And now you get to see where Imhotep suggested they go.
Marik watched boredly as his girlfriend stared at the ground, following some sort of unseen path. She'd driven beyond the limits of the city to a nearby forest, where they'd spent another fifteen minutes walking through the underbrush until she'd found a small clearing hidden in the trees.
He internally groaned, wishing he was back home with his head on a pillow. Getting up far too early after a late night up left him tired and irritable. He only tolerated his girlfriend's whims at the moment because it appeared to make her happy. However, his patience was wearing thin.
"Ah-ha! There it is!" Kat exclaimed excitedly.
She began weaving her spell, glittering runes appearing midair just before she pushed them away. Like with the park, they landed on an invisible surface, but unlike the park, there was no collection of Shadows present. Instead the sun shone brighter in the clearing. A moss-laden, peaked stone arch materialized from where the spell had landed. Inside of the arch rippled as it lightly glowed with a warm light.
Kat turned away from the portal, her palms placed together near her face as she looked at Marik with an extremely serious expression.
"Okay, a few very important rules before we pass through. Don't speak to anyone other than me…but make sure it is actually me if for any reason I leave your sight for even the smallest fraction of a second. Under no circumstances are you to mention your clan name. Do not take anything offered, especially anything that can be drank or eaten."
Marik gestured dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever."
"I mean it," Kat stated firmly.
"And how, exactly, am I going to verify if it's really you?"
"I'm sure you'll know…or at least, I would hope that someone who claims to 'love' me would know how to tell the difference."
Marik shook his head. "Whatever, let's just go."
He saw her brow furl in concern, her head and shoulders falling slightly. Seconds later, an obvious facade of cheerfulness appeared. He wasn't certain what was going on, or why she appeared to be trying so hard at…whatever…but it was already getting on his last nerve. He wanted her to stop doing things to try making everyone else happy, yet for some reason she was going out of her way to obviously do something that wasn't for herself.
Kat took him by the hand and led him through the portal arch. He raised his arm against the blinding light on the other side. Once his eyes adjusted, he was surprised to see what he could only describe as a vast lake with a rocky shoreline. Surrounding it were rolling fields of bright green as far as the eye could see, low 'walls' of stacked rock occasionally dotting the landscape, breaking the green off into segments.
"Where are we?" he asked no one in particular.
"Well…that's a bit tricky to answer. Technically, we're in Ireland…but at the same time we are also in the Fae realm," Kat replied, sounding a bit nervous.
The 'rules' she had listed suddenly made sense.
"And you brought me here, because…?"
Kat pointed over towards the lake where some sort of creature was lounging with half its body in a tidal pool. Marik squinted his eyes, trying to figure out if he was actually seeing what appeared to be the upper half of a goat with the lower half of a fish.
"Is that a capricorn?!"
Kat nodded in genuine excitement. "Uh-huh! So, what do you think?"
Marik couldn't turn his head away from the mythical creature. "I'm standing in Fae realm Ireland right now looking at a real version of my zodiac sign…I don't know what to think!"
"You have no problem with a demigod that turns into a giant flying cat, but a sea-goat blows your mind?"
"I thought there was only one, and that it was the Greek god, Pan?"
"Well…Pan did turn into one when they dove into the Nile to escape Typhon, but that doesn't mean they were the only one."
"But they're Greek…and this is Ireland."
Kat sighed. "This area is what one might call a 'mythical sanctuary'. It's where creatures that have the ability to travel between realms come for safe refuge."
Marik glanced down at his girlfriend. "Travel between realms? As in, they go back and forth, not just reside in one or the other?"
Kat looked at him in confusion. "Yes? Where do you think the stories come from?"
Marik paused to think for a moment. His girlfriend had presented a valid question. Where did he think those stories came from?
"Um…I guess I never really thought about it," he admitted sheepishly.
Kat looked over towards the sea-goat, a small smile appearing as a pile of kelp floated towards the shore, rising up from the water as it reached the shallows and took on the form of a kelp-covered horse.
"Magic used to be abundant in the mortal world. Creatures like the ones you see here used to be commonplace. Some were rarer to see than others, but they still existed." Her smile slowly faded. "But mortals are greedy. They liked keeping them as pets to show they had the power to bind a magical creature to the mortal realm. They enjoyed hunting them because they were no ordinary prey. Over time, more and more creatures fled here for safety…taking the magic they emanated with them. As a result, magic in the mortal realm began to diminish. It is no longer common to find someone capable of wielding true magic unless they have a strong bloodline connection to it."
"You mean like Yugi and me," Marik stated knowingly.
Kat nodded. "Exactly." She looked inland. "Follow me. There's still more I want to show you," she said with a smile, appearing genuinely happy for the first time since the zoo.
They hadn't walked more than a few minutes from the shoreline when a strange tiny creature, that to Marik looked like the demonic offspring of a chicken and a dragon, perched itself atop one of the stone fences.
Kat immediately tensed. "Don't look into its eyes, and if it takes a deep breath, cover your ears."
No sooner had she finished her warning, the creature opened its mouth to crow. Marik immediately covered his ears as instructed.
The unholy abomination inhaled deep, then extended its neck as it crowed out an amalgamated combination of sounds ranging from that of an actual rooster to the loud roar of something otherworldly. The world shook around them, and Marik found himself closing his eyes and crouching low as the vibrations began to disorient him.
Just as suddenly as the sound began, it stopped. Marik slowly opened his eyes and dared to look in the direction of the unholy being. Standing in the space between him and the creature, was another strange creature. It stood erect, breathing quickly as it stared down the other beast. The chicken-dragon lowered its head and raised its wings in a threatening manner, growled a warning, then took flight.
The other creature watched as the chicken-dragon flew away, then turned to Marik, staring proudly with its beady red eyes.
Marik slowly stood, looking down at the strange creature. It was covered in short, fluffy white fur, and kind of resembled a weasel, but with rough skin on all four of its legs where the fur should have been. The most unsettling part of the creature were the sharp teeth that protruded along the length of its jaw.
He looked over to his girlfriend and was about to ask about both creatures, but remembered her warning about making sure it was actually her. Was he allowed to say anything to verify her identity, or would he have to guess?
"I am so sorry. I didn't expect we would encounter a cockatrice."
Marik saw her head and shoulders fall.
"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. I forgot how dangerous this place could be."
Kat raised her eyes to meet Marik's, her brow furling a bit before realization sunk in. "Oh! Sorry. I assure you I'm still me…though I guess that's not much of a reassurance. I guess I should have actually thought about what to do if this happened. You can't see auras like I can, so you have no way of knowing if it's actually me…or if I've been replaced."
She fell to her knees in exasperation. "I'm terrible at this. I can't even manage planning a special day together without it all going wrong."
Yup. That was definitely his girlfriend. He sat on the ground beside her.
"Why did you feel it was necessary to plan a special day for us?" he asked.
Kat lifted her head, a glimmer of happiness appearing in her eyes that he'd known it was her, but it faded as quickly as it appeared. She appeared overly nervous, keeping her eyes on the ground in front of them. She mumbled something incoherent under her breath.
"What?" he asked, not able to understand a single word she'd said.
"We've been 'together' for exactly one week," Kat said a bit louder.
"Yeah, and?"
He saw the flush of pink across her cheeks. She appeared…embarrassed? And then realization hit him: They'd been 'together' for exactly one week.
"Wait…this was supposed to be a one week anniversary date?"
Kat nodded slowly. "I know. I messed the whole thing up the moment I woke you this morning."
Everything made sense now. She'd tried to plan this whole day for him…and he'd shown nothing but irritation and annoyance at her attempts.
"Oh gods, I'm so sorry. I've been an ass," he said apologetically. "I can't believe I didn't realize this sooner."
"I don't blame you," Kat said dejectedly. "I don't know anything about dating. I've never done it before."
"You haven't?" Marik asked in astonishment.
Kat shook her head. "Atem and I never dated. We just lived together and, well…he was Pharaoh. Who says 'no' when a Pharaoh asks you to be his Queen?" she said with a half-hearted chuckle.
"But what about after? You've been around for thousands of years."
Kat shook her head again. "I know the concept behind 'dating', but I've never become emotionally attached to another person before. All my relationships have been purely casual, meaning it was sex and nothing else. My heart has always belonged to only one person."
"Until you met me…"
Kat nodded. "Exactly. So as you can see, the nature of our relationship is a foreign concept. Based on what Kura said this morning, I think I may have approached the steps of proper dating out of order."
"Maybe just a tiny bit," Marik commented with a small smile. "Usually couples try to get to know each other better before moving in together and sharing a bed, but the step for having sex is pretty much whenever."
Kat's face flushed. "Wow. I really did things out of order then. I'm surprised you didn't say something sooner."
"Habibty," Marik said dryly. "I'm sixteen and I've been presented with the opportunity to have sex with my girlfriend whenever I want. It would be beyond stupid of me to pass on said opportunity."
"Oh, so you're only in it for the sex?" Kat asked with a sly expression.
"I didn't say that."
"You implied it."
"Fine. Then I'll move out and we'll stop having sex."
"Hey now, let's not get too hasty."
A quiet wheeze prompted Marik to look back at the weird weasel-creature that was still staring at him.
He leaned towards Kat. "Um…what is that thing? It looks like it wants to devour my soul," he whispered.
"It does," Kat said casually.
"That's not very reassuring. How do we get rid of it?"
"It'll leave when it feels like it. Just never invite it into your home or ask it to do anything for you. If you do make the mistake of letting it in, you will always have to leave a door or window open afterwards so that it may come and go as it pleases. If you lock it in or out, it will take what it feels it is owed."
"Okay…very unsettling. Why is it staring at me?"
"It wants you to thank it for saving you from the cockatrice."
"But this is the Fae realm, and if I recall correctly you have to be careful how you word your gratitude."
"That is correct."
"You also said not to talk to anyone."
"Maybe I should have clarified. Don't speak to anyone other than me, unless I indicate that it is okay to do so. And choose your words wisely."
Marik took a long second to think of how to word his thanks in hopes that the creature might leave.
"I appreciate your assistance," he said towards the weasel-creature.
It continued to stare and breathe heavily for a moment before nodding and slowly vanishing.
"Is it gone?"
Kat nodded. "It was pleased. If I'm not mistaken, I believe it has taken a liking to you, which means you may see it again."
"Once again, not very reassuring."
Kat smiled lightly. "A Fae creature has not only shown itself willingly to you, it stepped in to scare off the cockatrice. Fae do not do these sorts of things without reason. It could have just as easily gotten rid of the cockatrice without showing its face. It wanted you to know that it was there."
"Why?" Marik asked in confusion.
"I won't pretend to know. Fae are known for their whims, but even their whims have reasoning. Just know that it found you worthy of something."
"Okay then…" He stood and instinctively went to brush his pants off, but found nothing sticking to them.
Kat stood as well, laughing lightly. "Things don't work here the way you are used to."
"I see that," Marik replied, looking down where there should have been impressions in the grass from where they'd just been sitting.
"So, do you want to see more, or would you rather just leave and head back home?"
Marik looked over at Kat. He could see that she appeared conflicted. Probably because on one hand, she was hoping he'd want to see more of this place…but on the other hand, it had already proven to be more dangerous for him than she'd anticipated.
He feigned a look of intense thinking, tapping his index finger against his lip. "Can I see a unicorn?"
A playful grin spread across Kat's face. "Just a unicorn?"
If you go to ArtStation and search 'Feverghost', you will see the inspiration behind the Fae Weasel.