Sorry no long speeches today.
Previously: "Thanks guys…oh, Joey sent me an e-mail when I was in the computer lab today. He said he had over slept and would meet us at my place tomorrow so we can go to the museum together." He explained.
"Okay that sounds good." said Tea
"Yeah, tomorrows the weekend so it'd be perfect." Tristan agreed
"Okay then, I'll see you guys tomorrow." Yugi finished, and the three left each others to begin their own separate ways home.
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CHAPTER 3: The Road Not Taken
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YUGI'S DREAM
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The entire area was covered in complete fog that was so thick you'd needed a chainsaw to get through it. With moist earth beneath him and shadowy figures passing by, Yugi definitely knew he didn't want to be here.
"Where am I?" he asked to no one in particular, standing in the middle of the fog in his teddy bear pajamas. Shadowy figures walked by in remorse form as if traveling on a road toward a fork and then going separate ways.
"What exactly is going on here?" he wondered.
As he continued to watch he saw that in the only thing to separate these two roads was a giant tree. It appeared to be thousands of years old and giving off a warm and peaceful presence throughout the air. As he looked towards the end of each side of the fork there was another source of energy emanating from them; in fact two different sources. While the tree appeared to be soft and glowing and represented all that should be in the world each other end seemed to be longing for the other. But as he looked at the forked road he saw that one path went toward a bright mysterious light that seemed to swirl with soft colors of pink, yellow, white, purple, and blue, but seemed to give off a confused, noble, and heart aching aura. While the other was nothing but a dark void that gave off a loving, loyal, and lonely aura as well as the distinct scent of roses.
"The scent of roses…why…? Why does it smell so familiar to me?" Yugi spoke allowed turning toward the dark path. "I know I've smelly plenty of roses before but these…remind me of something, but what?"
Taking a look around at the shadowy ghost he saw that instead of going into the mysterious light were going toward the loving darkness.
"And why are these entities going toward the darkness instead of the light?"
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
And sorry I could not travel both,
The unknown voice quickly caught Yugi's attention as he scanned what he could in the fog to find the source of the voice.
And be one traveler long I stood,
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the under growth.
"Azra!" he called into the fog. "Azra is that you?"
Then took the other just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
"Azra why do you sound so much older?" he continued to call out to the voice. "It's Azra but…it's not." He finished in a low whisper to himself.
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh I saved the first for another day!
But knowing how way leads on to way
I doubt if I should ever come back.
The voice reciting these words finished those last three as if chocking back on tears before continuing on with a sighing voice.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood and I--
……
He heard the female sniffle on tears as the fog cleared and the world around him began to disappear.
"No wait! He pleaded. "If you're not Azra, then who are you; what's the rest of the poem?"
All went silent before the mysterious woman spoke to him.
"Oh Yugi my darling boy…" it started in a low misty tone. "How you've grown up so much without me."
He wanted to call out to her. He wanted to know who she was. He wanted to comfort her to tell her to stop crying and that everything would be fine but…
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"Yugi…Yugi…"
He felt someone shaking him in a gentle way while calling out his name the same way the unseen woman in his dream said it.
"Yugi!"
"Mmm…mmm." He stirred waking up, opening his eyes slowly.
What he said next happened in the blink of an eye for him; and where it came from he'll never know, but for some reason he felt he had to say it.
"Azalyn?"
That name…that name sent emotions through Yami he thought he had long forgotten. But how does Yugi know this name?
"Pharaoh?" Yugi spoke rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "What's wrong?"
Yami hadn't noticed it but a look of shock, fear, love, betrayal and lost was all plastered on his face.
"Pharaoh?" Yugi started again.
"Huh?"
"What's the matter you don't seem yourself lately, not to mention you hadn't spoken to me at all yesterday!" he pointed out.
"I'm sorry, I've just been thinking about the dream you had the other night. Believe it or not I remember the woman who Azra referred to as her mother."
"Azra's mother? You mean you actually remember her!" Yugi asked in astonishment.
The pharaoh took a deep sigh and sat down in the chair beside Yugi's bed at his desk. He lowered his head in a shameful way before his confession. "You spoke her name while waking up."
"I did?"
"Yes…her name was Azalyn. Our relationship was fruitful and intimate yet forbidden."
"Forbidden?" he wondered. "Do you know anything else about her?" Yugi questioned. "That new girl that just transferred her from Greece is the girl Azra from my dream I just know it!" he spoke confidently.
"What I wonder is whose body is she in to be in this time? Like you and the spirit that rest within Bakura you all need a hosting body, but you all came out of a Millennium item. But we have all of the items so……aggghhhhhh this is way to confusing for this time in the morning!" he admitted collapsing on his bed.
"But I still wonder…" Yugi began, grabbing the pharaoh's attention. "How did I know her name if you're the one who knows her?" he questioned.
"That is a good question." Yami nodded in agreement.
"Yugi!" called a voice from below. "Yugi are you awake yet!"
"Yeah Grandpa!" he called.
"Well hurry up! Your friends are already here!" he said in return.
"Oh right!" Yugi remembered tumbling out of bed to quickly get dressed. When he arrived downstairs, sure enough his friends were already there and waiting for him.
"Sorry I took so long." He apologized.
"Yugi what's the matter with you? You've never slept in this late before." His grandfather noticed.
"Yeah well I've kinda got a lot on my mind now, but I guess the rest of us need to hurry up to go check out that new exhibit at the museum." He remarked.
Before another word was uttered from anyone Yugi was already out of the door and coming to a jogging stop outside of his grandfathers store. He never usually acted like this before but something about that woman…
"Yo Yugi!" Joey shouted, coming out of the shop with Tea and Tristan right behind. "Hey man what's da problem? Everyone's been telling me how you've been acting strange lately so spill! What's wrong with you?"
Yugi looked at the ground unsure of himself. He couldn't tell Joey what was wrong with him because truthfully he didn't know what was wrong with him himself!
"The new girl…Kitty." He whispered silently.
"Hmm? Kitty you say?" Joey confirmed. "Hmmm…where have I heard that name before?"
"You idiot don't you listen to a word I say?"
"I'm sorry Tristan did you say somethin?" Joey asked innocently.
"Yeah well if I am then maybe you'd remember that Kitty is the new transfer student we got in class yesterday!"
"Oh yeah dats where I heard that name before." He smirked giving a maniacal chuckle and remarked, "Yeah and from what I hear she's definitely the cats meow!"
(Store bells ringing) Hello Welcome to my Shoppe!
"Joey, I think Yugi is thinking about something more seriously." Tea sighed. "So Yugi what is it about the new girl?"
"Well…it's pretty hard to explain." He confessed; which it was. How could he tell his friends that he had dreams of the pharaoh's daughter whose going to school with them and why he thinks she's connected to the dream he had last night?
(Store bells ringing again) Thank you, Come again!
He was so lost in thought he failed to realize that someone was standing right in front of him. Until the person's voice broke his trance.
"What did you lose?"
"Huh?" he looked up and gasped seeing himself face to face with the pharaoh! Huh? No wait; he blinked twice before realizing it was a girl who was in front of him. He was face to face with Kitty Zila, the new transfer student…the girl from his dream.
"Hu-uh-uhh what?" he stuttered trying desperately to regain his ground.
"I asked you if you lost something." She repeated.
"Uhh no…" he replied modestly.
"Hey, don't I know you?" she asked staring him down.
"Uhhh…." Wow could she possibly be having the same dreams as I about the pharaoh?
"That's right! I sit next to you in class!" she realized, smiling brightly, causing Yugi to somewhat lose his balance from the unexpected response. She shifted the small paper bag in her arms from both hands to one and extended her right hand.
"Allow me to properly introduce myself. I'm Kitty Zila."
"Yugi Mutto." He introduced shaking her hand.
"Yugi…Yugi…where have I….oh! You're the 'King of Games'!" she pointed out.
"Well yeah that's my title anyway." He said casually.
"Oh cool, you know I'm a pretty good duelist myself. My father taught me everything I know."
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"Check." stated the girl. She gave a triumphant smile as she looked up to gaze at her opponent, her father.
"Not a bad move." He complemented. "However a gamer must always look for ways out of trouble because strategy isn't always what you need."
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Yugi squeezed his eyes tight to get that image out of his head. And asked Kitty to repeat the last part she spoke.
"I said I use my mother's deck when dueling so watch out because I am quite the tough cookie! In fact my mother was the only person able to defeat my father in a duel, that's how they got together." She stated casually.
What went on for the next few moments Yugi really didn't want to pay much attention to…Kitty…Azra…Azalyn? They all seem so familiar but from where? The pharaoh remembers Azalyn as is lover in the past but where does Azra play in this? Yes she's is daughter but why is back? And why was his relationship with Azalyn forbidden? What were the last words to the poem the woman said in his dreams? So many questions…
"So I take it you wanna duel huh?" Joey interrupted running up to the two. "Well in order to get to Yugi you'd have to get through me first!"
"Sounds fun, maybe some other time though, I just have to finish some things first." She replied.
"Yugi." She called, snapping him out of another trance. "If you really are lost and you find yourself at a fork in the road, pick the road you feel most alive on." She said walking away, but stopped when Yugi in turn asked her a question.
"Kitty…which road…did you take?" he asked hesitantly.
"I..."she paused before continuing to walk again. "I took the road less traveled by, and that has made all the difference."
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TBC
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So what's on your mind? I know I'd like to know what you think in a review but hey, beggars can't be choosers.