Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ With and Without You ❯ Chapter 2

I like powered! Mahaado, and he's not that weak in my opinion.
Finally beat Mako Tsunami in the game! Phew! I decked him. ^^

Chapter 2

 

Yami could feel Mahaado tense as they walked through the gates. Well, it was an odd little procession. Seto looked furious and kept shooting daggers at the back of the teen's head… well, he had just gotten kicked around rather nicely. Personally, Mahaado had a lot of vindictive anger towards Seto and his family and it was probably healthy for him to work it out sometimes…

“You can stop time?” Was what Yami asked as they finally got back to his quarters, having snuck past Akunadin who Seto was no doubt making a report of right now.

“You say that like it's a bad thing.”

“Well, it's not, but aren't people going to notice?”

“Who said they're not frozen too? Have you looked outside the window yet? Besides the palace, everything else has stopped moving. It's bad for security if the Pharaoh his court are compromised, of course, but…”

Yami gave Mahaado a sideways glance and then peeked out his window - well, actually, he had a nice, pretty balcony he could use so he did that instead. And sure enough, everyone on the streets was just, well, frozen solid. Time really had stopped…

“How did you learn this?”

Another shrug. “Time…. Can be your friend if you ask it properly.”

Now that did not make any sense whatsoever. “No spells or rituals?”

“Sometimes the strongest spell is believing in yourself.”

Yami nodded absentmindedly. “The Ring likes you.”

“I know… it's quite odd.”

“Why? You were training to become a Priest… did you not think you'd get an Item, Mahaado?”

“It's complicated, my Prince.”

 

There was a flurry of footsteps as Pharaoh Akunumkanon entered, followed by High Priest Akunadin and High Priestess Aishizu. Mahaado immediately sank to his knees as tradition demanded.

“Who are you?” Akunadin hissed. “If you have hurt the Prince…!”

“Uncle!” Yami stamped his foot. “He hasn't done anything!”

“Yet he has the Millennium Ring.” Akunumkanon fixed his son with a stern glare. Yami frowned.

“I gave it to him.”

“You did what? You don't just hand the Millennium Items out to random people on the streets!”

Aishizu coughed silently and fixed Mahaado with a surprised smile. This was her…. Twin? He had returned?

Now that was interesting.

Mahaado met her eyes and the Ring glittered upon his chest, almost mocking with its presence. “I am here on the Prince's orders….”

“Well,” Akunumkanon frowned, “What is your name?”

 

Silence.

Mahaado's reply was polite and brief, but Akunadin shivered. The boy had returned! He'd seen, seen in a cloudy vision with the aid of his Eye, how this man would have been troublesome, so he had driven him away, but now, he had returned… and if that weren't the worst part…

The Ring had accepted him! It was quite easy for Akunumkanon to verify…

Akunumkanon was quite surprised when he found out who the young man was. He couldn't remember why the boy had been dismissed, but Akunadin had told him that it was because he lacked the aptitude necessary to be a priest.

Perhaps they had judged him wrong then…

In any case, as he was now, as unorthodox as it was, the new Priest of the Millennium Ring, servants were hastily dispatched and he was given a suite of quarters in the Priest's wings of the palace, and would be introduced to the court tomorrow.

That is, if time ever restarted…

 

Mahaado waited until he was sure he was alone before closing his eyes. The spell words echoed through his mind in brilliant letters of smoke and outside, the moon continued its path across the sky.

This was his hidden power, the strength that fueled his magic, for although his magic was pretty, it was mostly illusion…

Yami sighed a bit as he watched the sky. What would happen tomorrow? Seto was sure to be furious…

His father and the priests had left, and he helped himself to a bunch of grapes as he thought. Perhaps he could find some time to speak with Mahaado tomorrow, before the ceremony… Yes, that would work.

Yami fell asleep, tired, but for once, feeling better than he had in years. His friend had returned. What could possibly be bad about that?

 

It was cold, he decided, but that was nothing new. It was winter after all, and the nights could be bitingly chill…

He opened his eyes to great Ra at dawn and dressed quickly, waiting…

He found Mahaado already awake as well. It had been, really, child's play to find his friend's room. All he had to do was focus on the image of the teen's Ka, and it was like a magnet pull…

He found Mahaado sitting on his bed quietly, meditating in a cross-legged position. He sat down next to him, not wanting to disturb him too much, but…

Blue eyes opened and regarded him warmly. “My Prince.”

 

Mahaado was always so formal with him. It had been quite irritating when they had been children, but now, he felt a strange surge of pleasure tint his cheeks at those words. “Mahaado.”

The look encouraged him to go on, so Yami did. “We never did have much time to talk last night…”

“True… what would you like to hear, my Prince?”

“Did you… why did you leave?”

“It was necessary, my Prince. In truth, I had no choice.”

“No choice? I always thought Uncle - I mean, Priest Akunadin had something to do with it, but…”

“He did. He told your father that I was incompetent and had no aptitude to be a priest and your father believed him.”

Yami was shocked. “That's all?”

“That was all, my Prince.”

“I can't believe it. You were powerful. They let Mana stay and she's terrible. She hasn't been able to do anything!”

Mahaado's eyebrows rose slightly, but that was all the response he gave. He remembered the little girl faintly, but not enough to make any impression.

“She's Priestess Aishizu's apprentice now.” Yami continued. “And besides, the priest's families can stay here with them and you're Aishizu's brother, so I don't see why…”

“Shh.”

Yami blinked, but went silent. Mahaado's eyes glowed green for a second as he glared at the wall. Suddenly, there was a cry from… outside.

Yami peeked out and found a servant girl cowering against the wall, but there was nothing frightening her, at least nothing visible to the normal eye.

“She was spying on us?”

“It seems so.” Mahaado said dryly. “You'd best leave, my Prince. Someone might find out you were visiting me and the repercussions…”

“I understand.”

So that day, Mahaado became the High Priest of the Sennen Ring. Most people were disinterested; they knew enough that the Ring switched holders every few months. It seemed as if another poor soul was going to die…

But he would prove them wrong.

 

End Chapter

Completed 10/18/05