Title- Guardians of Darkness (Yu-Gi-Oh/Yami no Matsuei crossover)
Copyright- Revised version © September 4, 2006 by dragonwrangler
Summary- A name has appeared twice on the Kiseki- the catalogue of the dead; the name of a Pharaoh who died three millennia ago and is now once again amongst the living- and the Guardians of Death want to know why.
Warnings- WIP (Updates usually run approximately a month and a half apart on my chaptered stories), cross-over, yaoi, language, sexual situations, implied rape scene
Rating- M
Main Pairing- Seto Kaiba/Atemu, Yugi Mutou/Ryou Bakura (may be added to later)
Disclaimer- Yu-Gi-Oh is the intellectual property of Kazuki Takahashi. Yami no Matsuei is the intellectual property of Yoko Matsushita. Only the story is mine and it has been written for entertainment purposes only.

Italics- Conversation over a mental link.

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Chapter One- Just Another Day at the Office

It was obvious to Asato Tsuzuki, as he stepped into the Chief's office, this meeting was going to be far from ordinary.

Although, now that he thought about it, it wasn't as if any meeting he had since becoming a Shinigami, a Guardian of Death, could be considered normal.

The two Gushoshin brothers, the chief librarians and data collectors for the Judgment Bureau, were already hovering over the Chief's desk, feathers flying as arms were waved about to punctuate a comment, one of them occasionally dropping down to type away furiously on a laptop that was now perched on the edge of the desk.

Standing behind the Chief, who was leaning far back into his chair to avoid the occasional swing of a short arm, Tsuzuki saw his former partner Seiichiro Tatsumi, now the Bureau's secretary, flip back pages on his clipboard, frowning as he wrote something down.

That was a bad omen. Tsuzuki had learned to connect that frown with a starvation budget for his assignments.

Which meant he would not have enough to treat himself to a piece of apple pie, damn it.

Tsuzuki found himself already dreading this assignment.

Moving to the opposite side of the room Tsuzuki joined Yutaka Watari, the Bureau's resident scientist, where he sat perched on a stool by the back window. Watari was watching the scene playing out at the desk- his little owl 003 watching from her spot on his left shoulder- with amusement clearly visible in his orange colored eyes.

"What's going on?"

Watari shrugged and answered without turning his head. "I don't know. They were at it when I got here a few minutes ago."

Tsuzuki dropped into a chair and also watched the commotion as his current partner, Hisoka, slipped in. Hisoka stopped just inside the door, shifting slightly toward the back of the room, a look of confusion momentarily creasing his young features. A hand went up to rub his forehead as he walked over and settled into the chair next to Tsuzuki.

"Are you all right?" Tsuzuki asked quietly. The slightly pained expression that had entered the teen's emerald eyes was one Tsuzuki had begun to recognize as his partner's empathic abilities kicking in.

Hisoka shook his head. "I'm fine. Why is everyone so upset?"

"I haven't a clue." Watari answered brightly. "I don't think they even know we're here." Watari passed a folder over to Tsuzuki, again without looking away from the group at the desk. "I think it has something to do with this. It was sitting on the chair and I haven't had a chance to look at it."

Curious, Tsuzuki flipped the manila folder open, Hisoka leaning over to look. A series of photos were clipped to a typed summons form with the name 'Atemu' in bold print across the top. Beneath the summons were several other summons forms, one of which appeared to be typed in Arabic, and copies from the Kiseki, the catalogue of the dead, with the same name and a date that placed the time of death at three thousand years ago. Another copy from the Kiseki with the name Atemu had a date from a month ago. It all made for an abnormally thick file.

Tsuzuki was more than a little surprised when he realized the name at the top of each of the foreign summons form were also listed as Atemu. It was odd that so many people with the same name were being summoned at the same time. He couldn't remember that ever happening before in his seventy years in the department. He wondered what supernatural event caused that. And what did it have to do with a death from three thousand years ago?

One of the Gushoshin brothers, waving a sheet of paper in the air and raising his voice enough for Tsuzuki to make out the words, said heatedly, "The problem is, this Atemu is already on the Kiseki, he can't be on it twice! According to our records, which are never wrong, he died three thousand years ago…"

"Wait, you're saying all these summons are for the same person?" Tsuzuki exclaimed, straightening up in his seat in surprise, which had the unfortunate side effect of scattering the file in his lap out across the floor. The Gushoshin swung around and nailed Tsuzuki with a look as Hisoka hissed automatically, "Don't interrupt, it's rude!" giving Tsuzuki the same look as the Gushoshin as he helped grab the papers and photos.

Tsuzuki sank back into his chair, hugging the now disorganized file to his chest, and blushed under the visual onslaught being directed his way. "Sorry."

Giving a slight huff of annoyance, the Gushoshin continued. "He died but his soul was allowed to remain in the real world to finish what he had started. But once he did, he decided not to pass on. That's not his decision to make!", he said as he turned in agitation toward the Chief. "It's wreaking havoc with the records!"

"And on top of that, since he now has a new body, it puts him a second time on the Kiseki!"

"Wait, if this Atemu is a spirit he has to possess someone else to remain anchored to the real world, correct?" Hisoka asked, as he scanned the summons form he had picked up from the floor. "That would mean he isn't really on the list twice."

"That would be true, if it was a possession, but it is his own body, it simply appeared out of nowhere." the other Gushoshin said in a much calmer, but no less agitated, tone of voice. Consulting his laptop, he added, "He was sharing the body of an individual named Yugi Motou from the city of Domino. From what the Judgment Bureau in Egypt told us, Atemu was released from his bonds by this Motou, after which Atemu's soul was expected to go on to its rest."

"Apparently, something went wrong."

Watari frowned, curiosity written all over his face as he looked down absently at the papers sticking out of Tsuzuki's embrace. "Wait, Egypt? Why are they involved?" His eyes suddenly widened as he reached out to yank one of the photo out of Tsuzuki's arms and said, pointing to a tall young man wearing a white trench coat who stood looking down at a shorter man with tri-colored hair, "And isn't this Seto Kaiba?"

"Who?" Tsuzuki asked, completely confused.

"Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp." Watari looked at him in astonishment. "Even you must have heard of him?" Watari jumped off his stool in his excitement as he exclaimed, the hand holding the photo waving it through the air, his owl 003 echoing his movements with one wing, "Seto Kaiba designed the world's first hand held mass market holographic system. It's absolutely incredible! I've wanted to get my hands on one ever since they hit the market! Its elegance is beyond description, its streamlined form is a marvel of efficiency, it's programming…"

"Watari." Tatsumi snapped, easily breaking through the excited scientist's dialogue.

Watari froze.

"You can't have one. It is not in the budget." Tatsumi stated coldly.

Tsuzuki watched Watari's face crumple in disappointment as he protested, "But…if it has something to do with the case…"

Tatsumi simply stared the scientist back down into his chair.

Chief Konoe rubbed his forehead as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the desk. "The soul in question belongs to an Egyptian Pharaoh named Atemu who sacrificed himself three thousand years ago to seal away a demon called Zork Nechrophades. The Pharaoh's soul was to remain bound to this world until he was able to completely banish the demon. Once that was done his host was to return his soul to his tomb in the Valley of the Kings and free him so that he could continue on to the next world but that didn't happen."

"Which is when the Egypt branch got involved. However they won't touch him and have refused to summon him to trial. They have been moving to petition EnmaDaiOh to have his name removed from the Kiseki, insisting that he has the right to finish off his natural life now that he has a body again."

"Can they do that, refuse to summon him?" Hisoka asked, surprised.

Tsuzuki watched the Chief shake his head in annoyance. "Technically, no, but the entire branch refused to summon him while he was in Egypt. Now he's in Japan, which drops this mess into my lap."

Watari pointed at the photo in his hand. "But how is Seto Kaiba connected to a three thousand year old Pharaoh?"

"From the files we were sent, Seto Kaiba is the reincarnation of Atemu's High Priest. The one standing next to him in the photo is Atemu."

"So, what is it you want us to do?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Your job is to bring him in so we can ascertain what exactly went wrong during the transfer of Atemu's soul from his host to the otherworld." Tatsumi answered for the Chief. As he glared at Tsuzuki- the overhead lights flashing menacingly across the lens of his glasses- he adding sharply, "And try to keep the damage down this time Tsuzuki. At the rate you're going this year, you'll need to work for free for the next ninety years to pay off everything you owe the Bureau."
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The focus of the Judgment Bureau Summons Section meeting was currently curled up naked on a couch with a grin on his face, using the armrest as a pillow, as he watched his lover pace a groove down the center of the beige wall to wall carpeting that had been used to cover the floor in the home office. Seto glared at him without once breaking his stride- both physically and verbally- as he dressed down the employee who had been stupid enough to call the home number.

Atemu found himself staring once again in fascination at the trim, powerful form stalking back and forth across the room. They had spent just enough time in Egypt that Seto now had an even tan across his body and Atemu was smugly proud of the fact he was the reason the tan covered the CEO from head to foot.

Within a few hours of stepping out of the tomb, Seto had purchase a place in Egypt so they could get properly reacquainted with one another without having to wait until they return home. They hadn't bothered much with clothes during that time.

Truthfully, they hadn't bothered much with them since getting back to Japan either.

Work had not been the reason for them being in the office, it had simply been the first room they had hit upon when they began fooling around after getting dressed. Unfortunately, being in the office, and having forgotten to disable the phone before they started, meant Seto could not ignore it when it rang. Atemu continued to watch Seto on the phone as he managed to avoid tripping over the clothing scattered across the floor as he spoke.

The tirade continued for another ten minutes before Seto slammed the phone back into it's cradle and yanked the wireless connection out. After slamming that on the desk Seto stalked over to the couch and said, as he attempted to skewer Atemu with a glare from his sapphire eyes, "I suggest you move over, Atemu."

Atemu did no such thing. He had long ago become immune to that look. "Why would I want you sitting next to me when all you're going to do is rant?"

Seto crossed his arms, his glare intensifying. "If you don't move your ass, Atemu, I'm going to pick you up and throw you on the floor."

Giving Seto a smirk, Atemu asked, "And then what?"

Eyes shimmering with an equal amount of lust and mischief, Seto growled, "Then I'll pin you to the floor and fuck you till you're senseless."

Raising an elegant eyebrow, Atemu said, "Oh, real romantic. And you think that will make you feel better?"

A devilish grin crossed Seto's face, "Oh, I'd have to say yes."

"You do know you just did that, Seto."

"If I had fucked you senseless, you wouldn't be arguing with me right now."

Atemu had to laugh at that. "This is true. However I doubt you have the stamina to carry out that threat."

Seto grabbed Atemu, dragged him to the floor and pinned him down. "Why don't we find out, hmm?", he said as he brought his lips down to Atemu's. Before it could become a proper kiss, though, a voice yelled, "Seto!"

"Fuck." Atemu muttered as he dropped his head to the floor.

"I'm trying to, damn it." Seto growled as he rose up onto his knees. "Mokuba, this better be good!"

"Sorry! How can you two still be at it! Shit, big brother." Mokuba yelled through the door. "Is it safe to come in?"

"NO!" both Seto and Atemu yelled back in unison.

"Well, Atemu needs to take this call. It's Yugi's grandfather and he's trying to figure out where Yugi is. Yugi left before he got up yesterday without leaving a note and no one's seen him"

Atemu surged out from under Seto and grabbed the phone Mokuba held into the room. As he brought the phone up to his ear, Atemu flung open the link he still shared with Yugi even after gaining his own body, a link he had kept tightly shut to spare Yugi any feedback from all the activities he and Seto had been engaged in since they had returned from Egypt. Saying quickly into the phone, "Just a minute, grandpa, I'm checking on him." Atemu touched Yugi's mind.

Is something wrong, Atemu? Yugi asked drowsily.

Where are you, partner?

A slight sense of nervousness leaked into the drowsy feeling Atemu was getting from Yugi as he answered, Um… I'm with Ryou right now. As Yugi grew more aware of the link, Atemu began receiving a few other emotions that were quickly dampened down by Yugi.

A smile spread across Atemu's face at what he was sensing. Cutting back slightly on the link, he said into the phone, "Grandpa?"

"I take it Yugi's all right?" Yugi's grandfather asked hopefully.

Atemu chuckled and knew Yugi's grandfather was also going to be amused. "He says he's with Ryou and he's being secretive about it."

"Ho, I'm sure he is. That would explain Joey's expression after he called over there this morning." Laughter echoed down the line as Grandpa added, "Well then, have him call me whenever he can tear himself free."

"I will." Clicking off the phone, Atemu peeked around the door as he handed it back to Seto's grinning brother.

"It might be best if you buried that for now." Atemu said.

"You know, you two are a really bad influence. You're just corrupting people left and right."

"I catch you doing anything like this before your thirty, Mokuba, and you're grounded for life!" Seto shouted automatically.

"You'll have to catch me first, big brother!" Mokuba shouted back as he turned around with a wave.

Shutting the door, giving Seto a little shake of the head at his curious expression, Atemu turned his attention back to the link.

You told Grandpa where I was, didn't you? Yugi asked anxiously.

Partner, did you leave him a note?

Well, no, it was kinda sudden.

Feeling a smirk slip across his face, Atemu asked, Do you know what day it is?

Um… Yugi's attention turned away from the link a moment and then returned sheepishly. Oh, right. I should call, shouldn't I.

Yes you should. Forgive me for interrupting you, partner. I'll let you get back to your fun. Atemu broke the link and looked up at an amused Seto.

"Yugi got laid?"

Atemu nodded with a quiet laugh. "I think I just woke him up too. It was probably not how he was planning on starting the day."

"We are a bad influence aren't we." Seto said shamelessly as he bent down to brush his lips against Atemu's.

"Absolutely," Atemu answered as he pressed their lips together. Feeling Seto's lips part slightly, Atemu opened his own, enjoying the taste of Seto as he listened to the snick of the lock on the door and the bottle of lube hitting the floor with a dull thump. Atemu pulled back slightly to murmur, "We're going to need more locks you know."

"I'll get someone on it tomorrow. Now shut up so I can answer your challenge."

"My challenge?" Atemu managed to gasp out as Seto began to work on a sensitive spot along his collarbone.

"Whether I had the stamina to fuck you senseless."

"Ah, that challenge."

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To be continued.