Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Echoes of Forgotten Times ❯ ...To the Fly ( Chapter 7 )

Echoes of Forgotten Times
Written by Shukumei no Kagi
Notes: This fic is set in the past, the characters are not the same as they are in the TV show. Being reborn from their souls does not guarantee that they'll be of the same gender each time.
******* scene changes
Warning: Yaoi, sorta deathfic.

Chapter Seven ~ ...To the Fly
~
"Really, you really are?" Yugi asked, rather surprised at the statement. He paused for a breath, his wide violet eyes showing more confusion than anything else. Yet he looked at her closely again. Even knowing that the two were related didn't let him see any resemblance between the two. "You don't look all that much like him." He added, blinking as his gaze went toward Khenemet's features, scarcely able to believe what she'd just said. But believe it he did.

At his question, her gaze dropping further. "Still, if you must know, that is all true." She whispered wanly without shifting her gaze from where it was focused on the floor. Yugi being shorter than her, he could still see something like nervousness in her hazel eyes.

"Does that mean your mother was a Shadow Realm monster? I hadn't known that was possible!" Yugi asked with a good bit of curiosity welling up, this all was turning out rather interesting to hear about even if he was still confused. He was trying to understand it all though, especially why all that would be making Khenemet nervous. "Why is it so bad?"

Khenemet started at the question as if she hadn't been expecting it. Her gaze started to lift from the floor as she began to speak in answer. "Well, in a way. You see..." She trailed off to stop with her eyes straying toward his side and a smile played on her face.

Yugi was glad to see that she wasn't totally scared but he couldn't help glancing down, trying to follow her focus, as he wondered what she found amusing. "What is it?" He stopped as he found his dirtied hand still hanging visible at his side. Yugi flushed in embarrassment as he wondered what anyone would make of the mess, then he hurriedly hid the hand behind his back.

"I see you found the cellar." She interrupted his motion , a weak laugh slipped from her. The noise actually startling Yugi since Khenemet kept seeming more sad, yet she was amused right then in the midst of it.

"It does seem a bit obvious, doesn't it?" He answered with a smile of his own as he gave up on hiding his hand, letting it fall back to his side as he took a step back. Though Khenemet didn't seem to mind that the goo was present, he thought it best to keep from grossing her out by standing too close.

"Well I did recognize the stuff." She paused a moment as she bit at her lip before speaking carefully again, her smile fading to a sad expression again. "You can wash it off, you know. There is a cleaning pit just down the hall." Khenemet moved smoothly back toward the hallway and Yugi started as he realized that she wasn't walking. His eyes widened once again with his mouth opening in question but no sound escaped. He hadn't seen her move around before, making this the first time he'd noticed how Khenemet glided over the ground. His gaze rather firmly fixated in shock upon her unmoving feet as she slipped back into the hallway.

She was....she is... He couldn't really think of the right word for that and settled on floating. She was floating in the air. He realized in shock, noticing that she was waiting for him to look up. Yugi simply couldn't tear his gaze off of where her feet should have been standing on the ground, only they looked to him to be a finger width or so off the ground.

A giggle drew his attention up, from her feet to her face. Yugi had realized what she was before, yet he felt like this reality was only just then sinking in. A delighted excitement at being able to meet a friendly Shadow Realm monster filled his being even as she spoke again. "Yes I actually float. For a change the feet are just decoration, as I'm sure many would like theirs to be." She acknowledged with a nod to indicate that she didn't mind him gawking at her. He laughed softly at her comment while his gaze glistened in relief.

Khenemet seemed to be an okay person to him, better than Bakare so far, he didn't want to be rude. He did though really want to know more about all this! It was just confusing to not know what was going on, he reflected somewhat disappointedly to himself as he saw Khenemet bring her arm up to point to the right.

"Yugi, you'll be finding the cleaning pit in that room." Khenemet informed with a nervous grin, but she seemed more relaxed than she'd been a moment ago. Yugi stepped forward into the hall, turning to follow Khenemet's pointing finger with his gaze. His violet eyes landing right on the farthest right-hand door, the one he hadn't looked beyond yet. Yugi was thrilled that whatever was in there would let him get the rot off of his hand. The goo was starting to stick more as it dried up and Yugi had to wrinkle his noise in disgust at the sensation.

"Thanks you so much, Khenemet! It'll be great to be clean!" Yugi rejoiced outloud gratefully. The bright expression he turned to Khenemet couldn't be mistaken for anything but what it truly was, which was joy and thankfulness. Still he paused for a moment longer, the idea of being clean might be nice but Yugi wanted to know what was going on even more than that.

"So go get clean." Khenemet said, suddenly taking action. She'd been fairly benign before then but for tidiness sake she actually started shooing him toward the door.

Yugi grinned softly in amusement as he was pushed gently along. "See feet, with which I walk!" Yugi said with a pout folding over his features cutely even as he got another push that was more like a tap. The fake expression fell away with a grin as the girl hesitated, then a laugh answered him.

"So use them." She advised lightly as she withdrew her arms. "I'll leave you to wash up." Khenemet stated, slowly turning serious again and Yugi stopped to look back at her, noting that she was already drifting toward the second hallway.

"Wait! Khenemet, please?" He pleaded quickly with his whole face taking up the expression even before Khenemet looked back. Her gaze locked on his features and she paused.

"What? Why?" She questioned, but Yugi was grateful that she wasn't trying to retreat anymore. He rather didn't want her to go anywhere for there was so much more he wanted to learn about the place and Khenemet could tell him. Yugi was sure of that.

Plus he didn't want to be left alone... Like how his mother had left him. Yugi bit at his lip then answered Khenemet. "I would like to hear more about everything here." Yugi explained with a bright grin to her, then the grin turned to a gasp as she spun away rather sharply. Concern replaced the cheer while he wondered whether he'd said something wrong. Only the faint sound of Khenemet dragging in shaky breaths of air gave him any sort of clue, but why was she sounding like she was having trouble breathing. "Are you okay?" He asked, worry filling his features and voice, he didn't want to have caused her any difficulties or trouble. Yugi stepped forward and laid his hand on Khenemet's arm. "Khenemet?"

"I'm fine." She choked out suddenly, startling him with the strength of the sorrow present. Yugi was confused by it, was everything that bad? He wondered with his own sorrow at the idea, enhanced by him feeling awful for having upset someone.

"If really don't want to tell, you don't have to." Yugi offered with a kind smile. He was giving her an easy way out but she shook her head, denying the opportunity.

"No! You should know, kiddo." Yugi pouted again, this time for real at her words. He felt disappointment bubbling up because...well because he wasn't a kid! Yugi pouted more, slumping even as Khenemet continued. "Come to the kitchen after you finish. I'm assuming you obviously found the cellar." She noted seriously. "I'll tell you all about it then." Khenemet promised with her gaze turning back to Yugi, though the teen's pout had already slid away from his features.

"Okay Khenemet!" Yugi agreed while straightening with a nod, trying to hide some of the disappointment. He didn't want to burden anyone further with his own problems. "I'm not a kid." He added.

"Is that so?" Khenemet asked, reaching out and Yugi felt his hair being ruffled.

"Yes!" Yugi answered, his own eagerness to get clean so he could get some explanations had him shifting from foot to foot. He was nearly fluttering with the anxiousness that had him excited. "I'll hurry!" He offered quickly, even his words ran together a bit as he started toward the door that held the cleaning pit beyond it.

"Okay. Remember to clean the scratch too, okay?" Khenemet said seeming to have relaxed again, but he knew that she was watching him. Yugi didn't know why, he only just nodded while becoming aware that she meant where the twin-headed dragon 'thing' had scraped him before. But those cuts didn't feel all that bad to Yugi, they just stung upon his back...slightly more now that he was paying attention. That gruff sensation crept over his back, not intense like pain but still there and he shuddered with the feeling as he hurried the rest of the way to the door and shoved it open.

He found the room beyond lit by a lamp in each corner. Each brightly lit flame provided a heat that Yugi could feel even before he stepped into the room. The warmth washed over him when he did enter, not nearly as intense as desert air during the day but Yugi could feel the heat soaking into him through his kalasiris and not being able to escape. He shuddered as his skin grew warmer and warmer. Yugi glanced around, feeling more eager to get to scrubbing up.

It was toward the middle of the far wall that the teen's gaze lighted upon the covered raised walls of the cleaning pit. Yugi went hurriedly over to the pit, pushing the lid off carefully so that the wooden cover wouldn't be damaged, then looked inside.

Within was empty and Yugi guessed it must have been cleaned recently, while just past the pit was another container that held a filmy looking water, almost seeming like a soapy foam. Something made more likely because of the gravely soap that sat on the lip of the container. Which left Yugi having everything he needed to wash up with.

And then I'll be able to find out more! Yugi thought in delight with a smile reaching over his face as he grabbed for the soap, more than ready to focus on getting cleaned up!

*******

Khenemet drifted into the kitchen thoughtfully, her gaze locked on the ground as she settled on a stool in one corner. She knew fully well that she'd have a hard time telling Yugi what had happened. Even now her heart was twisting painfully in her chest at the thought of having to speak the memories outloud to anyone. She didn't think that such a kid should be allowed to hear some of the things she knew, but Yugi was going to be venturing through some of those things. Khenemet had decided before that he deserved to know and she wasn't changing her resolve.

I will tell him. She told herself determinedly even as her hazel eyes glistened with unshed tears.

Khenemet took a deep breath, managing to banish the tears even in the midst of her own emotional pain. She had already cried herself out for many a month over what had happened, she wouldn't break down again.

Khenemet determinedly set her jaw before pushing herself to her feet. She doubted the boy had spent his time looking around before and hadn't eaten or hydrated himself at all since his arrival. Khenemet was going to make sure he was set before she told him anything. Though...it was just another way for her to delay the inevitable, she realized with a sad sigh. Why did all this keep happening? It hurt every time she saw it happen anyway, it would be worse this time since Yugi was just a kid.

Khenemet shook her head as she stepped up to the bland rug hanging hidden behind a pile of baskets. Khenemet was aware of the fact that she didn't know where all the secret doors in the place were, but this was one she did know of and she simply pushed the baskets over to one side before pulling the rug up to reveal the door she knew was there.

She tugged the door open wide and, once done, stepped inside, snagging a plain ceramic cup from the shelving next to the door. The room was a store room, but not one for food, this one held rarely seen buckets of water along with several skin containers. Some of the skins held water while others did not. Khenemet, just didn't know which was which so she headed for the nearest bucket, though that was normally used for refilling the cleaning pit with fresh water.

Khenemet filled the cup for Yugi then turned, walking slowly out of the room. She placed the cup on a shelf in the kitchen before turning back to the door, pushing it shut with a good sounding thud as the heavy door firmly closed. Khenemet just brushed the rug and baskets back into place, like she'd never even gone beyond them, then she turned intending to wait for Yugi.

Only she started as her gaze found violet ones almost immediately peering at her.

"Was that a door?" The boy asked with obvious curiosity shining in the depths of his eyes.

And face, she noted to herself as she nodded. "It's like a cellar. It holds the water for everyone that is here." Khenemet explained as she picked up the cup and held it out to Yugi. "Here you go, Yugi."

Yugi blinked as he took that cup from her and Khenemet withdrew her hands back to her side. The boy glanced into the cup then smiled, he glanced up and nodded to her. She could clearly see the gratitude showing over his cutely petite features and she guessed what he was going to say even before he did. "Thank you, Khenemet!" He said and she just nodded once before replying herself.

"You are welcome, Yugi." Khenemet paused slowly shutting her eyes to take a nervous breath, she knew that he would ask shortly but she wanted to put off explaining even longer. But she knew she wouldn't be able to, even as she heard him sipping at the water and she gave a put upon sigh.

"What is it, Khenemet?" She heard him ask in answer to her sigh.

I can't keep putting it off. She informed herself shakily, no matter how much she wanted to let the subject just drop. "You...still want to know what's happening here?" She asked in a soft, small voice as she opened her eyes to look at him.

"Yes! I really would like to, if it's not any trouble." Yugi answered with a nod.

Khenemet glanced downward, having expected as much. She swallowed hard to keep herself calm enough to speak. "All right then. You shall be told..." Khenemet couldn't help the way her emotions knotted at her words enough to make her give an intense, and very noticeable, shudder.


To Be Continued

A/N: This was meant to include the explanation but I needed to take a break for a few days before writting more, so by I got this written I just wanted to get a chapter out for people to read. So that's why I ended the chapter there. Otherwise the explanation would be in this chapter, which would make this one long chapter.
And please review!