The Magicians' Realm Chapter 21: Knowledge Hunt, a yu-gi-oh fanfic

All right, chapter 21, everybody! In which I feel that technology is evil….And this is the last update for the month, ironically (unless you're in Australia, in which case this is the first update of the month).

Angiembabe, thanks for the review! I know! I wouldn't have believed it either *bricked* All right, where are these bricks coming from?...Ah, thank you, I'm glad you like them—sometimes I worry I don't write witty enough, so it's nice to know you liked their little conversation. :) Heheh, yes, that was a bit of silliness that came from wondering why they let his hair grow like that—I figure it grows like Harry Potter's did. And I'm going to have to draw that now….And yes indeed.

Fromtheashtrees, thanks for the review! Yes, go relationship, go! I'm more concerned with the fact that it'll probably take a literal year….I need to pick up the pace on my writing….Yes, that might be just a bit beyond the conventional postman. Ooh! Glad I never had to take that (Dad and I both wouldn't have survived). Speaking of, congratulations on surviving! Spend your time off in good health! :D And play video games.

References:

Original characters + setting © Kineil D. Wicks (myself, not the loudmouth girl in the story)

"I need to know something."

Yami Skellington glanced up at Teana when she said that. "Certainly," he said. "What would you like to know? Transmogrification, animating…." He held up the paper he had been perusing. "The morning's headlines?..."

"I want to know where you got that ridiculous tie," Teana said, pointing at said ridiculous tie. "It's been bugging me every time I look at it, and I just spent breakfast staring at it. Now where did you get it? Why did you get it?"

Yami looked at his tie. "Stop bothering Miss Gardenier," he scolded.

"Are you talking to your tie?"

"Where I got it and how is actually a funny story," Yami said, scratching the side of his face and ignoring her question. "And a bit of a long one—I'd tell you, but I know you have someplace you want to run off to and get away from me—"

"Consider my side," Teana pointed out. "If you dealt with someone like yourself, wouldn't you want to get away?"

"On the contrary, I find myself to be quite entertaining."

"You strike me as the sort to talk to yourself when you're alone."

"That's more Wilson's—"

"The tie," Teana prompted, steering the conversation back into the realm of relevancy.

"Oh, right," Yami said, settling back down in his seat and gesturing to the waiter for more coffee. "Well, it was a few years ago…."

*/*\*

Yami woke up early and readied himself for a full day.

"So what are you going to do?" Yuki asked.

"I'm pretty sure I told you last night," Yami replied, checking his hair before putting Horus on.

Yuki seemed relieved that Yami was back to his old attitude. "Yeah, but how? You've read everything you've got access to."

"I'm sure there's something somewhere that I can get a hold of," Yami replied, heading down the stairs. "If all else fails, I'll find some chunk of magic and figure out how to reverse-engineer it."

"And if you can't do that?"

"Well, that's where trial and error comes into play."

"Isn't that the part where most Magicians get into trouble?"

"That's why it's last on the list," Yami said, scowling. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some hunting to do."

Yuki trailed after him. "What about breakfast?"

In response, Yami twirled a finger.

An apple from the fruit basket floated out of the kitchen and drifted after him.

"Cool," he heard Yuki mutter from behind.

*\*/*

It had been about a year since Yami had returned to Delvaire after his walkabout. Of all the places, he liked it best. It was the reason he had his house built there—he visualized himself settling down there. At least until he got the urge to travel again.

In the meantime, the people he had met on his journeys had come, visited, and ended up staying. Apparently, Delvaire's charm wore off on them too. No matter—Yami was looking forward to lots of parties.

He was strolling through town and thoroughly congratulating himself on fobbing Kineil off on Hephaestus and Vulcan—an action that had benefited himself but would probably wear on those three soon—wandering around with a vague notion to buy a paper or something like that. He'd know when he got there.

As it was, he found a different distraction.

"What's going on?" he asked the nearest person, eyeing the crowd in front of the Administration Building.

"The Head Mage stepped down," the guy said, sparing him a glance. "They're holding nominations right now for the next Head Mage."

"Wow," Yami said, picturing the former Head Mage, Benjamin Heap—Yami bet that he had left a note and then headed for the forest to spend retirement as a tree. Or he had left no note and they had just figured it out—shape-shifting Magicians were notoriously absent-minded, as they kept shifting from one shape to another until finally settling down on a shape they preferred. It was almost never human. Ah, the risk of using a brand of magic held over from the Age of Chaos. It really needed a capable hand to pull it off.

"Anybody nominated yet?" Yami asked.

"A few," the guy grumbled. "Nobody who'd be an improvement."

Yami laughed. "Well, who would want the job?" he asked. "Think of the paperwork, the demand, the—"

"I nominate Yami Skellington!"

Conversation in the square died. All eyes turned to Kineil Wicks, leaning on the nominator's table and leveling a death-stare at the poor sap behind it, courtesy of her freshly-claimed Hawks' Eyes.

Yami finally found his voice.

"What?" he croaked.

"I'd vote for you," the guy he had been conversing with said.

"Excuse me," a soft, pudgy-looking guy said, in a voice that made Yami want to take a nap. "I don't believe I've seen you around before—who are you?"

Kineil tilted her chin up at him. "My name," she said slowly, in a voice that carried. "Is Kineil Wicks. And after listening to you talk and reading what you have up here, that guy—" here she pointed directly at Yami. "Is the best candidate for the job."

Yami hustled over. "Excuse me for a moment—I need to have a chat with my promoter friend here. What are you doing?" he hissed at Kineil.

"They want the best magician for the job," Kineil said simply. "You're the best magician I know."

"Your faith in my abilities is touching," Yami said. "But I don't want the job."

"You're also the best guy for the job."

"I am not!"

"I'm sorry, but have you seen who else is running?"

"Um," the man behind the table noised. "Ah, since she nominated you—technically, you're in the running now."

"What?"

Yami noticed he wasn't the only one to squawk at that—the pudgy man did too.

"Congratulations, Mr. Skellington," Kineil said, shaking his hand. "You're officially a politician! Say hi to your constituents!"

Yami glanced around; he was suddenly made painfully aware of how few people he knew there in Delvaire.

"Uh, hello," he noised.