Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ The Past is Present ❯ An Unusual Phone Call ( Chapter 4 )

Over the next few days, school started to take its full effect on Marie, and she was constantly busy with homework, projects, and reports. However, she always found time to visit Yugi in the hospital. At first, she felt weird visiting him on her own, especially when his friends were already there, but little by little the awkwardness left and she found herself thoroughly enjoying her time with them. Justin had given Yugi a concussion and a broken arm, but other than that, he was recovering well. Marie also hung out with Kaiba on weekends and talked to him on the phone at night. Although none of Yugi's friends liked Kaiba very much, they never said anything about him when Marie was around, which she appreciated. They had gained a bit more respect for him after Marie told them what he did to help Yugi. History was always interesting because once word had spread about what Justin had done to Yugi, most of the class refused to talk to him, and Joey and Tristan were constantly giving him dirty looks when the teacher had her back turned. This went on even after Yugi had fully recovered and had returned back to school.

A few days after the `incident' as people tended to call it, Yugi was allowed to leave the hospital, and 6 weeks later had his cast removed. By then Marie felt entirely comfortable around the gang, and she spent a large chunk of her free time hanging out with them.

One day she had invited the entire gang: Yugi Motou, Tea Gardener, Tristan Taylor, Joey Wheeler, Serenity Wheeler (Joey's little sister), Mai Kujaku (Joey's girlfriend and one of Marie's newest friends), Ryou Bakura, Duke Devlin (the mystery boy at Dairy Palace), and Seto Kaiba over to her house to hang out. It was a Saturday, and Marie and Yugi were getting ready to have a practice duel. Marie had often watched Yugi and Joey duel and had formed her own strategy against them. Now she was going to put it to the test. They were all in her kitchen, and she and Yugi sat facing each other at the kitchen table.

"I got dibs on the winna!" Joey announced before the duel began.

Yugi's Millennium Puzzle activated and he became Yami.

Marie had just slapped her first card onto the table to start the duel, when the phone rang. "I'll get it!" she shouted, jumping up from the table and reaching for the phone. "Hello?"

"Good afternoon Marie Hilton," the voice from the other end of the line said.

"Hello. May I ask who's calling?" Marie asked.

"My name is Ishizu Ishtar; I work at the Domino Museum. The reason I called is to give you a warning."

Marie frowned. "What about?" she asked hesitantly.

"Please do not ask me how I know this, for some things cannot be explained, but you play a key role in future events," Ishizu responded.

Marie's frown creased and she asked, "What do you mean?"

"My brother, Marik, seeks the combined power of the three Egyptian God cards and the Millennium Puzzle. With these he would possess enough power to control the entire world. However, he has recently discovered something that was overlooked in the Egyptian prophecies. You possess an artifact that could make him superior to any other human being on earth," she explained.

"Huh? What are you talking about? What...…artifact?" Marie asked curiously.

"This I cannot tell you for you shall find out soon enough, but heed my warning; if Marik ever gets his hands on this power, nothing will ever be the same again. I have seen glimpses of the future….." Ishizu continued, "And my brother must be stopped at all cost." Then she muttered something so quietly that it was almost inaudible, "Or the events of the past will repeat themselves again….."

"O-k," Marie said, totally confused. After she hung up, she turned to her friends with an odd expression on her face.

"Who was that?" Tea asked.

"A prank call," she responded, "some woman from the museum told me that a mad man wants to take over the world."

All her friends were staring at her now. "Was the woman's name Ishizu by any chance?" Yami asked. Marie nodded, and his face fell. "She must have been talking about Marik."

"Ye-ah, how'd you know?" Marie asked in surprise, "Who is he?"

Yami ignored her question and instead asked one of his own. "What else did Ishizu say?"

Marie filled the gang in on everything the woman had told her and then asked again, "Now who is this Marik guy?"

"Marik's a demented mad man who wants Yuge's puzzle," Joey answered. "He'll do anything for it."

"Yes," Yami agreed, "if he were ever to win my puzzle in a duel and take the three Egyptian God Cards, our world would fall to darkness."

"He even tried to control ma mind once and make me duel Yugi for it," Joey continued, frowning angrily at the memory.

Marie looked confused, "What? How was he able to do that? It's impossible."

"Not if ya have magic," Joey answered, "ya know how Yugi owns the Millennium Puzzle and Bakura owns the Millennium Ring?" Marie nodded. "Well, they both have special powers, but they aren' da only ones who own items," he continued.

"Marik owns the Millennium Rod, and with it he can control the mind of anyone he chooses and make them think or do whatever he wishes." Yami explained, "He calls them his mind slaves and makes them do his dirty work." He then went on to explain Marik's past and why he wanted to take over the world in the first place. "He thinks it's his destiny to become Pharaoh and has proven that he will go to any lengths to fulfill it," he finished.

By this time, Gran and Becky had heard the commotion and came into the kitchen to see the gang with fearful expressions, explaining to Marie what Ishizu's prophecy meant. They heard the tail end of the conversation and glanced at each other grimly.

"So what's this powerful ancient thing that the woman was talking about?" Marie asked curiously, "I didn't know I even owned an Egyptian artifact."

"I don't know," replied Yami, "but if Ishizu's Millennium Necklace was true, then you could be in a great deal of danger." He turned to Kaiba and said, "Kaiba, you and Marie-"

"Listen, I know you believe all that hocus pocus nonsense Ishizu told you about being an Egyptian Pharaoh, but I don't buy it, and I would appreciate it if you would keep Marie and me out of your lies," Kaiba snapped, cutting Yami off before he could finish.

He just looked at Kaiba warily and said, "They aren't lies. One day you will accept your destiny, Kaiba and-"

"Save it Yugi," Kaiba snarled, turning on him, "I don't want to hear it."

Gran looked hesitant before stepping forward and saying, "Marie dear, Becky and I haven't been completely honest with you about who we are."

"What are you talking about? You're Gran and Becky, my family, and that's all I need to know."

Sandra shook her head sadly, "No, we made up a story so you wouldn't suspect anything……"

"What?" Marie asked in alarm, "So you aren't really my legal guardians?"

"It's not like that Marie," Sandra said patiently then sighed, "Becky and I both knew that you would eventually have to know the truth, but we were hoping to wait just a little longer…." Marie and the rest of the gang just sat with blank expressions on their faces. Sandra glanced warily at Becky again and beckoned them into the living room. She walked over to a cabinet, and started shuffling papers around in a drawer as if trying to find something. All eyes were fixed on her as she brought out a small box and handed it carefully to Marie. Inside was a diamond shaped pendant. It was blue with gold and silver designs carved into it. She fingered the ancient looking artifact curiously and held it up to the light. It was very old and seemed to have lost some of its luster but was still very beautiful. To her amazement, it began to glow a light blue.

"What is it?" Marie asked in awe.

"I believe this is the artifact that the woman on the phone was talking about," Becky said quietly, "you had it clutched in your hand when we found you asleep in the museum in Cairo."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about this thing before?" Marie asked, frowning in confusion. She couldn't remember ever owning something as ancient and beautiful as this.

"We were afraid of what might happen if you were to find out," Becky replied. Her voice now held a tone of fear.

"What are you talking about?" Marie asked in frustration, "What's going on?"

Sandra sighed again and ushered them all to take a seat. "Make yourselves comfortable," she said, "This story may take a while." Marie gave a slight smile and relaxed against one of the cushioned chairs. She loved hearing her grandmother tell stories. The old woman sat for a moment in silence, and her eyes held a far away look, as if reliving a fond memory from her childhood. She breathed in deeply, and began to speak. "It all started in Ancient Egypt around 3000 years ago…….."

PT: Alrighty, the next chapter is when it actually goes back in time, so stick with me-those who are reading. Also, I would really like a review even if it's a flamer. I don't care! Just let me know if you guys like it!