Title: In Which Téa Makes a Bad Decision

Rating: M for language and all that jazz

Setting: Anime/Manga

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh

WARNINGS: Mentions of suicide and self-harm in the chapter. Possession of people. Kidnappings and tormenting of hikari's.

Friendly reminder: A few illustrations are put up! Do check them out!

Like art? Follow me on tumblr rebelwarrior217

OI! Fanfiction Boss people... You need to allow me to do longer chapter titles this short crap is not working for me...

IMPORTANT:

'Normal thoughts'

"Mind link talk"

"Normal Talk"

"Walky talky talk"

"Possessed Talk"

CHAPTER 04 : DARK DUEL 01 - RUPTURING REALITY AND THE MAJOR ARCANA

"Hey…wake up."

The spirit's eyes slowly fluttered open as he turned to look at the physical form of his partner next to him. Yugi gave a soft chuckle "Hey sleepyhead… Had a good rest?" The spirit felt his face flush in embarrassment before quietly nodding. "I guess that took more out of us than I thought."

" Forgive me it won't happen again. " He muttered as he rubbed his face. He should have known better than to let his own desires take place. It was not his to freely use.

"Hey." He turned his vermilion eyes to his hikari's violet orbs. "I know exactly what you're thinking, don't.." Yugi's frown deepened as he leaned closer towards him. "I brought you into this world and as you took care of me. I'll take care of you." Yugi patted his chest. "I'm you're re-incarnate this body is mine as much as it is yours and it's because I choose it to be so."

"Yugi…"

"Besides…" A sheepish look came over his aibou "You're fantastic at P.E." Honestly he was surprised he didn't slap his head for that but he couldn't help but give a small chuckle… Now back to the tournament.

" I'm ready. Let's do one more duel before we head home " Yugi grinned before nodding. The spirit closed his eyes before opening them again. Scent of fresh air and grass filled his lungs. He flexed his fingers as he looked around for potential threats and opponents. He was about to turn in a direction before sound a bell chiming in his ears. He turned around to find a… clown?

" That's the creepiest looking jester I've ever seen. "quipped the young male as he stared at it with a grimace. The Jester waved at him before pointing him in a direction. He looked in the direction before his gaze settled on a small tent. " Yeah, definitely a trap if I've ever seen one. Which means either he is a ghoul or he's working with the ghouls. "

"Nonetheless, we can let anyone fall in their trap." He turned back to the Jester only to find it gone. He closed his eyes and sighed in frustration before moving towards the tent."Tell me are there any circus themed cards I should know of." His partner hummed in response before shaking his head "Nothing our deck can't handle. Still be careful." Fantastic.

As he walked towards the tent neither he nor Yugi noticed an elderly male sitting at the bench nearby. "Goodness now where could those boys be?" muttered the male named Solomon Sugoroku Mutou as he looked around. He closed the shop specially to see his Grandson's duel but so far he hadn't seen a single one. Or that of his disciple for that matter.

He sighed before getting up as he saw the familiar tri-coloured hair out of the corner of his eye. "Yugi?" he muttered in confusion before he started lightly jogging toward the young boy. "Yugi My boy!" He waved his hand, trying to get his grandson's attention as the young male entered the tent before rushing after him. "My boy! You know very well we Mutou's can't run on these short legs!" he gasped as he fumbled into the tent before looking around. His gaze landed on his boy entering a long vertical box before it closed behind them.

"In all my years of gaming, this type of scenario always spells trouble." He dashed up to the box but before the old Egyptologist could get close, the box that contained his child fell apart. His heart gave a lurch at the sight "Yugi!" He yelled distress laced in his voice as he looked for his kidnapped grandson.

"Yugi! Answer me!"

X

Location: Domino City, East A

With a frustrated grunt Kaiba disconnected the call from his centre. "Nothing?" He turned to look at the worried glance of his little brother. "Two Rare-hunters down and no sign of those God-Cards. Their leader is a coward who refuses to face me." Fury vibrated through his being as he clenched his fists. "As much as I enjoy showing these low-lifes where they belong, it's not what I want." He had already gained four locator cards but there were still six days left before the end of the preliminaries. He didn't want to be idle, not with potential strong opponents walking about. Maybe he'll go to that one bakery 'Lovely Berry' he could use a decent cup-

"Seto! We have a problem!" The brunette turned to look at Mokuba. "The centre told me that Yugi's signal disappeared from the satellite." His eyes widened a fraction at that.

Few places could cause a signal loss especially with his company's technology. Buildings outfitted with signal blockers or basements. 'He wouldn't walk into those places willingly unless those Ghouls were involved.' He frowned at that before pulling up his collar with the microphone implanted. "It's me. We have a situation. We got a missing Duelist, number 039 also Known as Yugi Mutou." He started walking toward his tower with his brother pursuing him. "Keep your eyes out and interrogate any suspicious duelist in your assigned area and keep me updated in your search." He disconnected before continuing to Kaiba Corp Tower.

X

Location: Domino City, South B - 2 minutes ago

On one bench near a fountain lay a lazing figure, with their arms crossed behind their head on the bench, their beanie headwear covering half their was something a little hippy-ish about him, from the way he looked with his covered hair and coarse beard. Most people would believe the male to be some sort of vagabond or a homeless bum if it wasn't for the large KC lettering on the jacket and duel disk adorning his arm.

"It's me. We have a situation." A frown formed on the male before he sat upright, causing a few people surrounding him to jump away, his hat still covering his face as he listened in. "We got a missing Duelist, number 039 also Known as Yugi Mutou." He pulled up his hat revealing his deep maroon eyes. "Keep your eyes out and interrogate any suspicious duelist in your assigned area and keep me updated in your search."

"Come one man." Whined the beanie wearer as he cracked his neck "I was hoping this would be a quiet day." He stretched before he stood up with an annoyed look. 'Am I even going to get something out of this?' He slowly blinked and plugged his one ear with his finger as he walked in one alleyway of his area.

"Can the one who finds him first get the next day off?" His request went unanswered.

X

Location: Domino City, West C - 2 minutes ago

The coffee shop was in a small city square. By day this cafe is the colour of supermarket oranges, it has that shiny look, and the jazz pours out of the open doors along with the aroma of freshly baked bread. Outside around the edges were food vendors, giving a part of the city a sort of market atmosphere.

Outside were a few placed tables and chairs. One of them being occupied by a young girl in a simple but delicate monochromatic outfit. Black and white. Simple and without argument. She finished a sundae with a soft squeal. Her dark curls bounced as the message came through. A missing Duellist? A sharp smile came over her face as she grabbed her duel disk and left the cafe table. Skipping down the street.

"Kaiba-kun!" She chirped in the comm link "If I find him first, can Mokuba-sama take me out for a treat?" Over the comm link she heard a quiet whine "Seto please don't make me." The girl smirked as she heard her employer give her an affirmative. She had won. Now where did that kid run off to?

She didn't want Mokuba-sama to wait.

X

Location: Domino City, North B

"Yes, my liege I will do as you command." said a euphonic female voice. Applying lipstick, she smirked at her reflection in the shop window. Perfection. She would truly become so for him. She straightened her white uniform with a sparkly train and lovingly stroked the printed KC symbol. She looked once more at herself. All for him. Her blond hair, now white and expertly styled. The image of a queen. Blue nails and lipstick. The very vision on the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

All for him. Her eyes glowed with a sadistic satisfaction as she turned to go find her prey.

X

Location: Domino City, East B

"Understood sir." A strong baritone voice echoed in the backstreet. A giant figure stood over a few limp forms on the ground. Any physical features were hidden by the dim light of the building. A large palm had practically engulfed one head of the conscious ghoul members as they were slowly brought up towards the face of the behemoth.

The caught prey wiggled in the beast's grasp before freezing as they heard the being speak "I'll ask you this once. Where is the boy?"

X

Location: Domino City, ?

The lid of the vertical box opened, revealing the tri-coloured male. As he exited the magician's box, he looked around, finding a small computer in the distance. "I know where we are." He turned to look at his partner's spirit form "We're in the Game Shop that just opened and where we got our duel disks. That's why they targeted Joey, because they had his duel data and this is how they kept tabs on other duellists." Yami felt fury surged through him as he logged on to the computer.

"Not only that, but they're also keeping notes on the cards they're laundering and the type of cards they're targets are using." The sound of the keyboards crackling filled the room as the ex-ruler went through the various logs of information. Weevil Underwood, Rex Raptor, Seto Kaiba and Téa -

His eyes widened as his gaze went through the first letters. It couldn't be!

Not believing what he saw he looked again but before he tried reading the name again, the computer had turned off and switched on again showing his duelling profile, but it was different. Instead, an empty computer screen. It was flickering and shaking but what caught the duellist's eye was his ace card had an odd glow towards it. As he peered closer towards the face of his card it seemed to morph from a calm, neutral expression to that of a deranged look.

The creature's face was suddenly thrust forward which caused the male to step back. A flicker form moved out of the screen before appearing as a large, cloaked figure. The figure may have the silhouette of his monster, but their appearances were vastly different. While his monster had magenta robes with gold ascend, light violet hair and grey eyes.

This magician monster in front of him had red robed with gold accents, grey and violet eyes not to mention a darker skin tone with unique facial markings

"Ah, you must be Yugi Mutou. I welcome you to my master's domain," The creature gave a mock bow "My master, Arcana Pandora challenges you to a duel. The stakes will not only be your rarest card but the right to use any Dark Magician." The spellcaster pointed towards his challenger "Win and you may leave. Lose and you'll lose me forever."

The silence seemed to stretch as the Pharaoh stared at the being before him. He rolled eyes before smirking as he turned his head to the side "Stop the petty tricks, come out and face me, Arcana." He heard a cackle in the back as a figure came from out of the shadows. To Yugi the man reminded him of those masquerade masks people wore at costume parties. He had the signature hat that 'classic' musicians wore for their acts. He wore a pattern shirt and tie and a red coat that gave him a formal appearance.

The young host decided that this was a strange but dangerous individual.

As for Yami he had one word to describe the being in front of him.

Ridiculous or maybe arrogant would be the better word.

"I'm Arcana, one of the elite Rare Hunters. Known as a Master Magician and…" He flicked a card to his hand showing the mis-coloured card. "The greatest Dark Magician User you'll ever find."

At that Yami felt his upper lip tremble, in a slight sneer, at the sheer arrogance of the adult duellist in front of him. "Yugi, I'm quite aware you often use The Dark Magician to defeat your opponents." He walked in front of him next to the hologram of his mis-coloured monster "But I'm the master of Magicians. There is no-one that can defeat my monster!"

"If that's your challenge then I accept it, Arcana!" The spirit placed his hand on his deck box that was attached to his belt. "You must know when a duelist builds his deck he chooses the cards they trust most from many different cards but sometimes a card chooses a duelist." As he said this with a glint of pride in his eye, he pulled out his deck and began shuffling it "The two are connected and when the hearts of both the duelist and card become one, the cards true power can be unleashed."

He stopped before drawing the top card from his deck revealing his spellcaster "The dark magician has chosen my heart and he has never let me down." He frowned as anger flared across his face. "From an organisation that lies, cheats and steals you, Rare hunters will never understand because you don't have a duelist heart."

The hunter's expression darkened and said with a voice thick with anger "As expected. Now then, this room is crowded, don't you think?" He smiled spastically, before heading towards a downwards staircase. He turned back to look at his opponent "I've prepared a special duel ring for us." He gave a mock as he stepped aside "Guest first."

"Yeah not going to happen buddy." Muttered his Hikari as he glared at the ghoul duelist. Yami crossed his arms before giving Arcana an annoyed look. The Entertainer gave an enigmatic smile before walking down towards the stairs.

A moment of silence was clearly too much for the Rare Hunter "As you clearly figured it, I was sent to go after you by my master, Marik"

"Marik?" Yugi turned to look at his partner. The Pharaoh eyes flicked to him "A Millennium item wielder and leader of the ghouls. You have faced him before. I'll explain everything after the duel." He quietly whispered before hardening his expression as he stopped "Where is he right now?" He demanded with his fist clenched at his side.

"No manners, honestly." Tsked the trickster as he enjoyed egging on the tri-coloured duelist as he continued walking "Answer me! Arcana!" He giggled in glee as he stopped halfway down the staircase "Who knows?" He tapped his chin in feign ignorance "Where ever could he be?" Before a condescending smile stretched over his face as he turned to look at the young duelist "Oh he's very close. You might even say, he's in-" He tapped his hat as stared at the boy "Here."

"What does he mean? Mou Hitori no Boku?" He quietly shushed his light 'Let's focus on the fight. I promise I will explain everything.' He felt his light's objection, but he settled down.

At the bottom of the staircase, they came across a steel door with a question mark drawn on the door. Pandora pushed open the door as he went into a well-lit room "Now then, please enter. This will be our duel ring. Do you like it?"

The room they entered reminded Yugi of the inside of a carnival tent. Except this tent leaned towards the macabre. In the middle was a table with the and eye symbol in the middle of it. Clearly it was an Arena, but he doubted it would be just for duelling. "Be careful, Yami. That arena looks suspicious." The spirit nodded as he walked closer towards the middle closer to where his opponent stood.

"It's almost time to raise the curtains and start the show. I hope you enjoy a good matinee, Yugi." The escape artist waved his arm to the side "You'll notice that we are completely alone. No screaming fans and no cameras." He slammed his deck on the table as he yelled out in excitement "A truly private performance with so much on the line. So, let's get started."

The Pharaoh narrowed his eyes as he placed his deck on the table "We'll each shuffle our cards." Smirked Arcana as he grabbed his deck before dividing them. The spirit gently shuffled his as he stared at his opponent's hands as he shuffled and divided it again. Taking notice if the small folds and wrinkles on the cards

"The way you cut and shuffle, you'll damage your cards." He warned the trickster, but it fell on deaf ears. Arcan looked up as he pushed his deck to the middle. "I'm used to doing it this way, do respect that."

The old ruler felt a twitch in his brow as he said that 'Only if you show respect to your monsters' he grabbed the deck in the middle of the table "I'll cut." He announced as he started dividing them in packs of three.

"By all means." He smirked "There is an old saying among gamblers. Trust your friends but always cut the cards."

"Friends?" Scoffed Yami as he placed the deck back. "There's no way I'd call anyone from the Ghouls that."

"A pity I'm sure" Drawled Pandora as he placed his deck in his duel disk "However we are now committed to duelling. Let the show of nightmares begin!"" As he finished, the floor shifted as they were pulled back to opposite sides of the duel arena.

Before Yami could make an attempt at moving, he felt something grip his shins in a tight vice that almost made him bite his lip pain. He looked down to find clamps above his ankles. He gritted his teeth before looking up to his opponent . He's in the same predicament as him.

"Don't worry I am cuffed as well. Unless I the Great Arcana Pandora escapes from the very Jaws of death."

'Death!?' His eyes widen in alarm before two circular saws appear at the sides of the arena. Their teeth glinted menacingly in the light. "It's a one hundred tooth carbide tipped saw. Ones you see in typical magic shows!"

Arcana leaned in as his face contorted into maniacal glee "The saw is aligned along a set of numbers. Our life points, the more we lose the closer it gets." His eyes turned to pinpoints in pure ecstasy "Do you understand the rules of this duel yet? The loser's body will be sawed apart!"

Dread crawled up the King's spine as he stared in disbelief and horror at the deranged man in front of him. "Oh, don't worry there is a way to escape. Note the box at your feet" He followed his opponents gaze seeing a small box at his feet. It had the number 4000 on it. "Within it lies the key to undo your shackles. Unfortunately, it can only be opened when your opponent's life points reach zero." Yami's insides tighten at the implication.

"In other words, only the winner can escape from here alive."

"You sick Bastard." He snarled at the man "You're enjoying the idea of ending other people's lives. How many others have you tested this on?"

The magician snickered before continuing with his tirade, ignoring the question."Tell me, why do you think my name has Pandora in it?" He grinned as the child practically hissed at him in disdain. "The Greek god Zeus created a box that contained all the world's misfortune. They called it Pandora's Box. Of course it would not remain sealed for long."

"A woman sharing the same name had opened the box letting all the evil escape which brought about Pain and suffering. However something remained behind. They named it hope. These keys in our boxes are our last hope to escape." His mouth twisted into a green "The other players who opened the box weren't able to reach their hope at the bottom of the box."

"I've had enough of this!" he roared, "You only enjoy this game if you're the winner, let's see if you will have the same bravado when you're on the receiving end." As he finished, he activated his duel disk. It lit up as its components folded in place.

"Very well… It's time to start the show!" Laughed the jester as his own duel disk activated.

"I'll start." Yami looked over the cards in his hand. It contained Change of Heart, Beaver Warrior, the equip card Mystical Moon, Celtic Guardian and Alpha the Magnet Warrior.

Right now, the enemy he was facing was an unknown with only one he knows is in Arcana's deck, The Dark Magician, that gave him a clue on what cards his opponent will have but still it isn't enough. The ancient being looked up at his opponent who was currently staring attentively at the curtain behind him. He'll worry about that later but now, he grabbed the Magnet Warrior Card and Change of Hearts, he can do this.

"I place one monster face down in defence mode and set one card." He placed them in their respective slots "I end my turn. Your move." He focuses his gaze on his opponent's face. The way he shuffled his cards in an uncaring manner and the shuffling technique he used obviously the maniac is using card tricks to force the duel in his favour.

"It's called the riffle, or dovetail shuffle" his eyes shifted to the transparent form of his partner "They often used in casinos because it minimises the risk of exposing cards during the shuffle but that also allows the opportunity for the Zarrow shuffle. A false shuffle. His deck could still be unchanged!." He saw the grin of his opponent widened as he gazed at the card he just drew. "I cut the cards but if he has three Magicians, there is still less than 10% chance of him drawing it." He muttered to his partner. So he shouldn't have drawn the card. Something didn't add up unless…

"I place one monster face down in defence mode." As the entertainer said it, the card appeared next to him. Arcana grinned back before extending his hand in his direction. "The stage is yours. Try not to buckle under the pressure, assistant."

He felt his lip twitch at that before drawing his next card. Card destruction. Risky as both players must discard as many cards as possible from their hands, then each player draws the same number of cards they discarded. This could either give him a disadvantage or an advantage, depending on the situation but right now he needed a new hand and to teach this 'Master Magician' a lesson. Yami's smile was cutting as he decided for retribution.

'This happens when you only rely on tricks and torment your monsters' he smirked before placing the card in his slot "I activate the spell card, Card Destruction!"

Arcana's eyes widened in a mixture of terror and anger as he sputtered out "What! Card destruction?!" His hand! 'That means...!' He stared at his hand in disbelief. 'My Dark magician will be in the graveyard.'

"Yes! It forces us to discard our entire hand and to draw a new one equal to the number of cards we had discarded." He placed his cards in the graveyard slot before drawing four new cards. "From your expression I knew you already had the Dark Magician in your hand. I know better than to drop my guard against a dishonest trickster." He pointed in his direction "From the way you shuffle your cards. You clearly don't cherish them. It won't surprise me if you cut them to give yourself an advantage."

The entertainer gritted his teeth in frustration before discarding them "So you were aware of my trick from the start. Few would know that trick." He gave a maniacal smile before drawing five new cards. "Unless they have practised it before."

He felt his rage pulsed through his veins at the declaration before forcing it down "Hardly. It's not that hard to figure it out." He flicked his eyes to his side to look at his partner. 'Of Course, my partner figured it out long before me.' The spectral form of Yugi blushed before rubbing the back of his head in an embarrassed manner. He pointed to his set card "My turn is not over yet I activate my set Card" The card flipped up revealing a magic card. "Change of Heart!"

Arcana felt his throat squeezed shut 'This isn't right! He's not supposed to have that card, it wasn't in the data!' He stared at his face-down monster. He knew the brat had 'brain-control' that's why he didn't place the monster face up. Not to mention he would have to pay 800 life points to activate it. Thus, bringing the saws closer.

"My card allows me to target one of your monsters whenever it be face-up or face-down and take control of it until the End Phase." He smirked at his sweating opponent "I wouldn't be surprised if your Master has been keeping tabs on me and watched my previous battles. So, I changed a few cards, and this one belonged to one of my friends." The spell card glowed before the figure of a woman with a pair of wings, one side being a typical angel wing while the other side had bat-like wings, her eyes opened, and a flash was seen in them. The set card slid over towards Yami's side as the archangel hovered over it.

"I tribute both monsters" Both cards had flipped up revealing 'Alpha the Magnet Warrior and his opponent's monster 'Legion The Fiend Jester' a small whirlwind of smoke appeared around before swallowing them whole as a dark silhouette appeared.

"To summon my own monster, the Dark Magician." The silhouette dissipated the smoke with a wave of his staff before his full form was revealed.

The famous magenta colour covered the being's entire outfit and armour as the spellcaster aimed his staff at his master opponent in his signature stance. Azure eyes ablaze and mouth tight at the sight of the cowering duelist and tormentor of his kind. "Do you see it? Arcana The anger. The pain in my monster's eyes." The Pharaoh thrusted his finger at Arcana's direction "You were already playing a dangerous game before you even met me. The question is where you prepared to suffer because of it?"

"Now Dark Magician, attack Arcana's life points directly!" The monster rushed forward to his opponent as he spun his staff around before jabbing it toward his target. "Attack with Dark Magic!" From the staff's jewelled tip appeared black lightning as it shot towards Arcana. It collided with its master's opponent causing a bright light to envelop the man. The male grunted in pain as he felt the shock of the blast impact him.

He felt prickles of pain run up his arms before it slowly dissipated but leaving a dull ache behind. He gave out shaky, shallow breaths as he looked down at his duel disk seeing his Life Points lower from 4000 to 1500. 'He got the best of me.' He looked up at the grinning brat before smirking, 'But the actual show is just starting.'

"You lost life points Arcana, you know what that means." At that the Rare Hunter heard the circular saw rotate its deadly blade as it edges closer towards his legs. "Of Course I'm aware, Yugi. I designed this little punishment game." He gently dusted off his suit before straightening his jacket.

"Which means you have an escape key hidden in your sleeve in case you lose. "muttered Yugi as he frowned at their opponent. "Do you enjoy this?" whispered his darker half as he glared at the conjurer. "Having a battle with innocent lives at stake." The ancient being tried to stifle his rage as he gritted his teeth, "It's this fun for you?!"

The trickster cackled "Innocent! Don't lie to yourself, boy. You're anything but innocent… Does the name Tetsu Ushio ring a bell?"

The spirit felt his eyes grow impossibly wide as his lips parted in silent surprise.

"No? How about Kokurano, the so-called prophet of your school? Sozoji Kotone? Maybe Goro Inogashira?" The trickster grinned at the expression of disbelief on the boy's face.

"You like games, don't you? Here is a little riddle." His teeth glinted in the small light "What do they all have in common besides meeting you?" He lifted a single finger as his mouth split into a wide smile "I'll give you a hint. They did burn in hell."

X

Location: Domino City, Domino Hospital

"Hello, sir! Did you Enjoy your visit with Ms. Wheeler?" Chirped the cheery Receptionist. The male named Tristan Taylor smiled at the friendly woman.

"Yeah, I did thanks. Is it okay if I bring the patient any baked goods?"

"Oh ain't she a lucky one. I'm sure a small little heart bonbon won't be too bad." She winked at the chestnut haired male who blushed at the candy suggestion. "

Sure I think I go and-" before he could finish he heard his phone ring. He looked down before ending the call. "Sorry about that I-" It rang again. He sighed in exasperation "Give me a second." He walked away from the receptionist deck before pulling out his flip phone. When he looked down at his phone, he still didn't recognize the number; it could be one of his clients, but he already told his manager he was taking the week off for the tournament. He answered it as it rang for the second time.

"Taylor here, I'm currently-"

"My boy please listen to me!" He felt his eyes widen as the voice of Mr Mutou came through the receiver and from the sound of it, he sounded distressed.

"Whoa! Gramps calm down. What's going on?" He felt a heavy weight on his chest as he internally whispered into a mantra of 'Please don't let it be Joey. Please don't let it be- '

"It's Yugi he's missing. I think one of those rare hunters lured him into a trap." Okay that's bad…. No it was way worse. He knew Joey could look after himself, after all he had seen him in multiple fights especially when both himself and Joey had been in Kane's gang in their earlier years of High School.

"Where are you now?"

"I'm at Domino Park."

"I'm on my way!" He shut his phone as before stuffing it in his jacket, he jumped down from the hospital stair railings at the hospital entrance. As he approached, his bike looked back at the open window of the building. 'Sorry Ren I'll see you tomorrow, my friends need me right now.' He latched his helmet straps on before climbing on his bike.

X

"I'll give you a hint. They did burn in hell."

The Pharaoh felt his body grew tense to the point of shaking as he stared at this fiend of an opponent. If his Hikari is calling out to him, he couldn't hear him. He could only hear his Heart hammering in his chest.

The king licked his dry lips "H-how?" he whispered,barely containing a scream.

The jester started snickering behind his hand as he heard the pathetic whisper of the ancient being; the snicker turned in a chuckle that seemed to be barely contained until the entertainer actually arched his back in a full-blown shriek of laughter, causing the magician hat to fall off.

"Surprised?!" laughed his opponent before he thrusted his face forward in the direction of Yami with a crazed expression. This was no longer the same man from could only see the whites of his eyes and Arcana's hair was a mess as it was no longer in its professional state. What made it obvious was the glowing eye of the wadjet on his opponent's forehead.

"Marik!" He spat with venom laced in the tone of his voice. "A little soon to make a comeback all of a sudden?" He said, mouth thinning with displeasure.

'Marik' could only chuckle at the clear hate on the Pharaoh's face. "Oh, I agree I think it is but if anyone is going to answer your question it's going to be me." He tilted his head as he gave out an enormous smile. "I've been planning this for years. If I was going to face you I need to know everything about you and your host."

"I'll be honest I at first thought your host was innocent if anything he might have been a victim as well." He stared at his hand as if holding an object only he could see "Few people could handle the powers of the items, not without severe consequences but the more I discovered the more I realised." He thrusted a finger in their direction. "That none of you are guiltless."

"That's not for you to decide! You weren't there to witness their actions." He snarled as he clenched his fist tightly to where his knuckles cracked loudly.

Marik's eyes sharpened "And you had the right? Trapped in a puzzle for over Five Thousand Years with the powers to rule over darkness, are you sure you were quite all there when you were released?"

Yami felt his muscles stiffened, as if getting ready to run or attack..

"Let's start with the first victim, Tetsu Ushio, a classic school bully instead of informing the correct authorities or even the Police. You unleashed the Yami no Game, a punishment designed for the absolute worst of crimes in Egypt such as murder of the innocent."

The spirit's entire body became impossibly still as he was forced to listen.

"He was diagnosed with Clinical Paranoia, he kept saying that you were out to get him and that every shadow in the room was working for you." He smirked at the shaking Ruler "The voices were finally silenced when he took a dive from a building."

"It's not his fault he was protecting me and my friends." Yelled Yugi, his breath growing thin and ragged. "That was Ushio's decision to hurt others."

The puppeteer grinned as he looked over to the incorporeal form of Yugi. "Really saghir?" He asked, ignoring the shocked looks of the twins as he continued on. "Sozoji was cursed to hear his heartbeat at a deafening tone. He wanted to escape the sound so badly he forced a pen straight through his ear-drum." He tapped at the side of his head as he stared at them. "Kokurano died by dangerous chemical inhalation by wanting to prove he could predict events after he was ostracised from various schools after meeting you and Goro Inogashira had severe damage to his face and eyes after playing the explosive game with you. He went into hiding. After that not even I could find out what happened to him ."

"It was their punishment for hurting others, it's not our fault they turned out that way." Yelled Yugi, biting back the tears of horror.

"Oh, don't worry, I agree with what you did." He said with a flourish wave of his arm before his expression darkens. "Until Seto Kaiba came to the scene."

"What do you mea-"

"You gave him a second chance. Why him of all people? What made him so different from the others that you had interacted with?" The leader of the ghouls continued not giving either of the tri-coloured twins a chance to reply.

"He tormented others, caused irreparable damage that many still haven't recovered to this day. He lied, cheated, killed and stole from others so he could reach the top. He never felt an inch of remorse and even now he will say he didn't care."

"Marik." Warned Yami as he felt his other half distraught state growing worse.

"Young Mokuba was his victim and yet he, much like a victim of abuse, came crawling back." The puppet hugged himself in a mocking attempt of comfort. "Because there was no-one else for him to go to, he was isolated because of him."

"Kaiba has kidnapped people to gain advantage over others. Your host's grandfather is a prime example." Marik's voice sounded more distorted as if there was another being there with him.

"Please stop." Whispered the small boy as he covered his ears, hoping and pleading for the realisation of what they've done and what he had allowed to happen not to become reality..

"He kidnapped him and duelled him causing the old man to go into a state of shock that nearly caused his heart to stop and what did he do? He discarded him like trash after he got what he wanted." Spit and blood was dripping from the puppet's mouth from overuse. It wouldn't surprise the Pharaoh if the man was no longer with them or will ever be the same after this encounter.

"Marik, I'm warning you!" The form of his Dark Magician had slowly levitated near the shaking form of his partner. Glaring at the possessed man that was tormenting his masters.

"He will use you and your friends to get what he wants and you're going to allow that to happen. ESPECIALLY AFTER I TAKE THEM APART-"

"ENOUGH!" Came a thundering roar from the enraged ruler. The puzzle gave an ominous glow as the area around the two duelists darkened with shadows. The symbol on the ancient being's face outshone the eye over Arcana's forehead.

"I had enough of you." snarled the spirit as his voice shook with anger seeing his charge's face ravaged with despair. The small Hikari gripped the hair at the back of his head with both hands as tears streamed down his cheeks.

"I came to fight Arcana, not a coward. If you are not here to face me in physical form, then BEGONE!" He thrusted his hand in Arcana's direction causing the rare hunter to arch his back as if struck. The area around then slowly lightened up as the shadows receded back into the corners of the room.

X

Location: ?, ?

Marik yelled out in pain as his back hit against the stone wall. He heard multiple footsteps running up to him as he slid down the wall. The dark-skinned male started coughing as he felt the bile rise from his throat. He placed his hand on the floor as his coughing intensified, gripping the Millennium Rod for dear life. What he spat up wasn't bile, it looked dark and tasted of iron.

It was blood.

"Leave this doesn't concern the lot of you." a deep voice echoed in the chamber. Marik heard the thudding sounds of steps slowly disappear. Strong fingers gripped the young male shoulders as it held him up. A small rag was brought up to his lips as the larger male wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"I believe you pushed yourself too far this time my master."

"I'm f-." He coughed again before taking the rag and wiping his mouth "I'm fine but this distance is becoming a problem."

'No that wasn't the reason.' Thought the item wielder as he stood up from his position 'He forced me out. That could become a problem if he'll do it again.' The dark-skinned male sat back on his throne as his trusted servant brought a glass and a pitcher of water. He gratefully took the glass and downed it.

The cold liquid soothed his aching throat and the headache, that had formed during the possession, was receding. He doubted Arcana was in a better position than him. Forcing someone out of their mind can cause a severe backlash if you weren't careful. There was no doubt that the Pharaoh didn't care that he was forceful and caused either him or Arcana any pain.

He had angered him, frightened him even. So he attacked. It was to be expected given that he is possessive of his host and anything else that belongs to him.

He threatens to take it away, the pharoah will use his abilities against him and from what Marik felt, the rod's power paled compared to the actual strength of his so-called 'master'.

That left him with a problem. He knew Pandora cannot defeat him, if anything the only use of the entertainer was to him was by gathering Data on the spirit's duel strategies and tactics. So he was left with two choices:

Puppets with a conscious mind could force him out so he should use his Ultimate Weapon. Strings the Mime. Then he could finally defeat him but if he fails…

The other option was a bit more difficult especially since he goaded the Pharaoh. Using the boy's friends would be a perfect tool as the spirit wouldn't allow himself to harm his possessions. The dead king would probably keep a closer eye on them after his duel with the puppet.

"Odion, pack up. It's time we leave for Domino City."

Notes:

Matinee - a film shown, or a play performed during the day, especially in the afternoon. Spectacles & performances.

Saghir: Means 'small one' in Arabic

Hikari means "light." Yugi is Yami's light side.

Yami no Game: A Shadow Game (闇のゲーム Yami no Gēmu, literally Game of Darkness or Dark Game) is a contest in the Yu-Gi-Oh! series usually between two people that involves a harsh Penalty Game for the loser. Shadow Games are predominately mentioned in the original Yu-Gi-Oh! manga.

Tetsu Ushio, Kokurano, Sozoji and Goro Inogashira all come from The original Yu-Gi-Oh Manga - In the manga they were punished in the penalty game/Shadow game by Yami Yugi