped around a loaf of bread, so tight it was nearly being squeezed back into dough. He looked behind him and saw that the strange man was still following him. He whimpered and tried to run faster.

"Got you!"

Heba yelped as the man held his arm and shook him "No! Let me go!"

The man looked at him curiously "Huh, why would the Moto's want a little runt like you? I should have doubled the price, you're not worth the time it took to get you alone," he muttered as he examined him. Heba cried and struggled one armed, the other faithfully holding the loaf he'd picked up from the bakers. "Although, I can see what they mean, you're a bit of a looker. So, you old enough to go to bed late? If you know what I mean."

Heba paled and then closed his eyes. Help me! Help me! Please! He silently begged, knowing that someone would hear him. "Let go, a-and you won't be hurt," Heba gasped.

The man laughed "Nice try. Say that again without the stutter," he mocked. Then he pulled Heba uncomfortably close "Time to pick a flower."

A dark voice laughed behind them.

"Bab ul-zulumat futeh."

The man gasped, whirled around, and came face to face with the most terrifying creature he'd ever seen.

The man was a beaten, bloody mess. Bruises of purple, black and red covered a bare chest, with only a golden collar of the desert Kings covering his upper body. His hands were clawed, with gold that leaked ink like blood, it seeped into the surrounding air and creating shadows without body. But the head scared this man the most. The head of a jackal, a desert wolf or wild dog, rested on human shoulders. The face was blank, as if it were a mask, with a third eye blazing on the forehead above two sightless others.

The creature stood still for a moment then the shadows attacked.

The man screamed and screamed and thrashed as the shadows entered his body, his blood, leached onto his skin.

Heba watched as he fell to his knees, begging to be let out of 'the dark place' for people to stop 'touching him'. The young boy stepped back and away, then looked at the ghost who had, once again, come to his rescue. "Thank you," he whispered.

The creature knelt before him and reached out a clawed hand to run across his scalp, like a very toothless comb. Heba found, after a few encounters with this contact, that he liked being treated like that. It wasn't the invading touch of perverts, or of scratchy nailed whores, but it wasn't distant either. It was like the touch of a close family member, someone who knew they were allowed to be close. Someone who cared.

It was similar to how his Father patted his head.

It didn't bother him that it was a ghost, he'd saved his life again. The creature stood up and faded away again, but not before saying some words that Heba had no meanings for.


"Some scientists asked Heba to talk to the ghost, Heba tried but the ghost answered in strange languages so he couldn't get any answers. So they invented a code; one knock for yes, two for no."

Ryou was on the edge of his seat as Valon began to brush soil from the coffin lid. "The science people found out that the Ghost was Yami, but not him either, he knocked three times. He answered yes to Yugi's Murder and yes when asked if it was the wife who did it. Finally he said it was Arsenic, and that the motive was money and jealousy."

Dartz looked doubtful "He could have made up the answers, he probably saw or heard what his parents argued about, maybe those people who got hurt underestimated Yugi's son."

Valon nodded "Very true, but I'd like to know the trick to making people insane at eight years old, maybe he wrote a dairy about it all…" Ryou hesitantly laughed at Valon's words, he was mocking Dartz's doubts. "Just before Heba left for Egypt the ghost said he'd appear at this very gravesite, everyone in the village came, but nothing happened, they jumped on Yugi's grave and everything to provoke a reaction. But the ghost was gone, and he hasn't been heard since."

Dartz nodded thoughtfully "It could have been a ploy to leave the town empty enough for Heba to sneak away without the family's grievances catching up on him."

Valon nodded "Yeah, that's why my Father says too." He looked at Ryou and Dartz uncertainly "Okay, now are you sure that you want to do this? He's been under for fifty years, he's got to be a little worm eaten by now."

Ryou gulped. He knew it only took one year for bodies to decompose past recognition, just another six months in underground conditions. What must it look like when a body's been dead for more than five decades?

The teen hoped that his dinner wouldn't return, he didn't want to embarrass his master. It was his only chance at becoming a professional photographer.

To the left something moved.

All three jumped when the bushes moved. The branches shook angrily as something finished moving.

Valon glared, on hand on a pocket knife for a moment, before relaxing hesitantly "Foxes." he assured his fellow men.

The rustling sounded again, this time from right behind them.

Ryou gasped and grabbed Dartz's arm unthinkingly. The leaves on the ground landed as they finished their tornado formation as the wind finished its trick. Dartz didn't shake Ryou off, but glared into the night "Very noisy foxes," he muttered before turning back to Valon. "Let's finish up."

Valon nodded "As you will," he quickly lit a lamp then reached down to open the rusty old lock as Ryou held his light high.

Valon heard the dull click as the lock opened.

Ryou shut his eyes as the door was pulled open. He didn't want to see what awful remains or murdered corpse lay in that coffin! He was so scared he was sure Dartz had no blood left in his lower arm now.

Dartz gasped "Good God …"

Ryou opened one eye worriedly then openly gaped with the others.

Yugi Moto lay in his coffin, looking like he had died only an hour ago. His skin was white, his hands crossed over his chest like a Pharaoh's, holding an Egyptian ankh rather than a cross and a white lotus carved out of some white stone. He wore fine clothes, his expression was peaceful, he looked like he'd only fallen asleep a moment ago, like the stillness between taking the next breath …

Ryou stared in awe. He half expected Yugi to stretch and look up at them with a smile!

Valon leaned back in shock "Crikey … will you look at that," he murmured.

Ryou leaned closer, taking in every detail. He didn't look in the least sick, he hadn't died of illness, Ryou was certain. He looked up at a very pale Dartz "What's wrong Master?" he asked.

Dartz swallowed and pointed to just above the open coffin.

There was a carving in the shape of a man with the head of a dog, but it hadn't been there before! He was kneeling looking down into the coffin, holding a dagger in one hand and a flower in the other.

Valon swallowed thickly "Damn. Guess that little brat poisoned him after all," he whispered. It was the only explanation as to why Yugi hadn't rotted away, the poison that had killed him also preserved him.

Ryou shivered slightly. The ghost was telling the truth. He thought, looking around warily as the rustle sounded again.


There! My fanfiction dedication to the Halloween holiday! I hope everyone gets dressed up and has a lot of chocolate!

But remember that Halloween is actually a Pagan holiday where the witches, goblins, ghosts and pixies come out to play. To keep them from haunting your house you're traditionally meant to offer part of your harvest, or something to appease them, like sweets, to stop them causing mischief. That's where the Trick or Treat comes from. It's more the Hollywood horror movies that's introduced skeletons, zombies, vampires and other untraditional costumes and themes over the years. And the idea that the hauntings were terrifying.
But enough nerdiness from me, please enjoy the holiday!

Next Chapter - Big