Destined to be Yours

Chapter 40: The Date

Akia finally opened the door to her room, all dressed and ready to go. She had heavier makeup than usual, matching the bold vibes of her outfit.

"Alright! I'm ready to go," Akia informed her brother.

"Aren't you putting too much effort for something that isn't a date?" Yugi started teasing his sister.

"N-No harm in looking good!"

"Sure."

The siblings made their way downtown where they were both supposed to meet their respective dates. They were meeting at two different locations, however. They each went their separate ways, wishing each other luck.

Akia went to the cafe where she and Bakura decided to meet. As soon as she got there, she spotted Bakura waiting for her in front of the cafe. As soon as he saw her, he waved and smiled brightly. His face then flushed when he noticed just how pretty she was.

"Ryou! Did you wait long?" Akia called out to him.

"N-Not at all! I actually just made it here... But Akia, you... You look amazing today," Bakura stuttered a bit.

Akia felt her face heating up under her makeup. "T-Thanks..."

They stayed like that for a while, unable to look each other in the eyes.

"H-Hey, are you hungry? I'm starving! Let's go eat!" Akia's voice got louder because of how nervous she was.

"I passed by a gyudon place on my way here..." Bakura replied as he took Akia's hand and led her down the busy streets. Akia was shocked by the sudden contact, but she didn't pull away. The two of them got into the fast food restaurant and looked at the menu. Bakura insisted so much on paying for Akia as well that she gave up on trying to convince him not to. They sat down with their order and started digging in.

"Any idea on what to do after this?" Akia asked, completely blanking on why she went on this date in the first place.

"Not really. We can go wherever you want," Bakura replied, just enjoying being in her company for once without interference from the Spirit of the Ring.

"Wherever I want? Hm..." Akia started thinking about what she might be interested in. "Ah! The museum!"

"Oh yeah! We did meet up for that," the white-haired boy chuckled at how they had both forgotten.

"You think they're open yet?" The black-haired girl inquired.

"I don't know. I think they're supposed to open in the afternoon, but I'm not really sure. No harm in going to check it out, though."

"Yeah, let's go then!"

Akia gobbled down the rest of her food and they both left for the museum. When they got there, they noticed how there was no one around, even though this was supposed to be the biggest exhibition the city ever had in a long while.

"It seems like it's not open yet," Bakura noticed.

"Yeah..." Akia sighed in disappointment. She then noticed the foreign guards standing at the entrance. "Must be a really big deal to have guards at the door like that."

Akia then saw one of them pick up his phone. He then nodded. After saying something to his partner, they both looked at Akia and Bakura and went up to them. He then handed the phone to Akia. Both her and Bakura were confused by what was happening, but Akia took the phone nonetheless. "Hello?"

"Ah. I assume this is Mutou Akia that I'm speaking with," a feminine voice sounded from the phone.

"Y-Yes, that's me!" Akia replied.

"I am Ishizu Ishtar. I have been waiting for your arrival. The exhibition is not open yet, which will give us a quiet environment to speak of some important matters," Ishizu informed her.

"You were expecting me...?"

"I will explain everything inside. However, I must insist that you come in alone. Do not let Bakura Ryou in with you. You certainly know why I am saying this."

Akia hesitated a bit. Did Ishizu know about the Spirit of the Ring? If so, then how? Akia knew, however, that she was probably right about not letting Bakura in on this.

"Alright, I understand," the red-eyed girl agreed.

"Wonderful. Pass the phone over to one of the security guards and I'll tell them to escort you to me," Ishizu instructed her.

Akia did as she was told, then turned to Bakura. "Sorry about this, Ryou, but I'll have to go in alone..."

"Alone? Why?" Bakura questioned.

"Well..." She pointed at his Millennium Ring.

"Oh... Yeah... I guess he could cause some problems."

"I'll be back as soon as I'm done. Unless you have something to do..."

"I'll wait for you, Akia-chan. As long as it takes."

Akia smiled and then followed the security guard inside. When she had her back turned, Bakura frowned. The spirit of the ring had taken over and he was not amused by what was happening. He'd just have to get it out of Akia later.

Inside the museum, Akia was led to the lower level. She couldn't help but look around in awe. She was so interested in everything that was there, considering her infatuation with Egyptian history. She then looked around the place where the security guard led her. There were big stone tablets hanging on the walls.

"So you have come, Akia-san." The girl in question turned around to find the source of the voice. She then recognized the woman that she saw on TV the day before.

"Ishtar-san!" Akia bowed to her as a greeting. Akia noticed just pretty she was in reality. Her striking blue eyes contrasted with her tanned skin and long black hair.

Ishizu smiled at Akia, "and so we meet again."

"Again? We met before?"

"Of course you wouldn't remember. You were very young back then. Around the same age as my younger brother..."

"Younger... Brother...?" Then the realization dawned on Akia. That was why she felt that Ishizu looked familiar. "Marik! You're his older sister, aren't you?"

Ishizu nodded. "It is quite astonishing that you still remember him after all this time."

"Tell me, is he here? How is he doing now?" Akia inquired.

Ishizu avoided Akia's eyes. "He... He's getting lost in darkness."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Ishizu closed her eyes, looking very much saddened by what she was explaining to Akia. "He's dead set on killing the pharaoh."

"Pharaoh? What are you talking about?"

Ishizu looked Akia straight in the eyes. "Let's take this one step at a time, shall we?"

Akia blinked at the sudden seriousness of the woman's tone. She gulped and nodded slowly. She had never thought that after all this time, Marik would come back into her life again. She knew then, that she really had never completely forgotten about him.