Chapter 64: The Next Step

The first thig Rose noticed was that she was cold.

When she opened her eyes, she was met with a familiar view of stone walls. It took only a moment before she realised where she was – the last thing she remembered was lying in her bed, tossing and turning with nerves for tomorrow. The time had gone by so fast – they'd sent emails back and forth with the Ishtar's, booked their flights, organised meeting points, and now it was almost here. The day that they would travel to Egypt. They would make the trip the next morning, but mostly, her mind had been on one person.

"Pharaoh?" She called out, her voice echoing off the walls as she sat up. She remembered what happened last time she was here, and decided that staying in one spot was the wisest decision. After a moment, the door that was closest to her on the opposite wall opened.

Poking his head out, the Pharaoh had looked down the hall, before turning his head the other way until his eyes landed on her. A confused look had then turned in a happily surprised one.

"Rose," he said, a smile appearing on his face as he walked out. She was still sitting on the floor as she looked up at him.

"Hey," she said, wearing the same pyjamas she had been in last time she was here.

He walked over to her, and instead of offering a hand to help her up like he usually did, he opted to sit down with her, leaning against the wall opposite. "Something's on your mind," he murmured.

Rose rearranged herself so that she was sitting cross legged, leaning against the wall behind her. "I won't deny that," she said. "I had a lot of trouble getting to sleep."

He simply nodded, his expression open and patient. She was here because something had been bothering her and she'd wanted to talk to him, so he would wait until she did.

He didn't need to wait for long. After Rose shuffled on the spot and lifted her legs up to her chest, she spoke again. "I'm nervous about tomorrow," she admitted.

The Pharaoh's gaze was steady and unwavering, which was comforting. As were his words, "I am too."

She smiled softly – at least she wasn't the only one. She let out a large expel of breath. "Are we really going to…find out everything?"

He lifted his shoulder slightly, "That's the plan." She waited for a but, she knew there was a but. He didn't say it, though. They both knew that with their luck that anything could happen tomorrow, but they didn't want to say it. They just wanted to hope that everything would go as planned.

He watched her for a moment, trying to read her expression. His eyebrows creased in understanding, "There's something else," he said, tilting his head to the side.

How he had read her so well, Rose didn't know, but he was right. There was something else. "Well," she began, "We all know that your spirit was locked inside the Millennium puzzle, and you were released when Yugi solved it." The Pharaoh nodded. "But…I'm different, I have a body, I had another life before I lost my memory. Even if we find out what happened all those years ago, I wonder if I'm going to learn what happened to me in the present. What happened to my family? My parents? Did I have siblings? Grandparents? Aunts, uncles, cousins? I…there's so many things I don't know."

"Rose," the Pharaoh leant forwards, catching her gaze. He knew she could sometimes go off on wild tangents if she didn't have something to keep her grounded. It seemed that they had both been the weight to keep the other steady while worrying about the past.

"I know that whatever happened when I was sealed in the puzzle, our circumstances were different, and that whatever happened to you at that time, has led to you being here now. I am almost certain that when we learn about the past, we'll learn about the present, too."

She nodded, still looking uncertain. He hated seeing these expressions on her face, whenever she didn't have that radiant smile it felt like something was missing. "Hey, do you trust me?" he asked then.

What kind of question is that? She thought. "Of course I trust you," she replied.

He was smiling at her softly, "Then trust my words. Everything will be fine."

His voice was so comforting, and familiar in a way that seemed to span longer than a couple of years. She tried to use that as a way to focus on something that wasn't a source of worry. She then remembered something.

"You're nervous too?" she asked. He'd said so just before.

"I'm terrified," he said, the easy smile still on his face. Rose couldn't help but laugh at that.

The Pharaoh was relieved to see that smile on her face. "Could have fooled me," she said then. "I seem to remember a certain movie night where you could barely stay on the couch."

The mention of Halloween was a welcome distraction to their worries, so he took the playful jab and went with it. "Oh really? You were all talk until the last part of the movie. I seem to recall you hiding under the blanket at the end there."

They fell into comfortable conversation, as light hearted topics came and went, filled with jokes and jabs and reminiscent times. The Pharaoh was pleased to see that Rose had a content smile on her face the whole time. He wanted to keep it there.

"I've never seen you more surprised than the day we met, remember the first moment I saw you?" Rose was saying.

The first moment he had seen her, she'd been lying unconscious in a dark tunnel, and he'd felt some kind of familiar pull. He knew why, now.

The first time she had seen him, however, had been a little while later, and he remembered her jumping back and saying with disbelief, "There are two of you!"

He chuckled, "Believe me, your face was just as gobsmacked. You don't know how glad I was that I could communicate with someone else, though."

Rose was idly running a hand through the brown curls that sat over her shoulder. "I think I remember you saying that you didn't think you'd ever get used to it." She rose an eyebrow then. "So, have you?"

He glanced to the side for a moment, "Regretfully, I have," he replied.

Rose looked slightly confused at his choice of words, "Regretfully?"

Realising his slip up, he quickly tried to think of something in response. "Well, now I have another person who will hold the Halloween incident over my head forever," he joked. This just made her laugh again.

...

Rose's stomach was doing all sorts of things by the time she stepped off the plane at Cairo. For one, she was very hungry – plane food was not the best – but she barely even felt like eating with the nerves that were running through her.

As well as that though, she'd had such a strange feeling overcome her when she walked out into the sun on the tarmac. It took her until they'd walked into the airport for her to pinpoint what it was – it was a mix of excitement, anxiousness, and relief at being in her home country.

She glanced over at the Pharaoh's spirit, hovering beside Yugi as they walked through the terminal. He had been looking around at all the shops, but seemed to notice her fiddling with her bag.

"You can feel that too, can't you?" He said. She nodded.

They decided to stop at the food court while they waited for the Ishtar's, and as they walked towards it, trying to find signs in a language they could read, Tristan took a moment to stretch.

"Man, I just flew all the way to Egypt and boy are my arms tired!" He announced.

Joey sighed, "Spare us, will ya?" Helplessly, Rose had begun to laugh. Joey rounded on her, "Don't encourage him, he's not funny!"

"Sorry," she chuckled. It was the best way for her to deal with her nerves at this point. "He is a little funny."

Grumbling, Joey folded his arms, "You wouldn't be saying that if you'd had to sit next to him the whole flight."

"You slept through the whole thing!" Tristan threw back at him.

While they began to bicker, Rose decided she needed to sit down, and plopped at one of the tables nearby. She'd spent the flight wedged between Tea and the window, and was relieved to be able to stretch out her legs now. Said woman was also sitting down across from her, while Yugi looked at all the vendors.

"Thanks for letting me use you as a pillow," Rose said, leaning her head on her hand. Sleeping on flights was also hard, it seemed.

Tea chuckled, "That's alright. I couldn't have slept if I tried," she joked.

Rose raised an eyebrow at her, "Aren't you tired?"

"How can I be with all this excitement?!" she said then, grinning from ear to ear. "We're in Egypt! You're only a car ride away from gaining your memories back!"

Rose tapped her hands on the table, "Right, yeah."

Tea then had a look of understanding on her face as she noticed Rose's fidgety movements. "You're nervous, aren't you?"

"Maybe a little," she admitted.

It was then that Joey reappeared, apparently having already settled his argument with Tristan and ordered some food. "I got the perfect remedy for nerves!" he said, placing a drink in front of the girl.

"A chocolate milkshake?" Tea asked with a raised eyebrow. "That's the worst idea Joey, you're gonna make her hurl."

And the arguments started again.

From then on, Rose was very quiet as the clock ticked down to what she had been waiting for for years. Tea bought souvenirs from the gift shop, Marik and Ishizu greeted them after they collected their bags, and they all jumped into a car.

She stared out the window at the vast desert that surrounded them, as the gang pointed out pyramids and chatted excitedly. The whole time, she'd had the Pharaoh's spirit sitting silently beside her, giving her comforting smiles whenever she glanced his way. It made her feel better every time.

When they finally arrived at their destination, Marik and Ishizu announced that they must wait outside, and that the rest was up to them. Giving them their thanks, the gang descended into the new home of the ancient stone tablets.

"I've got a weird feeling," Joey announced as they walked down the stairs.

"That's cause you ate all those falafels," Tristan replied. Rose snorted out a laugh.

Tea placed a hand on her shoulder as she followed behind, "Feeling better yet?"

"Honestly, I have no clue," she responded. They reached the bottom of the stairs, and finally came face to face with the tablets. Yugi looked up at them in wonder as Rose walked up to stand beside him, and then the puzzle lit up. The Pharaoh took form beside her, looking up at the tablet just as Yugi had been.

"This is it," Tristan said into the silence.

The Pharaoh let out a large sigh, still looking at the tablets. "It's hard to believe we're actually here."

Joey placed a hand on his shoulder, "Whatever happens, we're right behind you."

Tea let out an involuntary shiver, "Gosh, now I'm getting all tingly. I hope this place isn't haunted."

The Pharaoh turned to Rose. He could see that she was nervous. She could see that he was, too.

She wasn't going to let her nerves get the better of her, though. She remembered something that he had said to her the night before they left, and let the memory comfort her.

"No matter what happens tomorrow, no matter who you were in the past, I'll always remember my time with you in the present, all the things we've been through."

His gaze was still on her, steady and assuring. "Are you ready?" he asked.

Rose took a deep breath, and then nodded. "Whenever you are."

He smiled, and then held out his hand – a smooth, practiced motion. Rose didn't even need to think before she reached out to grasp it.

There was nothing else to be said. The Pharaoh faced the stone, took out his Egyptian God cards, and raised them in the air.

…

Darkness.

The Pharaoh could feel nothing, see nothing. What was going on? Had their attempt to see into the past failed again? He dreaded the thought. Last time he had attempted this, monsters were set on rampage across the world, back when Dartz was stealing souls with the Orichalcos. He then noticed that his head was empty of Yugi's thoughts and feelings, he was completely alone. He hadn't felt like this in some time, and he began to panic at why that may be.

So many questions whirled about in his mind, as numerous scenarios came to light. It wasn't until he began to sense something that his thoughts ceased. A body. His body. He could feel it, as well as the breeze that brushed past his face. Was he...?

The Pharaoh finally managed to open his eyes.

Gods above...!

There were people. Scores of people, hundreds of people! They were all gathered far below the balcony he stood on, dropping to their knees before-

"-Your new King!"

His head snapped to the side. There was a man standing there, addressing the crowd, before he, too, bowed to the Pharaoh.

Having been so suddenly faced with the crowd and the sun had disorientated him, but after a moment, he realised. King. Pharaoh. That's me.

"Would you like to address your people, my King?" the man said then, gesturing out to the hundreds of people gathered before him.

"Uh.." his heart was pounding. Where was Rose? What was going on? What was he doing? He looked out at the crowds of people gathered below, his throat having gone dry. Talk about put on the spot.

"…Hi."

The man standing beside him supressed a chuckle, "As eloquent as always, your grace. Come, let us start the celebrations." He turned and walked off of the balcony inside what must have been the royal palace, and the Pharaoh followed silently behind him, his eyes wide as he took in the huge room, filled with people. They were all bowed as he walked in, and he spied a large throne at the end of the room, carved with a beautiful design and adorned with gold. There were pillars on the outskirts of the room holding the upper level, made of smooth stone, and covered in hieroglyphs, and there were tapestries draped behind the throne, magnificent in both size and design.

It was unlike anything he'd ever seen before, and this was only one room.

When he reached his throne, and carefully sat down, he looked to the man who was now standing beside him. The man simply looked back at him expectantly. Everyone was still bowed.

It became apparent very quickly that nobody was going to move until he said something. He took a guess, "Let the celebrations begin!"

Thankfully, his guess had been right, as everyone rose to their feet and the room then unravelled into merriment. Music began to play as carefully selected musicians plucked at harps and strummed on lutes, soon joined by rhythmic drum beats and the soft melody of a flute.

His eyes were then caught by the movement of men and women wearing beautiful silks as they twirled around the room, the sunlight glinting off the gems in their jewellery as they passed the balcony. He hadn't even realised that someone was singing until their enchanting voice bounced off the wall behind him, and he would have kept watching the display had his attention not been drawn to the goblet of wine offered to him then. The goblet itself was encrusted with jewels, and as he accepted it, more wine was passed around the room. He swirled it in his glass but didn't have any intention of drinking it just yet.

He had only been here a matter of minutes, and he was already mesmerised. It was hard to imagine that this had been the norm for him once.

Despite the display of the celebrations though, he wasn't going to let it distract him. There was one thing that had been painfully obvious since he first opened his eyes.

Rose wasn't here.

He searched for her face among the musicians, the dancers, the nobles, the guards. He couldn't see her. He tried to think of what that meant. Wherever she had been on the day that he'd been crowned King is where she would be now. Could she have been in the crowd below? Could she be in another room of the palace?

His mind was running wild with possibilities, and he was only brought back to the moment, when a man who had been standing nearby turned to him. "The wine was chosen by Shimon himself," a familiar voice said. "I'm told it's even more exquisite than what was served at your father's coronation."

Now there was something that visibly shocked him – father. He'd spent so many years in the dark that he'd almost forgotten that he'd even had parents at one point. But of course he'd had a father – he was the previous King, and that only meant that he must have died in order for Atem to ascend the throne. Yet he still couldn't remember him.

His expression seemed to worry the man, as if he had mentioned the previous King too soon after his passing. "My deepest apologies Pharaoh, it was not my intention to-"

He held up a hand to stop him, "No apology is needed, the wine is indeed exquisite." Only then did he realise why the voice had been so familiar. Underneath the grand serpent headdress, was the face of Seto Kaiba.

He tried not to let his surprise show on his face. He'd always known that Kaiba had a connection to the past, but seeing him here was something else. He even held the Millennium Rod in his hand. He was obviously the High Priest, and it was strange for the Pharaoh to think that this man served him. He looked to his other side, where a woman was standing. She hadn't spoken yet, but was watching the festivities happily. When she turned, he saw the glint of the millennium necklace. Ishizu, he thought.

It was just as he thought this, that the woman jolted in her spot, a hand flying to her necklace.

"Intruder!" she announced.

Seto was suddenly on alert, "Where?"

The Pharaoh looked between them in confused panic as he grasped the arm rest of his throne.

"The upper level!" the woman said, and before she'd even turned in the right direction, another voice had called out.

"Got it!"

The Pharaoh had only then noticed the dagger that had been hurtling through the air towards him from the upper level, but it never got within ten metres of him, for something had stopped it. He hadn't seen what it was, the dagger just clattered to the ground, and the commotion continued as guards scrambled to apprehend the assassin.

The celebrations had stopped, and the occupants of the hall had hurried over to the opposite side to remove themselves from danger. All except the group of people who had been closest to their King, now surrounding the throne like an impenetrable wall. His royal court, he thought thankfully. No doubt they were trained for situations like this.

It wasn't until there were several spears at the assassin's throat that he stopped struggling, and everyone in the room relaxed.

"Thank you," the Pharaoh found himself saying, mostly to the person who had stopped the dagger – however they'd done it.

When Seto moved out of the way, he noticed it was a woman who had saved him. Like Ishizu's look alike, a cloak was covering her head. When she turned, bowing to him respectfully, she pulled back the cloak, and the Pharaoh's breath caught in his throat.

"It is my duty to protect you, my King," she said with a smile.

Rose.

The relief he felt then was immense. She was here. She was here and she had saved him. She wasn't in the crowd outside and she wasn't anywhere else in the palace. She was right here, in the group that was closest to him in both position and status.

It gave him a great deal of hope that what Arthur had said was right. They very well could have been good friends if she was a member of his court. But there was still a sinking feeling in his gut that Rose and all the other member of his court were only there because it was their duty – not because they wanted to be. Did he actually have any friends when he was King?

His thoughts were moved elsewhere when he caught sight of a gold shine on Rose's chest, as she turned and watched the guards drag the assassin away. The Millennium Heart – that must have been what stopped the dagger. He hadn't even seen the shield go up – how was it that she could wield its power so effortlessly? In the twenty first century she had admitted to being reluctant to use it in almost every situation.

As the court waited for the assassin to be brought down to them, the Pharaoh noticed that the man with the Millennium Ring around his neck had approached Rose. They spoke quietly, but it was still just loud enough for him to hear.

"Excellent work, Rose," the man praised her.

"Thank you, Mahad," she sounded relieved, unconsciously placing her hand over the golden heart. She glanced over at the other members of the court, before continuing quietly, "I…I was quite…" she couldn't find the words to explain her thoughts clearly.

"Remember what I said," he spoke warmly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I never doubted you."

It was incredibly strange for the Pharaoh to watch this exchange. He felt so awkward and out of place here, having been dumped back in a past that he didn't remember, but Rose looked so at ease in this environment. The way she communicated with the other guardians was with familiarity, all her mannerisms were learnt and precise to the point where she didn't need to think about it. She fit right in with the rest of his court, compared to the Pharaoh who felt so out of place. He knew he belonged here, he could feel it, as if his very bones knew he was home, but the fact that he had no recollection of anything made him feel lost.

This couldn't be the Rose who had joined him in the twenty first century, he thought with sadness. It mustn't have worked for her. This was simply his memory of her, the well-educated High Priestess who had no idea who Yugi or Joey or any of the gang were.

He had to figure this out on his own.

"Let us continue the celebrations," Seto said then, grabbing the attention of everyone in the room. "Do you agree, Pharaoh?"

The King forced himself to relax, knowing that he could trust the members of his court to keep things in order. "Yes," he said, "Please resume."

It was as everyone moved to continue the festivities that the man with the Millennium Ring - Mahad, Rose had called him – stepped forwards to address the Pharaoh.

"My King," he said, kneeling in front of the throne. "I give my deepest apologies for the intruder. There should not have been an opportunity for anyone to slip through our guards. If I might have permission, I would like to double our security for the remainder of the evening."

The Pharaoh nodded, "Yes, Mahad. Please do whatever you feel necessary."

Nodding, Mahad stood once more, "Thank you, Exalted."

Before Mahad could move to follow through with this however, their attention was brought to Ishizu's look-alike. Her eyes had flown wide, and her hands were hovering by the Millennium Necklace, as it shone bright on her collarbone.

"What is it, Isis?" Seto asked. The other members of the court were instantly on alert.

She seemed speechless for a moment, until another court member prompted her, "Tell us what you see!"

"I'm afraid we are not out of danger," she said, before spinning and facing the Pharaoh. "My King, I believe we should post-pone our celebrations. I sense a great dark entity heading straight for us."

"A dark entity?" the Pharaoh wondered aloud.

"Please elaborate, Isis," Mahad said. "We despatched our last assassin with ease."

She was already shaking her head, "This is much different. I have never sensed anything like this before. I believe everyone here may be in danger if we do not act quickly."

"Very well," the Pharaoh said then, drawing their attention to him. He may not remember these people, but he trusted them. "Please clear the hall, we must prepare for their arrival."

As soon as the order was made, the seven council members sprang into action, as if they had rehearsed this many times before. Mahad was barking orders at the guards stationed at the door, before sending messages to every other soldier in the palace, demanding for every station to be doubled in numbers.

Seto was holding his rod and muttering prayers, trying to appeal to the Gods at short notice any way he knew how.

Isis was trying to get more readings from her necklace, informing everyone that a man on horseback was storming the village outside with several followers.

Two men who were yet to speak had stationed themselves in front of the throne, on alert and ready for an attack. One of them was a huge man with black hair, the other had no hair at all.

Nearby, the two oldest members of his court were huddled together discussing plans. One of them was the first man he had seen upon opening his eyes - who he had presumed by now was his Vizier - and the other was the holder of the Millennium Eye.

Rose was calmly evacuating everyone from the hall, her voice clear and concise as she told them where to go and what to do. She gave the dancers reassuring smiles and the servants clear instructions to pass onto the others. Just as the last person left, she shared some short words with the guards at the door, before it closed with a loud clank.

The only people left in the entire hall now, was the King and the eight members of his court. He looked between them all, trying to think of names for those he did not know.

There was Seto, the High Priest and wielder of the Millennium Rod; Mahad, the Military leader who held the Millennium Ring; Rose, protecting the Pharaoh with the Millennium Heart; Isis, giving information with the Millennium Necklace; Shimon, his royal Vizier…

The only names he did not know were those of the man who looked strikingly like Odion, the older man with the Millennium Eye, and the large man with black hair who held the Millennium Scale. Hopefully he would learn their names, soon.

There was a commotion outside. Mahad's head whipped around to the main door to the hall. "They've gotten past the gates already?!"

"He's approaching the hall!" Isis announced, the Necklace still glowing. "Prepare yourselves."

In the next moment, the doors to the hall burst open, revealing the bodies of their guards beyond, and a man with white hair wearing a robe much too exquisite for his station.

He smirked at the royal court. "Hello, gentlemen."

Hey hey!

Didn't think you'd be getting another chapter already did you? Thankfully my excitement for this meant I got a lot of writing done very quickly!

AND WE'RE IN THE MILLENNIUM WORLD ARC WHOOOO. I've been waiting for this for four years, no kidding. Took me long enough to get here.

Also! I have a nice lil visual to accompany this chapter - I drew up Rose's design for this arc! You can have a look at it over on my tumblr (pharaohsthrone) with the link ending in: private/159935839221/tumblr_oowwe4mCzR1qbkks0 (please let me know if it doesn't work)

I'm going through the episodes as I write, and I've had a lot of fun already with this, so I hope you guys enjoy it too!

Please let me know what you think! :)