Timeless Love

This is a Yu-Gi-Oh! fic, that I once wrote before that someone on fanfiction.net copied from me and I couldn't prove that the story's mine, so mine got deleted. Anyway this is a MarikOC pairing story. It is Rated M for Mature. It is a Romance/Drama fic.


Preparations were being made in the great hall of the Ishtars underground home. A young boy with sandy blonde hair and violet eyes was wandering the passageways watching all the chaos surrounding him. They were expecting visitors, that much he knew, but he wasn't interested in the reason behind it. He was nine years old and all his young life he had been told by his strict, slave driver of a father to study about a dead pharaoh and the ancient history of Egypt. He felt bitter at this thought because all he wanted to do was play with other children his age and go to the upper world and explore. There was a problem though; because he was the first born Son of the Ishtar family he was condemned to spend the rest of his life in this underground prison.

'This is going to be so boring! Why is he even inviting these people? What's so special about them anyway?'

His thoughts were interrupted by his 'brother' Odion calling his name.

"Master Marik! What are you doing down here? Your father told you to go to your room and prepare for the arrival of the Benu family!"

Marik looked at his brother warmly. He had always been there for him since he was a baby and loved him just as much as he loved his sister Ishizu. He couldn't understand why his father treated him the way he did.

" I just wanted to see what was going on. Do you know? Who are the Benu's?"

Marik decided just then that he wanted to know the reason behind their visit. Plus when Odion said 'the Benu family' the thought came to him that they might have a child as well that he could make friends with.

Odion looked at his little brother wondering if he should tell him or not but decided to play it safe and give him a little information to satisfy his curiosity for now, but without giving away the exact reason for their visit.

"The Benu's are the leaders of the Heka Clan" he explained to Marik.

Marik looked interested now, he didn't realise that there were any other clans out there besides themselves.

"What do they do?" he asked looking up at Odion with his big violet eyes.

"The Benu's are a very important high class family like yourself that protect the ancient texts of Egypt containing written magic. They have the ability to protect and even heal using these skills"

Marik looked very interested.

'maybe they've come to show us how to use some of this magic!' he thought growing even more excited.

He was about to ask about this when out of the corner of his eye he saw the angry form of his father coming towards them. If you were to stand them next to each other you could tell they were father and son. They both had the same hair colour and hair style and Marik obviously had his father's eyes.

"Marik! I thought I told you to stay in your room and get ready! I've been looking for you all over the place! They'll be here any minute now!"

Mr Ishtar grabbed Marik's hand and dragged him to a chamber that was essentially a living/dining room.

"Sit!" he ordered.

Marik sat down quickly not wanting to cross his father. It wouldn't be very wise of him to disobey him twice in one day. Marik watched his father pace back and forth glancing at his son every now and then. Eventually he turned to speak to his son.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I'm going to so much trouble to welcome these people" he stated.

Marik nodded slightly.

"As you are well aware, we tomb keepers are restricted to stay underground until the pharaoh returns. This could happen at any time, it could happen tomorrow or hundreds, maybe even thousands of years in the future. Because we don't know, we must prepare for that scenario. That is why I have invited the Benu's to come here. I have found you a wife to ensure our family line continues"

Marik didn't expect this. His eyes were wide with shock and his mouth was hanging open slightly.

He didn't want to get married! He was only a nine! He wasn't supposed to even like girls at his age. They had germs! You could catch something fatal! And while he knew he would have to marry someday, he would prefer it if he got to choose who he married. He knew better then to argue with his father though; if he did he would surely pay for it later.

Just at that moment Ishizu walked into the room with three people following behind her. One of them was a little girl wearing a pink dress. She was quite plain. She had blonde hair that fell down just below her shoulder blades, she had tanned skin and big icy blue eyes. She was quite skinny too. The girl looked no older then seven.

"That must be her!" Marik thought to himself heatedly. "Well I'll make sure she knows what I think of this marriage and her! She's probably looking forward to it! She's not even that pretty! She looks a little scruffy too! How do they expect me to marry this girl?"

During the time he was thinking all this, their parents had sat at the other side of the room and were talking and signing papers to complete the marriage contract. The girl had a feeling he was looking at her and glanced up to see the most vicious look she had ever seen on a person.

'Why does he keep looking at me like that for? It's not my fault! I don't want to marry him. He seems so arrogant for someone so young. I bet he takes after his father. Oh joyous' she thought sarcastically.

A few minutes later after the signing of the contract the adults stood up, shook hands and walked back over to the now betrothed couple. Mr Ishtar began the official introductions and looked at his son.

"This is your future wife Merissa Benu" he turned to face the girl "This is my son and your future husband Marik Ishtar"

They both bowed their heads as a sign of greeting and muttered a quiet hello to each other whilst secretly thinking to themselves "How am I ever going to get out of this?"







A few weeks had gone by since the Benu's arrival and things were not any better between Marik and Merissa then when they had first met. Marik seemed to make it his life's mission to create as much hassle and distress to the girl as humanly possible.

He was constantly mocking her, especially about her appearance. Merissa was an insecure girl at the best of times. At first she couldn't understand why he was being so malicious towards her. After a few days though she realised it must be because of the marriage arrangement. She had met Ishizu when he had first started the verbal insults. She sent Marik away on an errand after making him apologise to her. Apparently he had never acted like that before! Merissa found that hard to believe, was that supposed to make her feel better or something!!?

The seven year old girl sat in one of the guest rooms that was reserved for her family. She had just been crying her heart out…..again.

"How many times have I cried since I first came here, I must stop or I'll become dehydrated…" she joked to herself miserably.

That was one thing she would never do. Cry in front of Ishtar. That was exactly what he wanted!! Well she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he had succeeded.

"I wish mama and papa would hurry up and finish this whole business so we can go home, I don't know how much more I can take of him" she whispered to her rag doll, hugging her tight and rubbing her eyes. She wished she had someone to talk to, but her parents wouldn't hear a bad word against her future 'husband'.

Marik was always careful when he insulted her, making sure they were alone. Especially after Ishizu heard him the first time. What made it worse was he was very polite and charming towards her and her family whenever people were around. She remembered telling her mother what he had said to her only to have her say she was overreacting and that Marik was such a sweet boy who would never say things like that.

Merissa felt so alone. She didn't want to get married to someone like him in the first place. All she could hope for was that they be civil towards each other and possibly become friends but all chances of that happening were destroyed when he made the first move to speak to her.
----------------Flashback

The three adults walked out of the room where they had first met to tour around the Ishtar home. Merissa tried to think of something to begin friendly conversation with her intended only to have him sneer at her and remark. . .

"Listen to me! I don't care what my father says but I refuse to marry you! So why don't you just do everyone a favour and take that ugly mug of yours and shove it up a Donkey's backside!"

Merissa stood there wide eyed and shocked that he had said such a thing to her. Marik smirked.

"Do you need help to do that? Because I know where to find one…..."

There was no way she was going to risk that! No way in the seven hells!! Even if he was bluffing, which she wasn't too sure he was. She muttered a quiet farewell and turned quickly to catch up with her parents. Marik stifling a laugh behind her.
---------------End Flashback

It wasn't so bad the insults. In reality they were quite stupid and Merissa knew this. It was just the fact that he kept repeating them over and over and over again, that she started to feel as if they were true.

She was plain and she knew that. She was only seven and wasn't too bothered about her looks at the moment. There was plenty of time to discover her own sense of style, but she wasn't butt ugly like he was making her out to be….was she?

"Arrrrrrggh!!!!! Stop it you're letting him get to you!!" her grip on the rag doll grew tighter.

"But he has a point, I mean look at you! Your hair is disarray, your dress is creased to high hell and you talk to dolls. You are pretty…..pretty pathetic that is!"

That voice in her head was her biggest enemy. She managed to shrug off what Marik had said to her only to have some voice nag at her that he was right! She hated that voice.

Merissa decided to have a walk to clear her head. She hid the doll in her room under her pillow. If Marik were to see her with it….. Well she didn't want to feed the flames of insults.

"He's going to get worse as he gets older, I just know it"

She walked towards the library to get something to read only to find Marik sitting there studying over some scrolls. Merissa backed up slowly past the door and around the side of it, accidentally kicking a stone behind her. "Please Ra! Don't let him have heard that" she prayed squeezing her eyes shut.

Her eyes shot open again when she heard him get up and walk towards the door. She quickly turned around to leave trying to make it look as if she had just passed by.

Marik poked his head out of the library to see Merissa practically running down the passageway. He smirked at her and decided to have a little fun.

'I need a break anyway'

He kept following her as she tried desperately to find somewhere with people so he would leave her alone. But then the thought came to her that even if she found someone they would shoo her away not wanting a child standing around watching them. "Great! Now what am I gonna do, he's waiting until I give up then he'll start with the insults again"

Merissa spun around to face him "what do you want Ishtar?!"

"Nothing from you Benu"

"Then why are you following me? Have you come to throw more insults at me?!!!"

"I don't need to anymore; I think I've finally gotten through to you….or have I? Oh well just to make sure......"

Merissa turned around again and began to walk away from him not wanting to hear anything he had to say. She wasn't feeling any better from their last encounter and wasn't sure if she could hold back tears this time.

"Where are you going? Are you going to hang yourself? Do you want some help? I know where we could find a nice high place to throw you off. It won't hurt for long....." he looked up to see her walking away from him "Come back here!!"

She continued to walk away. Marik grew angry at this. He had expected her to answer back with a stupid remark like she always did, and he would start to taunt her until her eyes watered up and she ran away. He knew she was close to breaking point and wanted to see her cry before she left tomorrow. This was his last chance. He strode up to her and grabbed her arm.

"Let go of me Ishtar!!!" she struggled to loosen his grip on her arm but he was two years older then her and a lot stronger, so she had no choice but to be pulled along with him. "Where is he taking me? What is he going to do?" She was frightened now. He had never done anything like this before; she thought he really was going to find that place to hang her from, until he dragged her into her room and slammed the door shut behind them.

"When I tell you to do something… you do it!! I can't stop this marriage so I suppose I will have to make it as bearable as I can for myself. So listen to me!

1. You will be quiet and never speak unless spoken to and never say more then you have to!

2. Make sure that you wear a veil when in public; I will not suffer the humiliation of an inadequate and unsightly wife such as yourself!

3. I don't find the idea of having children with you very appealing, so I may have to look around for a more suitable girl to do that job in your place, and finally….."

He grabbed her by the hair and pulled hard making tears roll down her face.

"You will obey me and like it….unless you wish to be severely punished. Do you understand me?!!"

Merissa nodded her head vigorously. If he was doing this to her now when he was supposedly 'young and innocent' then what would he be like when he was older and more likely to carry out his threats?

"Good girl" he said mockingly patting her on the head, as if he were talking to a dog.

He turned around wiped his hand on the bed and left her alone in her room sitting on the floor. He shot her a nasty smirk as he closed her door behind him satisfied that he had broken her spirit. He looked at his closed hand. He had pulled quite a lot of her hair out "never mind" he chuckled letting them fall to the floor as he made his way back to the library to study.
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"Thank you for your hospitality" said Merissa's father shaking Mr Ishtar's hand. "You have been very kind to let us stay here" Merissa stood behind her Mother clutching at her skirt, staring at the floor.

Ever since Marik had cornered her last night her despair had dropped quite a few notches. "Marik meant every word he said. How can I marry him knowing full well what's waiting for me?"

Marik walked into the hall to say his farewells to the Benu's. Especially to his future wife. The young girl looked up at him anxiously. He was smiling in such an innocent way it made her nauseous.

"Thank you for staying with us, it was a pleasure!"

He looked at Merissa significantly. The adults surrounding them mistook it as a sign of young love and smiled at the young couple. Merissa knew what Marik meant but knew also that if she told anyone they wouldn't believe her and would see it as an attempt to try and get out of the marriage.

"It was nice to meet you" she replied quietly.

"Well then" started Mr Ishtar "we will see you again when Miss Benu here comes of age, we look forward to it. Have a safe journey" he turned around and began to walk back into the darkness, Marik following behind him. Merissa followed her Parents out into the scorching hot upper world.

Her eyes took a while to adjust to the brightness of the midday sun. Some servants from their clan had arrived with a few camels to take them home. She walked up to her father and he picked her up easily, sitting her in front of him. As they began to ride out towards the town her Mother spoke, looking to her young daughter.

"I think it's high time we made you into a lady Merissa, when we arrive home I will have Maka begin teaching you your place as a wife. By the time she's through with you Mr Ishtar will be very glad he agreed to this marriage"

Summary of next chapter: Merissa is now 15 years old going and she runs away from home to begin a new life in Domino with Maka her carer/nanny.

Yea, I changed her name from Merissa to Mirassa. Decided Mirassa was a better way to spell it

***

Chapter 3: Escape

"Miri! Your bath is ready!" called an elderly woman in the room joining Mirassa's bedchamber.

Mirassa looked up from the book she was reading. "Hold on Maka, I'll be there in a moment" she said quietly but loud enough so she could hear her. The young woman stood up and closed the book. She walked over to her desk and slipped it in a secret compartment down the back. Her father didn't want her to learn any of the spells they're family had been keeping secret for all these millennia. He saw it as something only men were entitled to learn. If he were to find out his daughter had been copying spells into books and practicing them behind his back he would be outraged and would more then likely punish her for it.

"I'm coming!" she called walking into the bathroom.

Maka was waiting for her with towels, a bath robe and scented oils. Mirassa stepped behind a screen placed by the bath and undressed. She carefully descended the steps into the bath which was set into the floor. The oils and scented petals that were already in the water gave it a milky look. Mirassa dipped her head back into the water and breathed deeply. She needed some aromatherapy to calm her down. Maka noticed that she was particularly stressful today and wanted to help alleviate that feeling.

"The poor girl, she's been getting increasingly more troubled this past year. I suppose it's because of her upcoming marriage to that Ishtar boy" she thought to herself.

Mirassa had been very quiet the moment she had returned from that place. Maka remembered asking her what was wrong several times over many weeks only to be answered with "nothings wrong, I'm alright" Maka knew she wasn't telling the truth. She had never seen Mirassa so depressed before so she continued to try and get her to confide in her, until eventually she broke down in tears and told her everything that Marik had said and done. Maka was shocked. She couldn't believe that he would say such things and told the girl to tell her parents. Mirassa told her that she had already tried but they didn't believe her. All Maka could do was comfort her and be there for her when she needed a shoulder to cry on.

As a result they both became very close. Mirassat saw Maka as a mother figure rather then a servant, especially since her own mother passed away seven years ago. A year after the arrangement was made.

Her father decided that Maka would care for his daughter and teach her how to be a respectful wife. Maka did so and also helped Mirassa become more outgoing then she was before. Maka also couldn't help but spoil Mirassa a little. She loved her so much. Not like her older brother Baal, He was just like his father. He seemed to think he was superior to everyone. He was overprotective of his baby sister; he didn't allow her to do anything because he didn't think she could handle it. This angered both Mirassa and Maka but as they were 'only women' they couldn't do anything about it.

Maka had worked hard on Mirassa to make her more confident about herself. She helped her improve her appearance which to tell the truth didn't need that much work anyway. Mirassa was a pretty girl but because she was a late bloomer she didn't really care about what she looked like, that is until some boy pointed it out to her over a period of several weeks.

There was no way he could say those thing to her now. Mirassa had changed dramatically over the past eight years. She had matured into a fine young woman with long blond silky hair that reached down to the middle of her back. She had a side parting with a fringe that hung a little over her face. Her bright icy-blue eyes had long dark lashes; she had a delicate nose, rosy red lips and a slender neck. Her figure could put supermodels to shame. She was very curvy and put simply, she was stunning.

"Miri sweetheart are you feeling alright? You know you can tell me anything" Maka said trying to get her to share her feelings.

Mirassa looked up at the ceiling "To be honest I don't know, time is passing by so quickly now that I'll be on my way to marry Ishtar before I know it!"

She looked down again with a deep sigh. She was feeling very miserable but didn't want to bother the older woman with her problems. She couldn't hide anything from her though, Maka wasn't stupid. She knew her better then anyone.

"I know you're feeling upset about this marriage and believe me if I could do anything about it I would, but you know what? Things may be different now… Marik may be different. He's probably matured a lot over these past few years, most boys do"

"It doesn't matter whether he's changed or not!" she cried "I hate him! I don't want to marry him! I will always remember how we met, how he enjoyed making my life a misery! How he threatened me….. I will always remember…" tears were falling fast and furious.

Maka leaned forward and pulled her over to give her a hug being careful not to fall in the water. She didn't know what to say to make thing better so she decided it was best if Miri just cried it out.

Once she had washed up, Mirassa climbed out of the bath behind the screen dried herself with a towel and put on her robe. She walked back into her bedroom and sat down at her dressing table. She picked up her hairbrush and began to work the tangles out of her wet hair.

Maka gathered the wet towels and worn clothes and went to leave but not before turning to Mirassa and saying softly to her "everything will be alright…you'll see"
--------------------------------------------

In the morning Mirassa woke with a start. Maka was talking to someone outside of her bedroom door. They both had hushed voices so she couldn't make out what they were saying but Maka sounded happy that was for sure.

Mirassa pulled the veil curtain surrounding her bed aside and stood up. Maka walked in at that moment with a big smile on her face.

"What are you so happy about?" the young woman asked curiously. "What's happened?"

"I've been speaking to some of the other servant women; I mentioned to them that you were feeling down about your betrothal to Ishtar. They didn't press for details but they got the point that you don't exactly like him very much. I told them that I wished I could take you away from all this, and that was when they said there might be a way…"

Mirassa's eyes lit up "there's a way for me to get out of this?!" she whispered excitedly.

"Yes but we need to plan for it, it may take a week or two but if all goes well we should be alright" Maka smiled

"What's the plan then? When do we start?" Mirassa was shaking with excitement. Maka hadn't seen her this happy for over ten years. She missed it.

"Well" Maka thought for a second "the plan is to leave this place and set up home far away from here. In order to do this we will need an item that we can sell to get enough money together to set up home. Once we have that we need to barter a passage out of Egypt. That shouldn't be a problem; the only thing that will be tricky is getting you out of here without anyone noticing"

"Oh no" Mirassa said miserably "that's going to be impossible. People will notice if they see me. Papa has guards all over the place, they're not stupid. They'll realise what we're up to if they see me leaving"

Maka's smile widened "Don't worry about that. The girls and I have been talking about this all night long and we have a solution. As you may or may not know, a few times a week many of the servants go to the oasis near here and fetch water. We will disguise ourselves and follow them. As the last of them goes to leave, we will pretend to get water. When they are out of site we can gather our possessions that a few others will have brought and hidden around there and make our way to a boat"

"You 'have' been busy!" Mirassa said sounding very impressed. "That seems like a good plan! Can we start now? I'll look around for something we can sell. We have lots of artefacts here, but it'll have to be something papa wont miss, at least until we're gone anyway"

"Yes, you do that Miri. In the meantime I will get the others to make arrangements for the boat and I'll gather the supplies we'll need. We will only be able to take one bag each with us though, so we'll have to take things that are necessary and no more" Maka turned to leave.

"Wait" said a soft voice behind her. She looked back to see the young woman with an indebted look on her face "Thank you so much, you have no idea how grateful I am for this"

Maka smiled and gave Mirassa a tight hug. "Thank me when we've settled into our new home"
------------------------------------------

A few days had passed since their little conversation and things were getting underway for the escape. Mirassa had looked around for something that they could put up for sale and make a nice tidy sum of money. She also had to make sure it was something her father wouldn't notice was gone straight away. This wasn't too much of a problem though because there were lots of rooms with ancient artefacts decorating them. Mirassa decided on a vase with an elaborate pattern on it. It was gold plated, very old and very valuable.

"This'll do" she thought to herself and hid it away as she left the room.

As it turned out though, the vase sold for a huge amount of money to a private buyer in an auction. We're talking almost a million here!

Maka had her friends take care of other things like hiding their luggage at the oasis and arranging transportation to the boat as they were able to leave the clans home without suspicion. Everything was arranged. The time was approaching for the escape.
-----------------------------------------

Mirassa ate her dinner in silence. She looked at her father and brother who were talking to each other, unaware that they were never going to see her again after tonight. At this thought Anuket's eyes watered slightly. She didn't particularly get along with them, but they were her family nonetheless and she would miss them.

"Papa would you mind if I went to bed early, I feel really tired"

"Yes I suppose so. Just don't forget that tomorrow we begin to talk about the wedding arrangements" her father replied.

Mirassa bowed her head to her father and brother "goodbye" she said quietly.

They looked at her strangely. "Goodbye?" her brother laughed. "Why Miri, Are you going somewhere?" Mirassa smiled and walked out of the room. That was the last time she would see her family ever.

She walked down the corridors until she came to her room. When she closed the door behind her, she began to go through her drawers. Mirassa knew that when dawn came she would have to leave, and she didn't want to go without a certain item. She took out her jewellery box and set it on the desk. She opened it up to hear a tune playing. Her mother used to sing that to her when she was a little girl. Tears formed in her eyes. Anuket missed her mother very much; she reached into the box and lifted out a necklace.

It was a very beautiful gold necklace. There was a miniature ankh hanging on a delicate looking, but sturdy chain. It belonged to her mother and there was no way she would leave that behind. She put it on and lay down for bed, Ipet would be calling for her early in the morning when it was time to leave.
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"Miri" an old woman's voice whispered through the door "are you awake?" Mirassa sat up quickly recognising the voice as Maka's and ran towards the door to let her in.

"Are we ready to leave?" the young girl asked, both excited and nervous at the same time.

"Yes, its time. Do you have everything?" she asked handing Mirassa a brown servants robe. "Yes, there's nothing else here worth taking with me"

Maka nodded and handed the girl a water jar. She motioned for Mirassa to follow her. They made their way out into the corridor and walked along hiding their faces under their hoods from the guards. Ten minutes later, they eventually found the servants who were going out to the oasis. They waited until all the servants had exited through the door and ran up behind them so that they were last in line. "This is it, there's no turning back now, not that I'd want to anyway" Mirassa thought to herself as they walked into the desert.

It seemed to take forever for the servants to collect the water. There were a lot of them. Soon enough though, it was their turn. "Now what?" Mirassa whispered as the last servant gathered her jar of water and turned around to go back. "Wait a minute, let's pretend to gather water until she's further away from us" Maka replied.

They slowly walked over to the oasis and bent down. They made out to be filling their jars, and it was just as well they did because the woman glanced over her shoulder as she walked away. Ipet watched her carefully as she shrank into the distance. She looked at Marassa and whispered hurriedly.

"Now when I say go, run towards those trees, there should be a man waiting through there who will take us to the port in Cairo"

Mirassa could feel her heart racing. This was it, she was almost free! If things went to plan, she would soon be living a life she had only dreamed of. No more living with two sexist males who believed her only purpose in life was to marry and raise the children of a man who had power and high status. This thought made her even more terrified, what if the man wasn't there? She would have to go back home and face her father the next day to begin the wedding arrangements. She was broken from her chain of thoughts when the elderly woman next to her spoke.

"Ok, wait…….." Mirassa held her breath. "Alright let's go" They ran towards the trees as fast as they could. Mirassa was amazed at the sudden burst of energy her tutor showed. She must be at least seventy years old but ran as if she was only thirty. "Maka must be really excited about this; I doubt she's ever done anything like this before" she mused giggling to herself.

As they ran through the trees, they saw a middle aged man waiting for them. He was standing by a land rover. The moment he saw the two women running towards him, he opened the door to the passenger seats.

"I've already put your things in the back ladies, have a seat and buckle up" he said smiling to them.

Mirassa had never been in a car before and was looking forward to it, as well as all the other things she would soon experience and learn about. She got in and after a bit of fumbling, managed to buckle her seatbelt, Maka did the same. The man sat in the driver's seat and started up the car.

"Next stop Cairo" he announced.

As they drove away, Mirassa looked back towards the oasis and the desert she had called her home for the last fifteen years. She breathed a long sigh of relief. That wasn't so hard; it just seemed so at the time.
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A forty minute drive later and they had arrived in Cairo. They drove past the buildings through the crowded streets until they came to the pier. Mirassa had never seen so many boats before in her life, hell she'd never even seen one until now what with her growing up in the desert and all.

She got out of the land rover and gathered their belongings. Both women made their way towards the boat with big smiles on their faces. It was 9:00am and by the time anyone noticed they were missing they would already be sailing across the ocean to their new home in Domino.
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Chapter 4: New Beginnings

Mirassa and Maka had been living in Domino for a month now and they were very settled into their new life. They had stayed in a hotel when they first arrived and soon began looking for a home of their own. Eventually they found a house just on the outskirts of town. It was on a quiet street and was very cosy. They moved in not long after due to the fact that they could pay the full asking price right away. During that month, they had bought furniture and appliances to make their new home comfortable and as different as possible from their previous dwelling back in Egypt. Between the two of them, they had been very successful.

Mirassa was in her room smoothing out the creases in her school uniform. She was very excited because as of tomorrow she would officially begin her life as a normal teenager. She remembered the day when she first started exploring Domino with Maka. There were lots of girls and boys her age carrying bags, and wearing some sort of uniform. They all seemed to be coming from the same place.

--------------------
Flashback

"Look at all those people!" Mirassa said in awe as group upon group of teenagers walked by in smart uniforms.

"What about them?" questioned Maka, looking back and forth between Mirassa and the passing youths with a knowing smile on her face.

Mirassa had wanted to make friends, and seeing so many young people altogether had reawakened that desire.

"I've never seen so many people my own age before... can we see where they came from?" she asked, already pulling on the older woman's arm towards the direction of the oncoming students.

"Alright then" Maka sighed with mock exasperation.

She was reminded of how Mirassa used to pull her sleeve years ago when she was small and wanted to go somewhere or show her something.

They walked on, keeping an eye out for the place the students were coming from, until they saw it.

"Domino High" read Mirassa looking at the sign above the entrance.

She looked confused until she heard a boy nearby say the words 'school' and' teachers'.

"It's a school!!" she whispered excitedly to Maka "please can I go!, I'll be just like everyone else then, and I can make friends and learn new things and…" she was cut off.

"Miri, you don't need my permission, I brought you here so you could live your own life. If this is what makes you happy then by all means do it"

Mirassa smiled warmly at Maka and gave her a big bear hug before running into the building to enrol, her guardian following close behind her.

End flashback
-------------------

She sat on her new bed and crossed her legs, feeling herself sink into the soft mattress. She looked around her room smiling. She had decorated it all by herself. She had wanted to assert her own individuality and was very pleased with the results. The walls were pale yellow and the curtains and lamp shades were apple green. Her bed sheets were a patterned mixture of the two colours together, and the floor boards and furniture were made of maple. A typical teenage girls room.

"School starts tomorrow; I'd better check and see that I've got everything I need. Knowing my luck I'll leave something important behind" She thought to herself as she got up and rummaged through her school bag.

Everything was there, that must have been the tenth time she'd checked.

"Ok I have everything, I think I'll watch some teli-vis-ion" she said, taking care to pronounce the word correctly. She flicked through the channels finding nothing worth watching at this hour.

"I may as well just go to bed; I'll only keep looking for things to do. And besides, the sooner I go to bed the sooner I get to go to school"

She bounced up off the bed and changed into a black vest top and shorts. She snuggled under the covers with a contented smile on her face and fell asleep.

--------------------------- Morning

The next morning Mirassa woke up at 6.00am. She knew she would never be able to get back to sleep again, so instead she got up and changed into her school uniform.

It consisted of a short blue skirt and matching bow finished off with a pink Jacket. She looked on her dresser and found her necklace. After Mirassa put it on, she brushed her hair and put it up into a clip, loose bits of hair hanging down on both sides of her face.

She grabbed her school bag and went downstairs, being careful not to wake up Maka. As far as she knew, Maka had never been able to sleep in for so long in her life, due to the fact that she used to be a servant and had to get up early.

Mirassa went into the Kitchen and made herself some breakfast. Once she had eaten, she decided to walk through town and get some fresh air before going to school. She left a note for Maka on the kitchen table saying this, and left.

Several people were staring at her as she walked through the town, most of them were male. They had never seen the Egyptian girl before and thought she was one of the prettiest girls they had ever seen. Mirassa didn't notice the appreciative looks she was receiving and carried on walking taking in the sights.

As she walked down the street, she came across a game shop. "I may as well have a look" she mused.

The girl opened the door and stepped in. the first thing she saw was a boy with tri coloured hair. "That can't be natural!" The boy was also very short but must go to the high school because he was wearing the uniform too. He looked at her and smiled.

"What can I do for you?" he questioned politely.

"I'm just browsing. I'm new here in town you see and Im curious. There's nothing like this from where I come from" she replied looking at some cards.

"Really? Where do you come from then?" He asked, genuinely interested.

"Egypt. I moved here with my guar... Grandmother a month ago" she quickly changed the word guardian to grandmother. She didn't want to be associated with clans anymore.

"Cool! Well anyway, if you're new here then take these. Consider them as a welcoming present to Domino" he said handing her a pack of cards.

He saw her puzzled look and explained "it's a game called duel monsters. You'll learn how to play soon enough. It's really popular all over the world, Im surprised you haven't heard of it"

Mirassa put the cards in her bag "thank you very much"

She looked at the clock on the wall. She had been wandering the town for almost an hour and should probably be heading to school.

"Oh! I have to go now; I don't want to be late on my first day. Maybe I'll see you around" She smiled and turned around waving to the boy as she left the shop.

As she walked out the door a group of other people went in. "they must be friends with that boy" she thought as she heard them greeting each other.
-------------------------------------------

"Everyone!! We have a new student joining our class today, she will be here very soon" announced the teacher.

As if on cue the principle walked in with the new student following behind him.

"Class this is Mirassa Benu, she comes from Egypt. I hope you will all make her feel welcome" he said glancing at everyone, it was more of an order then anything else.

He turned to face Mirassa "Now then, you can take the empty seat over there behind Ryou; he is also a transfer student and knows what it's like to be new in a foreign school. If there is anything you need to know I'm sure he will help you"

"Thank you" said Mirassa, feeling uncomfortable with everyone watching her.

She sat down at the empty desk and looked around. She saw the boy from the game shop a few desks across to her right. He waved and gave her a thumbs up. A smile graced her lips. It seemed she had already made a friend. She recognised the other people sitting around him. They were the same ones that went into the gameshop as she came out. They flashed her a smile and she waved at them. The boy must have told them about her being new in town.

The white haired boy turned around and spoke. He had a British accent "Hello, Im Ryou. If there is anything you want to know or if you get lost then come to me, I'll do my best to make things easier for you while you're adjusting to life here".

Mirassa's smile grew wider "Thank you Ryou, Im sure I will. This place is huge"

As the lesson began Mirassa thought about how perfect her life was. "No one can take this away from me"

Her life was changing for the better and the only person who could ruin it was a certain sandy blonde tomb keeper, but he was forbidden to ever leave that place.

Or so she thought…

------------------At sea a few miles off duelist kingdom

"Forgive me master!!!!! Please don't send me to the shadow realm!!"

A young man wearing a purple robe stood over the cowering man. He was holding a golden rod with an eye on it. "You are useless!" he raised it towards the man.

"No please!!"

"I have no use for a rarehunter who can't even do the simplest of tasks" he continued, a malicious smirk growing on his face.

He was enjoying making this fool squirm. He focused his millennium rod and the man collapsed on the deck of the ship. The other rarehunters who were watching stayed silent. They knew better then to cross him.

Marik turned around and lowered the rod. His sandy blonde hair blowing in the wind from under his hood.

"Throw him overboard! He's making the place look untidy" several rarehunters went to pick him up.

Marik made his way towards his cabin to rest. It was hard work watching over these fools.

All of a sudden a rarehunter called out "There's someone in the water!"

Marik turned around "so there should be, I just told them to throw that idiot in".

He looked overboard to see what the fuss was about. Sure enough there was a man, and not the one he just sent to the shadow realm. He was holding on to a broken bit of wood and he looked weak. He must have been floating for days.

"Get him up here!" Marik shouted "I could always use more mind slaves"

Marik watched his rarehunters haul the man onto the deck. He was wearing a bandanna with Stars and stripes, he also wore sun shades

'How he's managed to keep those on after all this time is beyond me' he smirked to himself taking in the mans pitiful appearance.

The mans eyes shot open as he felt himself being pulled and prodded by the rarehunters. He fumbled around for a second. He had absolutely no clue as to where he was, and who were all these guys in purple robes anyway? Marik walked up to him and held up his rod. The mans eyes went wide as if he knew what was going to happen. Marik was about to make him a mind slave when he heard the man mutter something about "Not another one"

He decided he had better investigate this. "Not another what?" he questioned, still pointing the golden rod at the man.

"I've seen an item like the one you're holding before" he muttered.

"What did this item look like?" he pressed, growing more and more interested. If it was the one he was looking for, he could begin his plan for world domination. The man continued.

"It looked like an upside down pyramid, it had an eye on it just like that one" he said pointing to Mariks millennium rod "It belongs to a kid called Yugi Motou"

Marik's face lit up. A smile slowly spread across his face "you know this Yugi Motou?" he asked "What is your name?"

"Bandit Keith, by the way thanks for saving me" he stood up. Marik regarded him, lowering his rod for a second "Tell me, where does this Yugi Motou live?"

Bandit Keith looked at him. "This guy seems interested in Yugi. Probably wants that necklace of his, oh well I may as well tell him. This'll be payback for what he did to me back in duelist kingdom"

"Domino city, in Japan". He raised his voice "Look if you're gonna get back at him then I want in!"

"Yes. You will help me get to little Yugi, but not in the way that you think"

Marik raised his millennium rod again. The millennium eye appeared on Bandit Keith's forehead. He turned around and headed back to his room. He focused the rod again and spoke to the rarehunter at the ships controls.

"Take us back to Egypt" he commanded. Now that he knew of the pharaoh's whereabouts, he could put his plan into action. That Keith person would be the perfect tool to lure him into a trap.

"You will pay for what you did to me pharaoh!" an evil grin spread across his face. Oh he would pay!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 5: Plans set into motion

The bell rang in the student's ears, letting them know that it was time for lunch. Mirassa reached into her locker to put her books away. When she turned around she saw the boy with tri coloured hair walking towards her.

"Hey Mirassa, how are you doing in lessons so far?" he asked

"Not bad! I think I need to speed up a bit though" she replied with a thoughtful look "its not as easy as it looks is it?"

"I guess not… hey listen! You're new here so why not hang out with me and my friends? We could show you around, how about it?" he suggested "Im Yugi by the way"

"Pleasure to meet you Yugi, and yes that would be great. Thank you so much. I was worried I was going to be an outcast here!" she laughed. "Well then! Shall we go and find your friends?" Yugi nodded

They started towards the cafeteria and eventually found them sitting at a big round table. They were waving for them to come over. They all looked at the new girl. Yugi began the introductions.

"Ok everyone, you remember Mirassa from class? Well she's going to be part of our group from now on!"

He pointed towards each person and introduced them one by one one, starting with Joey.

"This is Joey wheeler, Tristan Taylor, Tea Gardner and Ryou, you remember him don't you?"

Mirassa smiled "Of course I do, it's nice to meet you all" they all replied with a "Nice to meet you too"

"So what sort of things do you like?" Tea asked.

She was happy that there was another girl in the group now. She would have someone to talk to about boys makeup clothes and all the other things girls talked about.

Mirassa hesitated "Well... Im not really sure yet. In Egypt, my culture didn't involve things that you've grown up with. This is all very new to me"

Tea looked at her and replied with a reassuring smile "Don't worry! We'll show you how things are done around here" Mirassa returned the smile. "Thanks"

Joey and Tristan were staring at her with big eyes, their mouths hanging open slightly during this conversation between the two girls. It was then that they decided to show off their manliness. Joey got there first.

"Yeah, and you know that if anyone gives ya a hard time I'll pound em for ya!"

He sat up a bit straighter and tried to show off his muscles by sticking his chest out, hoping it didn't look too obvious but enough for the female to notice. Ryou tried hard to contain his laughter seeing this, so did Yugi. Tristan saw Joey's attempt to draw Mirassa's attention

'Oh I see what he's doing; he's trying to get the new girl! Well not this time pal'

Tristan hooked his leg under Joey's chair and pulled it, sending him flying onto the floor face first.

Tristan looked up at Mirassa and said "He's all talk, if you need any help then come to me. Everyone in this school knows that he can't hold his own in a fight"

Joey sprang up from the floor shouting "Oh yeah!! Well I'll take ya on right now!!" everyone in the cafeteria was looking at the commotion going on between the two boys.

Fists were being curled up in preparation to make contact with the other persons face until Yugi shouted at them

"Hey guys! Stop it! What's gotten into you?"

They stopped fighting and looked at each other. They moved their heads to look at their friends and finally the Egyptian girl who was staring back in slight shock at the display. Obviously this method wasn't working. Silently agreeing through eye contact that this wasn't over, they shook hands and sat back down.

"Sorry" they murmured to each other.

They continued to eat lunch as though nothing had happened, which Mirassa found very odd, but entertaining. The group started to ask her questions to get to know her better and they all seemed to hit it off very well.

All this time they didn't notice cold blue eyes glaring at them from the other side of the room. Seto Kaiba looked at Tristan and Joey with disgust.

"Brawling in public. How pathetic" he thought to himself as he turned the page of the book he was reading.

He then glanced at the new addition to the group. His eyes lingered on her for a while before he realised he was staring. He broke his gaze and questioned to himself

"Why would she want to hang around a bunch of geeks like them, she's above them…"
------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Here we are" Mirassa said to her new friends.

She had invited them to come over to her house and hang out. Joey and Tristan were more then willing. Not just because it was 'her' asking, but she had mentioned at some point that there was food. They walked in through the side door into the kitchen.

"I'm home!" The girl called.

Maka came through the door and looked at all the teenagers standing there. She smiled at them

"Hello there, I see Miri's made some friends already" they all grinned at the elderly woman.

"Everyone this is my grandmother, Maka" Mirassa turned away from the group and gave Maka a look that said go along with it.

She seemed to get the message and invited them all into the lounge. Once she had 'fed' everyone, they sat talking about random things in general. Ryou told Mirassa about when he first came to Domino and how strange it was at first. He also told her about how he made friends with everyone. They sat there for most of the afternoon watching TV and playing duel monsters. Yugi vs Joey. Needless to say, Yugi was winning. Joey was really good and could have put Yugi in several tight spots but his attention kept getting drawn away from the game by a certain blond haired, blue eyed female with tanned skin.

They spent the later part of the afternoon teaching Mirassa how to play. She was quite good, and with some practice she could be one of the best. Eventually it was getting late and they had to break up the gathering.

"We'll see you at school tomorrow" waved Tea as she started down the street. "Ok! Thanks for coming around, it was fun!" Mirassa called to everyone. "No problem! Next time we have to go to Yugi's" said Tristan

When they had disappeared from view, Mirassa closed the door and walked back into the lounge where Maka was sitting in her chair.

"So what do you think?" she asked. Mirassa wanted her opinion because Maka had proved to be a good judge of character over the years.

"I think you've made some very good friends. They seem quite sincere and really seem to like you. You know what? You should invite them around again for your birthday"

Mirassa mock slapped her head. She had forgotten her birthday was only a month away. She would be sixteen.

"Yes, that's a good idea, we can all go out afterwards and… how did Joey describe it? Par...Tay? Oh well, either way we'll all have a lot of fun!"

---------Egypt Rarehunters Hideout---------

Marik was sitting at a rectangular table in his room. He was sorting through the cards his rarehunters had gathered over the years to make a deck powerful enough to defeat the Pharaoh. He looked at the two most powerful cards in his possession. The Winged Dragon of Ra and Slifer the Sky Dragon.

"With these two Egyptian God cards in my possession I will be unstoppable! Now all I need to do is find out where Ishizu has hidden Obelisk the Tormentor"

Marik frowned as he remembered the last time he saw his sister back in the Valley of the Kings.

------Flashback------

"If you want to carry out this madness, you're going to have to find the last card!"

"Im warning you…" Marik said slowly, raising the golden rod at Ishizu

"You'd use your millennium rod on your own flesh and blood Marik?" She said in disbelief

"If you continue to stand in my way…then yes, I'll have to" a flash of light and he was gone

------End Flashback-----

Marik hadn't used the rod the way she thought he would. How could he? Despite the fact that she opposed him she was still his big sister. Instead he had used it on himself, 'his own flesh and blood' to transport him away from that place. It had proved to be very strenuous and he wouldn't repeat it again anytime soon unless absolutely necessary.

Marik had a plan all set out in his head, plus several others just in case his rarehunters failed.

'For their sake they had better win' he thought to himself.

He had spent a lot of time creating decks for his more skilled rarehunters that focused on Yugi's weaknesses. He had managed to gain access to the database at duellist kingdom and saw that his favourite card was the dark magician, just as it was in the stone tablet depicting the pharaohs battle against a sorcerer of unknown identity.

"I will duel the pharaoh through my mind slaves! Nothing will prepare him for my god cards. Victory will be simple. When I have the puzzle, I will banish him to the shadow realm where he will wander forever in darkness."

This brought a wide smile to his face. Marik was just imagining his moment of glory when he was rudely interrupted by Odion entering the room with a box of rare and powerful cards. The older man put the box down on the table and glanced at the happy look on the young leaders face

"Master Marik, is it true you know the pharaohs whereabouts?" he asked slowly.

Marik smirked without looking at his servant "Yes I do, it won't be long now Odion. Soon I will be king! Not the spirit in the puzzle!" he laughed "things will soon be going my way…"

Marik stopped to think about his past and how up until a few years ago all decisions regarding his future were made for him. Memories flashed in front of him when suddenly one particular memory came up. His marriage. He thought for a moment, she would soon be coming of age and that meant the wedding was supposed to take place soon. However he hadn't heard from the girls family since they left his underground home nine years ago.

"I wonder if age has done her any favours, probably not. It would take a miracle to sort that mess out" he chuckled to himself "The wedding is most definitely off now that I'm in charge, perhaps when I am pharaoh I will go easy on her… lock her up in a dark cell for the rest of her life. She is not worthy of becoming my wife and I will take great pleasure in proving that to her"

Odion cleared his throat. Marik looked up quickly, he had forgotten he was still standing there. He handed several of the decks to Odion that he had been putting together and told him to give them to each of the rarehunters they were assigned to.

"Prepare the ship. All rarehunters chosen for this mission leave for Domino tonight" The young man ordered. "Yes master Marik" Odion bowed low and turned around to leave
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 6: Love at first Sight

Two weeks had passed since Mirassa first started school at Domino High and life was never better. She had made some great friends who accepted her, despite her lack of enthusiasm to talk about her life in Egypt. She was particularly good friends with Tea who showed her all the best places to shop, which sort of music was decent and pointed out all the cute boys to her that were single, much to her distaste. She came here to get away from boys. Oh well, at least she had a choice of who she could date here.

Mirassa was currently watching TV. She sat on the couch, twirling her hair around her finger in boredom. It was half term and there wasn't any school for the next few weeks which was good because her birthday was in a fortnight.

Mirassa thought back to the day before. She asked her friends if they wanted to do anything on her birthday. Joey suggested that they all go out to a night club which was a popular idea amongst the group. Ryou seemed a little hesitant as they were all underage but it didn't take much to persuade him. The worst that could happen to them was they be thrown out of the club. In which case they would find another one to continue their boozing sessions.

Mirassa's thoughts were broken as the face of Seto Kaiba filled the screen on the TV.

"What's going on?"

Her question was soon answered when he began to speak.

"Greetings duelists, welcome to the town of domino. But more importantly welcome to my tournament. I see you each received your private invite to Kaiba corps very exclusive duel monsters Tournament and you had enough brains to show up here tonight"

The crowd got fired up at this remark from the young CEO. He continued.

"Being that you are all elite duelists, I've added special rules to my tournament just for experts, for example…" the tv screen flashed to Kaiba's new invention "You will duel with these new and improved Duel Disks. Another new rule that I have designed for the tournament is that before each duel, both players must give up their rarest card and the loser of the duel forfeits his card to the winner. My competition will make Pegasus and his duelist kingdom look like a joke"

Suddenly a view of Kaiba on his chopper came onto the screen. He was hanging onto the open door and looked deep in thought before he raised his hand into the air.

"Don't forget to register and pick up your duel disk because exactly one week from today, my Battle City Tournament Begins" the TV screen flicked back to the program that was showing before Kaiba's broadcast interrupted.

"A duel monsters tournament? I have a feeling that Yugi and Joey will want to compete in this. After all, they both came top in duelist kingdom! This Kaiba guy… I get the impression that there is some competition between him and Yugi. I wonder why? What happened between them?"

Obviously they hadn't told Mirassa about the incident with Kaiba the first time they had met, where he tore up Yugi's grandpas 'blue eyes white dragon' they decided it was all in the past now. No need to dwell on it.

Maka walked in from the kitchen with a mug of hot chocolate. She handed it to her newly titled 'granddaughter'.

"Who was that then?" she asked, directing her gaze towards the TV.

"That was Seto Kaiba, I don't know much about him except that he owns Kaiba Corp and is a ruthless businessman" her brow furrowed slightly in thought

"I may be mistaken but sometimes in school I feel as though he is watching me"

She wasn't wrong however. Over the past few weeks Kaiba had been purposely sitting himself behind her. For whatever reason she didn't know. Apparently he had always sat in the same seat in class, but when Mirassa arrived he had begun moving around and usually sat somewhere near her. She decided not to worry about it. It's not like he had been looking at her or anything. She had always glanced back at the row behind her feeling someone's eye's roaming over her, but it was never him. Or so she thought. She wasn't exactly sure. He had quick reflexes she heard; he could have quickly dropped his eyes to the book he was always reading.

"Nah! Im sure it's not him. I must be imagining things. He's far too cold for that, and plus he has his own multi billion dollar company to run. Im just being silly"

Her thoughts returned to the upcoming tournament. He said to register tomorrow and don't bother if you weren't willing to gamble your rarest cards. It would be interesting to see these duel disks working. Holographic battles… She was impressed. Yugi had shown her the duelling arenas they had in Dominos 'Kaiba land theme park' and they were incredible. The duel disks were supposed to be even better then those, and portable too.

She turned to Maka "I hope Yugi or Joey do decide to enter! This tournament looks like a lot of fun!"

---------------------------------A few days later

Mirassa and Tea laughed and joked as they wandered through the town. They were looking for outfits to wear at Mirassa's birthday bash at the nightclub. They had to make it believable that they were the legal age for drinking.

"That won't be too hard for us!" said Mirassa rather loudly "We are very mature for our age..." she pulled out a lollipop and put it in her mouth.

She swirled it around in a childish way. Tea couldn't help but laugh at her friends antics. They had been café crawling and Mirassa was very high on sugar from all the coca colas she'd been knocking back.

"Ooooooh! Let's have a look in there" Tea pointed to an expensive clothes store.

She dragged Mirassa in by the collar when she showed no sign of moving. They spent nearly half an hour looking around the racks of clothes the store had to offer before finally picking out the outfits they wanted. Tea decided on a baby blue strappy dress that went down to her knees. It was a light, flowing sort of material. She found a pair of shoes to match. She looked very snazzy.

Mirassa decided on a red, off the shoulder dress with long sleeves. The length of the dress went down to her thighs and she chose a pair of heeled black suede boots that came just below her knees. The dress fit her beautifully and complimented her curvy figure.

They came out of their dressing rooms to inspect each other. Tea looked at the other female in awe.

"Oh my god Mirassa! You look SO beautiful! The guys will be drooling all over you!"

"I hope not, this dress isn't cheap you know! You look really sophisticated too Tea; I think we've found our outfits, don't you?" Tea nodded in agreement.

They went back into the dressing room and changed into their regular clothes. They paid at the checkout and left the shop. By this time they had been shopping for hours and were beginning to get a little tired. They decided to stop one last time at a little café and have a coffee to wake them up a bit.

Mirassa looked down the street and saw Yugi coming towards them. He hadn't noticed them yet because he was struggling with a big box. He looked pitiful.

"Aww look at that... should we help the poor boy?" questioned Mirassa mockingly.

The two young women walked over towards him. Tea spoke first

"Hey Yugi, what's that you have there?"

"It's the new duel disk that's being used for Battle City" the boy explained "Its not so much the duel disk itself that's heavy, It's the case that it comes in. I don't think Id be able to take part if it was this heavy!!"

Yugi put the box down on the pavement and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Look, Mirassa and I were going for a coffee; do you want to come too? You look like you could use a break" suggested Tea hopefully.

"That would be great" Yugi replied, hauling the heavy box onto his shoulder once again. Once sat down, they ordered their drinks and began to talk.

"Is Joey taking part in this tournament also?" asked Mirassa. She hadn't seen him since before battle city was announced.

"Yeah but he still has to register, he's been busy making preparations for his sister's operation. He should hurry though if he wants to get a place" replied Yugi.

"Operation?"

Tea looked at the girl sitting next to her. "Oh yeah, we never told you… Just before the duelist kingdom tournament, Joey got a video message from his little sister Serenity. She has this deteriorating eye condition. She will eventually go blind if nothing is done to correct it. The operation is VERY expensive so Joey entered Duelist Kingdom to try and win the prize money to pay for it. He came second to Yugi. But as Yugi was only there to umm… sort some business out with Pegasus, he gave the money to Joey. If all goes well, Serenity's eye sight will be saved"

Mirassa was very impressed and also touched by this new information regarding Joey. "That's so sweet of him, Serenity is very lucky to have a brother who loves her like he does"

She thought back to her own brother. She couldn't help but feel slightly upset that Baal didn't care for her as much as Joey did for Serenity, or if he did he didn't show it. She quickly shook off the feeling. There was no point living in the past.

As the trio continued to talk, they didn't notice a man watching them from a nearby alley. He had a purple robe and a glowing eye symbol on his forehead. Marik was spying on the Pharaoh through one of his mind slaves.

This was the second time he had seen the pharaoh or at least his vessel. The first encounter was in the warehouse where he tricked Yugi into following Bandit Keith by stealing his Millennium Puzzle. He couldn't believe the boy actually handed it to him in the first place! He nearly succeeded in destroying the pharaoh but it was not to be, not that time anyway.

"You won't be smiling for long Yami" Marik thought, growling to himself.

He shook with anger as he remembered the day he received the tomb keeper's initiation.

"I will make you pay dearly for cursing my family with this stupid ritual" he glanced at Tea.

"She will make an excellent tool to take the pharaoh apart… but how to use her?"

He grinned, bearing his pearly white teeth which stood out against his tanned skin. He would find a use for her when necessary.

Marik glanced at the other female sitting at the table and stopped breathing. He felt his heart pounding in his chest as he watched her wide eyed, laughing along with the others. She was wearing a matching outfit consisting of a white blouse and long skirt lined with blue. Her blouse was low cut and he could see a tasteful portion of her Chest, but not too much. Marik studied her figure, she was very curvy and while he stared at this level, he noticed the sunlight catching a piece of jewellery on her stomach. Her shirt opened up at the bottom to reveal a belly button ring. She was sitting with her legs crossed in a very elegant way and sat straight against the chair, which showed she had good posture. Marik couldn't believe such a beautiful creature even existed in this world. His heart was threatening to jump out through chest at this point like that scene in alien.

He closed his eyes quickly and took several deep breaths.

"I don't have the time to think about girls! I have more important things to do… but she is so gorgeous… NO!!! She is friends with the enemy"

Marik finally managed to calm himself down after a few minutes of slow and steady breathing. He opened his eyes and glanced at the girl again. Big mistake! His heart began to thump painfully in his chest once more.

"Dammit!"

He knew then that this feeling wasn't going to go away.

"I suppose this wont be such a bad idea. After all, when I am pharaoh I will need a queen. She will do very nicely"

He thought for a few minutes while watching her talk to Yugi.

"I will have to persuade her somehow to join me"

The young man looked at her face. She was perfect in every way. Her eyes were the most beautiful shade of Icy blue he had ever seen. Her kohl lined eyes were sparkling and her tanned unblemished skin looked soft to the touch. He wanted to go over to her and kiss those rosy lips of hers, but she would more then likely become distressed because the mind slave whose eyes he was looking through was really quite hideous.

"Now I have one more task to carry out. Women are easier to manipulate when it comes to romance so I will have to take the time and effort to win her over. I must also make sure no other man makes a move on her. I will have my mind slaves watch her every movement. She will be mine" Marik thought possessively.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 7: A Secret Admirer


A few days after the shopping trip with Tea, Battle City had finally begun. Everywhere you went, duels were taking place. Mirassa was hoping to watch a few of them today, when she could eventually be bothered to get out of bed.

It was a beautiful sunny morning and it seemed such a shame to waste time lying in bed so she used this as her reason to get up. Mirassa swung her legs over the side of the bed and looked at the clock on her bedside stand. It was 8:00am, which was quite late for her. She looked through her chest of drawers and found a pair of jeans and a black strappy top. She wore her usual necklace and earrings and went downstairs for breakfast.

Maka wasn't up yet either which was strange. She fixed herself some food and went to check for mail. Letters were shoved through the letterbox and as she went through them, one in particular caught her eye.

"What's this?" she asked quietly as she opened the red envelope addressed to 'the young woman of the house'

Mirassa put the rest of the mail on a nearby table "I suppose they can't mean Maka cus she's not exactly young" Mirassa reasoned as she tore open the paper.

Everything was handwritten so it couldn't be junk mail. She pulled out a letter on the same red paper as the envelope and looked it over. There wasn't much writing, all it said was

'Words can hardly justify your beauty
Look outside; I have left a small gift for you
I will reveal myself to you soon enough but for now, farewell my lotus

With all my love

Your Secret Admirer'

Mirassa was shocked to say the least. She had only been living here for two months. She barely knew any of the people here besides Yugi, Joey, Tea, Tristan and Ryou. It couldn't be any of them because none of them had handwriting like this. Tea wouldn't even dream of sending this sort of letter to her, unless she was hiding something. It had an Arabic look to it the way each letter was formed, but she didn't know anyone else around here to even have a guess who it was from.

"Who on earth could have sent this? It's not like I know anyone in Domino well enough to receive something like this" just then a thought struck her "Oh Ra! I hope it's not a stalker"

The thought lingered in her mind making her a little nervous, especially because the anonymous person promised to reveal himself eventually. Well she assumed it was a 'he' at least.

She remembered that the letter mentioned a gift outside. Mirassa wasn't sure she wanted a gift from a man she didn't know but her curiosity got the better of her. She slowly opened the door and looked around. The street was quiet. There were no cars driving by as the town center had been cut off to drivers due to Battle City. She looked down on the doorstep and saw a small box with a ribbon wrapped around it.

Mirassa picked up the box and sat down on the step. She looked at it for a while, debating again whether or not she should open it.

"It can't hurt, and it's not exactly like I can give it back to whoever sent it. Besides if I somehow do know this admirer, I wouldn't want to offend him. At least this way I may have a clue as to who he is"

Mirassa slowly pulled the ribbon off the box and lifted the lid off. She gasped and covered her mouth in surprise, eyes wide with shock as she looked at the most beautiful piece of jewellery she had ever seen in her life. It was a traditional Egyptian necklace made out of solid gold with white gold hieroglyphics written on a pendant. The pendant itself was shaped like a cartouche which represented royalty.

"Princess…?" she read as she removed her hand from her mouth to study it more.

This was a beautiful gift but Mirassa knew she couldn't put it on. She really wanted to, but she wouldn't be comfortable wearing it without knowing where it came from.

She stood up from the step and walked inside with the necklace closing the door behind her. But not before having one last glance down the street.

Little did she know, violet eyes were watching her from a hiding place behind a tree just opposite her house.
---------------------------------

Marik had been watching the girl the moment she came out of the house. He had been waiting to see her since the early hours of the morning and wanted to see her reaction when she opened his gift to her. His smile spread further across his face when he saw her shocked expression.

"She really is the most attractive woman I have ever seen. I look forward to seeing that necklace around that beautiful neck of hers…" he closed his eyes. "If she thinks THAT gift was beautiful, she will love the next one"

He had purchased an entire outfit for her and would give each part to her separately. He would write more and more romantic letters to her, each time giving her more complements until the time was right to meet her in person.

"By then she will be completely under the influence of romance and will be more then willing to come to me, of course she won't know exactly who I am until later, but if I am successful that wont make any difference at all"

Just the thought of holding her in his arms was enough to make his determination to win her affections even stronger then it already was. Marik turned to get on his motorbike and make preparations on his boat for his future guest.
----------------------------------

Marik pulled into the harbour where his boat was waiting. He got off the bike and had his Rarehunters wheel it away somewhere safe. Odion was standing at the top of the steps, keeping an eye out for unwelcome visitors and saw his master approaching with a satisfied look on his face. Marik strode past him and through the door behind Odion without even looking at his brother.

He walked down the corridor until he came to a room. He pushed the door open and walked inside, closing it behind him. Marik had been making changes to one of the guest rooms on his boat to accommodate the female destined to become his queen. This included bedsheets, flowers, perfume, toiletries and other things to make life more comfortable for her. Marik knew exactly which products the object of his affection used. He had sent his mindslaves to look through her rubbish to find out. However, looking through garbage couldn't tell him everything about her.

"I still don't know her name" he thought sadly "but I will soon enough" he placed a few items in a drawer he had purchased from town and turned around exiting the room.

He locked the door behind him. He didn't want anyone to know about this. Not yet anyway. He knew that such a thing wouldn't stop his rarehunters from fearing him; he just wanted to keep it secret. Marik knew he was obsessing over her but didn't care. As long as he got his prize in the end.

He stopped at his own room as he walked further down the corridor. He threw himself onto his bed and closed his eyes. He imagined having 'his' girl right beside him on the bed. His smile widened as he thought of a few activities they could participate in once she arrived. Marik drifted off into peaceful slumber thinking about his love. It would only be a matter of time before these dreams were a reality.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 8: Introductions at Club Enigma


Over the following days, Mirassa had received more gifts from her unknown admirer. The gifts were very beautiful and looked very expensive, but she got the impression that whoever sent them to her was only into her looks and more then likely wanted to see her wearing them at some point.

Mirassa had received an off the shoulder dress made out of white fabric that went down to her ankles. It was lined with gold embroidery at the sleeves and hem and had a sash around the waist that went down the front of the dress. It had an ankh symbol at the bottom. Shoes to match, earrings made of solid gold, bracelets and anklets as well to finish it off. It was very fashionable back in Egypt and only the wealthy would wear something like that. At least it gave her a clue as to his culture at least. There was no other way he could pick out an outfit like this unless he himself was from Egypt.

Mirassa had decided to put the dress away for safe keeping. That way, if she did like him she could wear it at some point, but if not, she could return it undamaged.

Mirassa had been up every morning to retrieve the gifts before Maka found them. She didn't want anyone to know. Not yet at least. She didn't want to worry anyone, she didn't really want anyone's opinion either and her silence would ensure that.

"There's no point worrying about it right now. I have more important, not to mention more fun things to do tonight" she thought excitedly.

Tonight was her birthday bash at the night club enigma. Because of the Battle City finals taking place around her birthday, they decided to celebrate early. Just in case Yugi or Joey managed to get to the finals. They seemed very confident that they would.

Mirassa pushed all her thoughts and worries to the back of her mind as the phone rang. It was Tea. She was coming over to get ready for tonight. They would be able to talk on their own without interruption until they met up with the boys later. It turned out that Tea was just confirming if it was ok for her to come over still.

There was a knock at the door twenty minutes later and in came Tea with all her things. It was around 7:30pm. The two girls went upstairs and began getting ready. They put on their outfits, styled their hair, did their makeup and put on their jewellery.

They were pretty hyped up when the time came for them to leave and meet the guys. They grabbed their coats and purses. By this time it was 9:00pm

"See ya Maka!" waved Tea, who was slightly drunk from the Alchol pops they had been drinking earlier.

"Bye Bye!" Mirassa called following close behind her "I'll try not to be too noisy when I come back" she added mischievously.

Maka could only laugh at the two girls' antics. If only she'd had the freedom Mirassa had now, when she herself was young. Oh well, she could make up for lost time.

There was still a little light in the sky. It wasn't very far to the nightclub and the streets were well lit so they would be reasonably safe walking there. Tea and Mirassa walked towards the town laughing and joking completely unaware that they were being watched by a man wearing a purple robe.

Marik had posted a mind slave just outside the girl's house to keep an eye on her. If she went anywhere or if anyone came to visit her, then he would know about it. Marik was laying down on his bed half asleep when he sensed a change in his slaves mind.

"Something is happening at my future Queens home" he thought, bolting up and grabbing his millennium rod.

He focused and looked through his mindslaves eyes. Sure enough, there was his sweetheart walking down the street with 'friendship girl'. She was wearing a 'very' alluring outfit that hugged her every curve he noticed.

"Very nice" he thought longingly "I would much rather see her out of it though" he chuckled, licking his lips slightly.

Marik took control of the rarehunter and followed them at a distance to see where they were going. When he saw their destination, he began to rethink his plans.

"This place will be swarming with 'boys'. I could lose my chance with her. I'll have to go and make sure no one touches her but me. Screw this patience plan! I guess tonight is as good as ever to introduce myself"

Marik shot up and ran towards his drawers. He quickly picked out his outfit. A black sleeveless top that showed off his muscles and a pair of black pants that made his arse look very nice to anyone who cared to look. He pulled them on and ran to the bathroom, where he quickly brushed his teeth and hair.

Marik had never gotten ready to go somewhere so quick in his whole life. He grabbed his millennium rod and left his room. He quickly got off the boat jumping over the rails and ran towards the place where his bike was being kept. He jumped on and sped off into the night. Odion was watching as his brother left.

"Master Marik has been acting very strangely. What could possibly have happened to make him act this way? Whatever it is, it must be very personal. I hope he'll tell me when he feels the time is right"

Odion wished Marik would tell him what was on his mind like he used to, but that was in the past. He hoped that things would change for the better but it was a long shot. Marik would never be the same, unless he knew the truth. Odion could never tell him though. It would crush him.
-----------------

As Marik drove through the traffic, darting between cars, his only thought was

I have to get there before anyone else does!"

He knew what other men would think of his flower and also knew that some would make a move if he didn't get there soon enough. He screeched to a halt outside enigma and parked his bike opposite.

Marik used his Millennium Rod to get past the bouncers quickly. It was dark inside. The only lights were of the disco sort and continuously flashed over the room. He soon caught sight of her. She was with her friends.

"Good, at least I can keep an eye on her now" Marik thought relaxing a bit.

He went to the bar for a drink and stood in a corner out of sight. He enjoyed watching her. He only wished it was him making her laugh and smile like that. He couldn't hear what it was exactly she was laughing at because of the music booming around them.

Marik saw several men looking in her direction with lustful looks on their faces. He growled in anger and used his rod on several occasions. He'd never claimed so many mind slaves in one night before.

After about an hour of waiting for the young girl to be left on her own, Marik was beginning to get impatient. There was always at least one of her friends with her. He would have to stop that.

One by one, Marik had found a partner for each of them using his Millennium Rod and made sure that they were kept occupied, away from eyesight of the girl. When the last of her companions had been led away, she was wide open for him to approach.

He was nervous now, but didn't let it show. Marik took a deep breath and started towards her, straightening his hair and clothes as he went. He noticed the light switch and flicked the lights down low on his way so he could be more mysterious. He liked playing that role.

"She looks breathtaking" he smiled possessively "And she's all mine"
-----------------

"It's not fair! How come I'm the only one who hasn't got a dancing partner?"

Mirassa tried not to feel too bitter, but it was hard. She had been abandoned by her friends at her birthday celebration and she didn't like it. She just wanted some company. The lights were turned down low. She sat looking at the couples on the dance floor.

A hand on her shoulder broke her thoughts. Mirassa spun around in her seat to see the outline of a tall male standing behind her. He seemed quite young, almost roguish from what she could see of his longish hair and dark clothes. She couldn't make out very much at all, although he did seem to have a smile on his face.

"You look a little lonely sitting here by yourself" he began. He held out a hand to her "Would you like to dance?"

Mirassa blushed a little, very thankful for the lights being so low. She took his outstretched hand and was gently pulled up from her seat. He led her to the dance floor away from her friends and the other people and pulled her close to him. He snaked his hands around her waist and rested them on her hips. Mirassa smiled shyly and blushed even more as she brought her arms around his neck.

She leaned in while the slow music played around them. Mirassa breathed in slowly, taking in his scent. He in turn smelt her hair; both were equally contented in this embrace as the other. They swayed to the music as they continued to enjoy each others company. The man leaned in closer to her. He buried his face into her neck and began trailing kisses across her soft skin. Mirassa couldn't seem to get rid of the blush on her face but allowed him to continue with what he was doing.

After a few songs, slow dancing and nuzzling later, the man looked at her and whispered into her ear.

"Do you want to stand outside for a minute? It's getting quite warm in here"

Mirassa nodded slowly. What was the harm? He could just make out her nod in the darkness and smiled even wider. He took a hold of her shoulders and guided her towards the exit.

As they walked out through the door, a rush of cool air hit Mirassa. She didn't realise it was so hot in there. She turned round to face the man she had danced with, the smile on her face vanishing. A look of disbelief crossed her features and was quickly replaced with a look of horror as she looked into the violet eyes of the one person she hoped she would never see again.

'Marik… it can't be!'

He was smiling at her until he saw the look on her face. Now he looked concerned.

"What's wrong?" he asked taking a step towards her. Mirassa stepped back as well.

"I can't believe I've been dancing with the one person I hate more then anything else in this whole world!"

"If I've done anything to offend you I'm sorry" Marik continued, desperately trying to calm her down. "Listen, if you're worried I'll take advantage of you then don't be, I wouldn't do that to you. What's your name?"

Mirassa didn't know what to do. Marik didn't seem to recognise her. Perhaps she could use this to her advantage. She thought quickly, if he 'didn't know' her then maybe she could somehow turn him down without him catching on. It was worth a shot. She smiled slowly to make it look as if that was what was bothering her before.

"I'm sorry, I guess I find it hard to trust men. I had a bad experience a while back that I don't want to repeat" she thought back to her childhood.

Marik smiled again, relieved. "Oh right, thank Ra I thought she was going to do a runner, well please, don't worry, you can trust me…"

Mirassa smiled back but was secretly thinking "Yeah right! I can trust him as far as I can throw him, which isn't very far I'll bet! I have to tell him now or he'll never leave me alone"

She put on a serious look on her face and tried to gather up enough courage to reject him in a way he wouldn't get angry, which might prove difficult because she knew what he could be like. After all these years he still managed to unnerve her, even though she was a lot more confident then she was nine years ago. Perhaps if she succeeded in doing this, she could finally get over her past without fear of him bothering her again.

She looked into his eyes. The hate inside her bubbled up furiously. She could barely contain it but kept a straight face somehow. She decided to just be blunt with him.

"Look, I'm sorry if I led you on but I'm not interested in seeing anyone right now and I don't think I will be anytime in the near future" the girl said plainly.

Marik looked taken aback by this statement, as well as her bluntness. He was not expecting her to say anything like that after tonight.

"She was more then willing a minute ago!" He wasn't going to let her go that easily. He tried again.

"I really think you'll change your mind, how about I take you out to dinner and then you can you can decide whether or not you want to see me again?" Marik said confidently flashing her a sexy smile.

He grabbed hold of her wrist lightly but firm enough so she couldn't pull away. Mirassa panicked slightly. He wasn't getting the message.

"I'm sorry Marik but I'm not interested in you! Will you please let go of my wrist!" she tried to wriggle out of his grip but he was too strong. She looked up at him. He was eyeing her strangely.

"What's he looking at me like that for? I ….oh no!"

She realised her error by calling him by his name. Not once had he mentioned it to her this evening so she couldn't use that as an excuse. They had hardly spoken at all as a matter of fact.

Marik pulled her away from the clubs entrance and turned her to face him. He held her in place by her arms. He looked deeply into her blue eyes.

"I never told you my name… have we met before?" he started to look at her more carefully now.

Mirassa was terrified and it clearly showed on her features. What would he do if he realised who she was? She didn't want to find out. She had an idea.

"Alright…" she pulled softly out of his grip and looked down in defeat, making him think he had won and was about to get an explanation.

Instead, while he waited for her to speak, she kicked him hard in the shin making him fall to the pavement in pain. She jumped to the side and her knee connected with his ribs. She slapped the side of his face hard for good measure.

Mirassa ran as fast as she could away from him, only glancing behind her when she was almost around a corner to see him sitting on the ground in pain, his arms clutching his side. He looked furious.

The adrenaline was coursing through her body at a tremendous rate. She didn't want to see his temper as a result of her assault on him. Mirassa continued to run as fast as her legs could carry her.

When she reached her home she fumbled with the key at the door. And as soon as she was inside, she slammed the door shut locking it. The girl leant her back against it and slid to the floor, crying uncontrollably.

Maka came around the corner from the lounge to see what was going on. Upon seeing Mirassa in this state she ran over and took her in her arms .

"It's alright" Maka whispered soothingly.

Whatever happened, it must have been serious, Mirassa didn't cry very often.

"What happened?" she asked once the young girls sobs had reduced to small hiccups.

"He's here" she said simply burying her face in her hands.

Maka didn't need to ask who 'he' was. She should have known. There was only one person in the world that could upset her like this. She held Mirassa even closer. This wasn't supposed to happen…
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 9: Kidnapped

Later that night, Mirassa was laying in bed trying to get to sleep. That seemed impossible though, her thoughts about what had happened earlier were still lingering in her mind. She sat up and turned on her tiny reading lamp. Mirassa brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them tightly.

"Why, of all places did he have to come here?" she asked herself miserably burying her face into the sheets.

------------------Flashback

Mirassa was sitting in the lounge with a mug of hot chocolate in her hands. It was more comfortable here then on the floor in the hallway. Maka sat down next to Mirassa, and pulled her in for a hug, which she needed very much right now. The elderly woman sat there, waiting for Anuket to tell her what had happened.

"Are you ready to tell me yet, or do you want a little more time?" she asked, trying to get the girl to confide in her.

"No, I'm alright now, well… as much as I can be in these circumstances anyway" replied Mirassa wearily.

She began telling Maka about the events that happened only an hour or so earlier. Everything had been going so well. They had all sat together laughing, joking and overall having a great time. She explained how all her friends had been asked to dance until she was the only one left.

"I was sitting at the bar when the lights went low. I was just thinking about how I was the only one left, when a man came up to me from behind. I couldn't see his face. It was too dark. He asked me if I wanted to dance, I felt a little left out because I was the only one who didn't have a partner, so I accepted. We danced for about half an hour, he seemed really nice. He asked me if I wanted to stand outside for a few minutes because it was really hot in there. I agreed to that as well. When we were outside and I turned around to face him… He looks just like he did nine years ago, only older now. But I recognised him straight away"

Maka looked a little stunned. "Marik was the one you were dancing with?! I thought he was going to come into this later"

"No. that was him" Mirassa continued miserably, "But the thing is… he didn't recognise me at all"

Unlike the other news, this bit didn't surprise Maka at all.

"Well you have altered a lot over the years you know. I probably wouldn't have recognised you if I hadn't seen you for, how long did you say? Nine years? You were only seven Miri. You've had time to grow and develop your own sense of style"

Maka leaned in closer to her with a smirk "And let's face it, physically, you've filled out very nicely since then"

"But that shouldn't matter. I can't have changed that much in appearance!"

"Well that's because boys are thick, it's a fact of life" Maka said plainly. "I suppose you should be thankful Marik didn't remember you. He might have taken you straight back to Egypt otherwise.

That might well have been true, but in a strange way Mirassa almost wanted to find him again and tell him who she was. She wanted to see if he would treat her the same way he did when they were children. If he didn't, that would most definitely prove he was just a typical, shallow male, only interested in physical appearance. She was suddenly aware that Maka had just asked her a question.

"Marik didn't follow you did he?"

"No, I don't think so. The last I saw of him, he was still on the floor" Mirassa replied thoughtfully. Maka looked confused.

"Why was he on the floor?" she raised an eyebrow, she hoped Mirassa hadn't done anything to infuriate Marik but it was wordlessly confirmed when Mirassa gave her a shifty look. "You didn't hit him…"

"No! Well, I only slapped him… and kicked him a couple of times. But he deserved it! That was a long time coming! Don't look at me like that Maka, I had to. I accidentally called him by his name! He never mentioned it to me once. He grabbed my arms and wouldn't let me go until I told him who I was"

Maka now looked worried "Oh Miri…You do realise that now Marik knows you've met before, he may try and find you again don't you?"

'If his temper is as bad as you say it is Miri…he wont take kindly to being hit by a woman' Maka thought to herself, not wanting to worry the girl even more.

"I realise that, but I'm sure it'll be ok. He didn't follow me and wouldn't even know where to start" Mirassa replied trying to convince Maka, and even more so, herself.

--------------------End flashback

Mirassa was certain that Marik hadn't followed her. She kept looking over her shoulder the entire way home. That kick in the ribs would most definitely have winded him for a while. But what if he did find her again? Would he take her back to Egypt or just let her be?

"Why was he even here in the first place? I thought the men in his family were forbidden to leave the tomb…"

She couldn't think of a single reason as to why his father would allow him to leave that place. Mr Ishtar was very strict. What could have happened?

Mirassa casually glanced across her room while she tried to come up with an answer to this but stopped suddenly, her blood running cold as her eyes landed on something. The box containing the necklace. Could Marik have been the one who sent them to her?

Everything seemed to point to him, the style of writing, the Egyptian dress and jewellery. The way he acted towards her also made more sense. It was almost as if he had seen her before, Mirassa had just never thought about it at the time. She was too distracted with the moves he made on her. The way he held her when they danced together, she noticed how he kept smelling her hair and nuzzled into her neck.

Now that she thought about it, you just didn't do that sort of thing if you had only just met that person minutes earlier. If he had only just seen her at the night club, he would have been more talkative and verbally flirtatious. She only danced with him because she was feeling lonely, perhaps that was why she allowed him to kiss her like that.

"I can't believe it, he's been stalking me! Everything points to him, he must have followed me there…"

Mirassa felt nothing but fury towards Marik but her anger quickly turned to fear as she realised something else.

"He knows where I live…oh please no" she whispered desperately.

Mirassa quickly and cautiously jumped out of bed and looked out of her window onto the deserted street. It was eerily quiet. Mirassa looked around carefully, trembling slightly. She kept thinking she could see something in the shadows across the street but thought it was just her paranoia.

She closed the window and locked it. The curtains were drawn as well for added security because she didn't feel safe anymore knowing Marik was around. Mirassa crawled back under her bed sheets. She wouldn't be able to sleep with the light off so she dimmed it a little instead.

"I can only pray that Marik doesn't come back for me" She thought as she drifted off into an uneasy sleep.
--------------------------------

Marik watched her every move from his hiding place across the street. She had closed the window; there was no point in watching her now.

He was still reeling from the fact that she dared to attack him, but quickly pushed that feeling of anger aside as he reminded himself that he didn't want to scare her away any more with his temper. He had done nothing but show his affection for her and she threw it back in his face.

She was definitely enjoying herself, he could tell, from the way she held on to him while they danced. He could feel her blush and smile as he kissed her neck and pulled her closer to him.

She changed the moment they stepped outside and she saw his face. Marik was very interested now as to who she was. He had no memory of ever seeing this girl in his whole life. She was strikingly beautiful and he would never have let one as elegant as her pass him by.

"Who is she? Why does she look upon me with such fear and resentment?" he asked himself as he remembered the look of terror that crossed her features.

As far as he could remember, he had never given any woman reason to fear him. He had been with more then his fair share of women over the past few years. Actually, he had never been out with the same woman more then once.

"Could she have been one of them?" Marik thought, straining his memory for traces of the girl he had become so infatuated with but to no avail.

"Aaargh! It's no use, I just don't remember!" he growled in frustration.

Marik sat down on the curb.

"What could I have done to make her react the way she did? I never even got the chance to tell her it was I who sent her those gifts and letters…" he thought sadly.

Marik sat for a while longer, his legs brought up to his chest, his arms folded and resting on his knees. Thoughts swirled around in his head; he didn't know what to do. Surely he should just leave her alone; she had made it perfectly clear that she didn't want him the way he wanted her. A plan formed in his head, he wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer. Not after all the trouble and effort he had gone to.

"She will probably hate me at first, but that will change. Soon she will see that I am the only one for her" Marik thought, smiling confidently.

He continued to scheme, thinking about how he would achieve this and the problems he could encounter if he didn't. The fact that she knew him and was friends with his greatest enemy was one of them. If Yugi ever told her about him and his plans to become the next pharaoh and take over the world, she might start talking. His appearance for one thing. He might need to get closer to the pharaoh at some point and at the moment, using the millennium rod to control others was his form of a disguise. She could ruin everything if left to wander free!

"I have no choice; she must be separated from her friends. I can be very persuasive. Eventually she will come to me willingly. We were meant to be together…" Marik said standing up, walking back into the shadows, casting a final glance at the girl's dimly lit bedroom window as he went.

-------------------------next day

"Mirassa! Where did you go last night? We were worried" Tea asked with a concerned look.

"I felt a little tired after a while and decided to go home, must have been the drink. You guys looked like you were having a lot of fun so I decided to let you be" Mirassa lied.

She didn't want to explain what happened last night all over again.

Yugi had a thoughtful look on his face, or at least that's what it looked like. In reality he was having a conversation with the spirit in his millennium puzzle, Yami.

"I don't think she's being entirely truthful with us Yugi, she seems distracted, frightened even" said Yami.

"I agree, but Mirassa really doesn't seem like she wants to talk about it does she? I think she'll tell us when she's ready. She might tell Tea first. You know, girl talk. It's probably nothing to worry about" replied Yugi.

The spirit looked at Yugi from his soul room with a serious look on his face.

"I hope so. Yet, I can't help but feel she's keeping something very important from us. I think it's best if we don't involve her in this situation with Marik. She might get hurt along the way; he's very dangerous and won't hesitate to use our friends to get what he wants"

"Maybe… I guess we'll just have to wait and see how things turn out"

The conversation ended between Yugi and Yami. Everyone else seemed to buy Mirassa's story. Yugi hoped that whatever it was that was bothering her, she would share with them soon.

-------------------------------- later on

"That was a great duel Joey!" exclaimed Tea.

Joey had just been up against Weevil Underwood and emerged victorious despite the fact that the worm had cheated by sneaking a card into the blonde's deck that could potentially ruin his chances. Joey very was relieved. Not only because he'd won a rather difficult duel, but because he finally got his chance to impress Mirassa. If he had lost against Weevil, he was certain he would have lost what little respect she held for him. At least that's what he believed anyway.

"That was very impressive the way you turned the whole duel around, we thought you were going to lose! I bet that's what you wanted everyone to think wasn't it? To throw him off guard" Mirassa said, trying to boost his confidence a little.

Joey smiled widely at her and began to brag. "Yeah! It was all part of the plan. I'm sorry I had to worry ya like that. I was never in any serious trouble; I just had to let that bug think so. It's called tactics. That guy always lets his guard down when he thinks he's winning"

Joey glanced quickly at the other three which included Tea, Tristan and Mr Motou, who were looking at him in disbelief thinking

'Part of the plan my arse!' but they decided not to say anything as Joey had obviously tried hard to win that duel.

Even Tristan decided to keep quiet this time. 'You've won this round Wheeler'

The five walked through the town looking out for potential challengers for Joey. They continued to chat about random stuff until the talk changed to the recent string of thefts.

"Rarehunters?" Questioned Mirassa. "Who are they?"

Joey began to explain "They're a group of thieves who go round stealing rare cards from duellists! Ya have to be really careful if ya ever come across one of em. If ya don't have any cards they want, they'll probably beat ya up or something"

"Not that we'd ever let that happen..." Tristan added quickly seeing the troubled looks on the girls' faces. "It's ok. They probably wouldn't go for you ladies, you don't have a deck. I guess they'll only go after duellists participating in Battle City. Like our own little Joey here"

Joey looked annoyed "I'll have ya know I've already met one of them! They took my red eyes from me, but Yugi showed him who the man was!"

Mirassa looked surprised at this "You've met one of them? What do they look like? Are they really that bad?"

"Yep! He beat me with a really powerful deck. He had three complete sets of Exodia in there! I couldn't tell Yugi how be beat me cus he said he'd tear up my red eyes! When it was over though, the rarehunter guy went crazy. He got this glowy eye thingy on his head and started screaming. Turns out he was being controlled by some guy, I know it sounds weird but it's true. He's after Yugi's millennium puzzle, you know, that thing he wears around his neck all the time? Anyway, this guy started to speak through this rarehunter telling us about how he was going to be the new pharaoh blah blah blah, said his name was Marik or something…"

Mirassa's eyes went wide as Joey continued to talk about what happened.

"Did you say Marik?" she asked Joey, needing to confirm the name just in case she was going crazy.

"Yeah, are you ok? Ya sound a little spooked. Don't worry! I'll protect ya. Marik won't lay a finger on that pretty head of yours!" Joey said rather loudly putting an arm around Mirassa's shoulders protectively.

Tea looked at the young girl standing next to Joey. She seemed really distant.

"Mirassa?" she asked waving her hand in front of her face. "Do you know this Marik guy?"

Mirassa quickly looked up.

"No… I don't, I thought Joey said Mark. I'm just relieved I was wrong, that's all" she lied, smiling cheerfully trying her best to brush off the feeling of dread that was in her stomach.

"I'll never get away from him; it seems that we were destined to meet again Marik…" Mirassa thought dejectedly.

There was no way she would be able to forget about him now, her friends would realise something was wrong. She couldn't handle telling them the truth about her past, she decided to go home. She quickly thought of an excuse.

"Oh no! That duel must have lasted longer then I thought. I have to go; I promised Grandma that I would help her with something. She's probably waiting for me right now, I'll see you tomorrow ok?"

Mr Motou spoke up "Are you sure you're alright Mirassa? You look pale, well paler then you normally do anyway" he said correcting himself quickly.

The Egyptian girl smiled down at him "I'm fine, don't worry. It's just that time of the month"

They all looked confused, except for Tea, until she whispered something to them. The men looked slightly uncomfortable.

They waved goodbye as Mirassa ran down the street. When she turned around the corner, she reduced her speed to a walking pace.
----------------------------

Mirassa walked along the street, deep in thought. She was too engrossed in her own problems to notice she was being followed by four men in purple robes.

As she walked further away from the town center they began to pick up their pace. Mirassa felt cold all of a sudden, she had this awful feeling she was being followed and glanced behind her. She saw them; they all had their eyes fixed on her. As she watched them they picked up their pace to a fast jog. Mirassat's heart stopped.

'These must be those rarehunters everyone's been talking about, what do they want with me? Marik couldn't have sent them could he?'

She didn't wait to find out. Mirassa bombed it down the deserted street. It was late and most people had gone home. Only the nasties were out now.

She was still quite a way from home. Mirassa knew she wouldn't be able to out run them for long. After all, she was only a fifteen year old girl and they were men most likely to be in their late twenties to early thirties.

She was starting to panic now. She could hear them catching up to her.

Suddenly a foot hooked her ankle from behind and she went falling to the ground. Mirassa was sprawled over the pavement, her ankle was killing her and she had scrapes all up her arms and legs from the impact to the cold concrete.

She felt a rough hand grip her by her collar and pull her up. There she faced the rarehunter who tripped her. He had a superior smirk on his face and raised a hand. Mirassa's face stung as his hand made contact with her cheek.

She looked up at him, her eyes beginning to water. He raised his hand again; this time she closed her eyes and braced herself as she waited for the blow. It never came.

The girl slowly looked up at the rarehunter, his hand was frozen midair and he was shaking uncontrollably.

"What's happening?" she thought fearfully.

The rarehunter started to beg "I'm sorry Master, I didn't know!"

He fell to the ground in a heap. The other rarehunters looked scared. They had distant looks on their faces which remained for a minute or two; they all glanced down at the girl at the same time before answering together "Yes Master"

Mirassa was too confused to understand what was going on. Her mind was still dizzy from the slap on her cheek.

The other three rarehunters gathered around her. One of them gently picked her up avoiding her injuries. Another placed a blindfold over her eyes. Her hands were carefully bound to prevent rubbing against the scrapes.

She didn't know what to do. There was no way she could escape with her ankle the way it was. Mirassa was terrified, she hated not being able to see or move at the same time and the fact that these men were rarehunters didn't make it any better.

Suddenly Mirassa felt a damp cloth being placed over her mouth. She began to struggle and tried to scream but couldn't find the energy to do it. Her eyes became heavy and she soon found herself giving in to the sleep that called out to her.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 10: Shocking Discoveries


Marik sat on the bed beside the sleeping girl. He had his rarehunters use chloroform to send her to sleep. She was extremely distressed, not to mention frightened by the ambush. Plus, if she was asleep, it didn't look as suspicious to anyone passing by then if they saw her struggling.

Marik was furious by the treatment she received from one of his rarehunters. The man deliberately set out to hurt her. That blunder was punishable by death, however sentenced to spend the rest of eternity in the shadow realm was more horrifying, so he did that instead. His soul would suffer for that mistake.

"I ordered them to bring her to me unharmed!" he thought angrily as he watched the girl beside him.

This little incident would not improve his chances in seducing her. This was more like taking one pigeon step forward and fifty giant ogre steps back. She would be even more wary of him now then she was before. Marik sighed in frustration and turned to look at the girls face again.

"She looks just like an angel when she sleeps, so innocent…" he thought longingly.

He watched the girl breathing, her chest rising and falling at a slow and steady rate. Marik's gaze wandered over her body. Curves like hers were meant to be explored and he couldn't wait for the time when she would willingly allow him to do 'that' and maybe more. Her frame was tiny compared to his. He first noticed this when they danced together at the nightclub. The top of her head came a few inches below his chin. He had to bend down a bit so he could embrace her properly. She looked very delicate, almost as if the slightest movement would cause her to break.

"She looks so frail, a woman as beautiful as her needs protection. I can give her that" Marik thought, smiling gently.

He moved a hand over her face and pulled a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Her hair is so soft…"

Marik began to run his fingers through her long blonde tresses. The girl stirred in response to these actions though she was still deep in sleep. The Egyptian twirled a lock around his finger. He leaned closer to her face and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. He just couldn't get enough of her scent.

Marik reluctantly stood up to leave. He took one last glance at his sweetheart before closing the door behind him. He locked it just to be sure. If she woke up while he was gone, she wouldn't waste any time trying to get away from him. His rarehunters were not to be trusted either. They would certainly make a move if given the opportunity. Marik went to his bike and drove off. There was one other thing he had to do before returning to his queen's side.
-------------------------------------------

Maka was frantically pacing back and forth in the living room. Glancing out of the window every time she heard a noise.

"Where is she, It's late! Miri would never stay out at this hour without calling to let me know she's safe!"

The elderly woman was beginning to think something terrible had happened, but she couldn't jump to conclusions. If she did call Mirassa's friends or the police, then more then likely, she would walk through the door a minute later. Maka made herself sit down on one of the sofas in front of the fireplace.

'I'll give her one more hour. If she doesn't come home then, I will start making calls to her friends. They might have seen her' She thought hopefully.

Maka stared into the fireplace. Maybe there was nothing to worry about. After all, this wasn't the first time Mirassa had gone missing for hours on end.

---------------Flashback

"Where is she?!!" bellowed Mirassa's father.

His daughter had done a disappearing act and had been hiding from him for hours. Everyone was looking for her, servants, guards; even he had been brought into it.

"I'm sorry sir, I can't find her anywhere" Maka said quietly.

She hated it when Mr Benu lost his temper. There was no reasoning with him when he was like this. That didn't stop her trying though.

"She's only eight years old. The poor child is still upset over her mother's death. There will be no one to help her through this ordeal. She's probably very frightened right now" Maka reasoned.

Mr Benu's temper seemed to subside a little bit. It was true. His wife had passed away only months before and he was too caught up in his own grief to notice how his daughter was coping. He confined himself to the library and worked non stop. He was still annoyed though. Finally after a few moments he spoke.

"Find her Maka.. Reassure her that everything will be fine, she trusts you. You can be with her when the time comes. When she has calmed down enough, bring her to me. She 'will' receive the mark as her mother did. It is tradition. Make her understand that"

He turned and walked away from her. Ipet sighed, this could take a while. Mirassa was very good at hiding. She began to walk towards her living quarters to get her robe. It was getting dark now and would get very cold as the night wore on.

It was understandable as to why Mirassa had run off. She was due to have a mark carved into her hip to show she was promised to someone. It would show her origins as a member of the Heka clan and also her future as a Tombkeeper. Each clan had their own crest. Anuket's family's was a phoenix; the Ishtar's was an ankh. Not just any sort of ankh, there was a specific pattern to it. It had hieratic text inside the band. Usually in these circumstances, the two crests were brought together. Anuket's mark would have the phoenix perched above the ankh with its fiery tail coiled around it. It would look nice to anyone else, like a tattoo almost, but the fact remained that is was just a physical, ritualistic contract to show she was destined to become an Ishtar.

Mirassa would bear that mark for the rest of her life. No other man was allowed to touch her, or be involved with her romantically once she received it. That was the law amongst the clans in Egypt

Once Maka reached her room she headed towards her simple dresser and pulled out her servants robe. She was about to leave when she noticed something out the corner of her eye. There was a bump in the slightly creased bedsheets. It was small, about the size of a little girl. Maka smiled faintly and walked over to the bed. She sat down carefully and tilted her head to see big icy blue eyes peeking back at her from under the covers.

"Hello sweetheart" she whispered fondly. "We've been looking for you"

The girl looked up at Maka, eyes red and watery from crying.

"Daddy shouted at you earlier" Mirassa stated. "Im sorry, it's my fault…"

Maka leaned towards the youngster and picked her up, still wrapped inside the blankets. She sat her in her lap and cuddled her tightly, rocking back and forth like her mother would have done in this situation. They sat like that for a while. Eventually Maka remembered why she was looking for Mirassa in the first place.

"Miri, your father is looking for you…" she felt the girl tense up again. "It has to be done sweetheart, and I'll be there with you. You have to look on the bright side of things, it won't last forever. Once it's over, you will never have to experience it ever again"

This offered very little comfort to the eight year old, but she understood that it was going to happen eventually. She couldn't spend the rest of her life hiding away from her father. He would find her eventually. Maka was going to be there with her, that thought alone made things easier. Mirassa gripped the older woman's robes and nodded meekly.

Maka stood up with the bundle in her arms to find the father who would soon cause his daughter this excruciating pain. She couldn't understand why the written contract wasn't enough, but also knew there wasn't anything she could do about it. All Maka could do was be there for the girl when she needed a shoulder to cry on.

------------------End Flashback

Mirassa had endured the ritual. It took a lot to hold her down. Maka still had nightmares about that night. Mirassa's screams could be heard through the passageways, she was told. The girl recovered from the ordeal very quickly, physically anyway. It took years for her to get over it mentally.

A knock on the door made Ipet snap back into reality. She jumped up from the sofa thinking it might be Mirassa. She bolted to the door and opened it expectantly, hoping to see the girl she had cared for, all these years. It wasn't her. Maka's face fell in disappointment.

Instead of the young fifteen year old girl, she saw a man with sandy blonde hair and tanned skin. She looked him over. He was wearing a sleeveless hooded purple shirt with chains on the front and black pants with pockets on both sides of his legs. He was wearing Egyptian jewellery on his arms and neck. He looked back at her with piercing violet eyes. Maka finally found her voice.

"May I help you?" she asked him.

"Yes, I am here to pick up a few things for your…" he looked at her thoughtfully "Granddaughter, I assume?"

Maka looked at him wide eyed. "Who are you and where is she?" she asked frantically. She didn't trust this man.

"She is safe, for now…" he strode past Maka and began to walk up the staircase. "Where is her room?"

"Wait a minute! You can't just charge in here and expect me to show you to her room without an explanation!"

She couldn't believe how rude this man was. Barging into her home like this, but her words seemed to fall on deaf ears because he was already upstairs and opening doors to the various rooms. Maka ran up after him, she caught him just as he was about to open the door to Mirassa's room. She put her hand out and stopped him.

"Who do you think you are? Barging in here like you own the place. Where is my granddaughter?" Maka was becoming angry now, he looked rather menacing but she didn't care at the moment. He knew of Mirassa's whereabouts.

The man looked at her before answering. "My name is Marik"

Maka's anger turned into shock. 'So this is Marik…' she thought 'Now I understand what Mirassa means. He seems very cold. It's a shame that things have turned out the way they have, he's a very handsome young man…'

She quickly shook her head clear of these thoughts. Marik was the source of Mirassa's misery for the past nine years and she mustn't forget that.

"What do you want…?" she was worried now. 'What is he looking for? She doesn't have anything of value here?'

Marik took hold of Maka's shoulders and moved her away from the door. He was very strong; she couldn't free herself from his grip.

"I sent your granddaughter a few gifts over the past week; I have come to collect them. She cannot use them while they are here" he opened the door and began to rummage through the drawers and cupboards.

Maka was confused. If he had sent any gifts to Mirassa, then why hadn't she told 'her' about it? She glanced up to see Marik looking at her with an amused look on his face.

"Did she not mention it to you? I thought women told each other everything…" he said turning away to look through the cupboard again. "Here they are…"

Marik pulled out several boxes with elegant ribbons around them. Maka remained silent; she didn't know what to do. This man had Mirassa somewhere and was about to leave without telling her anything, like how she was. She stood in front of the door, glaring at Marik. He simply laughed at her and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "If looks could kill…"

He turned and put the boxes on the bed. When he turned around again he had pulled out his millennium rod. Maka knew about this particular item. She had over heard Mirassa's father talking about it when they had returned from the Ishtar's home. The millennium item's were very powerful and had the ability to send people to the 'shadow realm'. Maka didn't know what the 'shadow realm' was exactly but it sounded nasty. This particular item could control people's minds and body she remembered.

Maka flinched slightly. Marik noticed, it reminded him of a question he wanted to ask.

"You seem familiar with my millennium rod and the abilities it possesses, which brings me to ask how you know about it. Who are you, or more importantly… who is your granddaughter? What is her name?"

Maka remained silent, she couldn't tell him that, they had only just begun to live they're lives in freedom. Instead she breathed deeply and faced him, more determined then ever, not to let him intimidate her.

"I will tell you nothing" she said firmly.

Marik frowned at her but it quickly turned into a smirk. "I wonder if you'll say the same when your granddaughter's safety in on the line…"

Maka's confident look turned into a worried one. He wouldn't harm her would he? Not after he had kidnapped her, sent her gifts and spent an evening with her? Maka was sure he was bluffing.

"You wouldn't…" she said quietly. Marik smiled even wider. He had a feeling the old woman would change her mind if she thought the girl was in danger. He decided to try this plan.

"I wouldn't be to sure of that, it doesn't matter to me what happens to her, as long as she lives… You'd be surprised what you can live through you know. Now ask yourself this, do you want to be the cause of her suffering or do you want to help her by telling me her name now. I can always ask her friends if you don't tell me, but the difference being that if you do, she remains unharmed"

A conflict was raging in Maka's mind. She wasn't sure what to do. Marik couldn't possibly mean what he had said about harming Mirassa, but if he did, that meant she would be the reason for Mirassa's pain if he carried out his threats. In the end Maka decided she couldn't risk the girl's safety. Marik knew he had won seeing the struggle on the woman's face disappear. He was finally going to learn the name of his lotus flower. He waited in anticipation as the woman looked up at him.

"You met her nine years ago in Egypt. Her name is Mirassa Benu…"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 11: I Remember You

------------- Back on the boat

Mirassa dazedly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry and her head was throbbing. She sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes.

"What happened? Where am I?" she thought worriedly, looking around at her unfamiliar surroundings.

The room she was currently in had been beautifully decorated. It was truly a woman's room. She couldn't help but notice the feel of the soft mattress and silk bedsheets covering her. Mirassa gazed around in awe until she felt a slight chill touch her skin.

She moved to wrap her arms around herself to defend against the cold, only to discover she was wearing significantly less then she was the night before. Mirassa's gaze shot downwards, her eyes widening with horror. Her outer clothes had been removed, leaving her in her rather adult lingerie set. Mirassa quickly pulled the silk sheets up to cover herself. She tried to subdue the blush that had covered her face. She was so embarrassed. Mirassa knew exactly who was behind this and she did not like thinking about it.

"How dare he violate my privacy like this!" she growled under her breath. She had never felt so angry in all her short life. "When Marik shows his face, he will be in serious physical danger"

Mirassa swung her legs over the side of the bed. There was a wardrobe on the other side of the room; perhaps her clothes had been put in there. As she stood up, a sharp pain tore through her ankle. She collapsed onto the floor swearing in Arabic. Mirassa glanced at her foot. It was swollen and had a big ugly bruise on it.

"This must have happened when I was kidnapped by those rarehunters…" she thought, memories flooding back to her from the night before.

Mirassa attempted to stand up again. This time she put her weight on her uninjured foot. Using the wall and furniture for balance, she limped across the room towards the wardrobe. She smirked to herself when she finally reached her destination.

"Ha! There is nothing in this world I can't do! Now then, let's see what we have in here…"

Mirassa opened the door, a small problem emerging. There was absolutely nothing in it, except a few hangers. The girls smirk vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

"He can't possibly expect me to walk around like this!" she exclaimed.

Mirassa's chances of escaping were growing ever thinner. She had a twisted ankle, she was stuck in a room which was probably locked and under tight security and even if she could escape, she had no clothes to wear. She did not plan on walking through Domino her undies anytime soon.

Mirassa slammed the wardrobe door shut in frustration. She slowly limped towards the small round window and looked out onto the pier.

"Well at least I know where I am, sort of…" she thought.

The girl had never been to the Domino pier before. The ship that was due to bring them here had to re route to the next town, leaving her and Maka to drive the rest of the way.

Mirassa continued to gaze out of the tiny window. There was no use trying to catch anyone's attention, the glass looked sound proof, plus the fact that the men below were all wearing purple robes. This was probably a private dock.

"A ship full of rarehunters…" she thought bitterly.

A shuffling sound from behind made Mirassa spin around in surprise. Marik was leaning against the door frame with his arms across his chest. He was regarding her with a very apparent smile on his face. Mirassa felt very uncomfortable right now. She had hoped she could find something more suitable to wear before he came back.

Marik looked at her tiny form with much more interest now then he had shown at the club. Mirassa clutched the silk sheets instinctively, the last thing she needed was for it to fall in front of him. She stood up straight, looking him eye to eye, sending him a hateful glare. This was no time to let him intimidate her. She had to show Marik that she wasn't weak, despite the anxiety she felt inside.

Silence filled the room. After what seemed like an eternity, Marik began walking towards the girl, closing the door behind him.

"It seems that Shai has brought you to me again my dear. I must say, you have certainly blossomed since I last saw you nine years ago…" Marik was very close now.

Mirassa's glare faltered ever so slightly. It looked like Marik had finally remembered her, but that didn't matter, she would still stand up to him.

"And you haven't changed one bit; you're just as arrogant now as you were then, if not more so" she spat back.

The sandy blonde Egyptian smiled down at Mirassa fondly. She was obviously trying to put on a brave face, he found it rather endearing.

Marik couldn't believe his luck when the old woman had told him the girl's name. Not only did he find an incredibly beautiful female to be his queen, but she was promised to him anyway by law. There was a marriage contract, and even if she refused him, all he had to do was show it to officials. It was a win/win situation. He decided to keep this information to himself for now.

"I don't know what to say, it appears that I was wrong about you" Marik started.

"How about an apology!" the girl cried out.

Mirassa wanted to hear him say sorry for what he said and did to her, but that didn't mean she would forgive him afterwards.

"Yes, I suppose that would be the best place to start" he said quietly. "I am truly very sorry I said all those things to you Mirassa, I was under a lot of pressure what with my tombkeepers initiation coming up. My father didn't help the situation either, he was controlling my life and I hated him for it. I guess the reason I picked on you was because you were a walking talking symbol of the life my father was committing me to. But now that I've put that life behind me, would you ever consider giving me another chance?"

Marik took hold of Mirassa's hands in his own. It was just as well she had tucked the sheet in to prevent it falling down. He looked deeply into her bright blue eyes, hoping to receive a smile or a hug, anything, other then the filthy look she was giving him right now. Mirassa pulled her tiny hands out of his and swung one of them, slapping him hard across the face.

Marik stumbled, looking shocked. He hadn't expected her to react like that after he made his apology. He had meant every word he said to her as well. No one regretted his actions more then he did. If he had been nice to Mirassa instead of teasing her and hurting her emotionally as well as physically, he would be marrying her in the next few months. She might have been more willing and could possibly have held feelings for him too. Marik wanted to kick himself for making such a mess of things.

"I refuse your apology Marik! I just wanted to hear you say it. I couldn't give a d**n about the pressure you were under; you think you were the only one who had problems back then?!"

Mirassa's pent up rage was finally being released. She figured that Marik would be angry afterwards, but right now she just didn't care. She needed to get this off her chest.

"If things had been different, then I would have cared. We could have helped and comforted each other. I was prepared to do that, despite the fact that my father was forcing me to marry someone I didn't know. I was just as unhappy about the marriage as you were, the only difference being that I would never have acted that way towards you, or anyone for that matter. You were so hurtful towards me, and don't you dare try and tell me it was stress! You enjoyed every minute of it; I could see it in your eyes! I hate you and I always will!"

Mirassa was shaking now. She had never let her temper get the better of her before, but this was an exception. She could tell that her words had affected Marik. He was very silent; she hoped that she had finally gotten through to him. Perhaps he would give up and let her go home.

Marik turned away from Mirassa. He walked over to the door and picked up a few boxes he had brought in with him earlier while the girls back was turned. He set them down on the bed.

"I don't know if you knew this Mirassa, but it was I who sent those letters and gifts to you…" Marik spoke softly. "I spent a lot of time and effort trying to find the perfect gift for you; I never heard your opinion, what do you think?"

Mirassa looked at him incredulously. "Have you not heard a word I just said to you?"

Marik pulled the white dress out of the box and turned to look at her. His voice was low and serious.

"Yes Mirassa, I heard every word. But you don't seem to understand the situation here. It doesn't matter what your opinion of me is. You and I are to marry as the contract says. Unfortunately, I have some business here in domino but as soon as I am finished we will return to Egypt where the wedding will take place as planned by our parents. I assume you are of age now?" he asked.

"Not yet…" Mirassa answered slowly. This wasn't what she hoped would happen.

"How long until you are then?" Marik pressed.

Mirassa remained silent. Her sixteenth birthday was less then a week away and fast approaching. She didn't want to tell Marik how close it was because whatever business he had, the timing would be perfect anyway. She couldn't believe her bad luck. Marik was set on marrying her no matter what she said or did to him. How could she argue with someone who would just brush it off like this? Marik, seeing the look on her face, had a thought.

"Is that what you and your friends were celebrating the other night? Your birthday takes place very soon, doesn't it?"

The young girls silence was all he needed to confirm his suspicions. He smiled as he held the dress out to Mirassa. She made no move to take it.

"Look, I have no objection to you walking around the way you are, but im sure that you do. This is the only thing for you to wear anyway. I suggest you take it. My rarehunters may get a little excited if they see you walking around in that little number" he said smirking at her. "Besides, as my future queen, you should be wearing something more fitting then bedsheets"

As much as she hated to admit it, Marik was right. She couldn't walk around wearing bedsheets while she was here, nor could she walk around in lingerie. Those rarehunters of his had given her a perverted look when she was being kidnapped; she didn't want to encourage them further then that.

Feeling defeated for now, Mirassa snatched the dress out of Marik's hand and limped towards the bathroom to change. Marik watched her slowly retreating form from his spot next to the bed. He didn't realise that his rarehunter had hurt her that much. He was very glad he had sent him to the shadow realm now. Marik walked over to a drawer and found a first aid kit. There he pulled out some bandages. He walked back over to the bed and sat down, waiting for his future bride to return.

Five minutes later, the door opened. Mirassa slowly limped out again carrying the sheets she had used to cover herself up. When she lifted her gaze to see Marik waiting for her she let out an annoyed sigh.

"Why are you still here?" she asked angrily.

Marik's eyes looked up at her from his deck. He couldn't stop the smile spreading across his face. The dress suited her. She was incredibly beautiful and thanked the gods once again for giving her to him. Now he had to win her over. Marik still believed he could do it. All he had to do was show her his kind side, something he hadn't seen himself for years.

"Come here" he said gently, patting the space next to him on the bed. "I'll wrap that foot up for you, it will heal quicker"

"No thank you! I'd rather it go sceptic and fall off then let you near it" she replied bitterly.

Marik reached behind his back for the millennium rod that was tucked in his belt. He didn't take control of her mind as such, but made her more willing to sit down on the bed. She did so. When she was settled he released his grip on the rod. Mirassa didn't know what had happened, but she dismissed it quickly as Marik took her ankle and rested it on his lap. He began to wrap it up, taking care to wrap it tightly but not so much that it caused her pain. Mirassa was surprised with by gentleness that he showed her but hid it by sulkily crossing her arms like a small child.

"By the way Marik" she started. "Who took my clothes off?"

"I had one of my female servants do it" he lied.

Mirassa was already angry at him; he didn't want to get another slap from her. He had taken her clothes off to make her more comfortable, and a little bit for himself he had to admit. He was a teenager after all, if given the chance; any other young man would have done the same. She was a very appealing female after all and someone like her would bring out anyone's curiosity. She accepted that story, thankfully. She seemed a little less stressed as well. Perhaps that was the thing bothering her more then anything else. Marik didn't want to guess how a woman's mind worked.

Marik soon began to think of other methods he could use to change Mirassa's opinion of him. This was going to be harder then he thought. He finished wrapping the girls foot up and carefully set it down on the bed. He stood up and began to walk towards the door.

"I have some business to attend to now, but I will come by and see you later. For now you need to rest. Don't try and walk, you'll only strain your ankle more, and don't worry about my rarehunters. None of them will touch you here, they wouldn't dare…"

With that, Mirassa was on her own again. This was going to be an interesting few days. She tried to think of a plan to escape but it would be tricky with her ankle the way it was. She needed a miracle.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 12: False Affection


Several hours had passed since Marik's visit and Mirassa was growing 'very' bored. There was absolutely nothing to do in this place. Marik had obviously gone to a lot of trouble to make her feel comfortable it seemed, but he forgot to provide ways for the girl to entertain herself.

Mirassa had been spending the last few hours trying to remember the healing spells she had copied down from books in her father's library. So far, she had managed to heal the grazes on her arms and legs. That wasn't too much of a problem because they were the most common injuries she had whilst growing up. Healing a twisted ankle however was proving to be very difficult as she couldn't remember the correct spell.

"Dammit! If I'd known this was going to happen, I would have spent less time watching TV and more time learning those spells" she thought, mentally kicking herself for getting so far behind in her studies.

Mirassa's ankle wasn't hurting her as much as it had been, which she had to admit was a welcome change. Her patience was growing very thin by this time. Mirassa lay back into the soft pillows and looked up at the ceiling. She closed her eyes and began to think about home, wondering if Maka was alright. She must have realised something was wrong, the woman wasn't stupid. Mirassa found herself wishing she had told her guardian about the gifts now. It might not have changed anything but they may have been better prepared.

As Mirassa mused about this, another thought pushed its way into her head.

"Marik must have been to my house! This dress was in my wardrobe along with everything else. If he's hurt Maka in any way, he'll wish he was never born!"

She sat up straight as the door opened. A rarehunter walked in carrying a tray of food. The man was very tall and upon closer inspection she found that he too was Egyptian. His eyes were amber and he had a tattoo on the side of his face.

Odion watched the girl carefully as he set the tray down on the bedside table. His eyes seemed to hold a glint of kindness; somehow Mirassa couldn't help but feel she could trust this man.

"Master Marik is out at the moment, but he will be back very soon to see you" he bowed in respect to the girl before turning to leave.

Mirassa said nothing. She really didn't care what Marik was doing right now and hoped that whatever it was, a freak accident would occur, placing him in the line of fire. As Odion closed the door behind him he took one last glance at the girl. It was no surprise that this female had captured his Masters interest, she was very attractive. Odion couldn't help but worry for her though, she shouldn't be here.

"Well, he wasn't very talkative" Mirassa said quietly to herself as she took the tray from the bedside table. Even in her predicament, she wasn't about to let herself go hungry.

She had expected more then that from the rarehunter though, considering she had been on her own for so long. Mirassa couldn't put up with this; she didn't want Marik's company although she had a feeling she was going to get a lot of it in the near future. However, the next time he was here she would probably ask him for something to do to pass the time.

------------------------------later

"Master Marik" Odion called.

"What is it?" Marik growled irritably.

He wanted to get back to his queen; just being in the same room as her would calm his anger at being beaten by the pharaoh once again. This wasn't a good day, not only had he lost the duel but he had also lost one of his Egyptian god cards. Marik wasn't in the mood for anything else to go wrong today.

"This had better be good Odion. I have things to do and I don't want any more delays"

"I was just wondering what you were going to do with the girl" the taller man said. "She doesn't have anything to do with the pharaoh Master; she is innocent in all this"

Marik smirked. How typical of Odion to worry about the girls welfare. He doubted that his brother even knew who she was.

"Do you not recognise her Odion? Well, im not surprised. She has changed dramatically over the years…"

He couldn't help his grin from spreading further as Odion looked back at him with a very puzzled look.

"I'll put you out of your misery. Nine years ago Odion, do you remember the Benu family…?" Marik trailed off.

Odion was sure to catch on from such an obvious clue. Amber eyes widened as realisation hit him. Odion couldn't believe it. That girl was the very same little Mirassa Benu that visited them nine years ago? Well this was a surprising turn of events. Odion knew that Marik wasn't thrilled about the idea of marriage as he had more then once commented on the subject. What had changed since then? As if he really needed to ask. This young woman was the most beautiful and innocent looking creature he had ever seen. He was certain that was his Masters main reason for kidnapping her. What Odion couldn't understand was why Marik went to all the trouble of making her comfortable, unless…

"This girl must be very special" Odion thought smiling slightly. "She may be able to help bring Marik's kinder side to the surface, something I haven't seen in years…"

Marik turned his back to Odion "I am going to see Mirassa now. Make sure that we are not disturbed, is that clear?"

Odion bowed smiling as he watched his brother walking away down the corridor.

"Yes Master Marik"
----------------------------------

"Oh Great, I wonder who that could be…" Mirassa growled sarcastically under her breath as she heard a knock at the door.

She sat up as it was opened to reveal her fiancé Marik, that particular word made her shudder. He was smiling in a way that made her feel very nervous; violet eyes were examining her carefully as if he had never actually seen her before.

"What are you looking at? Don't you know it's rude to stare!" she spat viciously at him.

This made Marik snap back into reality; he shook his head lightly and moved towards Mirassa to sit down on the bed. He wanted to sit closer to her, but she was obviously not ready to accept him yet. Perhaps a few more compliments were in order.

"Did I happen to tell you before how gorgeous you look in that dress?" he asked, flashing her a charming smile.

"Yes you did" she replied in a nonchalant kind of way.

Mirassa couldn't help but feel a little flattered at this compliment, even if it was coming from Marik. She knew he was only doing this so she would eventually forgive him. What worried her the most, was that she might do just that. Mirassa reminded herself how he treated her when they were children. She regained control of her emotions and put on a blank face. He wasn't going to win that easily!

"How's your ankle?" Marik asked.

"Better then it was but it still hurts, thanks to you…"

"What about your arms and legs?" Marik continued as he took hold of her arms and pulled the sleeves up.

To his surprise, the cuts and grazes were gone. He stared at the girl, expecting an answer. How could they have just vanished?

"Oh come now Ishtar, surely you haven't forgotten that I come from the Heka clan? We are specialists in this area" she smirked at him. "He looks so adorable when he's confused. Wait! Don't be stupid! He's a pathetic jerk!"

"Ah yes, of course. How forgetful of me" he started. "So answer me this my dear. If you can heal yourself, then why not take care of your ankle at the same time?"

Mirassa felt herself going red with embarrassment and looked away from him. She didn't want to tell him it was because she couldn't remember the stupid spell. Marik would probably laugh at her. That was the last thing Mirassa needed, to have her confidence squashed out of her again. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. The girl looked over at Marik who had a genuine smile, not a smirk, on his features.

"Don't worry about it, people forget. There are a few things from my clan that I couldn't tell you without looking them up first" he looked into her eyes again.

Mirassa turned away quickly. He was doing it again! Trying to make out he was her friend, that he understood her! She had to get out of here, if she didn't escape soon; she knew she would end up forgiving him. The girl had her pride and giving in to Marik was something she would never do willingly, she hoped.

Marik had a feeling his sweetheart was beginning to weaken slightly to his advances. He shifted closer to her so their bodies were touching. He put an arm around her waist and hoisted her into his lap. She was very light; it was almost as if he was holding air. Mirassa's face was bright red against her tanned skin; she couldn't believe that Marik would do this. She tried to move herself away from his embrace but it only made Marik hold her even tighter. His scent was once again taking hold of her senses. As much as she despised him, he really did smell nice. Marik began to nuzzle her neck making her gasp in surprise. She didn't know what to do. It seemed that she was affecting him in the same way he was affecting her. Suddenly, Mirassa had an idea as to how she could use this to her advantage.

Marik began to grow more and more confident as she wasn't doing anything to stop him. He started to kiss her neck, lightly nipping every now and then. Mirassa took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves for what she was about to do. As Marik continued to kiss her, Mirassa slowly ran her hands down his back. Marik was surprised but quickly got over it thinking he had won. Her hands slid lower down his back and under his shirt. She traced the scars there. Mirassa knew about the tombkeepers initiation and felt sorry that he had to go through that, but that thought quickly exited her mind as she felt Marik's hand over her thigh. She tried her hardest not to tense up or move away from him and hugged him tighter to make him think she was enjoying this.

"Alright, I think I've convinced him" Mirassa thought nervously. "Now to put my acting skills into practice"

Mirassa pulled back from Marik which was quite difficult as he didn't want this to end. When she had finally prised him off her neck he looked like Christmas had been cancelled.

"Am I forgiven then?" he asked hopefully.

"I suppose so" Mirassa replied, smiling at him shyly. "Ok this isn't so difficult"

Marik was very relieved when she said this. He knew she would come around eventually.

"Marik, if I'm going to be here for a while, do you think I could have some of my personal belongings from home?" She asked sweetly, placing her hand on his chest lightly.

He wasn't too sure about this, he frowned slightly.

"Perhaps I should just say yes to her. After all, I wouldn't want to lose her affections so soon after gaining them…"

Mirassa was beginning to worry. If he said no, then all her chances of escaping would be thrown out the window. She needed her notebook with all her spells written inside. She could heal her ankle and use some others to get past the rarehunters. She needed to persuade Marik to agree with this. Mirassa squeezed him a little tighter, soft enough so it was subtle but also that he could feel it. She traced his chest with her finger and tugged occasionally at his shirt. Marik looked down at the girl, and she looked up at him with big innocent blue eyes.

"There was a necklace that belonged to my mother, and an old diary. She gave them to me before she died. They are very precious to me…" she acted, looking down as if she was about to cry.

Marik panicked. He didn't want to upset her, there was only one thing he could do. What harm could it do anyway? She would only be getting her personal belongings.

"Very well" he said softly, placing a finger under her chin and tilting her gaze back up at him.

"Yes! I can't believe how easy men are to manipulate. This is actually quite fun. I have power over him and he doesn't even realise it! I love being a woman!"

Feeling more confident, Mirassa decided to close the deal by giving Marik a soft kiss on the lips. She pulled away before he had a chance to deepen it and smiled up at him, curling a sandy blonde lock around her finger. Marik smiled back down at her. She was teasing him, and he liked it.

"Are you going to send your rarehunters to get my things?" Mirassa asked. "If you are, tell them to stay out of my mothers diary and that means you too, its private" she added, tapping him playfully on the nose, even though she meant every word.

"Of course, I will send one over right now. Give me a description of the things you want and I will have them brought to you as soon as possible" Marik smiled warmly.

As Mirassa went through the list of things she needed, she couldn't help but laugh mentally about the events this afternoon. Marik was so desperate for her love that he was willing to throw caution to the wind and trust her. She almost felt sorry for him, but he deserved it. She didn't enjoy his kisses at all, well maybe she did a little, but it was necessary for her plan to work. Now she had more important things to worry about, like trying to escape. She only had one chance at this. If he caught her, he would realise she was using him. Marik was a very proud man and wouldn't take too kindly to that.

When Marik had eventually left to make arrangements, Mirassa lay back onto the bed. She decided to try and sleep as there was nothing else to do. She hoped that Marik would leave her alone; she didn't want him to come back for round two of lip wrestling.

Mirassa began to wonder how much power she had over him exactly. Since there was nothing else to do, she decided to test this for herself.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 13: Getting to Know You


It had been two days since Mirassa had been kidnapped by Marik and she was unknowingly becoming accustomed to her room on Marik's boat. She was just as unaware that she was growing used to him and his constant visits. Ever since she had pretended to be attracted to him that day, he had been coming to see her more and more often.

Marik had found out about Mirassa's 'diary' when he sneaked into her room the day before. She was in the process of healing her ankle. She stood up to make sure everything was alright and turned around to see Marik standing there with his arms crossed. She jumped slightly; he had an unreadable look on his face. Luckily though, Mirassa managed to come up with a convincing story about her mother writing these sort of things down in case they were ever needed. She remembered smiling sweetly at him until his hard expression softened.

'That was a close one' Mirassa thought as she sat reading a book.

She had finally remembered to ask Marik for things to occupy her time and he had brought her a few things to do. When he wasn't busy, he even came by to keep her entertained.

'Marik will be here any minute' she thought glancing up at the clock on the desk and rolled her eyes. "Another fun filled evening"

Mirassa stood up and went over to the drawers. She pulled out a pair of black pants and a black vest top, and went to change in the bathroom. She was glad that she now had a set of normal clothes to wear, she felt rather susceptible to Marik when she was wearing the white dress.

When she had returned five minutes later, Marik was there sitting on the bed, smiling at her in a very alluring way. He was wearing his black top and white pants. He was making even more of an effort now with his appearance. Not that he looked bad before. She found it rather sweet actually.

"I've arranged a surprise for you today" he said standing up and walking over to her.

He put his arms around her waist and pulled her in for a short sweet kiss on the lips. Mirassa was used to this by now. In fact it was 'her' who encouraged it. Marik was far less suspecting when they were 'fooling around' after all. She responded to his kiss and waited for him to pull away first.

"What is it?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"I'm taking you out for the day; flowers as beautiful as you wither and die if they don't get enough sunlight" he kissed her nose before adding "and I wouldn't want that to happen"

She couldn't help but blush at Marik's comment. He often said things like that to her. Mirassa reasoned that it was only natural for a female to react to complements from an attractive male. It wasn't her fault. Just because he made her smile didn't mean that she enjoyed being with him.
---------------------------------------

"Hey watch it you moron!!" Mirassa yelled at a lorry driver as she and Marik darted between traffic.

She loved having a go at the other road users. Marik was very amused at her antics. All the other women he had taken for a ride on his bike had clung onto him for dear life, begging him to slow down. Mirassa however was half standing up behind him and shouting insults to the other drivers when it was obviously themselves who were being careless. Marik deliberately cut off another driver and tapped the hand that was around his waist. She laughed and turned her head, shouting something in Arabic at the unfortunate person.

"A what?!!!" Marik laughed in disbelief. "How could a young woman as innocent as you, know such words?!"

"You have a lot to learn about me Mr Ishtar, im not as innocent as I seem..." she whispered in his ear playfully.

Marik's smile broadened. He was glad she was enjoying herself. He had never seen her so happy, not since he saw her with her friends for the first time at that café. Even when he was with her, something seemed off somehow. She never smiled at him the same way she did with her friends. He brushed it aside because he had absolutely no idea how she would act towards a boyfriend.

'I'll find out though' he smiled.

Mirassa was having a terrific time. She had never ridden a motorbike before and loved the feel of the wind in her hair. Unlike some girls, she loved the speed and possible danger that they could easily be dragged under a truck. This had to be the fastest she had ever travelled and she was even considering about getting a bike herself.

She found herself trying to stand up behind Marik whilst holding onto him at the same time. The road they were driving along was next to the ocean and the sun was glistening, giving it an almost sparkly effect. she sat down again and tightened her grip as Marik sped up. She tried to ignore the feel of his well toned abdomen by shouting some more.

They drove between traffic, hurling more insults and comments, until they pulled up to their destination.
-----------------------------------------

The pair passed through the shopping center, looking at all the shops and displays going on. Marik turned to face Mirassa with a grin.

"You may have anything and everything you want. Money is not a problem so go right ahead"

Mirassa spun her head towards him. Did she hear him right?

"What? You'd let me spend your money like that? Are you crazy?!" she exclaimed in astonishment.

Marik chuckled lightly. 'I guess it must be a surprise to her, usually husbands tell their wives to go easy with the income'

He took hold of Mirassa's hand and led her to an expensive clothes store. He pulled her inside and began to look through the various items on sale.

"I think this would look very nice on you…" he thought out loud as he held up a low cut and very see through top.

"Im sure you would" she replied, taking it from him and frowning. "You and the rest of the male population…"

Marik looked thoughtful and put it back on the rail. Sure, he wanted her to look gorgeous and sexy, but not so other men could ogle at her. She was his and no one else's. Perhaps he should buy her a few garments meant only for him. He led her to another section of the shop and began to look through the things there.

"Marik, I really don't feel comfortable with spending your money"

Mirassa was beginning to feel guilty about leading him on. She wanted to get back at him at first, but he had changed so much. He treated her like a lady and made her feel special. She began to seriously reconsider her plans for revenge.

"Don't worry, if my business goes well, we won't be in Domino for much longer. You will need a change of clothes anyway. Today's trip will save us time and the sooner we leave, the sooner we can get married"

He pulled her off in another direction not noticing her skin paling slightly. She had a vague idea of the kind of business he ran and also knew that he wanted Yugi for some reason. She began to wonder how everyone was. She hadn't seen them for a couple of days and knew they must have called in to see how she was. Mirassa wanted to see Maka too. She wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright.
--------------------------------------------

After a few hours of shopping for various items, the young couple decided to take a break. It was time for lunch anyway.

Marik was carrying all the bags, after convincing Mirassa to let him buy her a few things. She finally relented after his constant pestering. He had bought her various outfits and a few 'personal' garments that were so sheer, she could see into tomorrow. Her face went bright red when she saw Marik holding them up, grinning at her before adding them to the shopping basket.

"Where do you want to eat?" he asked her, putting the bags down at his feet.

"Is that place alright with you?" she replied pointing to a place not too far from where they were.

"Whatever you wish my sweet"

Marik picked up the bags again and began to walk towards the café. Mirassa followed meekly behind him. She had to admit that she had enjoyed today. It was a refreshing change, but the fact remained that he was still her captor and was going to take her away to Egypt once his business with Yugi was over. She didn't want to marry him but she felt like she should find out more about him. The fact that he was wandering around in the outside world was still bugging her and she intended to find out the reason.
---------------------------------------------

By the end of the day, the sky had turned from blue, to a red and golden tone. Marik had left Mirassa by his bike to make a call, or so he said. While he was on his errand, he used his millennium rod to call his mindslaves over to pick up the shopping and take it back to the boat. When they had come and gone, he took Mirassa's hand and led her over to the park.

They walked slowly in silence taking in the scenery around them. Mirassa wasn't sure at all how she felt with the situation. She thought that she hated Marik, but with the way he had been treating her lately, she was beginning to change her mind.

'd**n my forgiving nature!'

"Did you enjoy yourself today?" he asked, squeezing her tiny hand in his own.

Mirassa smiled against her will and nodded at him before looking down at the grass. Marik led her to a bench overlooking the ocean. The sky illuminated it, making it the perfect setting for the mood he was trying to get her into. He was certain she would adore him by the end of the night. They sat down quietly next to each other. She felt strangely warm.

"Can I ask you something?" Mirissa questioned suddenly, looking up at Marik to her left.

"Of course" he put an arm around her shoulders and scooted closer to her, smiling softly.

"Why did you leave the tomb?" she continued hesitantly.

Marik looked taken aback. He wasn't expecting her to ask that, and he wasn't sure how to answer it either. How do you tell the woman that you plan to spend the rest of your life with, that you're planning revenge against an ancient pharaoh that you're family has served and sworn loyalty to for the past 5000 years? Of course Mirassa knew about the pharaoh, but not much. Her family was devoted to looking after magical texts and items from throughout the whole of Egypt's ancient history. He decided to be honest with her, but not to reveal too much. She may turn against him.

"My father was murdered and I want revenge" he growled staring into the sunset.

"Murdered?" she thought looking back at him wide eyed and shocked. She didn't know what to say, her voice had almost deserted her.

"Do you know who did it…?"

"I know who did it…" he began to shake slightly.

He was obviously very angry and upset; Mirassa felt bad for bringing it up, but still had a few questions to ask him.

"The pharaoh, to whom my family devoted their lives to, was responsible for his death. I won't rest until I have destroyed him!" he yelled standing up.

Mirassa flinched slightly at his outburst. It was no wonder he was upset but she couldn't help but feel something was wrong. This pharaoh, she couldn't understand why he would murder a member of the family who swore to serve him. It just didn't add up. She didn't say anything though and began to worry.

"When did it happen?"

"I was twelve; it wasn't that long after my tombkeepers initiation. I can't remember what happened exactly. All I know is that the pharaoh is responsible"

This didn't help remove her uncertainties. Marik couldn't even remember what happened. He must have gotten the wrong end of the stick somewhere. He was lost and needed help to uncover the truth.

"You really hate the pharaoh, don't you?" she asked softly.

Marik looked back at Mirassa. Her facial expression was a mixture of several different emotions. She appeared to be apprehensive but also seemed concerned. What was she thinking? He sat back down on the bench and pulled Mirassa closer to him again. Letting out a long sigh as he did so. This wasn't the reason why he brought her here.

"Look, I really don't feel like talking about it right now. There is something I want to give to you…"

Marik reached into his pocket and pulled out a box. He opened it up and pulled out a ring. It was made of white gold and had a cluster of diamonds in the center, making it look like a small flower. Mirassa's eyes widened. She looked up at Marik in confusion before glancing down at the ring again.

"What's this?" she asked.

"Our Marriage was arranged for us, but I wanted to give you something as proof of my devotion to you. When we finally marry, I will make sure that no one harms you or even dares consider it. I want to make it up to you for the things I said and did when we were young and…"

He paused for a second and looked deep into Mirassa's eyes.

"I want to make you as happy as you have made me. No one outside my family has ever made me feel as wanted before"

Marik placed the ring around her finger and kissed it, gently pulling her into his chest.

Mirassa had absolutely no idea she had affected him so much. She felt guilty for using him like that at first, but now came to realise that she wanted to help him. She was certain there was a problem somewhere and wanted to help fix it. Marik had had a hard time growing up, just as she did and she felt she was growing to understand him better.

'I will help you find peace Marik, if it's the last thing I do' she thought before snuggling closer to him.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 14: Deal With the Dark Spirit


Half an hour passed and the young Egyptian couple were still cuddling on the park bench. Marik was still trying to get his head around everything that had happened. He felt like the luckiest man in the world and wanted more then anything to spend the rest of his life with the girl in his arms. His plan to take down the pharaoh was fool proof.

"It's only a matter of time. Everything is going my way. Soon the spirit of the millennium puzzle will fall and I will rule as pharaoh with Mirassa by my side"

Marik glanced down at his future bride with a smirk on his face. Anuket was slowly drifting off into a peaceful slumber. Her breathing had become slow and steady and she had made herself quite comfortable in his embrace. If he wasn't careful, they might have to spend the night here. Marik frowned at that thought. He was still getting used to the drop in temperature. Egypt was scorching hot whereas Japan was like a refrigerator.

"Hey" he whispered softly, nudging the girl. "We should probably head back now. You look as if you could use an early night"

Mirassa looked up to meet his gaze and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. She yawned rather loudly making Marik arch an eyebrow and cast a smirk at her.

"What?" she asked defensively, folding her arms and pouting slightly.

"Tired?" he asked mockingly.

"How did you guess?"

"Well you've been resting on my arm for the past half hour" Marik shook his hand, making out like he was trying to make the blood flow freely again. "I can't feel a thing"

"Are you saying that im heavy?! Well tough luck about your arm! Maybe now you'll keep your hands to yourself" she shot back turning her back to him.

"That's not what I meant! I was only joking...!"

Marik hurriedly got up from the bench and moved around to the other side to face Mirassa. He halted his rambling apology when he saw her face breaking out into a smirk. She was only messing with him; d**n he'd have to watch her.

He just couldn't tell if this girl was being honest or meliacious. He reminisced back to the moment when they had first met. She had lulled him into a false belief that she was going to explain something to him before catching him off guard and beating the crap out if him. Marik had to admit that that particular incident had severely dented his pride but as long as no one else had witnessed it, he was willing to forget it ever happened.

"Let's go then Marik, its getting late" Mirassa said, standing up from her seat. She pointed to the sun that was now descending into the horizon. "Call me silly, but I'd rather get back before it gets too dark. All the weirdo's come out at night"

Marik smiled knowingly before turning around and walking towards his Harley, he had found most of his rarehunters and mindslaves wandering around at night. He sat on the bike and motioned for Mirassa to get on behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist hung on as Marik sped through the streets.
-----------------------------------------------

Odion watched the young couple as they made their way back onto the boat. He had been keeping an eye on them and was beginning to see the changes in his master. True, the changes were slight, but they were changes none the less and thankfully for the better.

"This girl really seems to have made an impact on him; perhaps she will be able to bring out Marik's good side and help us return him to normal"
-----------------------------------------------

"Did you enjoy yourself today?" asked Marik as he walked Mirassa to her room.

"Yes thank you, I must say, I enjoyed riding the bike more then shopping" she put on a thoughtful look "But then I've never been one for shopping"

She remembered all the times when Tea had pulled her into various clothes stores and all the wasted hours she spent waiting for her to choose which outfit she wanted.

"A female who doesn't like shopping? Well now I've seen it all!" Marik joked, letting out a laugh.

They stopped in front of Mirassa's room and looked at each other, silence filling the air. Mirassa muttered a thank you and goodnight and opened the door, stepping inside. She was stopped from going any further by Marik's strong grip on her wrist. She was surprised at the sudden movement and looked up into his eyes.

Marik steered her inside and closed the door behind him. Turning to face Mirassa again, he stepped closer and leaned down, pulling her into a very heated kiss. Initially, she was shocked, but instead of pushing him away, she pulled him closer and responded to the kiss with as much fervour and lust as he was showing her. She stood up on tiptoes and ran her slender fingers through his long sandy blonde hair, she was suddenly aware of how short she was compared to him.

Marik wrapped his arms around the tiny woman and began to run his hands over her back. Tanned fingers slowly made their way south until they rested on her hips. He slid his hands under her shirt and ran them over her skin. He smiled into the kiss as he felt her flinch under his cold fingers, the result of riding his bike without gloves.

Mirassa untangled her fingers from his hair and moved them to his face and neck. Marik ran his tongue across her lips, begging her for entrance. He moved his hands lower resting on her rear. She gasped in surprise, giving him the chance to make his move. She was a little hesitant to kiss like this at first but eventually gave in, allowing him to do as he wished.

Marik picked her up and carried her towards the bed, both of them still kissing. The moment he set Mirassa down, she realised what was happening.

"Marik wait a minute!" she pushed him away and sat up. "This is happening way too soon, I can't go any further then kissing. I've only really known you for three days! That and the fact that im still only fifteen"

Marik was trying to gain control over his heavy breathing; he looked very disappointed but complied to her wishes anyway.

"I apologise, I don't want to push you if you're not ready" he replied, smiling reassuringly at her before adding "Just let me know when you are…"

Mirassa let out a sigh of relief. She was worried he would take it the wrong way, she laughed lightly

"When I am, you will be the first to know ok?"

Marik stood up from the bed and made his way to the door.

"Sleep well Mirassa" he said softly.

"Sleep well Marik" she replied, smiling lightly.

This was a swift change of events. Mirassa couldn't believe herself. Within the space of three days, she had punched, argued, forgiven, kissed and even become officially engaged to Marik. She was slowly developing feelings for him too. She knew that she didn't love him, but she had a huge crush which she wasn't sure was a good thing.

She couldn't understand how this all could've happened. She had allowed him to kiss and touch her in a way that could have become much more physical.

"What would Maka say if she could see me now, after all the trouble and risks she took to get me away from him and this is how I end up? Things have just gotten a whole lot more complicated"

--------------------------------------------------------- Next day

Marik was driving through the side streets of Domino in search for more mind slaves. But more importantly, he was searching for the pharaohs companions. His plan was to get close to them and gain their trust along with Yugi's. He thought about all the things he would do once the pharaoh's powers were his and performed an impressive wheelie on his bike.

He turned around the corner and sped up. Suddenly a white haired man from out of nowhere ran out in front of him and held his arms up. Marik screeched to a halt. He removed his helmet and placed it on the bike. He pulled out the millennium rod and pointed it at the man.

"You're in my way" Marik warned threateningly.

"You have something I seek" the man replied.

He pulled his shirt open to reveal a flash of light and something very familiar to the young Egyptian.

"The millennium ring…"

The light faded and the white haired man spoke again, crossing his arms.

"It seems you're the darks force whose presence I've been sensing. Give me you're millennium item and you may pass by"

Marik wasn't at all fazed by his words. Instead he was curious as to who this man was. And how did he know about the millennium items. Marik got off his bike and looked at the man.

"Hmmm, you are somewhat familiar with the ancient ways. Why do you want my item?" he asked.

"If you must know, im a collector of sorts and once I possess all seven millennium items, I'll control ancient powers strong enough to rule the entire world" he gave Marik a fierce look. "So I will ask you once again to hand over your millennium rod!"

Marik looked at the man for a moment. So he was after all of the items. A plan formed in his head, this could work out very well indeed. As long as this stranger didn't know about the boundless power of the pharaoh, he could use him as a tool in his scheme.

"My name is Marik" he started.

"I don't care" the man replied, clearly uninterested in who he was.

"What if I told you I had exclusive knowledge of certain secrets?" he let that sentence hang in the air for a moment. "You can have my millennium rod if you want, but before I hand it over to you, you have to do something for me in exchange for I am somewhat of a collector myself. Once I possess what I desire, the millennium rod will mean absolutely nothing to me…"

The white haired man looked angry at such a request.

"Why should I help? I can take your millennium item by force as I've done to others in the past!"

Marik turned around with an evil look across his features. He chuckled darkly and continued.

"Because I know the whereabouts of several of the millennium items, including the millennium necklace worn by my sister"

The man let an evil smirk spread across his face. Marik smiled as well, this fool was falling right into his hands.

"Perhaps there is a way we can work together and help each other to get what we want"

"You've made a wise choice" said Marik.

Suddenly a glowing light surrounded the pair.

"With our combined power, no one in the entire world will be able to stop us!"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 15: Friend or Foe?


"There they are" Bakura muttered darkly, pointing towards Joey, Tea and the old Man.

"Excellent" Marik smirked. "Now we have to approach the fools and convince them that im a friend"

Bakura sneered at him.

"And how exactly do you plan to accomplish that? With everything that has happened between you and those pathetic mortals, I seriously doubt they would welcome a complete stranger into their Yugi fan club"

"That is where you come in" Marik said turning to face the spirit. "Or rather your vessel…"

"What are you talking about Marik?"

"Your vessel is already friends with Yugi and his companions correct? We can use him to get closer to them…"

Bakura let an evil grin spread across his face. "That could work. Those fools are far too trusting for their own good"

Marik smirked. Yugi's friends weren't the only ones too trusting for their own good either. This spirit had no idea of the pharaoh's power and as long as he remained unaware, he would do any task for him to get what he needed. This proposition would make things a whole lot easier for him in the long run.

"So how do you propose we gain their trust? They seem to value their friends safety far more then anything else so perhaps we could use that some how?" Marik thought out loud, leaning against a wall and crossing his arms.

Bakura looked thoughtful for a second. He looked around where he noticed a broken bottle. A thought came to him and he walked towards it. He picked it up and with great force and no hesitation, plunged the glass deep into his upper arm. He flinched slightly and slowly pulled it out again. Thick crimson blood flowed uncontrollably. He turned to face Marik who looked simply stared back at him.

Bakura reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. He handed it to Marik.

"Here is your chance to make a good impression"

With that, the spirit released his hold on Bakura who automatically collapsed to his knees in pain, clutching his severely bleeding arm. It showed no signs of slowing down. Marik quickly ran over and bent down to him.

"Are you alright?" he said, trying to sound genuinely concerned.

Bakura looked up at him, his eyes becoming bleary and unfocused as he lost more blood.

"W-wwhat—hap…?" he murmured weakly.

"I saw some men attacking you. They were wearing purple robes. Do you know who they were?" Marik replied.

The boy didn't answer. He turned paler by the second. Marik took the handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped it tightly around Bakura's arm to slow the circulation. It seemed to help a bit. Marik took him by the shoulders and helped him to his feet. Urging him on, they slowly made their way towards the group of friends. Marik went through his 'concerned person' speech in his head.

Suddenly Tea glanced towards him. A look of worry taking place of her smile that was previously plastered there.

"Oh no! Look! There's Bakura and he's hurt!"

Marik brought him closer to them.

"I just found him lying on the ground. I tried to take care of his injuries. Do you know him?"

"Yeah, we're pals. Bakura! You alright? What happened?" said Joey, clearly outraged that one of his friends had been hurt.

"It happened so quickly. I can't remember" he spoke weakly

They got a taxi to take Bakura to hospital and helped him in. Mr Motou got in too and they drove off.

"Hey thanks a lot errr…. Fella" said Joey in true untactful fashion.

Marik racked his brains. He had to think of a name quickly. Suddenly one came to him. he always liked the name anyway so why not use it?

"Namu" he said "And you are?"

"Im Joey and this is tea. Thanks for all your help" he said shaking hands with the Egyptian.

"Of course, I just did what anyone would've done" Marik said rubbing the back if his head with his hand.

"Hey, is that a duel disk on your arm?"

"Yeah, but im not that great. You're not challenging me are you Joey?"

"Nah, I don't have to cus I already qualified" Joey boasted, looking very pleased with himself.

Marik faked an awed look.

"Wow, that's very impressive. You must be good. Maybe you could give me a few pointers"

"I'll see if I can fit ya in"

All this positive attention for his duelling skills was going to Joeys head. Tea sweat dropped. Marik saw he was gradually gaining their trust.

"Hmmm, I feel as though I've met you all before…" said Marik.

"I know what you mean" replied Joey. "Well we gotta go, smell ya later Namu!"

Joey and Tea turned away. Marik just heard them saying the words 'seems like a nice enough guy'.

"My plan worked!"

Marik reached into his pocket and closed his fingers around the millennium rod. Telepathically, he ordered a few mind slaves to come to him and at the same time gave them instructions. He would kidnap Yugi's friends and use them as bait to get the puzzle. All the while, they would view him as an innocent. He ran over to Joey and Tea after giving out other instructions to Umbra and Lumis to lure Yugi and Kaiba into a duel. He would regain Slifer and win Obelisk too.

"Hey! Wait up! I don't mean to be an inconvenience but could you give me a few tips right now?"

Joey and Tea turned around.

"Sure why not. I could give ya a few pointers"

"Thanks. I want to win at least one duel in battle city" Marik saw his rarehunters coming up behind Joey and Tea. "Wait Joey! Look behind you!"

Marik feigned fear when one of the men grabbed him. Joey sent the rarehunter holding Marik flying by landing a swift punch in the jaw. A rarehunter grabbed Tea around the neck. She yelled.

"What do you want?" she asked fearfully.

Joey went to attack the man. "Let go of her ya creep!"

He fell to the floor when two rarehunters came up behind him. Kicking Joey in the ribs and winding him. Teas phone rang and the rarehunters answered it. It was Yugi on the other line. Obviously he was trying to find them. Tea shouted into her phone from within the mans grip only to have it thrown on the floor and stamped on, smashing it to pieces. The rarehunters managed to drag them away. Luckily, without creating a scene.

Marik got up once they were out of sight. He had pretended that he was knocked out cold during the attack. The pharaoh knew that his friends were in captivity now. It wouldn't be long before he arrived. That Kaiba would be with him too. With all his technology, he would be able to pinpoint Joey's exact location. Marik decided that just in case Kaiba didn't want to come. He would have to be persuade somehow. His younger brother would be the perfect lure. He smirked, very pleased with his handy work.

"The final phase of my plan is almost complete, I must now prepare for the pharaoh's arrival"
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 16: Rediscovered Hate


Mirassa sat quietly in her room, half reading a book. Today was her sixteenth birthday. In her own country, she would now be considered an adult. She imagined what her father would be doing right now had she remained in Egypt. He would probably be preparing her to travel to the Ishtar's tomb right now. Mirassa shook her head lightly as she turned her attention back to the page she had been trying to read for almost half an hour.

She still hadn't told Marik when her birthday was and she wasn't sure she wanted to. She was still unwilling to marry someone she barely knew and time was quickly running out. If Marik somehow managed to succeed in his plan to have revenge for his father's death, there would be nothing she could do to stop the wedding from taking place.

Mirassa let out a long sigh and put the book on the desk. She was never really one for reading books and education. In fact, Mirassa didn't know why she tried reading in the first place. The book was 'very' boring. It was just like school. She had always learned what was required at the time but soon as she started another topic, previous knowledge was somehow pushed out of her head.

"I think it's time for a break now anyway"

Mirassa opened the door and headed towards the kitchen. At her request, Marik had lessened security and she was now free to wander around the boat without bumping into rarehunters every corner. Speaking of which, Marik had been out for quite a long time. He said something about business and she was sure it had something to do with Yugi.

"Why does Marik keep bothering Yugi anyway? He's just a normal kid like any other. What is it about him that interests Marik so?"

Mirassa's thoughts left her mind as she found herself entering the kitchen. Her only mission at this moment in time was to banish the growl in her stomach, which she was only too happy to do. She opened the fridge door and stood in front for a few minutes before finally deciding what she wanted. She pulled out some left over spaghetti bake from the night before.

"Who would've guessed that Marik could cook?" she smiled, remembering the night before.

Marik had been particularly love starved last night and tried to impress Mirassa with his cooking skills. His effort had proved to be very successful indeed. Despite the fact that Marik had servants to do this sort of thing, he showed her that he too believed there was nothing more satisfying then eating something you had made yourself.

Mirassa was very impressed. Somehow it allowed her to look past the fact that he was the 'all powerful' leader of the rarehunters, and realise that he was human and enjoyed simple things just like everyone else.

She sat down on a stool next to the kitchen counter and ate the rest of her meal in silence whilst looking at the cartoons in a nearby newspaper.

"That snoopy…" she thought, chuckling lightly.

Once finished, she put the dirty plate in the dishwasher and folded the paper up again placing it on the side. As Mirassa stood up and began to head back towards the direction of her room, she heard distressed voices shouting from outside.

"What on earth is going on?" she queried, arching a brow.

She walked towards the window to get a better look. Standing there in the distance, were several people and they all seemed to be watching a duel. Upon closer inspection and several minutes of squinting, Mirassa realised that the people duelling were none other then Yugi Motou and Joey wheeler.

"Why are those two duelling each other? Im sure Yugi would never try to jeopardise Joey's chances of getting a place in the finals! …What the hell?"

Mirassa's emerald eyes widened in horror as she observed the layout of the duel. There was a chain around Yugi and Joey's ankles and not only that; it was attached to a huge anchor which hung precariously above the water. She looked to the side and saw that Tea was sitting in a chair underneath a massive crate hanging from a crane. Everyone else was standing by, not even attempting to move.

"Ok im not all that bright and sometimes I jump to the wrong conclusion, but I can tell that something is definitely not right here!"

She turned away from the window and headed out of the kitchen. She looked both ways for any sign of Marik or his rarehunters and quietly ran towards the direction of the exit.

As she passed Marik's room she froze. He was laughing loudly and sounded like he was in very high spirits. Mirassa pressed her ear against the door and listened intently. He stopped talking every now and then before speaking up once more. Who was he talking to? Himself? Marik started to speak again. What Mirassa heard absolutely appalled her.

"Everyone can be controlled and once I force Joey to play meteor of destruction, you're done!" he went quiet for a few seconds "Silence! No one can resist my Millennium Rod! Behold the full potential of its ancient power! Joey Wheeler no longer exists!"

Mirassa's face went blank and her eyes lost their usual sparkle. She couldn't believe what she had just heard him say. Everyone can be controlled? Did that include her too? Mirassa felt a pang of hurt and betrayal course through her. After everything she and Marik had talked about and done together these past few days, was it all a result of his using the millennium rod on her? Fury replaced all other emotions she was feeling right now.

"If Marik thinks he can control me or my friends he has another thing coming! I'm not going to spend another minute in this place! How can he expect me to love him when he puts my friend's lives in danger?"

She turned on her heel and huffily made her way towards the exit. A rarehunter stepped out in front of her from a room. It was the man with the tattoo on his face. He looked down at the girl with a confused expression.

"Is everything alright Miss Benu? You look troubled"

"No, everything is not alright. Now get out of my way" she hissed, trying to keep Marik from hearing.

Mirassa strained her memory, muttering under her breath. She had been trying to memorise a spell to knock people out, but it seemed she had failed miserably. She held her palm up to the man and he fell backwards with tremendous force onto the floor. He was still conscious though.

"He's still awake!" she panicked.

Mirassa muttered the spell under her breath again and sent the man flying into the room he came from. She ran up to the door and closed it. Mirassa pulled the ring Marik had given her off her finger and hurled it on the floor before running outside onto the pier. Her eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the daylight and when they had focused she headed off in the direction of the duel.

She ran as fast as she could, twisting her head around to see if she was being followed. Thankfully she wasn't, yet. Perhaps the man was still dazed from the impact his head made to the wall. Mirassa drew closer to her friends, stopping in her tracks as she saw rays of purple light emitting from Joey. She was clueless as to what was happening. He collapsed to the floor soon after.

As Mirassa went to move towards the group, the sound of footsteps far behind her made her stop. She spun around. Whoever it was, Mirassa was sure it wasn't friendly so she ran and hid behind some nearby boxes. There she waited quietly for a few minutes until she was sure there was no one around. The girl cautiously looked out from her hiding place and saw the man with the tattoo on his face running in the opposite direction away from her.

"That was close. I wonder how long it will be before Marik realises im gone."

She clambered out from behind the boxes and ran towards her friends again. The anchor had fallen and Yugi and Joey were nowhere to be seen. Mirassa feared the worst but was greatly relieved when she saw that Yugi was floating on the surface and being pulled up onto the deck.

"Yugi! Are you alright?" she called once she finally reached them. "Where's Joey?"

She kneeled down next to Yugi and helped him stand up with the others. Suddenly Joey came up from beneath the blue depths accompanied by a girl with cinnamon coloured hair. They were helped out of the water and onto the safety of dry land. Mirassa felt very uncomfortable being on the pier right now. She didn't want to be caught by the rarehunters again.

"You two are gonna freeze to death! Lets get you somewhere warm and dry"

"That'd be great" said Joey weakly as the two duellists were led to a nearby car.
---------------------------------------------

Somehow everyone managed to squeeze in and they headed towards the game shop. Questions were imminent as eyes all fixed on Mirassa.

"Where have you been? Your grandma said that you'd gone away for a while and she wasn't sure when you'd be back, if you were coming back at all that is." said Tea.

"I've been around…" replied Mirassa quietly. "But it seems that I'll be able to stay here after all" she added smiling at them all.

The Egyptian girl felt very guilty. She had spent the last few days with a man that had just tried to kill her best friends. She couldn't bear to tell them the truth. They would hate her for sure.

"Just play dumb. They'll never know a thing" she reasoned to herself. "What was all that about? Why were you attached to an anchor?"

Yugi began the long explanation, telling her of all the things that had happened over the past few days. He even told her of Marik's plans to become pharaoh and the threats he made to his friends and Kaiba's little brother. Mirassa frowned, she knew Marik was up to something, but she had no idea it was on a scale as big as this. Taking over the world? He was crazy to think he would succeed against the pharaoh.

That particular piece of information came as a bit of surprise too. The spirit was sharing Yugi's body through means of the millennium puzzle. It was no wonder Marik was after Yugi. He thought that he killed his father! Yugi would never do anything like that; Marik certainly had his wires crossed. Now that she thought about it, Marik said something about a millennium rod when he was ranting in his room. How many millennium items were there?

"Too many!" she thought.

"Is anyone going to introduce us?" said a loud female voice in the front of the car.

"All in good time Mai" said Joey. "Lets get somewhere dry first. Im freezing by butt off out here!"

"And you're makin the back seats in my wheels all soggy you big baby! Quit your whining! You don't hear Yugi makin a fuss, and he's a lot smaller then you! If anyone's gonna die of hypothermia its him!"

Yugi looked up and wiped his runny nose with a tissue that was generously donated by Tea.

"That's very comforting Mai…" he sneezed again.

-----------------------------------back on the boat

Odion slowly made his way towards Marik's room. His master was not going to be pleased about this. The girl had gotten away, he had tried to find her and bring her back but to no avail.

"Why did she run away in the first place? She seemed so happy"

He stopped at Marik's room and raised a hand to knock on the door. (Knock Knock!)

"What!!?" a voice bellowed angrily.

"Master Marik, it's me…" said Odion quietly.

The door flew open to reveal a very infuriated Marik Ishtar. His face had tinges of red where his anger had boiled to the surface.

"What do you want?" he asked with a shaky voice, trying his best to keep his anger down. Especially in the corridor where Mirassa could hear him.

Odion felt cold all of a sudden. Marik was angry enough as it is. How would he react to the news that his future bride had done a runner?

"The calm before the storm…" he thought fearfully.

"Well?" growled Marik, growing increasingly impatient with the time it was taking for Odion to speak.

"She's gone…" he spoke.

"Who's gone?" queried Marik.

"Miss Benu"

Marik's eyes widened. He pushed past the rarehunter and ran to Mirassa's room. He slammed the door open. She wasn't there. He frantically ran to every other room in the hopes that Odion was mistaken. He wasn't. Marik came back out into the hallway, his violet eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.

"Leave me…" said Marik in a dangerously low voice.

Odion turned and left, worrying about what his Master would do. True, women had left him before and it hadn't bothered him at all, but this time was different, he had never been in love before. When Odion had left the boat, Marik went into his room and picked up everything he could lay his hands on and threw them to the ground. He picked up glasses, lamps anything and threw them against the wall making them shatter into a million pieces.

"Why did she leave me?!!!" screamed the voice in his head. "I would have given her the world!"

Marik threw the millennium rod on the floor. It landed with a thud. He stopped in his tracks; he bowed his head and closed his eyes tight. His hair fell over his face. Marik's fists were curled up so tight; his knuckles were turning white against his tanned skin. His breathing was heavy and laboured and he shook as he tried to get a grip on himself.

"No" he whispered out loud "Mirassa will not get away from me. She is mine and no one else's…"

Marik walked across the room and slowly picked up the millennium rod. He stood up and held it firmly in his grip smirking evilly. He walked out into the corridor towards Mirassa's room, he wanted to sit in the silken sheets that still held her unique fragrance, but before he made it all the way, he noticed a glisten on the floor from the corner of his eye. In curiosity he turned to have a look.

"Is that...?"

Marik bent over and picked up the engagement ring he had given to Mirassa. He stood up and put it in his pocket. He needed to see her again. What was it that made her run away? Marik knew that there was a spark between them; there was no doubt about that. He would convince her to return to him and when he did, he wouldn't hesitate to make her his.

"You've dropped something my dearest. Do not worry, I will return it to you…"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------

Chapter 17: Reunions


Mai parked her car in front of the game shop. Everyone made their way upstairs, helping the two young men who had stiff joints, due to a mix of cold water and an even colder wind. They sat down on the couch and made themselves comfortable, wrapping themselves in warm, fluffy blankets. Tea went into the kitchen and absentmindedly made a hot drink for Yugi, much to Joey's annoyance.

"Hey! I was in the water too ya know! Why is Yugi the only one having special treatment? Im cold and I want somethin hot n tasty!"

"Ok Ok! Hold your horses! I'll go make you one too" she grumbled, heading back into the kitchen.

Tristan came out of Yugi's bedroom carrying some dry clothes for the pair. Joey always had a spare set of clothes at the Motou's house as he spent most of his free time there.

"How are you guys feeling?" asked Serenity.

"I dunno if im gonna make it" Joey started, receiving a slap from Mai shortly after. "You know what? Suddenly im feelin much better"

Eyes rolled knowingly at the pair. Mirassa watched quietly from the door frame, smiling quietly to herself. She had never realised until now how much she had missed her friends, even though she had been gone for less than a week. To think she had almost given them up to be with 'him'.

"I guess I'd better call Maka and let her know where I am" she thought.

Tea came back in to the living room with a hot chocolate drink in her hands. Joey looked up, smelling the sweet chocolaty goodness wafting through the air and started to bounce in a crossed leg sitting position on the couch making all who were sitting next to him fall off.

He grabbed the mug and started to gulp it down before realizing it was very hot. As he was gasping for air and everyone was telling him off for being a greedy pig, Mirassa pulled Tea aside.

"Tea, I need to make a private phone call, can I borrow your cell?" she uttered quietly.

"Sorry Mirassa but I don't have it anymore. When Joey and I were kidnapped by Marik's rarehunters, they threw it on the floor and smashed it to bits. Stupid Jerks…" she muttered angrily. "Why do you need to make a private phone call anyway? What's going on?"

"Oh, I just wanted to call Maka cus I haven't spoken to her for a while. That's all" she replied nonchalantly, waving her hand as if it were no big deal.

"You mean your grandmother?" Tea questioned looking back at her strangely. "Why does she call her grandmother by her first name?"

"Yeah that's right" Mirassa laughed. "Sorry, it's just that I hear everyone else calling her that, so it just kinda sticks in my mind"

She put her hand behind her head and grinned sheepishly. Tea smiled and nodded in agreement, although deep down, she wasn't sure whether she believed her friend or not. Oh well, no need to linger on a subject that's probably not that important anyway.

"Are you guys gonna be ok?" asked Mirassa concernedly.

"They'll be fine." Tristan said, standing up and putting on a big loud voice. "They're tough! Marik will soon see that he can't stop these two. They're sort of like an annoying itch you can't get rid of, no matter how hard you scratch it"

"What a lovely thing to say in front of the ladies pal" said a black haired boy sarcastically in the back.

He had green eyes and was wearing a red top with black pants. He had what a dice hanging from one of his ears and a red and black bandanna, with loose strands of hair hanging over it. He looked over at all the lovely ladies in the room; flashing each of them a smile that he thought was sexy. His eyes landed on Mirassa.

"Hi there! We haven't met before. Im Duke Devlin. You may have heard of me" he said proudly shaking her hand, somewhat firmly.

"Yeah…. Were you the one I heard on the news about a carjacking the other week?" Mirassa asked, trying to sound innocent.

Duke's smile faltered a bit but he shook it off. "No I'm the creator of a game called Dungeon Dice Monsters"

"Oh…yeah…now I…remember" she said slowly.

Tristan cut in. "Have you really heard of Dungeon Dice monsters?"

"yeaahnnnnn….no, sorry"

Laughter filled the room as duke fainted on the floor from the shock of a woman who didn't recognise him. Mai stretched tiredly in the comfy armchair she was sitting in and made to stand up.

"Well, sitting here all night won't help me prepare for the finals tomorrow will it? I guess I'll be heading off now" she looked down at the sniffly pair of duellists. "You will show up wont you? I want to have some competition you know"

"We'll be there Mai, don't you worry about that" said Yugi. "I have a score to settle with Marik, he won't get away with what he's done"

Mirassa's ears picked up at Marik's name. Was he going to be there too? If he was, then she wanted to be present. Perhaps he wouldn't harm her friends while she was with them. It was worth a try in the very least.

"Hey. Can I come with you to the finals?" she asked everyone.

"Sure!" said Joey standing up, letting his blanket fall to the floor. "You can be there to witness my victory over money bags Kaiba. Multi Billionaire and complete and utter sh…" he stopped his current sentence at the warning glances he received.

"Be on your guard Mirassa. Especially around Marik. He will do anything to get back at me and I do not want any harm to come to you or anyone" said Yugi.

Or who she thought was Yugi. He looked slightly different. His hair had extra blonde highlights and his eyes had a piercing gaze that seemed to bore right through her. Mirassa realized that this must be the Pharaoh who Marik claimed 'killed' his father.

"You must be the spirit of the millennium puzzle, Yami" she stated quietly. "How can Marik think this spirit is a murderer? He seems nice enough and it doesn't take a genius to see that he is very concerned for his friends' welfare"

Yami bowed his head in greeting and smiled at the young girl. He knew there was something different about her. She was hiding something, this he was certain of. He also knew she didn't want to talk about it, but he needed to know what it was she was keeping from everyone.

"I will ask her when I can get her on her own, away from inquisitive ears" he thought to himself. "Mai, if you're leaving, would you take Mirassa home? With all the rarehunters around, it's dangerous to walk through Domino alone"

"Sure hun" Mai put her arm over Mirassa's shoulder. "Where do you live sweetie? I'll drop you off right away"

Mirassa told Mai her address and said her goodbyes to everyone. The pharaoh was still watching her as she exited the room. As the two women got in the car and drove along, she felt her guilt twisting in her stomach. Yami only wanted to protect his friends, and here she was betrothed to the enemy. What would the pharaoh say if he found out? Would he be angry at her? He didn't seem to be the unreasonable type. Perhaps he would understand her side of the story. It wasn't like she wanted to be Marik's intended after all. He was the one who held an obsession for her anyway.

Before she knew it, she was outside her house. After thanking Mai for the ride home, Mirassa walked up the drive and went around the side door. She knocked a few times and waited for an answer. After a couple of minutes, the shadow of an old woman moved slowly towards the door and unlocked it. A weary face poked around to see who could be calling at this late hour. Maka's eyes widened with shock and relief when she saw who it was. She swung the door open and pulled the girl into a warm embrace.

Mirassa closed the door with a free hand, whilst Maka hugged her.

"Is that sound coming from Maka?"

Mirassa pulled away and regarded at the elderly woman. Sure enough, tears were streaming out of her eyes. Seeing this kind of made her want to cry too.

"What are you doing here? Are you alright? He didn't touch you did he?" Maka asked all at once.

"Im fine, I escaped from him" replied Mirassa, fighting back the tears that were gathering in her eyes.

She decided it would be best to ignore the 'touching' question as she didn't feel it was important to bother Maka with the intimate details of her time away in Marik's custody.

"Im so glad you're safe. I was worried he would hurt you. He said that as long as I cooperated with him, you would be unharmed. Im so sorry, I was the one who told him who you were, I had no choice, I…"

Mirassa cut her off.

"Don't worry about it. He would have figured it out eventually. You only did what you thought was best for me and im grateful for that. So how have you been?"

They sat down and talked, reassuring the other that things were alright. Eventually, Mirassa told Maka about the battle city finals.

"Im gonna to go and cheer Yugi and Joey on. They've done really well to get this far"

"I don't think I want you to go. What if Marik finds you and kidnaps you again?"

"He won't" Mirassa said confidently.

"How can you be sure?" asked Ipet curiously.

"I just know. Trust me" she said, putting an end to the current conversation.

She smiled, mainly to reassure Maka. In truth, Mirassa had no idea what was going to happen. She just hoped it would be in her favour. Maka decided to let the subject lie.

"You know I was surprised when Marik came here to pick up those 'gifts' he sent you" Maka sent a disappointed glance towards the girl. "Why didn't you tell me about them?"

"I didn't want to worry you. Plus, I had no idea they were from Marik. He didn't make too much of a mess did he?"

Maka snorted in anger. "He went through all your belongings and threw them on the floor! That boy has no respect for other people's property"

Mirassa couldn't help but snicker at this. She didn't know why she found it funny. 'Oh Maka, if you only knew. He's hardly a boy now' she thought, laughing again. She pushed images and memories out of her head when she noticed the old woman looking at her with a confused expression.

"Im gonna go to bed now, I have to be up early for when everyone comes to meet me tomorrow"

Mirassa stood up and kissed Ipet's cheek goodnight. Before she got any further, she was stopped. Maka turned around and bent over into a cupboard. She pulled out a blue box with a pink ribbon and handed it to the girl.

"Happy sixteenth birthday sweetheart" she said, smiling broadly before going up to bed herself.

Mirassa's gaze followed the woman before landing back on her present. She ripped it open in a child like manner and smiled at the contents
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Marik sat on his bed, twirling his millennium rod in his hands. His face emotionless, belying the agony he felt inside. He was still trying to come to terms with his sweetheart's absence. He felt empty knowing that she was no longer a few doors away from him. Unknown to Mirassa, he would sneak in late at night and watch her sleep. He loved watching her sleep, she reminded him of an angel.

He let out a long and heavy sigh as he looked at the digital clock on the side. How long had he been moping around for? This wasn't going to get her back. Marik had a feeling she would return to her grandmother. If that was true, then he could pick her up again when battle city was over. Marik didn't want Mirassa to see what he was going to do to her friends. She would be less than pleased to say the least.

He focused the millennium rod and spoke into the minds of one of his rarehunters. He gave strict orders to keep an eye on her house and make sure to follow if she made any attempt to leave town.

"Failure will not be tolerated" he warned before breaking the link.

Marik tucked the rod into his belt and pulled out his deck from his pocket. The battle city finals were only a day away and if he wanted to defeat the pharaoh, he would need to put together a powerful deck. His rarehunters had gathered enough locator cards to enter Odion and himself in the finals should previous plans fail. Unfortunately they had, and he was forced to take care of his adversary in person. The plan he had concocted was flawless. Nothing could go wrong. His determination to win became stronger then ever as he thought about his prize.

"Soon it will all be over. I will have my revenge against the pharaoh and claim Mirassa as my own. We will begin a new life together" he smiled broadly. "Im sure she wouldn't object to starting a family right away"

Marik began to construct a deck that exploited Yugi's every weakness. He looked up from time to time and thought about the things he would do once he was in charge, before flicking through his deck again with an evil smirk.
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Chapter 18: The Finals Begin


Seto Kaiba stood tall in the soon to be completed Kaiba corps Stadium. His arms were folded across his chest and his foot tapped impatiently on the ground. His icy gaze wandered towards the entrance for the belated arrival of the finalists. Kaiba didn't care about the other dualists who had managed to secure themselves a spot in his Battle City tournament. All he cared about was defeating Yugi Motou.

"I will regain my title as the number one dualist in the world! When I win all three Egyptian god cards, none will be able to defeat me. My deck will be unbeatable!"

Kaiba stood and watched his younger brother Mokuba, who was kicking stones at a nearby can. He was actually pretty good at it. It fell to the floor with a clang, the boy did a little victory dance. Suddenly a noise echoed from the seats far to the back. Kaiba spun his head towards the sound. He couldn't see anything in this light, despite his excellent vision.

"Who dares trespass in my arena?" he muttered angrily. He turned towards a man in a black suit behind him. "Turn on the lights!"

"Yes sir" obeyed the man, fearing the young ceo's wrath.

Seconds later, bright lights flooded the stadium. Kaiba turned around and looked at the place where the sound had come from. There was nothing there.

"It was probably a cat or something" he reasoned to himself.
---------------------------------------

"This is it!" yelled Joey excitedly, jumping up and down.

The eight teenagers walked towards the stadium. Everyone was excited and eager to get to the finals and meet the other finalists. All except Mirassa. She couldn't concentrate on anything else but Marik. She felt herself burning with anger every time his smirking visage entered her mind.

"That lying, scheming, son of a Jackal!" She thought venomously, grinding her teeth together. "I'll show him! I won't be controlled by anyone! Especially not some idiotic pervert who keeps staring at my breasts when he thinks I'm not looking!"

She jogged to catch up with the rest of the group. The stadium was huge! As they drew closer, Mirassa noticed that it was unfinished. There were builders' tools and machinery all over the place. She looked around taking in the scenery or rather the lack of. How could the finals be held in a dump like this after all the time and effort Kaiba had gone to to make this tournament a success?

Mirassa's widened her eyes in apprehension as she caught sight of something familiar. It was a red Harley, most likely belonging to Marik. For some reason she began to feel uneasy. She knew that he wouldn't hurt her; at least she hoped he wouldn't. After all, she had her friends to protect her. Marik wouldn't dare touch her while the pharaoh was around. A voice however, kept nagging at her from the back of her mind.

"He will be furious with you. Who knows what he's capable of? Marik has already demonstrated that he's willing to kill to achieve his goals. What's stopping him from doing the same to you?"

Mirassa continued to walk with the group in silence, a strong sense of foreboding flooding her soul. They passed through the doorway and made they're way into the center of the arena. Mirassa took in the sight before her. There were only four people present so far. One was Seto Kaiba, his younger brother Mokuba, and two other men that she assumed were body guards of some sort. They look rather menacing in their black suits and shades.

Kaiba watched the approaching group with an 'im better then you' kind of look. He tutted and made to move his arm as if he were looking at a watch. Mirassa could have sworn he was looking mainly at Joey. What was the deal between those two anyway?

"You're finally here" he stated, turning his back to everyone.

Anuket stood towards the back, not paying any attention to the conversation/arguments between Yugi, Kaiba and Joey. Her thoughts were in another universe. She was completely oblivious to her surroundings. Maybe she should just go home now and forget about Marik. Maybe she could persuade Ipet to move house again. She squashed that idea immediately when she realized how cowardly she was being.

"Knowing my luck, he'll only find me again. It seems this world just isn't big enough for the two of us"

"Hey! It's Namu!" shouted Joey suddenly.

Mirassa turned her gaze to the direction Joey was pointing to. 'Who the hell is Namu?'

She watched a tall figure slowly emerge from the shadows. Her eyes widened when she realized who 'Namu' was. Somehow, she managed to keep from calling out his real name. She didn't want anyone to know about their ties and assumed by his using a fake name that Marik didn't either, even though he probably had a different reason for doing so.

Marik's violet eyes gazed over the people in front of him; finally coming to rest on a familiar face. His eye twitched and his fake smile faltered slightly when he realized that his disguise was about to be blown. However, Mirassa just stood there looking back at him, her eyes holding a tiny glint of anger. Her arms were crossed and she looked away from him.

"Why hasn't she revealed who I am?" thought Marik as he composed himself and was introduced to everyone.

Mirassa was unusually quiet when 'Namu' came to shake her hand and it didn't go unnoticed. The pharaoh had been watching from inside his soul room, and seeing this little exchange between the two Egyptians, confused him even more that he was before.
----------------------------------------------------------------

Mirassa sat by the small window in her room and stared out onto the city down below. There was a bit of a bother trying to find a place for everyone to stay but it was sorted eventually. She was lucky, the girls got to have their own rooms but the men all had to squish together, much to their annoyance. Joey had protested that he wouldn't be able to concentrate getting ready for the duels only to be put down by a snide comment from Kaiba. The words dog and monkey were used making Joey even angrier then he was before.

She stood up from her sear by the window and looked around. She had to admit that Kaiba had taste when it came to decorating, it was very modern, Kaiba's style she supposed. Mirassa walked over to the small fridge and had a look at the contents. There were some very hard to find foods and drinks in there.

"Ooooh! Maltesers!" she squealed.

She grabbed a bag and opened them. Mirassa was happily munching away when Tea barged into the room.

"Are you a sucker or a cruncher?" asked Mirassa suddenly, out of the blue.

Tea looked confused. "Excuse me?"

"You know. Do you like to suck the chocolate off the Maltesers first or do you like to crunch them?"

Suddenly it all made sense. "Oh, im a …..Hmmmmm….I'm… a……sucker!" replied Tea after much thought.

"Oh really? Im a cruncher" said Mirassa putting another Malteser into her mouth and demonstrating this to the brunette.

Tea shook her head. "I just came to tell you that we have to go down in half an hour. They're going to select the first two duelists of the finals"

"Ok, I'll be there. what are you gonna do in the meantime?"

"Im gonna go and annoy Joey. You wanna come?" grinned Tea.

Mirassa laughed and shook her head. "No, im gonna leave him alone and you should too. He's taking part in this tournament as well you know. Why don't you go bother Yugi?"

Tea blushed and exited the room, embarrassed at the knowing smirk on the other females face. Mirassa giggled when Tea had left. She was so easy to wind up. She knew about Tea's not so secret crush on Yugi, it's not like Tea was the best actress in the world. She practically turned to mush every time his name was mentioned. It was fun to tease her about it sometimes although she would never tell anyone else.

Mirassa lay on the bed, thinking to herself about random things. Ten minutes later a knock on the door was heard. She sat up and walked over thinking it was Tea again, coming to ask her to bug someone.

The door opened and there stood the last person she wanted to see. Mirassa was about to close the door in his face only to be pushed inside. Marik grabbed both her wrists with one hand and locked the door with the other. He pushed her up against the wall and pinned her there.

"What do you want?" she growled.

"Do you really need to ask?" he replied suggestively, tracing her lips with his thumb.

Mirassa's eyes widened. She hoped that he wasn't saying what she thought he was. Marik sensed her fear and loosened his grip on her wrists. He pulled away slightly to get a better look at the girl in front of him. She was wearing a short blue pleated skirt and a white shirt with baggy sleeves. It was low cut and she had a pink vest top over it and she wore brown boots that came up just below her knees. She was wearing a black choker also. His violet eyes moved to meet her gaze again.

"Unfortunately this is neither the time nor the place for that. You owe me an explanation. Why did you run off when I explicitly told you to remain on the boat?"

"Do you really need to ask, Marik?" she retorted. "I can't believe I started to trust you. You are so much worse then you were as a child! Well I'll tell you this! You are not going to control me, you hear?!

Marik looked bewildered. "What is she talking about? I would never try to control her! Why would she think that?"

Mirassa rolled her eyes and glared at Marik, confusion all over his features. "I heard what you said, you complete and utter moron!"

"What I said? What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Everyone can be controlled" she continued, mimicking his voice. "Joey wheeler no longer exists"

Marik's mouth opened and quickly shut again. The whites of his eyes stood out against his skin. He released Mirassa's wrists and watched her rub them. Now he understood why she had left him.

"You weren't supposed to hear that…" he whispered.

"Oh im sorry, I didn't know" she replied sarcastically. "I guess I should have just stayed behind and let you control me like you have others. Ra! I always knew you had a sadistic side to you Marik, but I never thought you would go as far as to murder people! They have done nothing to you!"

Marik saw red. Yugi's counterpart was responsible for his father's death and as long as those fools were friends with him, they too would be dealt with accordingly.

"How the hell would you know!!" he yelled at the top of his voice. "You are just a stupid little girl who sits around all day giggling along with your pathetic friends! You lead an unbelievably carefree life Mirassa. You haven't got a clue as to how cruel the world really is! The only problems you encounter are 'what clothes am I going to wear today? Do I look fat in this? Does my hair look alright? Should I buy this enormously overpriced garment, even though im never ever going to wear it?!"

Mirassa felt incredibly offended. Not only were the things he said hurtful, they were untrue. She laughed along with her friends as any other normal person would. She never really worried about how she looked. She was just one of those people who were naturally pretty. She hardly ever went shopping for clothes and when she did, she couldn't do it for too long unless dragged around by someone else or searching for something in particular.

Her eyes began to well up. She tried to brush off his comments but it was hard. Is that what Marik really thought of her? Did he really think she was just a stupid little girl?

"How dare you..." she whispered, trembling with anger. "I am not some stupid naïve little girl that cares only for her vanity! I grew up in Egypt with a father who practically told me my only purpose in life is to marry and have babies, and this started when I was five! Five Marik! I was taught how to be a wife and mother when I was five! I had no childhood, I had no friends and my appearance was the last thing on my mind! My father didn't love me, my mother died when I was young, my brother always undermined me, making me feel like I was worthless, I was betrothed to a 'very' nasty little boy and you think I don't know how cruel the world is?!"

Marik looked at her. He felt bad for saying those things to her. She was on the verge of tears but wouldn't let them fall. She was stronger then she looked but also more fragile.

"Im sorry Mirassa, that's not what I think of you at all. I know you're not like that. I can't justify the reason as to why I said those things in the first place. I don't think your stupid and I would never try to control you. You must believe that" said Marik, his voice begging for forgiveness.

He looked sincere but Mirassa couldn't bring herself to forgive him. She didn't want to be with someone who thought of her as a ditz. Even if what he said was true and he didn't see her like that, she didn't want to risk another argument in the future which could lead to an argument similar to this one.

"I want you to leave Marik" she whispered.

"Mirassa please…" he tried to speak. She cut him off.

"Marik, I covered for you once, but if you don't leave now, I will scream and everyone will find out who you are"

Marik sighed in temporary defeat and turned to leave. She watched him as he slowly made his way towards the door. Before he left, he turned and placed a small box on the table.

"We will never be over Mirassa. You'll see… we were meant to be together"

He closed the door behind him. Mirassa let out a long breath. A tear trickled down her cheek.

"He can't honestly believe we have a future together. Why won't he let me be? I don't ever want to see him again. He is a sexist pig and I hate him!"

She walked over to the table and picked up the box. Inside was the ring he had given her. Mirassa groaned. She didn't need this. She closed the lid and put the box in her pocket. She would have to return it to him later. He would get the message eventually. Right now she had more important things to concentrate on. She had to help cheer her friends on so they could stop Marik's plans. She didn't want him to win; if he did, she would never be free of him. At least if Yugi won, she would have a sporting chance.

Suddenly a voice echoed throughout the airship.

"The first dualists to play in the finals will now be drawn. Please make your way to the assembly room"

"I guess id better get a move on" she said to herself.

She looked in a mirror just in case she looked like she had been crying. Thankfully it wasn't very obvious. She straightened herself and made her way out into the hallway. The other dualists were already on the elevator. As the door shut, she noticed Marik watching her. He had an unreadable expression on his face. Mirassa sighed and walked on waiting for the elevator to come back down. She hoped that the first dual would be Yugi vs Marik, so this whole situation would be over and done with as soon as possible.

"Things are just gonna get worse from here on out" she thought dejectedly.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------

Chapter 19: The First Duel and Revelations


The duelists and supporters made their way into the main hall. Once there they stopped to admire the layout. Kaiba had spared no expense to impress and make this the best tournament in history. There were tables covered with very expensive and not to mention tasty foods. Joey was the first to make a move towards the feast before him.

"I can't believe Kaiba served up fancy chow like this and made it all ya can eat! He's gonna be sorry by the time I'm through" snickered Joey as he grabbed a plate and began to pile food on.

Mirassa turned away from the teenager who was shovelling food down like he may never eat again. She noticed a dark man in the corner of the room. He was very tall and had his arms crossed. The man must have realised he was being watched because he lifted his gaze to meet hers. Mirassa was taken aback; it was the same man that was on Marik's boat, the one who had the tattoo on his face.

"What is he doing here?" she wondered.

Mirassa realised that when the duelists were arriving, before they boarded the blimp, she must have spaced out or something because she never noticed Ryou until this moment as well. The dark man looked away from her. He looked as though he was having a staring match with someone else. Mirassa looked to her right and saw Joey doing his best to try and intimidate the man. The man must have gotten bored because he closed his eyes and bowed his head again. Joey walked up to Mirassa and whispered to her.

"Be careful of him Miri. That's Marik; he's a nasty piece of work. I don't want nothin to happen to ya so stay close to me ok?"

"They think that man is Marik?"

She nodded to Joey and smiled up at him warmly. He was a really sweet guy now that she thought about it. He would do anything for his friends and she found it an admirable quality for someone to have. Joey put an arm around Mirassa and led her towards the rest of the posse.

Violet eyes watched this exchange between the two teenagers, and to say he was jealous would be the understatement of the century. Marik growled deep in his throat and clutched the millennium rod tightly in his fist. He had to be patient and follow things through as planned. He would deal with Joey wheeler another time. He slowly released the rod again. that idiot still had his arm around her.

'Get your filthy hands off of her! She's mine!'

Marik visualised what would happen if they were back home in Egypt. If Wheeler had his arm around Mirassa there, he would be in a 'lot' of trouble. The penalty for touching another mans bride resulted in separation of the offending limb from his body. It was a harsh punishment, but it did the trick in keeping unwanted attention away from the women. Marik wanted to go over to Mirassa and pull her away from Wheeler. He wanted to be the one to put his arm around her. He let out an almost silent and pained laugh. Not much more then twenty four hours ago, she would have allowed him to do just that, and more besides.

"How did ya qualify so fast Ryoy?" asked Joey curiously. "You were in pretty bad shape when I last saw ya"

"Well actually, I won all of my locator cards at the same time" replied Ryou casually.

"No way! In one duel!" Joey shouted, almost dropping his food and deafening the Egyptian girl under his arm at the same time.

"Yes I did. I defeated Bonz and his gang in the cemetery and got them to give up all their locator cards. They didn't have much choice"

Mirassa looked shocked "You forced them?"

"Sort of" he replied innocently "Well, I guess I'll see you in the finals Joey. Goodbye Mirassa" he tilted is head and went back to eating.

Mirassa and Joey looked at each other as they walked away from the British teen. That was completely out of character for Ryou.

"I hope I don't have to duel him" thought Joey.

Joey finally took his arm off the girl and made his way towards some tasty looking prawns on the table. This waiting was starting to make her nervous. She couldn't think why because it wasn't like she was going to duel anyone. Mirassa felt a stare on her back. She glanced over her shoulder to see Marik staring back at her. She turned away from him and tried to ignore him.

Joey began to get impatient "Hey Kaiba! When are we gonna find out who goes first?!"

Kaiba looked down at him with a condescending air about him. "You seem eager to lose Wheeler, but if you insist, lets begin"

Kaiba snapped his fingers and the lights went out. A platform was raised at the front of the room and lit up. A lottery machine rose out of it. It looked like a blue eyes ultimate dragon. Everyone looked confused. Joey however was the only one to voice his thoughts.

Roland stepped up and announced the people in the room.

"Finalists and guests, the first two duelists to participate in round one of the battle city finals will be chosen by lottery. It will be completely random if you were wondering at the fairness. You all have a number from one through eight. The selector will now choose the first two numbers"

The machine started up. Everyone stood there, waiting patiently. Some duelists were more anxious then others. After what seemed like eternity a ball dropped out of the left dragon's mouth.

"The first duelist to be chosen is number 6, Ryou!" announced Roland

"Who me?" said Ryou, sounding astonished. He began to laugh strangely. Mirassa narrowed her eyes in confusion.

The machine then selected another ball. Roland went to check the number.

"The second duelist to be chosen is number three, Yugi Motou!"

Everyone stood back as Yugi, or rather Yami stepped forward. Ryou followed behind.

"Will the participating duellists please make their way to the stratos level arena please," said Roland

Mirassa caught Marik smirking at Yami. He seemed to be very happy with this arrangement. Marik looked towards her and quickly removed the smirk from his face. She shook her head in utter disgust. The way Marik was acting was sickening. Mirassa turned towards her friends.

"What does that snake have planned?"

As Ryou strode past, he shot her a fascinated glance. His eyes however, weren't as friendly as they had been earlier. They were cold and cruel. He smirked at her and walked on.

"Ok that was strange…" thought Mirassa.

-------------- On deck

As Yugi and Ryou took their marks on the platform, the supporters and other duelists arrived. They positioned themselves to get the best view. The wind was incredibly strong on the deck and not only that, it was bitterly cold too.

"It's freezing up here! Kaiba could have warned us, the inconsiderate prick!" Mirassa complained, her teeth chattering loudly.

She heard a male chuckling behind her. It was Marik. She shrugged it off and wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to keep warm. Kaiba stepped up onto the platform.

"I'll make this quick. Kaiba Kraft 3 is now cruising at four thousand feet, the strong winds and cold air will test your strength and stamina. If you can't take it, then you don't belong here"

Tristan voiced his liking of this little twist and so did Duke. Mirassa however couldn't understand how strength and stamina were important to a card game. It wasn't like they would be wrestling with the monsters themselves. In the end she figured it was just Kaiba's way of showing how big a man he was. Mirassa shared this view with Tea who agreed with her wholeheartedly.

"Yeah, you're right. Kaiba is so sad and pathetic sometimes it's unbelievable"

"Are you prepared to lose it all?" taunted Ryou.

His voice sounded different now, it was deeper and his hair looked wilder. Yugi simply glared back at him.

"I won't lose this duel! Why don't you tell me who you really are?"

Ryou simply grinned at the pharaoh, baring his teeth and not saying a word.

"Fine have it your way but I think I know who you are anyhow" said Yami.

A bright light surrounded Ryou. Mirassa saw that he had something around his neck that wasn't there before. It had the same symbol that was on Marik's rod and the pharaoh's puzzle.

"What the hell is going on? Why does Ryou have a millennium item?" she thought, feeling more confused then ever.

"It's the spirit of the millennium ring! So it is you!" shouted Yami.

Mirassa's eyes widened. "Spirit? Not another one! I get the feeling that he's not as kind as the pharaoh"

Her friends began to wonder and comment about how Ryou got the ring back, how bad the situation was and how they got rid of it in duelist kingdom in the first place. She simply listened as Tea explained about the spirit co inhabiting Ryou's soul. It wasn't so much for her benefit as it was for Marik's though. He pretended that he didn't have a clue as to what was going on. It sickened her, that voice dripping in honey, when she knew perfectly well it was more like cyanide. She wanted to say something, but that meant she'd have to reveal her connection to Marik. She stole a sideways glance at him after he finished his little act. He did the same. They stared at each other for a while.

"I know that Mirassa still has feelings for me. I can see it in her eyes. She wants me but doesn't want to abandon her friends. Admirable, but foolish." thought Marik. "I will have to show her who's in charge here"

-------------------------------------------- After the duel.

"That was a close one yuge" said Tristan after the duel was over. "I thought that Bakura was gonna win. It was lucky you used your Egyptian god card when you did"

Yugi nodded in agreement. The pharaoh had gone back inside his soul room now to gather his thoughts. The duel with the spirit had taken a lot out of him. They had to take Ryou to the infirmary too. He was already weak from his injuries and being blasted by one of the most powerful creatures in duel monster was bound to make him feel worse, despite the fact that his darker side had taken the brunt of the blow. Tea was currently watching over him.

"Hey guys" started Yugi. "I'm gonna go back to my room now, I catch ya later ok?"

Everyone nodded. It was going to be another half hour until the next duel took place so thought they may as well rest up. They all made their way to their respective rooms hoping to get some rest and warm up before the next duel. Just as Mirassa opened her door she felt a presence behind her. Tanned arms snaked around her waist and she felt herself being pulled up against up against someone. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was. She tried to pull herself out of Marik's grip but he was too strong. He closed a hand over her mouth and forced her inside.

He locked the door and turned the girl around to face him.

"Marik what are you…?!"

Mirassa didn't have time to finish her sentence. Before she knew it, Marik had leaned forward and captured her lips with his own. She was so shocked by this sudden movement, she didn't know what to do. He was very strong so she doubted she could push him away. That didn't stop her from trying though. She pressed her hands against his chest and began to push with all her might. She couldn't even straighten her arms to put distance between them. Marik smirked at her futile attempt and hugged her tighter.

'She's not getting away that easily'

Marik grabbed her hips and lifted her up so she practically had her legs wrapped around his waist. He pushed her up against the wall and began to kiss her more deeply. Mirassa was terrified now. She didn't like the way this was heading and squirmed in his grip but to no avail. He wasn't going to force himself on her was he? She let out a frightened whimper and tears began to trickle down her face. Marik stopped suddenly and pulled away from the kiss to study the woman in his arms.

She was crying now and he couldn't bring himself to go any further. Her eyes were bright with tears and she was staring at him, afraid of what he would do next. Marik let out a deep sigh and put her down. He still had his arms around her though.

"Why do you do this Mirassa? You know very well that we are going to marry after this is all over. It has to happen sometime. You can't resist me forever"

Mirassa felt her fear disappear slightly when Marik put her down. It was replaced with a little anger. She wiped the tears away with a sleeve and looked Marik in the eye.

"We are never going to get married. I don't want to be with you Marik. Why can't you just accept that?"

"Because I love you!" he shouted.

Mirassa looked at him in disbelief. How could he possibly love her? They had only just met again and barely knew each other. Marik was massaging his temple with both hands.

"When I saw Wheeler's arm around you before the duel, I wanted to tear him away from you and beat the living daylights out of him. I just can't stand the thought of you being with another man"

Marik took Mirassa's hands in his own.

"I want it to be just us two. You and me, together for the rest of our lives. Please, will you give me another chance to show you how much you mean to me?"
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Chapter 20: The Millennium Necklace


"You Love me?" repeated Mirassa in scepticism.

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She found that statement very hard to believe. Here he was, about to do the unthinkable and rob her of her innocence, and now he was saying that he loved her as if nothing had ever happened.

"Yes I do. Very much" replied Marik. There was a glint of hope in his violet eyes.

"I love you too" said Mirassa quietly bowing her head.

"Really?" he said, smiling gently.

"NO!!" she screamed at him. "How could you possibly think I would?!! You were going to force yourself on me! What were you thinking?! Do you honestly think that by doing that, it will miraculously make me want to be with you?! Well it won't! You really should get a copy of 'how to talk to girls' for dummies. You'd stand a much better chance, or at least you would have had you not manhandled me. I don't ever want to see you again Marik and I will never marry you! I would kill myself before I let you anywhere near me!!"

Marik was fuming. Where did she get the gall to talk to him like that? He had been nothing but kind and generous to Mirassa the moment she had arrived, and suddenly without warning she had up and left him after getting the wrong idea that he intended to control her. It was true that he shouldn't have tried to force himself on her, but he was becoming more and more desperate to hold her like he had only days before. It was times like this that Marik truly regretted his words and actions when they had first met. Things could have been so different but here she was standing in front of him, beautiful and breathtaking but filled with anger towards him.

"What happened? A few days ago we were this close!" he crossed his fingers and held it up for her to see. "But now here we are arguing like an old married couple on the verge of divorce! I don't know what your problem is girl! I did nothing to you before this! I was kind to you; I gave you everything you wanted and more! I would have done anything for you! I never intended to control you and that is the gospel truth! Why would I? That wouldn't be much fun, to have someone that does whatever you say without question and never has a mind of her own. I have changed since we were little! I know that I want revenge on the pharaoh! And if you insist on taking the side of a murderer, then I have no choice then to think of you as an enemy too!"

Marik pulled out his millennium rod and held it up to the girl. Mirassa backed away, glaring at him. "The pharaoh is not a murderer! Why can't you see that?"

Marik bared his teeth at her. "Did you ask him then? It's not like he would admit that detail freely! He would lose the support of his 'friends' if he did! The only reason he's come as far as he has is because of them! I will see to that. As the finals progress, I will send each and every one of his companions to the shadow realm. A good shadow game will make their inevitable defeat much more enjoyable. They will soon come to realize that they cannot defeat me"

"Marik Are you crazy?! You can't possibly expect to duel all of them! The duels are selected by lottery! You might not even get the chance" Mirassa couldn't believe what she was hearing. So this was what Marik was really like? She had ominous feeling that this was just the surface.

"Do you think that I am the only one here?" he smirked. "As you saw in the first duel, the spirit of the millennium ring was working for me and im sure that you have noticed Odion too"

Mirassa looked confused "Is that the man with the tattoo on his face?"

Marik nodded. "I must say, you gave him quite a bruise when you were running away from me back on the boat. I knew that little book of yours wasn't a diary and it was foolish of me to let you keep it. After you left, I studied it in more detail. It was written in a dialect that was unfamiliar to me but I managed to interpret enough to realise that you had no intention of staying put"

"That's not true!" Mirassa cut in defensively. "I actually wanted to stay with you when you took me out for the day, but then I saw what you were doing to my friends and it disgusted me! I heard what you said about Joey being weak too! Hypothetically Marik, if the pharaoh 'had' killed your father, it's not like they were involved as well! They see you as the villain and are only doing what they think is right! They do not deserve to die because they have a conscience!"

Marik began to laugh and shook his head in disappointment. "My dear, sweet, innocent Mirassa, it doesn't matter to me if they were involved back then or not! All that matters, is now! They are helping my enemy and will face the same sticky end as he will. I am hurt that you chose to believe the pharaoh over me…"

"Why are you so certain that he did it?" Mirassa pressed.

"Because I am!!" he shouted.

The room fell into silence. Mirassa looked at Marik who was still pointing the millennium rod at her. She had hit that sensitive subject again. She wished that he would just tell her. She might be able to make some sense out of things and help her friends at the same time. Marik had a mixture of emotions coursing through him. Resentment however was the most dominant.

"Am I going to face the same fate as them too?" she asked almost inaudibly. From what she had gathered, the shadow realm sounded like a horrible place.

Marik stood there; still pointing the millennium rod at her. Unknowingly to Mirassa, a battle was raging inside of him. Marik couldn't tear his eyes away from the frightened girl who was now up against the wall, waiting for him to banish her soul to the shadow realm. As much as he despised the fact that she chose the pharaoh and his companions over him, he couldn't bring himself to do it to her. Marik was very confused, he knew that she would never accept him now, especially after he had threatened her and given her a small taste of his malicious side, but he still held on to the hope that one day she might come to love him back. It was just a fantasy that would probably never become a reality, but somehow it offered him comfort.

He lowered the rod and watched Mirassa as she relaxed slightly. She watched him carefully as he put the golden rod away in his pocket. Marik walked over to the small table and picked up the small ring made of white gold with the small diamond flower. He looked at the girl and turned away from her. As he headed towards the door he gave her one last glance.

"I am truly, very sorry that things have turned out the way they have Mirassa. No one regrets the past more then I do. I just wish that I could make you see that…"

------------------------------------------- Ishizu's room

Ishizu Ishtar was sitting in her room by the window. The lights were low because that was how she liked it. The millennium necklace she wore around her neck had shown her who would be participating in the next duel, but didn't show her how it would end. This usually meant that the results could change drastically depending on the circumstances.

She closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. She reminisced to her childhood, when Odion, Marik and herself used to play between studies. She smiled when she remembered the time Marik had made her a necklace made of flowers. And all he times she watched Marik and Odion play ball together. Sometimes Odion would swing his arm really quickly and make Marik think the ball had been thrown a long distance when it was actually still in his hand. It was a hilarious thing to watch him look around for it.

"I want my brother back" she thought almost tearfully. Ishizu was a strong woman though and the determination she possessed was enough to stop her from crying herself silly.

Suddenly a bright light emerged from the millennium necklace and filled the room. What Ishizu saw next confused her. She was in the desert near a sparkling oasis. It was surrounded by palm trees and large smooth rocks. Sitting at the edge of the oasis was a young woman wearing a traditional Egyptian dress. She had long silky blonde hair and brilliant icy blue eyes. She was gazing into the clear water, running the tips of her fingers across the surface, watching the ripples.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ishizu saw something move from behind the palm trees. There was someone else here too, a young man. She couldn't see his face. He was wearing a long black kilt and familiar Egyptian Jewellery on his arms, neck and waist. He emerged from the shade of the palm trees and into the sunlight. Ishizu's eyes widened considerably when she realized it was Marik. He walked slowly towards the girl, catching her attention. She stood up just as slowly and turned to face him. As the distance between them closed, tears began to fall from the girls face. Marik reached out to her and pulled her into his open arms. He gently traced his thumb across her face to wipe the tears away. The girl smiled back at him just before the scene faded away.

Ishizu's eyes opened with a start. She was back in her room. She looked around in confusion, taking in her surroundings.

"Who was that girl and what connection does she have with my brother?" she asked herself.

"Why don't you ask her and find out?" said a male voice behind her.

Ishizu stood up and turned to face the intruder. She relaxed when she realized who it was.

"Shadi…what are you doing here, and what do mean ask her myself?"

Shadi took a few steps closer to Ishizu. "I know what it is you saw. The girl is in the room at the end of the corridor. She is one of the few people on this aircraft that could possibly help save Marik from his darker side. Unfortunately at this specific moment in time, she will be unwilling to assist in this task. We need to convince her to help us"

Ishizu nodded in understanding and turned away from Shadi who had sat down in a chair to await her return. She exited the room and looked down the hall. It was deserted. She made her way towards the room as instructed and hesitantly knocked on the door.

There was no answer. Ishizu wondered if Shadi had gotten it wrong, maybe the girl wasn't even in there. She tried again. Still, there was no response. Ishizu was about to leave when the door opened slightly. Icy blue eyes appeared through the gap. Ishizu noticed the relieved expression on the girls face. She opened the door all the way.

"Can I help you?" she asked softly.

"I hope so…" replied Ishizu. "Please come with me"

She made her way back down the hall and waited by her own room. Mirassa stood there, unsure of what to do. Could she trust this strange woman? Who was she anyway and what did she want? She seemed somehow familiar, but that couldn't be possible because Mirassa didn't know that many people around here. She didn't know that many people back in Egypt either. Her father had made sure of that.

"You can trust me" the woman reassured.

Mirassa sighed and made her way towards her. She was guided into the room where she saw a man wearing a turban. He stood up the moment he saw her enter the room. He motioned for Mirassa to sit down and she agreed reluctantly.

"Now that you are here, we need to ask you a few questions" said Shadi. Mirassa nodded slowly.

Ishizu studied her with crystal blue eyes. "Do you know a man by the name of Marik Ishtar?"

Mirassa's face turned pale. She didn't know whether or not she should tell them. What if Yami had sent them to talk to her? She didn't want anyone to learn of her ties to Marik.

"I have no idea who you're talking about. I don't know any Marik Ishtar" replied Mirassa unconvincingly.

The other two Egyptians didn't seem to buy that, and saw right through the little white lie. "Your face tells us differently" said Shadi. "We won't tell anyone if you don't want us to, but it is very important that you do"

The girl remained quiet. She wasn't comfortable with this situation at all and began to twist the fabric of her skirt. Ishizu sensed her anxiousness and turned to Shadi. "Let me speak to her, alone."

Shadi bowed his head and exited the room. When the two women were alone, a voice was heard on the speaker calling all duelists to the main hall. Mirassa suddenly noticed that the woman was wearing a duel disk on her arm.

"Shouldn't you be in the main hall with all the other duelists?" asked Mirassa.

"I will not be playing this round" said Ishizu confidently.

"How do you know that? And who are you anyway? Why are you so certain that I know Marik? What do you want?"

Ishizu smiled behind her veil at the bombardment of questions thrown at her. "Perhaps I should explain"

"Yes I think that would be a good start" said Mirassa.

"I possess the millennium necklace. It gives me the ability to see into the past and future, that is how I know I won't be next. My name is Ishizu Ishtar. I need your assistance to help save someone dear to me"

Mirassa stopped to absorb this new information "Another millennium item? And you said your name was Ishtar?" Now she knew where she had seen this woman before. "You're Marik's sister…"

Ishizu nodded. "Yes, that is correct. My millennium necklace showed me a vision of you and my brother. You seemed very close"

"We are nothing of the sort" Mirassa snorted angrily. "I hate his guts!"

Ishizu's memory sparked as she heard these four words.

-----------------Flashback------------

"No, I don't want to marry him! He's really mean and keeps calling me names!" said a tiny Egyptian girl to her mother.

"Im sure he's not that bad. Don't be so melodramatic"

As this argument progressed, Ishizu walked past the room. She heard angry voices sounding off behind the wooden door. She didn't want to intrude but she couldn't help it, she was curious. No one would notice her if she listened for a few seconds, so she pressed her ear up against the door.

"Mummy! Marik said that he'd lock me in a room full of rats!"

"Stop it! You are only trying to get out of this marriage! Well it isn't going to work missy!"

"But Mummy!" begged the little girl.

"Stop it! I don't want to hear another word about it! Understand? You two will get along fine, you'll see"

"I hate his guts!!!" screamed the girl at the top of her lungs.

Ishizu pulled her ear away from the door as she heard a yelp and whimpering. The girl must have been slapped for her outburst. Ishizu saw this as her cue to leave.

-------------End flashback--------------

"Mirassa...you 'have' changed" smiled Ishizu removing her veil. The smile soon vanished from her face "I'm sorry"

"What for?" asked Mirassa confused.

"For my brother's behaviour. I knew what he was doing to you. I told him to stop once, but he didn't, did he?"

The girl shook her head. "It doesn't matter. It wasn't your fault and I don't think he would have stopped anyway. He was having far too much fun" she let out a grim laugh.

"What are you doing here?" asked Ishizu "You're supposed to be in Egypt with your family"

Mirassa began to explain what had happened over the past few months, and how she escaped from Egypt with her guardian to Domino. She told her how Marik had kidnapped her and brought her to his boat. And that Marik had somehow convinced her he had changed, but was appalled at what he was doing to her friends. How she escaped from the boat and how she ended up here at the finals.

"And now he won't leave me alone! He keeps coming to see me, trying to get me to go back to him. But the last time… he was furious. I've never seen him that angry before. He even threatened to send me to the shadow realm. He said that he saw me as an enemy because I was friends with the pharaoh. This was right after the first duel. Im not sure what to do now…"

"Marik won't send you to the shadow realm" said Ishizu reassuringly. "He said all that to you because he was frustrated. I've never known Marik to act like this. You must be very special to him"

"I don't want to be special to him! I want to be free of him!" said Mirassa despairingly, putting both hands on her head in frustration.

"You will be, if you can help us that is…" said Ishizu.

"Oh?" questioned Mirassa.

"Marik believes that the pharaoh killed our father. We didn't want to tell him the truth" Ishizu said sadly.

Mirassa looked confused. "The truth?"

"It would be easier to show you. Some of it at least" said Ishizu standing up.

Mirassa followed her into the center of the room. Ishizu raised her hands to the millennium necklace and a bright light once again filled the small space. Mirassa looked around in shock. They were now standing in midair in a room. Not just any room though, it was in an old chamber that looked like it was still being used. There was an alter with two golden object on a pedestal. Looking on the items was a large eye. It was the room where the millennium items were kept.

Suddenly a man strode in. he was followed by three other men. One of which was being dragged along, bound by ropes. He looked weak. Mirassa gasped in shock when she saw his face. It was the tall man with the tattoo. She never knew that he was a part of her past as well. He was tied down and the fabric was ripped from his back. The cloaked man ordered to be left alone with him. When they were the only two left in the chamber, the man pulled a long, thin, leather whip from the folds of his robe. He walked behind Odion and a loud crack echoed around the room. Groans of pain were heard from the victim as this assault continued. Mirassa couldn't bear to watch, it seemed that neither could Ishizu. She had a pained expression on her features which turned even more distressed as the sound of running footsteps drew closer.

Suddenly a cry was heard throughout the hall. Mirassa looked shocked. It was Ishizu and a younger Marik, but he seemed different somehow. He now wore kohl around his eyes and his hair was slightly longer then when they first met. From the look of his ever so slightly stiff movement, she realised he must still be recovering from his tombkeeper initiation. She knew that it would be painful because she had endured the same ritual, but she couldn't imagine how excruciating his must have been. After all, hers was only a small one on her hip. Marik's she had heard covered his whole back.

The man stopped his vicious assault on Odion and turned to face the two children. Marik stared at Odion and the pain that he was in. Odion couldn't even stand up. He was far too weak from the loss of blood and soon passed out. Marik began to shake slightly in anger. The boy clutched his head in agony. He was in so much pain. Mirassa watched on as the scene unfolded before her. Veins began to appear on his face and his hair became wilder. It stuck out in all directions, defying the laws of gravity. Suddenly a glowing eye appeared on Marik's forehead.

The voice she heard next made her blood run cold. This wasn't Marik. His voice sounded almost demonic as he taunted the people in the room. She watched him walk over to the pedestal and pick up the millennium rod. He then turned around and aimed it at his father.

The scene turned black. Mirassa turned to face Ishizu in confusion who was currently focusing the necklaces power.

"I don't want to watch this part" said Ishizu quietly.

The next thing that Mirassa saw was a very sad sight. The man in the cloak was dead, and not only that, the skin on his back had been sliced off. She felt sick; it was the most gruesome thing she had ever seen in her life. Marik was back to normal now it seemed. He was hugging the old man tightly, not caring about the blood that stained his clothes. Tears streamed from his eyes and he squeezed them shut. The younger Ishizu and Odion were watching on with mournful but worried expressions. Odion walked up to Marik and pulled him away from his dead father.

Ishizu raised her hands to the millennium necklace again and they were back her room.

"What happened to him?" Mirassa asked cautiously.

"Marik has always felt bitter about becoming a tombkeeper. He never wanted to become one in the first place. He was terrified at the idea of spending the rest of his life in the tomb. Odion tried his best to convince our father to let him become a tombkeeper, but father never saw Odion as a true Ishtar and refused. I remember the day that Marik was taken to have this terrible ritual. It took hours to complete and his cries of pain could be heard for miles. When it was over, Marik changed. He became distant and temperamental. He made it perfectly clear that he despised the pharaoh. He saw it as the pharaoh's fault that he was condemned to this life"

"I can understand why Marik hates the pharaoh, but why does he think that Yami killed your father?" asked Mirassa. She was starting to feel sorry for him again. But this time, she kind of understood why.

"When Marik had the pharaoh's memory carved onto his back, his hatred towards the pharaoh somehow created a darkness within him. Odion is the closest person to Marik. He was covering for us. You see, Marik begged me to take him into the outside world and I gave in. Father found out and punished Odion for it. When we returned, Marik saw how father was treating him. His hatred towards father grew stronger then ever and his dark side finally emerged"

Mirassa stared at Ishizu. "Dark side?"

Ishizu nodded. "Yes, you saw him. He is a separate consciousness that shares my brother's soul. Because he was created by Marik's hate, he is completely evil. You didn't see, but he was the one who killed our father. It was horrific"

"Marik was the one who killed his father…?" this was unbelievable.

Ishizu shook her head and corrected her. "No, not Marik. His dark side. He almost killed us too, but we couldn't bring ourselves to tell Marik. How do you tell a ten year old something like that? It would kill him if he knew"

"Yeah…" Mirassa looked thoughtful. Ishizu continued the explanation.

"Moments after it happened, Shadi appeared and told us that our father's death was necessary for the pharaoh's return. Marik has no memory of the event and with him being but a child at the time, he must have misunderstood what Shadi said. No one corrected him though. We had no idea what was going on inside his head"

"This is terrible. Its no wonder Marik hates Yami, but how can we stop him? He's determined to carry out his plans and won't stop until he does"

"I know. The only thing we can do at the moment is to hope the pharaoh defeats him. That is the first step. My millennium necklace hasn't told me who will win this tournament, but I have faith in the pharaoh." Smiled Ishizu.

"You mentioned earlier that you needed my help. What could I possibly do? Marik won't even listen to me!" said Mirassa.

"You could be more helpful to him then you realise Mirassa. Marik obviously has feelings for you" said Ishizu knowingly. "When this is all over, and im sure it will be before long, you can help support him after he learns the terrible truth. He will find out sooner or later" Ishizu leaned forward slightly.

"Im begging you, will you be there for him and help bring my brother back to his normal self? Odion and I will do what we can also, but I think Marik would appreciate it more if comfort came from someone who wasn't involved. Someone he wants attention from the most…"

Mirassa felt bad. She knew perfectly well that Ishizu wanted them to get together again. She felt so incredibly guilty that she had argued with Marik about this subject. She didn't know how gruesomely the old man had died and must have hurt him terribly. Mirassa knew she was right in assuming the pharaoh didn't do it, but Marik had no idea and that his dark side was the culprit. She would have to wait and see how things turned out.

"I make no promises, but I will do what I can to help. Marik should know the truth, and even though I still think he's a stupid, arrogant jerk, I don't want him to suffer. Not with something like this"

Ishizu had a grateful expression on her face. She knew this girl was more important then to just help Marik recover from this truth, but didn't know how. Her millennium necklace wouldn't show her the details but the vision of Mirassa and her brother together must have been a good sign. She wanted Marik to be happy and if being with this girl was what he desired, she would do all she could in her power to push them in the right direction.

As long as Marik's dark side didn't make an appearance, thing would go smoothly. She knew that a duel was taking place right this moment on the stratos arena. Marik versus Joey, although it was really Odion who was posing as Marik. She doubted that Marik would put his god card in his brother's deck, but she knew he had fakes. As long as they didn't anger the god's all would be fine.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 21: The Evil Awakens


"I will see what I can do, I promise" said Mirassa softly.

After seeing the truth about Marik's past with her own eyes, she was willing to do all she could to help Ishizu bring her brother back. Ishizu was smiling to herself behind the veil she wore. Mirassa could tell, but was oblivious to the reason why.

As Ishizu opened her mouth to speak, they were interrupted by a loud noise. As the two women stood up in surprise, the sky flashed outside. They rushed to the small round windows and kneeled on the cushioned seats peering out into the night sky. They couldn't see anything. Mirassa twisted her head so she could look upwards and saw a golden light emitting from the stratos arena.

"Oh, it's only the duel…" breathed Mirassa, thankful that it wasn't the blimp going down.

"No….The winged dragon has awakened…." Replied Ishizu. Her voice was barely more than a whisper. She turned to face the younger girl. "Mirassa, you must go to my brother. I feel that things will soon take a turn for the worse. We must not allow Marik's darker side to be free again. If Odion falls, then there will be no one to stop him. Maybe your presence there will be able to help. Keep my brother calm, that is very important. His anger will only make it stronger"

"But what if…" Mirassa cut off. "Oh never mind, I'll go"

She turned and ran out of the room. Ishizu watched her retreating back as she turned the corner and onwards towards the duel.

"She will not be able to stop the evil from freeing itself" said a familiar male voice. Shadi stood in the corner. He had listened in on the entire conversation between the two women. "You place far too much faith in her Ishizu. She and Marik do have a bond with each other, despite the current situation. But I fear it will not be enough. They still have many issues to work through together"

Ishizu sighed. "I know, but maybe she can ease his pain by being there"

"If you say so…" whispered Shadi unconvinced.

------------------------------------------------------------ On deck

Marik smiled evilly to himself as he stood behind the group of cheerleaders, foolishly trying to convince Joey that he could still win. There was no chance in hell now that Odion had successfully summoned the Winged Dragon of Ra. Marik used the millennium rod to speak directly into Odion's mind. Congratulations were now in order.

"You've made our family proud today Odion. Your handling of the fake Egyptian god card proves that you are one of us. It has also convinced our sceptical friends that you are Marik"

Odion smiled to himself with the compliment. He felt extremely honoured but guilty at the same time. His loyalty to his brother however outweighed any doubts he had about winning the duel using this card.

The sound of the elevator door opening caught everyone's attention. Marik turned his head to see Mirassa step out and onto the arena. She wrapped her arms around herself and muttered angrily in Arabic. A curse Marik supposed from forgetting to bring an outer jacket for the cold. He turned his attention back to the duel trying to ignore the girl. He stole a glance at her as she walked closer. Yami and the gang's attention was once again focused the duel.

Mirassa stood for a moment and watched Marik. He turned his head and gave her the most venomous look he could muster before watching the duel again.

"Ishizu said I have to support him. Keep him calm, but how? Whenever he looks at me he sees an enemy…" her thoughts trailed off. "How could Marik have known that the culprit for his father's murder was with him all these years…?"

Marik was angry with her because she was on the pharaoh's side and had more then once commented on that fact. Perhaps she could make Marik think that she was loyal to him again. Mirassa was a little sceptical at this prospect. She wasn't sure if Marik would believe her this time, but she had to try. She wasn't completely lying though because she really did want to help him. It was for his own good and if doing this would help keep his darker side locked away then she would do so willingly.

Mirassa walked towards the side and leaned against it. She noticed that Marik was trying to move his head to see what she was doing without making it too obvious. She slowly moved sideways towards him until they were almost touching. Marik gave in to his curiosity and turned his gaze sideways to face her. She looked up at Marik and gave him an apologetic look.

"What is this girl doing? Has she finally come around or is she trying to make a fool of me like she did last time?" thought Marik warily.

He saw her glance around to make sure that no one was watching and she discreetly linked hands with him. Marik looked down at her and received a reassuring smile from the girl. He was becoming increasingly more confused now. Did this mean they were together again? He looked at her with a questioning expression. She seemed to understand what he wanted to asked and squeezed his hand in reply, her smile spreading further.

"I feel like I should be working in a harem…" thought Mirassa guiltily as she saw Marik's frown turn into a look of utter delight.

She looked onto the field and saw the golden image of Ra in the sky, her smile faltering slightly. How could she have not noticed this creature when she first arrived?

'I must have been blind to miss that beastie!'

Suddenly Mirassa remembered reading about this creature. It was apparently a force to be reckoned with and it was no surprise that Ishizu was worried for her brother. That thing could do a lot of damage.

She felt her hand being squeezed affectionately by Marik in reassurance. He spoke in Arabic in a voice low enough that only she could hear.

"Do not worry. Ra will not hurt you as long as I am here"

She smiled at Marik when he said this. He was being sweet again Dammit! If there was one thing she loved about him in times like these, it was the feeling of security he gave her. When Marik was around she felt as though nothing could harm her. As if she was the only thing that mattered.

"Thank you" replied Mirassa, also speaking in Arabic.

The sound of someone's raised voice broke their thoughts of each other. The man posing as Marik was now facing the Winged Dragon of Ra.

"Obey me! Attack my opponent now!!!" he shouted.

The beast did nothing. Confused murmurs sounded amongst the group.

"What's gong on? Why isn't it attacking?" said Tea worriedly.

Yami looked at the huge creature. Its teeth were bared and a rumble echoed through the skies. "Something's gone wrong…"

Mirassa's eardrums almost split when the sound of thunder came crashing down. She put her hands up to her ears and swore copiously. Bolts of lightning barely missed the participants of the duel. Joey kept jumping around to stay of the line of fire while Odion was frowning. He had his eyes closed and wore a sorrowful expression. Tristan began to climb on the platform.

"Hey! Get down from there Joey! You'll be toasted!"

"What's going on Marik?" whispered Mirassa. "This isn't a typical storm…"

Marik's duel disk began to emit a ghostly aura. He was worried. "Ra has been angered" he replied quietly.

"Why? What could you have done that is so blasphemous towards the god?"

Marik mumbled something. A crash of thunder hit the platform again.

"What was that…?" Mirassa had to make sure she had heard him correctly. "A fake? Marik…"

"Oh no… Ra is going to punish everyone involved in this duel…" hissed Marik. "Odion…"

Marik grasped the millennium rod from his pocket and focused it to talk to his brother. He didn't have a chance to say anything though. He heard Odion's deep sombre voice.

"Im sorry master. I have failed you, again…"

A split second later and both players were on the ground. Mirassa gasped when she saw them. There was a fake millennium rod on the floor that had been shattered into hundreds of tiny shards. Joey was knocked out and Odion was drifting in and out of consciousness. The lighting had stopped now. The image of Ra had vanished from the sky and the rest of the holograms had also disappeared.

Mirassa was about to move to see if Joey was alright, but stopped when she heard a painful groan beside her. Marik was clutching his head in agony and was sweating profusely. She furrowed her brow in concern and turned to help him.

"Joey will be fine. He's strong. I have to stay with Marik and prevent his darker side from being freed!"

Roland was stopping everyone else from approaching the arena. "Get off! There's still a duel taking place" he warned Tristan. "If you don't, both players will forfeit!"

Tristan was outraged. "Are you crazy? Open your eyes! They're out cold! We have to get them to a doctor right away!"

While they argued, Mirassa was trying to help Marik. The pain seemed to be getting worse. She pressed her thumb on his forehead and applied pressure to take the headache away. It only helped to lessen the pain. She tried to think of a spell that could help, but her mind went blank. She was no good in these sorts of situations. Any trouble that approached and she was the first one to panic.

"Be strong Marik" she whispered. "Don't let him take control!"

Marik groaned and clutched his head even tighter. His pain was so intense; she could see his veins beginning to pulse. Mirassa pulled him closer and practically pulled him into an embrace. It was all she could think of right now to take his mind off things. It was a stupid idea but she didn't know what to do. It looked like the evil was winning.

Meanwhile on the deck, Joey had somehow succeeded in standing up.

"Joey Wheeler is the victor!" declared Roland, raising his hand into the air to signal that the duel was now officially over.

Yami wasted no time in rushing over to him to see if he was ok.

"What just happened?" blinked Joey. "And who's dat guy?"

"You're in the finals remember? You just passed out from the lighting bolts you dummy!" exclaimed a frustrated Mai Valentine from the side lines.

Joey's eyes dawned in realisation as the past few minutes came back to him in a flash. "Oh yeah…" he looked at his opponent "Hey, dat guy's hurt!"

Yami and Joey ran over to Odion and turned him over. Joey lifted his head up. The man weakly opened his eyes and glanced at his master. The girl was trying desperately to calm him but it didn't seem to be working.

"I am sorry Joey. It was an honour to duel with you…" said Odion hoarsely.

"Ummm, yeah. Right back at ya. You ok?" replied Joey.

Yami looked at the man. "You have some explaining to do… if you're not Marik, Then who are you?"

The mans expression turned grave. He knew he had to tell the pharaoh the truth. "I am merely a servant" he pointed to the side. "To the real master Marik…"

All heads turned towards the young couple. Mirassa's features currently held a frightened expression as she watched Marik continue to clutch his head in anguish. She had given up trying to massage the headache away and now resorted to hugging him and rubbing his back for comfort. It was all she could do.

"That's Marik?!!!!" yelled Joey.

He jumped off the platform and strode over to the girl. He grabbed her arms gently and pulled her out of Marik's reach. "Joey, what are you doing!" she cried. "He's in pain!"

"Who cares! You know who dat guy really is? Marik! Dats who! He's been playin everyone for a sap!"

Joey pulled Mirassa closer to him and further away from the sandy blonde. She struggled to release herself from him but failed miserably. Marik stole a glance at his sweetheart. He looked towards Yami now. His headache seemed to have vanished now, enabling him to speak.

"Yes it's true. I am indeed the real Marik you fool!" he said nastily.

"So Namu lied to us?" said Tea in disbelief.

"Namu?" laughed Marik. "He was just a disguise to get me closer to Yugi"

Joey released Mirassa and shook his fist at the Egyptian. "You little worm!"

"He's the one who brainwashed you Joey" reminded Yami, thinking back to the duel on the pier. "So this is the man behind the madness…" Yami stared back at Marik, meeting his cold stare.

"So pharaoh, we finally meet face to face. Now I can finish what my pathetic servants couldn't! Yugi, your puzzle will soon be where it belongs, aarrghhh!!" Marik grasped his head again.

Mirassa covered her mouth. His face was distorted for a moment before returning to normal. She widened her eyes in horror and cringed he she heard a voice that didn't belong to Marik.

"Let me out! You cannot contain me any more!"

"Marik…" she whispered.

Odion twisted his head around to see his master fighting the invisible force. "Oh no, I was afraid of this. Listen to me! We are all in great danger. Marik has darker side and I am unable hold it back any longer. Please help him… urgh…"

Odion couldn't stay awake any longer. He closed his eyes and fell into an uneasy coma. Seconds later a bright light surrounded Marik. He let out an excruciating cry of anguish and threw his head back. The onlookers watched in apprehension.

"I'm gonna put this in the 'not good' category" said Joey.

Mirassa stepped backwards into the crowd. She didn't want to meet this Marik. If he was evil enough to kill his own father, then who knows what he would do to others. A deep voice chuckled evilly. Marik lowered his head again.

He looked so different now. Mirassa looked him over in anxiety. The millennium eye symbol was now glowing on his forehead, and his hair was spiked up in the very same way it was when Ishizu had shown her that awful scene. His eyes were different as well. They showed no emotion but malice and immorality.

"Ha ha ha! Im free again. Now I can do things my way. I was restrained many years ago by that fool Odion…" smirked Malik, glancing at the unconscious man on the floor.

"Who are you?" asked Yami. This was an unexpected turn of events.

"I am the true Marik, but you may call me Malik. I am not as kind as the one you've come to know, and soon I will complete what he couldn't. I deserve to be pharaoh, not you! Get ready for the real battle. When I'm through with you, you're puzzle will be around my neck, Where it belongs. You, along with all your friends will be trapped forever in the realm of eternal darkness. Except for you…"

Malik tilted his head sideways in mock curiosity and looked at the young Egyptian girl trying to hide behind her friends. She looked back at him, wondering who the hell he was talking to. Her face paled when she realised that comment was directed at her. Her mouth opened and closed quickly. She had no idea what to say to him. Mirassa was wary of Marik before, but this Malik person was much more dangerous then his alter ego by miles. Tristan became angry and started to threaten Malik.

"You leave her alone Malik! If you so much as lay a finger on her then I'll…"

"You'll what?" he jeered. "Stop me from claiming my fiancé? The woman who was destined to be mine years before you even knew her?"

Everyone took a sharp intake of breath. They all turned sharply took look at the small woman huddled in amongst them.

Yami closed his eyes and frowned as he absorbed this new information. "Of course… it all makes sense now. Mirassa has acted strangely since the moment we met her. Her life in Egypt that she was unwilling to talk about, the lack of surprise when we told her about the millennium items and the powers they possess, and her behaviour towards Namu, or should I say Marik. She knew him long before all this trouble started"

Mirassa looked around at the people staring at her. She felt ashamed, especially for keeping this secret from her friends. She looked at each of them. Tea, Serenity and Mai held an expression of hurt on their faces. A look that quickly changed to mistrust. Tristan and Duke were staring wide eyed and open mouthed as if she had grown an extra limb. Kaiba gawped at her too. He then turned his nose up at her in disgust and sneered at her. She finally faced Joey, His face was emotionless.

"Is what Malik's saying true Mirassa?" asked Yami suddenly, stopping right in front of her.

His deep red eyes held her own. She felt as if he was judging her. She knew she couldn't lie any more, and averted her eyes to the floor. She couldn't even look at him. Her shame was becoming unbearable and tears began to gather in her emerald orbs.

"Yes… it's true" she whispered. Only Yami could hear her now. "I didn't want to lie to you but… I just couldn't bring myself to tell anyone… I am so sorry pharaoh…"

Yami's hard gaze softened. If there was one thing he prided himself for, it was being able to tell if someone was lying. "This girl is innocent. I truly believe that she didn't want any harm to come to any of us" he bent his head and whispered in her ear. "It's alright"

"Are you finished over there?" asked Malik impatiently, tapping his foot on the hard steel floor. Mirassa looked directly at Malik. She had managed to suppress the tears for now.

"Listen to me my lady; I am very impressed with the cunning behaviour you have shown towards my other half. You managed to bend Marik to your will with your lies and deceit, not once, but twice! It was no wonder I managed to free myself. He was weak compared to me" Malik held out his hand to her. "Join me, and I promise you a magnificent future"

Mirassa sneered at the hand held out to her. "No! I wouldn't accept your offer even if I was tied to a table having my eyes gouged out! And I resent being called a liar!"

Malik smiled at her yearningly. "You can be very headstrong when you want to be. I am going to have to refuse your answer my lady. A beautiful desert bloom such as yourself is a rare find that I will most certainly hold on to"

"You're gonna have ta get through us first!" said Joey stepping in front of the girl. Mirassa smiled in relief. At least she wasn't alone. Malik smirked at Joey.

"A task that will be easily accomplished" he turned to face the pharaoh.

"Yami, the battle for the pharaoh's power will begin right now. A conflict 5000 years in the making, and there's no turning back. The great Egyptian god monsters will serve and protect me as I rule as the new pharaoh!"

Malik laughed evilly and turned away from the group. He made his way towards the elevator. He stepped on and caught Mirassa's gaze. He gave her a lustful smirk and blew her a kiss before the doors closed completely.
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