AN: Chapter two is here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm really having fun writing this and I just want to quickly thank Lucidscreamer, SoulDreamer and Zoe, for reviewing so far.

Yami: Hai.

Yuugi: Domou.

Rosie: So without further ado, here's chapter two! Hey! That rhymed!!!!!! I'm a poet! MWAHAHAHA!!!!

Yuugi: Yami…

Yami: You're scaring my koibito again. If you keep this up, I'll have to kill you.

Rosie: O.o

Yami: That's better.

Chapter Two:

Yami Cont.

"I want you to steal the Sennen Puzzle from Maximillian Pegasus…"

A raven flew unnoticed above the din of the city, gliding on air currents, dipping and rising once again until it alighted upon the top of a street lamp, as silent as death.

"I see it in my sleep almost every night. I don't know why…"

The raven took flight once again, veering to the north of town where the finest homes and richest citizens were known to reside.

"The Sennen Puzzle…"

"The Sennen Puzzle…"

The Sennen Puzzle.

Ravens don't sigh, or else I would have. As I flew towards the residence of Maximillian Pegasus in raven form, my mind was still trying vainly to understand what was going on.

The summons, the boy, my appointed mission.

I spotted the house. Anyone would have with the smallest amount of power. The house was covered in every type of shield, protective aura and magical ward possible. It was going to be almost impossible to break into. Almost.

I alighted on a branch as close as I could get without setting a ward off and there I paused. I couldn't continue before I settled down. I was still so wound up over everything that had just happen that I wouldn't have a prayer if I tried breaking in now.

Ok.

So.

The Sennen Puzzle. I winced as I thought of it. I'm pretty much fearless but the memory of the golden pyramid sent chills down my spine. Rather strange considering I had created it to begin with.

Yes. I had created it. The memory stirred feelings I had repressed long ago. Such human emotions. Emotions most demons aren't capable of. But it's all so different when you weren't demonic to begin with.

I tucked my head under my wing as I tried to clear my head of them.

A love of the people…

A sense of responsibility…

A sacrifice…

I had to stop this. What was in the past was long dead. They were long dead. As was the memory of who I had once been.

Pharaoh…

"STOP!" I called out, but my form restricted my cry to a bedraggled 'caw'.

Stop. I had to. This was getting me nowhere and I had somewhere I really had to be. The mystery wasn't going to solve itself right away. I was Fate's favorite joke and always had been. I might as well play along.

I turned my attention to how exactly I was going to get in. It wasn't going to be simple. Every doorway, window and chimney was sealed at least twice over with different spells. No way I was entering the house that way.

There had to be something…

I took flight and began to circle the house slowly, taking notice, while I did so, of several creatures patrolling on guard as well, unseen to human eyes but seen very well with mine. I'd have to be careful of those as well.

There! I saw it. My entrance. It was a small air vent, overlooked because there was no way anything larger than a mole was getting in there. Not to mention it was barred shut and screened.

I became very, very small. As a flea, it really wasn't difficult slipping in and then I changed my form to a spider and scuttled along, searching for where I needed to go, keeping all of my senses open for anything odd or out of place. The wards didn't end on the outside. Indoors would be more dangerous than the shields. I was already beginning to feel something… I wasn't sure what it was, but it was definitely something familiar, a thought that both relieved me and made me nervous at the same time.

I came to a parting of the ways and was about to turn right when the sound of someone speaking to the left caught my attention. Instead I headed that way. Maybe I'd manage to learn something.

I reached the end of the vent, which was apparently attached to the sitting room. From my vantage point I could see that it was lavishly decorated. Lavish doesn't always mean good taste, however. The floor was carpeted in plush thick burgundy carpeting and the wallpaper was striped. Yes, striped. The sofas were the antique sort, with all the gold trimming. I shuddered, my eight legs lifting off the floor one at a time. There was a huge chandelier hanging from the ceiling casting harsh white luminescent light down on two people. A woman in a lavender dress and long blonde wavy hair who was gazing adoringly at a man in a salmon colored suit and straight white hair even longer than her own. His hair fell over one eye, hiding it completely from view. He carried an air of cocky importance about him and I immediately knew that this was Pegasus.

"It's going to be quite the affair, you know. I'm having the whole place redone for the party and I'm bringing in several pieces never seen before. There is one rug in particular…" he trailed off, smiling benignly and taking a sip of wine from a glass he was holding.

"Oh, Maximillian! I think it sounds absolutely splendid! I can't wait and I'm ever so pleased you decided on using my house out in the country!" The woman was practically gushing and I really had to try hard to keep from convulsing in disgust.

Pegasus smirked with self-admiration. "Yes, Cecelia, your house was perfect for the meeting. Everyone will be present, of course. Industrial Illusions and Kaiba Corp will finally be coming together to work, perhaps, towards a more promising future."

Cecelia's eyes were shining in adoration and I found that I couldn't stomach this any longer. It didn't mean anything to me, in any case.

Turning back, I went the way I had wanted to go before I'd been side-tracked, the voices of the man and the woman in the sitting room fading slowly away to nothing.

I came at last to an opening that looked fairly promising and resumed flea form, flying out of the vent to the floor and becoming, once again, a young Egyptian teen.

This was where it might get difficult.

Making little to no noise, I crept along the hallway I'd emerged into, walking from door to door, pausing by each to feel the room's aura.

I walked all the way to the end of the hall finding nothing. Annoyed, but not really worried (it was a big house, after all), I climbed the stairway nearby to the second floor to resume my search.

I had gone halfway along the hall when I looked up and paused, knowing I'd found the room.

Three things gave it away.

A) It was barred with iron and had seven locks. Enough said.

B) It was emitting an amazingly powerful aura.

C) Halfway down from where I was standing to the room, there was a smoke alarm on the ceiling. What does that have to do with anything? Well, it wasn't really a smoke alarm. It would just appear that way to the ungifted. In reality, it was a feral imp, crouching upside-down, watching the corridor for intruders. If anyone tried to get in that room, Pegasus would know shortly after.

It was almost too easy. Or at least it seemed that way. Again, I got the strange feeling that there was something more, hiding behind an unseen veil. Something eerily familiar, but I shook it off. I couldn't run away. Not only would my bond with the boy not allow it, but it would hurt if I tried. A lot. (Something along the lines of being incinerated to ashes, I think…)

Concentrating, I held out my right hand in front of me, palm facing up. Everything but my hand went dark around me as I focused, and slowly, wisps of shadows formed, twisting almost seductively, awaiting their instructions. I blew them upwards, to where the imp squatted, and they glided elegantly until they had wrapped around the small creature, he noticing nothing amiss. I abruptly snapped my opened hand into a tight fist and with nothing more than a small strangled sound, the imp fell to the floor by my feet before shattering and evaporating.

With the first obstacle removed, I proceeded to the door, surprised to find that the magical aura was coming from inside and that there was no barrier on the door itself. Just the locks. Instead of being relieved, I became uneasy.

The Puzzle was not something to be left sitting on a shelf in a room without the proper protection. If Pegasus was smart enough to have it in his possession to begin with, he should be smart enough to know that as well.

Shrugging off the growing sense of danger, I approached the door, my form slowly shifting and twisting until I was nothing more than a tendril of smoke, sliding under and reforming on the other side.

It was a plain room, nothing like the sitting room I had seen before. The walls were a bare uniform white, the floor- plain grey marble. The only thing of interest whatsoever, was a glass cabinet in the far left corner. I approached this slowly, taking stock of the items within as I neared.

Most of it was useless junk. People with the power and the ability for shadow magic usually went nuts over any little thing they thought or were told was useful. Things bought on the black market that actually had no value. A waste of money and time. But there were other things. My eyes widened as I began to realize just what this cabinet held.

I had thought Pegasus to be clever, managing to acquire the Puzzle.

He wasn't just clever.

The Rod, the Tauk, the Ankh, the Scale, the Ring…

All lined up neatly on display, seemingly harmless objects, but radiating white-hot power so blinding to the senses, I had to shake my head a couple of times to clear my thoughts.

My eyes fell upon the Puzzle.

I took in a sharp breath and winced, taking a step backward. The Puzzle sat there in all its glory, the golden pyramid gleaming as it had five thousand years ago. I had hoped never to see it again, hoped to rid myself of my memories of it but…

Breathe…

Its sharp angles, cruel designs, the Eye of Horus staring at me, mocking me…

Breathe…

My mind was telling me something and I finally inhaled after realizing that my vision was getting fuzzy.

I opened the case slowly, carefully and knelt down to take the Puzzle. It was then I realized that the Eye was missing.

I checked the other shelves to make sure it wasn't there but to no avail and I suddenly thought back to the odd way Pegasus wore his hair, hiding one of his eyes…

My lips set in a grim line, realizing where the last item was, but I didn't have time to dwell on this. I took a deep breath and took hold of the Puzzle, half-expecting to have lightning come down and strike me and send me to Hell. Then I remembered I was already in Hell, or a form of it. I added a long, heavy silver chain to my outfit and attached the Puzzle to it so that it was hanging around my neck.

I was just turning to go when that feeling I'd had of foreboding increased ten-fold and a portal of pitch black opened next to the cabinet. Everything seemed to go silent and then I heard a deep growl from within, followed shortly by psychotic laughter, laughter that I knew and it was then I decided to make my escape.

I turned and threw my hand out in front of me, blasting the door open, now was no time for secrecy, and ran down the hall as fast as I could. I flew down the stairs at breakneck speed and was nearly at the bottom when a ball of purple energy burst somewhere into the wall beside me, throwing me off balance. I crashed onto the floor, grimacing as I dislocated my shoulder. Damn it, human bodies were so restricting. Luckily I threw up a shield in time to block the next attack, catching a glimpse of my attacker as I got up and continued to run. Just as I'd suspected.

Maniacal laughter followed me as I crashed through a door at the end of the hall, emerging into the same sitting room I'd been watching before. It was empty now, luckily and I headed for the door. I chanced a glance through the window and swore.

I'd forgotten about the guards. I could see them headed for my exit, to wait for me. I could make out four Tyhones and a Three-Headed-Geki. Each on their own wouldn't be a problem for me, but all five at once, plus my shoulder…

A huge ball of fire narrowly missed my head, disintegrating the wall it came in contact with. A Hinotama. This guy meant business…

I ran past the exit to another door at the other end of the room, shutting it tightly behind me and placing a locking spell and shield on it. Several more Hinotamas made impact, but the lock and shield held firm. I turned around-

And froze.

I was in the kitchen, a nice place, really. Actually quite cozy if you took the time to look at it. What bothered me was the person sitting at the counter, picking at his fingernails, seemingly completely unaffected that an Egyptian teen had just burst into the room, and that the door and wall around it shook violently every five seconds as spells made contact.

He slowly lifted his head, white locks glimmering in the light from the small fireplace in the wall, raising dark brown eyes to stare intently at me from his seat.

"Yami."

"Bakura."

"It's been a while."

"Yes, it has."

"How's everything?"

"Not bad. You?"

"Pretty good…"

I took the momentarily lull in this fascinating conversation to grab my left arm and forcefully push it upwards, back into place. I sucked in a breath at the loud crunch and excruciating pain, but it shortly passed.

I nodded my head towards the door, which I was sure had disintegrated by now, though the shield remained.

"Malik seems as excitable as ever."

"He's the same, except perhaps more psychotic, these days. Pegasus has kept him locked away in a void for the longest time. It gives Malik some alone time to think on all the things he'd love to do. I don't need to tell you how dangerous it is to leave Malik alone with himself."

Psychotic laughter could be heard from behind the door. I raised my eyebrows slightly.

"Pegasus must be very powerful to have both you and Malik as his slaves."

Bakura flinched ever so slightly, sliding off his chair and standing straight.

"Tsk, that's not very nice, using the s-word in civilized conversation."

"Nothing about you is civilized, grave-robber. Now get out of my way," I growled.

Bakura chuckled. "I have a better idea. Why don't you tell me who you're working for and I'll end this in a non-fatal manner?"

I took a step to the left. Bakura obviously thought I was trying to escape. He laughed.

"Look out the window, Pharaoh," he said and I winced at his mocking tone. "You're not getting out that way." Sure enough, the guard beasts had made their way around to this side of the house and were lying in wait.

But I wasn't trying to get out. I took another step, one that Bakura mimicked.

"Give Malik my best regards," I said, grinning evilly. Bakura looked confused for about a moment before I released the spell on the door, a Hinotama immediately soaring through, hitting Bakura, who was now directly in front of the door, square in the chest, sending him crashing into the fireplace, which collapsed. Not waiting another moment, I changed into a raven and flew up the chimney chute, the Puzzle dangling still from my neck, at last soaring into the free air.

I didn't stop to see if the guard beasts were following me. They wouldn't catch me anyway. By the time the stupid things realized what had happened, I was long gone, on my way to that damned kid and hopefully, to the end of this crazy mission.

::TBC::