Yu-Gi-Oh: A Past and Future Pharaoh

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

Beta By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

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Bakura found himself wondering if this was a terrible mistake or he was taking the fall for Zorcs' evil. He and Jounouchi had left school and headed over to Bakuras', where Malik was waiting for them. The blond having agreed to stay there and watch Monster World in case there was an in coming message from the Ghosts. Though Malik 'did' come up with a time consuming method of communicating with the ghosts. Having created numerous words involving directions, numbers, emergency words and warnings written in the hieroglyphs and Japanese so those who couldn't see could still get the message.

The ghost that had stayed with Mokuba through out the night had returned that morning, and though she was unable to talk to the living. She had managed to convey that Yugi was up and had started looking after Mokuba himself. The one who stayed to look after Catherine had collected a few more of the ghosts to keep an eye on the kids as well. The ghosts themselves were growing pleased with their ability to help Bakura. The task of getting rid of that terrible book was a goal they could all get behind, since no one wanted to see another person trapped in the same state as them.

At the same time this age had presented them with something to really have to think about. Bakura was clearly friends with the reborn Pharaoh, which made going after the Pharaoh all the harder since it upset Bakura. Then there was that modern day Tomb Keepers' family, the future leader that was close to Bakura as well, it hearkened back to the time when they were the builders of Tombs. So now some of the villagers were starting to call for a truce with the Pharaoh in light of the current age.

Really it made good sense, the only thing that was holding them to their anger was the fact of being victims of the Pharaoh's uncle. Literally, going after him was just more of what Zorc apparently wanted and being used did not please them. So it was a matter of getting some of the older village members to let go of their anger for the good of their... their what? That was the whole of the situation though, what 'were' they? Souls yes, trapped between the living world and the After Life and where 'would' they go if they left this state of being?

Freedom from the Items had left them trapped here, bringing to question what 'really' happened after a person died. If there was a way to pass on, what would they pass on to? Clearly the Pharaoh and his Circle was able to be reborn into this age, and Zorc brought back Bakura. But what of them? What would happen to criminals cast down by a member of the royal family? They weren't wrong in saying that the Pharaoh was a god or that even the son of the man who had them all murdered was one. But would they be brought before their Gods and found guilty? Would they be able to plead their case?

Or was it all for nothing? The memories of the Pharaoh was allowed to be released and it was slowly causing the Pharaohs' personality to shift. What they recalled of the first days that they had seen the Pharaoh since their freedom of the Items was markedly different than what they now saw.

"There's a clear difference between the Pharaoh of then and now." The Lady who looked upon her reincarnated son with love and devotion argued with a portion of the assembled group of spirits. Beside her, for once, was not her cherished child, but her son's friend. Her gaze drifted from her extended family and fellow spirits to the tomb keeper that her child wandered with.

"When we first were freed and saw him, the Pharaoh was in the midst of loss, though admittedly he didn't know it at the time. When it was clear that my dear son was concerned we 'did' track down the vile Pharaoh. For us he has 'always' appeared a young man, though apparently in this day and age he would be considered a child. Still coddled and protected, not yet ready to take charge of a nation. His height was clearly a change, his hair had drifted down around his head unlike before. He slouched before, kept his shoulders down, maintained a meekness unfitting for a Pharaoh. But in these past months his posture has started to shift."

Her husband nodded leaning back in his 'seat' of nothingness but air, his thought introspective as he thought about the Pharaohs' change. "My wife speaks true, he walked with a timid sense, but that was understandable considering how sudden his own physical changes were coming. Even if he had adjusted before, he was suddenly going from looking like one of ten summers to one who 'looked' his eighteen summers. The Pharaoh of this time did not seem ready to draw attention to himself, though that would be understandable. Since he would have to explain 'why' the change and clearly he's been having trouble."

"Now he walks with pride, his shoulders are drawn back with confidence, his body speaks of his confidence and control. The more time goes on the more he looks the role of a confident Pharaoh, and yet he still calls and treats my precious son as a friend. Even if his mannerisms are becoming that of a proper Pharaoh, he is not showing the evil that sealed us away." She added as she glanced at the stack of cards that the Tomb Keeper was working steadily away on.

"That may be true, but this age is no different than ours, leaders of nations are only slightly changed since our time. Look about you, even now the royals of this land live richly with little responsibility to the people. We've seen it in our searches for the Blue Eyed Dragon your son sent us to find. Far more of those in power only pay lip service to the needs of their people, often just saying what the people 'want' to hear. But they use the excuse of not getting enough 'votes' to proceed to help those who need it. While at the same time lining their pockets with money from the rich. While its true that he 'is' changing. How can we be sure he's not changing to become one of this rich, selfish, lots?" Another spirit called out among the assembled spirits.

"Yes, look at his cousin, the man lives in a rich home by giving in to the evil of another man's heart! Look at how he treats his own brother!" Another voice called out her disdain clear while several other voices rose in agreement at the lonely state of the little brother.

"Now that is not fair, yes, he sold himself, but that little boy willingly stays by the side of the cousin. Also he is clearly well feed with good food and provided for, if not I can not imagine he would show such clear good health if his older brother was cruel. Even now with the Pharaoh at their home, he shows the greatest of devotion to his 'honorable older brother'." Another voice pointed out among the group.

"'Honorable'?! His father murdered us! The sins of that man are on his hands, yet that royal cousin was given rulership of our Mother Land! Clearly the mark of greed and selfish desire is branded deep in that one!" A robust man with a sword at his side argued.

"Yes, our homeland fell but the line of succession fell upon him, his tainted blood stained our noble home and look at what it has been contaminated with! Perhaps they are right, if the Pharaoh had been able to live his innocent blood could have kept our land free of these horrid invaders!" the Lady Spirits' husband argued back from his seat.

"Bah, he needed to take responsibility for the shame of his line! Even if it came from another branch!" The sword carrier called back, unruffled by the argument.

"What happened back then is no longer the point! Our homeland is gone! Our Gods have clearly turned a deaf ear to our people now that none call upon them! The only gods we have left 'are' these two!" The Lady Spirit called out, "I understand you're plight! You who once served honorably under the Pharaoh's army until your injuries. This is a great injustice onto you, but we must think of the situation as it is now! There are those who wish to recreate the situation that caused us to be trapped like this. Who here enjoys their status?"

She looked among the assembled spirits, the shop keepers and farmers, the wives and husbands, criminals and innocent children and her eyes fell upon her dear friend. She who sat to the side her gaze lost to an internal memories. Her rich brown spice colored hair was bound behind her head in a braid, while her blue eyes were lost calculating the information she had been listening to. Unlike Bakura's spirit mother and father, the Village leaders' husband had been visiting a neighboring village on 'that' night. Leaving her so very alone for the past three thousand years as DE-facto lone leader of their village.

"He calls the Pharaoh 'big brother' now." The words she spoke were uttered during a lull of flung debate, causing the others to look at her. "Mo-ku-ba calls the Pharaoh 'big brother' though he lacks the respectful tone that he normally expresses when he speaks to his blood brother. Even more so he called this 'Mahaado', that the Pharaoh speaks to with such devotion and affection, the same thing. Though I have yet to see this 'Mahaado', I can only assume that we can not see the Ka Beasts outside of their solid cards and toys. But Mo-ku-ba addresses the pair with warmth and affection, for which the Pharaoh answers with humbled kindness."

The other spirits looked at each other, remembering that one of the arguments 'was' that the boy was being raised by a cold, heartless royal who cared for no one. They turned their gaze back to their village leader and waited her words. While the Tomb Keeper got up from the table and gave a huge stretch, his arms reaching for the sky. He sauntered off towards the kitchen grabbing up an empty glass from the table as he moved. So apparently he was going to get a refill, but just looking at the blond was an interesting point of view as well.

A Tomb Keeper, one entrusted with protecting the Tomb of the Pharaoh and there he was friends with a Tomb Robber. In honesty it was like some type of cosmic joke being played out, a type of irony, like the fact that the Pharaoh and his grandfather were now just commoners in this life, not nobility. Born to humble standings despite being of divine lineage, but again the seal was never meant to be broken. What the boys had discussed holding a truth from the night before. Set was a god of Chaos, without knowing their intentions it was a strong possibility that what everyone got reborn to was put at random.

Given that the royal cousin was clearly a man who demanded absolute control over every aspect of his life, the randomness must have been an outrage. If they thought on it through that perspective, as some had pointed out earlier, then the natural progression of thought would imply that the placement was wrong. Perhaps Set would have wanted the Pharaoh to reincarnate into a rich family, or be given the lap of luxury instead of Set receiving it himself.

But unable to talk to the man or god, there was no way to know what, exactly, was the original plan and how it was meant to be dealt with.

"I think we should put aside our differences with the Pharaoh, he is not what we expected of him. True his personality is changing, he is becoming the Pharaoh once more, no longer a little scared prince. Or a prince at all. But we have a duty to the world, we can not allow this group to create another Sennen Item set. The arguments the Pharaoh and his group have had is very much valid, beyond just the murder of the Pharaohs' blood kin of this age. Beyond the injuries of his friends, this world is a vast place, and it needs to be protected. No one knows of the evils of Zorc, if our state is a crime onto the Pharaoh and his blood for it happening. What is 'our' crime in stymieing the only working force against this terrible evil?" She asked, and watched as person after person looked down in thought or showed their support of her words with their eyes warming up.

"How can we face great Osiris if we allow this to happen? What do we say to him? 'Let the world burn because I suffered?' Our children may find solace under the sympathy of Lord Anubis, but what of us? We adults who have a responsibility to know better?"

"She speaks for me," numerous voices spoke up with nods. "We were all damned to this fate at face value of being members of a Tomb Robbers' village. How are we better than him, if we cast the same judgment on the Pharaoh?"

"I am so 'bored'!" Malik announced to the room in general as he returned with a full glass of water. Despite the fact that the room was full of spirits holding council, he was unable to see them or hear any of the interesting conversation that was being carried on. Despite that, he spoke up just to hear 'a' voice before deciding it was time to move on to something beyond card making.

So he missed the room full of spirits with several of the children deciding to take the television remote. As soon as Malik saw it and moved towards that with a clear decision to spend the rest of the day 'vegging out', as it were. If for no greater reason than the amusement of watching the shift of his expression go from bored to 'seriously here people' in mere seconds.

"Well we should get back to work in that case," the adults commented and slipped away from the apartment while the kids ran with the controller in their hands as Malik gave chase.

Leaving only Bakura's Spirit Mother, her husband and the Village leader to oversee the trio gleefully teasing Malik.

"Well that went as well as expected."

Bakuras' Egyptian father picked up the cards that Malik had been working on and dug out two, one that said 'three' and one that said 'child' and held them up for Malik amid his chase.

"Hmm? 'Three Child'.. Oh! Three kids are doing this? Ok thanks!" Malik commented amid his chase, pleased that his idea was useful. Now they just needed to make some copies for the group and they'd be set to have rough ideas what what the ghosts were trying to communicate in case of no Bakura. "I just want to watch some television! Come on! Give it back!"

The only thing stopping him from bouncing up and down like a child, as the children dangled the remote above his head, had a great deal to do with the warning he had received about making too much noise in the apartment. The whole 'manners' reason coupled with the fact that Malik should have been in school. So he had a choice of making unnecessary noise and having to get his older brother and sister involved or staying quiet. Leaving him staring at the remote control with hooded displeased eyes.

"Children please, don't you want to also see what's on the screen?" The Village Leader asked, shaking her head slightly as the kids looked at her.

Of course it helped that Bakura and his other friend had arrived at that moment. Looking frazzled and slightly irritated as he stepped in with Jounouchi in tow. He slipped off his shoes, put on his slippers, dangling the shoes he was about to put on when they got to America on two careless fingers.

"You should grab your shoes Malik, and I guess there's no hope that you speak English at all," Bakura drawled out as a heavy indicator of what exactly was the conversation that was had between Bakura and Jounouchi.

Followed by Jounouchi giving a sulky look at the back of Bakuras' head before rolling his own eyes over at Malik, as though asking 'talk to the man will you?'

"Ahh nooo, is that going..." Malik began to ask when his brain started working again and realized the question. They were going to be going to a foreign country with apparently only one person able to speak to anyone there. If Jounouchi couldn't and Malik knew it was out of the question for himself, than they were going to be putting more pressure on Bakura. They wouldn't be able to understand the questions being asked or the answers. They were essentially going to be useless to Bakura and Malik shook his head as he realized the answer to his own question. "Maybe... is there someone else who has a better grasp of English? Face it, there's no point in bringing people who are going to be useless."

"I thought about that, but Honda needs to study, while Anzu knows English, I don't feel safe about her being with us. Beyond that, Yugi is the only one looking after Mokuba since Kaiba is holding Mahaado at his beck and call." Bakura explained as he pulled out the magical item that they were going to use. "Further more its October, we'll get less suspicion as they are shifting into holiday mode."

"What's the occasion?" Malik asked, curious as Bakura grabbed the backpack that he had stocked up for this mission.

"Halloween! You get free candy in America!" Jounouchi answered with subdued glee the moment he saw the look on Bakuras' face. When he saw the blank look on Maliks' face he started to explain only to be cut off by Bakura.

"We're leaving, we'll explain it to you on the way. Remember there's a steep time difference between us and them. Its already night there, another reason why I don't want Anzu with us." Bakura announced as he held the item out to the other two members of this mission. This was going to be a long night.