DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I sat down to write the last chapter of 'A Gift from Darkness to Light'. I started it at the library. I figured there was nothing that could take such a simple story off track so it seemed safe to let the lights have a little conversation as they waited for Kaiba to show up. It wasn't until I was on the 2nd page, with no sign of Kaiba, that I began to suspect I'd made a mistake. When I found myself typing 'To be continued...' at the end of it, I sighed, gave it a new title, saved it as a new file and started work on the real last chapter of 'A Gift from Darkness to Light'. This is not unusual for me. 'Another Source of Magic' started off the same way... Oh Ra... ;^_^
Chapter 1: Yugi's Problem
"Ryou! Wait up!" Ryou Bakura turned at the sound of his friend's voice, pausing on the front steps of the Domino City Library. He smiled as Yugi caught up to him, out of breath.
"How did it go?" Yugi pulled a face and Ryou smiled sympathetically. "Ah. That well." They started up the stairs together.
"Mr Tyson wasn't too happy with me." Yugi sighed at the memory of his history teacher's stern lecture. He'd known that something was wrong when she had kept him back at the end of the class, but it had still come as a shock to him when he found out what had happened. "I have to completely rewrite my essay."
Ryou stumbled in surprise and would have fallen if Yugi hadn't quickly steadied him. "What? But… that essay was on Ancient Egypt. Why do you need to rewrite it? I mean… You know more about Ancient Egypt than anyone I know! Besides, Yami may not be able to remember his life, but he does remember Egypt and its history, right?"
Yugi nodded, sighing again. "Yes, unfortunately that's the problem. You see, a lot of the things that Yami told me have never been documented anywhere, so I couldn't say where I got the information. Mr Tyson thought that I was making it all up. He said that I either had to reveal all of my sources, or take out all of my 'unsubstantiated make-believe'. Then he gave me a lecture on how history is about what really happened, not about what we want to have happened." Yugi winced. "I have until Friday to re-submit my essay."
"Oh dear." Ryou and Yugi climbed the rest of the stairs in silence, both of them lost in thought. It wasn't until they were inside and seated at one of the tables in the research area that Ryou spoke again. "Perhaps you could just make out a list of books about Ancient Egypt and say that was where you got your information from?" His mind was still on Yugi's problem rather than the Geography assignment that they were supposed to be working on together.
Yugi shook his head. "Mr Tyson thought of that. He said that he would be checking my sources and if they weren't right, then I'd be in big trouble. Not to mention that my essay would get an 'F'."
Ryou winced. "So much for that idea, then."
Yugi forced a smile. "Don't worry, Ryou. I'm sure I'll think of something before Friday. If I don't, I'll just have to rewrite it. That's not a problem." His smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
Ryou knew his friend was trying to make the best of it. He also knew that Yugi was very upset about it all. He remembered how proudly Yugi had shown that particular essay around the group before handing it in. He'd been very happy with how well it had turned out and the essay really was brilliantly done. It was easily worth an 'A', at the very least. Knowing Mr Tyson though, even if Yugi did manage to work out a source list, the essay probably wouldn't even get a 'B'.
"How did you get around it? Didn't Bakura help you with your essay?" Yugi looked curiously at Ryou. He blinked as his friend blushed and suddenly seemed to see something very interesting on the desk in front of him.
"Um… Yes, he did. I… couldn't use most of what he told me. It was a little too… explicit. What I did use was fairly general. Mainly information on the conditions of the Pharaoh's city and day to day life for the people there. That was what Bakura knew about." Ryou shrugged, trying not to think about some of the other things Bakura had told him while 'helping' him with his essay. On the bright side, if he ever needed to escape a room where the ceiling was rapidly descending, he'd know who to ask for advice. Honestly, considering some of the scrapes that his yami had gotten himself in to, it really was a wonder that he had survived long enough to have his soul trapped in the Millennium Ring… and those had just been the adventures that Bakura had told him about!
Shaking his head to clear it, Ryou tried to remember what he had been talking about. He blinked. "Oh! Wait a minute! Father!"
"Huh? Where?" Yugi looked around in surprise. Ryou chuckled at the alarmed look on his face.
"No, I mean I listed my father as one of my sources. Or rather, his journals. You know my father keeps very detailed journals about his travels and what he learns while he's away. Ancient Egypt has always fascinated him so he has quite a lot of information about it. Perhaps you could do that too? My father's journals aren't published, so Mr Tyson wouldn't be able to check them."
"Hmm…" Yugi thought about it for a few moments before regretfully shaking his head. "Thanks for the suggestion Ryou, but knowing Mr Tyson he'd probably insist on seeing them and that could make trouble for you too!" He frowned slightly. "Although…" His bright smile suddenly lit up his face. He was all but bouncing in his seat as he grinned at Ryou. "I know what I'll do! I'll ask my Grandpa for help! He has all kinds of books and journals relating to Ancient Egypt, and his friend Professor Hawkins is an archaeologist! I'm sure Grandpa will have something I can use!"
Ryou smiled. "That's a great idea, Yugi! Let me know how it works out, all right?"
"I will! Thanks for the idea!" Yugi winked and Ryou chuckled.
"What are friends for if not to help work around stubborn history teachers?"