Bright purple light, erupting in a sudden flash, made Yugi gasp. He felt a shock run through him, all the way down to the core of his being and realized he'd been hurt in some serious, perhaps mortal, way.
"There's no pain," he wondered deep in his mind. The severity of the shock made him think there should have been wracking pain. His mind couldn't help but pry into the of the heart of the moment that had just passed, wondering if the pain he thought there should be lurked there.
That bright light stopped him. The memory of the moment was wrapped in a brilliant purple light that wouldn't allow him to come near, even to explore what had happened to add it to his memories or even fully to understand what had happened.
Though it was forbidding him from gaining the knowledge he wanted, Yugi didn't feel that the purple light meant him any harm. In fact, it was as if it was protecting him somehow.
He crashed into an unyielding wall, which jarred him from puzzling at the memories denied him by the purple light. A second jarring, much softer than the first, stopped his fall. Yugi opened his eyes.
A skull leered down at him. His eyes widened, while his soul gibbered in fright for a moment, staring up into the visage of death, before he realized he recognized this particular skull.
"Uhm...?" he began weakly. "You are -- the Summoned Skull?" Yugi's voice was just above a whisper.
The Summoned Skull nodded. "My name is Everon," he supplied, dropping Yugi's legs and assisting him to stand. Yugi then realized that he had somehow crashed into Everon who had the presence of mind to catch him and prevent him from falling to the ground. Though the crash into Everon's chest had seemed rather forceful, Yugi didn't feel even the tiniest bit of soreness from the impact. He glanced down at his hands wondering how he'd escaped so lightly.
Again, his eyes widened in surprise. Purple gauntlets filled his vision.
"What?!"
"Coo!" His Kuriboh darted from behind the Summoned Skull and stroked her soft fur against his cheek, all the while vocalizing various soft, exclaiming noises.
"I agree," Everon replied. Yugi blinked that the Kuriboh and the Summoned Skull were talking with each other.
"You seem to have become the Dark Magician. The purple one, that is. It makes Shelleene wonder what has happened to Mahaad?"
Mahaad. Somehow, the thought of the name made Yugi's soul fill with sadness. Oh yeah.
"Uhm... Mahaad, he's..."
Some of the memories hidden in his mind pierced the veil of purple light. He'd entered the tomb within Yami's mind in the company of Akai and Mana, searching for first Yami, then Mahaad. In the corridor he'd visited once before with Shadi, they had found a Dark Magician, the one guarding the last secret door in Yami's mind. That Dark Magician had stepped forward from his stone tablet and Yugi thought he recognized the soul of Mahaad in his eyes. He'd started to run toward him, so happy to have found him when...
That was the purple light in his soul! Mahaad had attacked him with Dark Magic!
"Why?!" Yugi cried out. "Why would he -- attack me?!"
"Mahaad attacked you?!" Everon seemed stunned. Yugi nodded as a tear slipped free to trickle down his cheek. Immediately it was as if he were being smothered in greenish-brown fur.
"No cry!" Shelleene demanded. "Yugi Master mustn't cry!"
"But, but -- Mahaad attacked me. He doesn't -- respect me. He must -- hate me." Each broken thought served to deepen his despair.
"Wrong!" Shelleene insisted flatly.
Everon nodded. "There's no way that's the truth, Yugi. He does respect you and he certainly doesn't hate you. There must be some reason he attacked you. What happened?"
Yugi recounted finding Mahaad in the Dark Magician of the stone tablet and how he'd suddenly been attacked.
Shelleene cooed excitedly at Everon for several moments. Yugi was frustrated at not being able to understand his Kuriboh as easily as his Summoned Skull evidently did. Everon turned toward him again.
"We think that perhaps you surprised him. It almost sounds as if his attack was instinctive rather than planned. Even so," Everon cupped his chin, "it is very strange that you would wind up here, inside the Magic Box. It must not have been a normal Dark Magic attack, or you would have appeared in the Graveyard."
Yugi shuddered at that. No, he would not have ended up in the Graveyard. He wasn't a card. He would have died.
The purple light still residing in his mind flared at that, seemingly responding to his thought.
"What are you?" Yugi thought at the purple light.
"A guardian."
"Guarding what?"
"Shielding you from a pain undeserved."
"What?"
The light fell silent again.
"So, how did I wind up here?" Yugi asked. "And how did I become a Dark Magician?" he glanced down at his purple, armored hands again.
Everon traded a look with Shelleene and shrugged. "We'll find out the answers when Mahaad decides we should know. It must make some sort of sense to him."
"Then maybe -- Mahaad had to attack me," Yugi wondered aloud. "But he made certain that attack wouldn't -- hurt me."
"We had to attack you. But it was not Mahaad who changed the attack. Though he would have wanted to, he doesn't yet have that power. It was me."
"You? Who are you?"
For an answer, the purple light within Yugi's mind coalesced into a Dark Magician. He looked up, and recognized the aspect of the Dark Magician who had attacked him. He couldn't help but shudder.
"You have met me once before, little one. In the company of the one who bears the Key."
"Shadi." Yugi supplied. "So you are the Dark Magician who nearly attacked us before. But, you listened when I spoke with you before and would have let us pass. Why, why did you attack me today?"
"I was confused before. I should not have offered to let you pass. Today, I thought you were trying again. The Pharaoh explained that you were not; instead you were trying to save Mahaad."
Yugi nodded. "But if you were trying to stop me, how did I wind up here? And like this?"
"Even Mahaad does not understand all the turnings of destiny. You are important to the Pharaoh's destiny. I must guard the secrets of the Pharaoh's mind against all intrusions, even his, but I cannot hurt him. Killing you would hurt him more than any other attack I can think of. So, when I realized that you were the one destined to help him, since it was too late to recall my attack, I altered it. To send you here. The power of Dark Magic, that I had originally launched to kill you, instead enabled you to transform yourself once you arrived here."
"I transformed myself?"
The Dark Magician nodded.
"It is not without precedent that you would see yourself as the Dark Magician, Yugi."
Yugi blushed. How silly he must seem to this powerful aspect of the Dark Magician!
"What now?"
"Now, you allow your cards to take care of you. I am certain they will be able to undo what has happened. I only hope that your experiences here atone for what I have done."
Yugi couldn't help but feel the oblique apology was difficult for the Guardian Dark Magician to utter.
"Mahaad will take care of this situation and bring everything back to the way it should be. If I am not mistaken, he will understand the opportunity presented to him and he will make certain that what happens to you here, in his Magic Box, will serve as my apology to you."
"You are -- you are --"
The Guardian Dark Magician smiled and dropped a hand to Yugi's head. Some thing, some power, thrilled through his mind and the tension of trying to track down the Guardian Dark Magician's identity suddenly eased.
"We will meet again, when the time is right, Yugi Motou. And then, the understanding you are faltering toward now will be returned to you. The Pharaoh is in your good hands. And, for now, you are in your Cards' good hands. Farewell, Yugi."
The purple light faded from Yugi's mind. In some way, that magician still seemed very familiar to Yugi, as if he'd met him before and known him for a very long time. Far longer than from the time of the brief meeting he'd shared with Shadi.
"Yugi Master? Yugi?!" Shelleene bobbed before his eyes, worry scrunching her eyes closed.
"Hmm? Yes?"
"You were lost deep in thought. You aren't worried, are you?" Everon asked. "We're not about to let anything happen to you!"
"No, no, that's not it," Yugi reassured.
"Good! Come on, Yugi Master, meet all Shelleene's friends!" Shelleene grabbed the forward-facing point of his helmet and pulled. Yugi had no option but to follow where the surprisingly strong Kuriboh led.
"Okay, okay! I'll follow you!" Yugi laughed out loud.
"Okay!" Shelleene smiled, released her hold on his helmet and began to bob away, pausing every few feet to make certain Yugi was following her.
"It's best to play along with her when she's excited about something," Everon offered. "I'm certain Mahaad, Mana and Akai will be able to find us once they return."
Yugi remembered what Guardian Dark Magician had said about this being his apology and thought he'd better make the most of this chance to both meet his cards, and enjoy being a Dark Magician. He grinned and followed his tour guides, Shelleene, his Kuriboh and Everon, his Summoned Skull, with a light heart.
-end omake-
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Author's Notes-
Thank you for reading! ::smile - huggles Kuriboh:: I hope you enjoyed it!
Reviews, comments and constructive criticisms are always welcome! Please feel free to email me also if you see something awkward that needs to be clarified or fixed. I need all the help I can get!
stargarde (at) stargarde (dot) com