Millennium Moon
Prologue:
Once upon a time, there was a young slave. What bound him were not heavy chains, but the duty to become a King to his people. The people loved the handsome Prince, but he never showed interest in becoming their King.
Every day, every night, his father would remind him of his duty as the only heir to the throne, and the Prince responded kindly.
Bound body. Bound emotions. A slave or a Prince?
Which of them is really the one who cannot move?
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Chapter 1: The Lonely Prince
The lonely Prince stared from the castle window to the segmented land below. His room, high in the Palace tower, looked down upon the merchant street of a nearby Village. He watched as the townspeople hurried from one vendor to the next, making best of the early morning deals. Children ran playfully among the grocer stalls, their mothers making half-hearted attempts to stop them. Farmers drove carriages filled with ripened fruits, assortments of fine cheeses, fresh milk and eggs, intent on selling their goods and tending to their hungry horses.
In the distance, the toll of church bells woke him from his pleasant daze.
The boy sighed. He blinked slowly, huffing his white feathery bangs from his toffee eyes. The riches and jewels bestowed upon him from a life of royalty were not what he was after. The humble servants, the lavish wardrobes, the elegant furnishings and the imperial crown, these things meant little to him; these things he could do without.
What he valued most of all was something he could never have, something so easily obtained that even a simple peasant could chance upon it.
Bound by his sorrow, the grieving Prince looked on from his beautiful prison.
-----
From the edge of his dream, a light knocking sounded upon the boy's gilded door. He startled; how long had he been sitting here, watching the simple lives of people that he could never meet? Surely his father would be angry.
The bedroom door opened slowly; revealing the Prince's guest. Standing in the hall was the personal attendant to the Royal family.
A striking man, tall and lean, decorated in cerulean robes embroidered with shanks of gold, his chestnut hair fell carelessly into the ocean of his navy eyes. In his right hand he carried the Millennium rod, a majestic scepter he was rarely seen without.
"Priest Seto, what brings you?" The young Prince glanced worriedly towards the Palace guard, hoping his secret thoughts would not betray him.
"Prince Ryou, have you forgotten that your father has requested an audience with you? He has been waiting in the chamber room for nearly an hour. Needless to say, he is not pleased."
The boy's garnet eyes widened with regret.
"Oh my! How could I have forgotten?" Ryou jumped from the cushioned window seat, searching frantically for his coronet.
"Ahem." The Prince turned quickly towards the sound. He spied his gold circlet, waiting ready in the Priest's trusting hands.
"Seto, how is it that you are always so prepared?" Ryou walked to the taller man who placed the dainty crown on his silvery head. He stared into the jeweled mirror at his formal appearance. His hair was growing longer, it fell past his shoulders now, hanging in razored lengths around his rosy cheeks. His milky skin, the palest of all the Royals, looked lighter than usual in the rays of the morning sun.
"Your father has asked me to provide you with guidance, but guidance is all that I can give. Now I suggest that you hurry."
"Yes, I will; thank you!" The boy ran quietly from his Chamber room, through the torch lit castle halls laden with elaborate tapestries and gilded portraits, under the ivory arbor and past the indoor rose gardens. In his haste he attracted many confused glances from the Palace maids, who stopped their daily chores to watch the rare commotion.
Nearly breathless, he finally came upon the room where his father resided.
Ryou huffed nervously at his fallen bangs, adjusting his simple crown before opening the large double doors to the Royal Assembly room.
The king sat alone at a long, oak table, his fingers tapping anxiously against the finely crafted wood. He was a kindly looking man, bearded and heavy set, his fair hair graying slightly with age.
"Father, I must apologize for I have overslept. It was not my intention to keep you."
"Yes well, I see how that would be easy to do. After your unexpected outing last night, I am surprised that you even came at all."
The young Prince froze instantly in place; he had not expected this.
"Father, whatever do you mean?" He struggled unsuccessfully to feign his innocence.
"Don't fool with me, boy! You know very well what it is that I refer to. Last night one of the stable maids saw you escape from your Chamber window; of course I was immediately notified. Do you really think that the eyes and ears of this Palace would betray me? What could you possibly have been thinking? Going alone into town, and for what?! What do they have that holds your fascination so? Name it and it is yours!"
"But father, I-I didn't go into town... I just fancied a midnight stroll through the gardens and--"
"You should know better than to lie to me!" The distressed King clenched his fists in frustration. Ryou noted the angry flush of his once jolly cheeks. "I had Priest Seto follow you as a precaution, though he did not understand your intentions of going off alone, at night, while poorly disguised! Do you know the things that could have happened to you if you succeeded? Do you realize the dangers that lie outside these Palace walls for a Prince? The thieves and murderers that would kill for a chance at the only son of the Royal family? You, the last heir of the imperial throne?!"
"Father, I--"
"Do not speak until I say." The King raised a firm hand as a motion of silence. "I do not commend your actions, Ryou. Your sixteenth birthday is quickly approaching; you know this is a critical time! The Royal Coronation is less than a year away. You must perfect yourself to take over the throne, to take a wife and to produce an heir. This is what you must devote yourself to, this and nothing more. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Father."
"You know my health is in question; we do not know how much longer I can remain on the throne. You are the only one capable of replacing me, my one and only son."
The young Prince nodded solemnly in response. It was true. His father was sick and growing weaker by the day. The time he had left in this world was uncertain, even to the most talented and experienced of physicians.
In the silence, a long sigh escaped the weary King.
"Look at you, so handsome and well grown, I can hardly believe that you are almost of age. You remind me so much of your mother. You know that she would be very proud of you." The King's eyes sparkled for the briefest instant, as if recalling a beautiful memory. "She had the same expectations of you that I do, which is why I know she would agree with what I am about to say... Ryou, I have assigned Priest Seto to accompany you in the night. He will stand guard by your Chamber door. He will know everything you do and see everyone you speak to. If he finds that you are not in your bed he will inform me at once, and I assure you, you do not want that to happen."
The Prince's eyes widened in a panicked terror. To constantly be watched and ordered by another, always under the scrutiny and surveillance of his peers, the privilege of privacy torn away with little hope to return, was this what his life was reduced to?
"B-but, Father! You can't!"
"Do not argue with me. You have placed yourself in this position and it is you who must realize the consequences. You are the Prince of England and you will act like it."
Ryou managed to hold back his tears. He would not cry in front of his Father, he would not show his weakness to the King.
"You may go now, my son."
With a curt nod, the grieving boy walked quickly from the room. When he reached the carpeted hall he merged into a sprint, following the cobbled walls to the sanctuary of his Chamber, the only place he could ever be truly alone. Launching himself to the feather bed, he no longer had reason not to cry.
As the day turned to noon and the sun to night, muffled sobs escaped quietly into the Prince's pillow.
-----
A soft knock woke the sleeping Prince from a dreamless slumber. Nightfall was near. As the sun slowly set, the pink and orange sky cascaded in through the rainbow of his bedroom window.
"Your highness, it is time for your evening meal. Your father wishes to dine with you, he awaits your arrival." Priest Seto walked softly toward the Prince's bed, where Ryou's face was still buried in a pile of tear stained cushions.
"I'm not hungry, tell Father I've already eaten. Tell him that I'm ill. Tell him whatever you'd like, or perhaps, you could tell him that I went into town, you're good at that." The stifled response came in breathy sentences. Seto's face softened as he hid an amused smile.
"I see... You are angry with me for spying on you last night, for protecting you."
Ryou turned slowly towards the bronze Priest, his face flushed from stale tears. He sniffed, wiping at his swollen eyes.
"I do not need you to protect me! I grow so weary of people following me and gossiping about what I do. For once, I wish to be normal! It isn't typical to be treated in such a fashion! What normal person dresses in crushed velvets and extravagant silks, has servants that wait on them hand and foot, sleeps with a guard by their door? Seto, I tell you, I don't even know the slightest thing about women. I've never had the fortune of kissing a girl! Yet my Father expects me to take a wife in less than a year. He's completely mad!"
The calm Priest sighed. He sat gently at the end of the boys bed, taking caution not to disturb him.
"You wish to be out there, in the villages that our knights and Calvary protect. In the broken houses that thieves have pillaged and claimed as their own, in the company of people who will tell you all that you wish to hear, in the hopes that they can trick you out of your fortune. Ryou, the world is not kind to those who do not know how to live in it. I tell you this because I do not wish to go back. Perhaps you deem me foolish, yet you know little of the hardships that I have endured. I pray that you will never know what I have lost, nor the people that took it from me. You belong here, Ryou. You are the one and only Prince of England. You have no idea how many people out there wish to be you."
"Then I would happily trade lives with the first commoner I see!"
"It is not that simple, Ryou. Life, is not that simple. You have a great duty to uphold. The people of this country are counting on you to be the best King that you can be. That is all that your Father asks of you."
"He asks far more than what you say. He is choosing my wife and forcing me to produce an heir. I have no wish to partake in a loveless marriage. I have no wish to become a child King."
"So you will denounce your throne? You will deny your lineage and surrender this life for the life of a commoner?"
The Prince stared into the eyes of the Priest who sided with his Father.
"I-- I wish it were that simple."
-----
The Prince slept soundly that night. He did not hear the soft thumps of the approaching hooves over sand. Nor did he hear the metallic clang as the grappling hook caught the stone sill of his Chamber window. He was not aware of the stranger that had climbed into his room, or the dagger that the thief held near.
Before the boy knew what was happening, he felt the gloved hand of the cloaked man over his mouth, then the toxic smell of something sweet.
"Don't scream."
Then the press of the serrated dagger against his throat.
"If you alert the guards, I will kill you now as they will me."
The stranger never spoke above a whisper. Ryou nodded beneath the pressure of the demanding thief, trying with difficulty to still his hurried breath.
"If you want to survive, you will do as I say from here on out. Is that clear?"
Another nod from the frightened Prince.
"Good."
Then the darkness came.
-----
The disoriented boy woke slowly, the sweet taste of chloroform still lingered on his tongue.
The thump of the galloping horse sobered him, as did the fresh air of the English countryside. He was blindfolded, for he could not see, but he could feel the arms of the man behind him, holding still the horse's reins.
After some time, the panicked Prince asked his first question.
"Who are you?"
The strange man did not respond right away, seemingly deciding whether or not to use his real name.
"My name is Marik. I am a bandit of the Sennen Thieves. I was assigned by our leader to kidnap you."
In the artificial darkness, Ryou slowly took in the disturbing information. It was not long before he asked his last question.
"Where are you taking me?"
The man known as Marik laughed coldly beside him. Ryou assumed that he was not the only person to have ever met this fate. When Marik finally answered there was still a note of humor in his rough voice.
"I am taking you to our King."
-----
The scent of hollowed earth was unmistakable. Though the Prince could not see, it was easy to conclude that he was being taken underground.
The horse stopped and the silent thief got off, leaving the blinded boy alone. After tying the animal to a nearby stake, he guided the Prince down but did not remove his blindfold.
"We walk from here, or I can carry you."
"I'll walk."
The young Prince timidly grabbed the cloak of the man named Marik. He noticed that the thief walked slowly, perhaps intentionally, so that Ryou could keep pace. They continued on in this manner, moving deeper into the cavern and farther into the vacant earth. As they descended, the ground beneath their feet became steeper and it grew increasingly harder for the boy to keep his balance. He tripped once, but the man ahead stayed silent.
"We're almost there. I'll have to carry you from here." Before the boy could protest, the man knelt down and lifted him effortlessly over his shoulder. Ryou bobbed gently with the thief's gait, his weak arms slung over the mans strong back.
"H-hey! Put me down! I can walk!"
The Prince tried unsuccessfully to pull away. He had no idea what he would do if he succeeded, or where he would go, but it seemed a better plan then being escorted to certain death.
An abrupt knocking quieted the subdued Prince, who listened intently to his new surroundings.
"Bakura, I've returned."
They had entered a room; that much he was sure of. Though whose room he did not wish to know.
"Marik, I knew you wouldn't fail me. Put him on the bed."
Ryou was lowered with surprising kindness to the mattress below. The soft blankets beneath him were a welcome comfort. Before he could speak or adjust his position, the blindfold was swiftly removed.
Bright chocolate eyes adjusted slowly. The dark room was softly illuminated by several tallow candles and an old, oil lamp. The stone walls were vaguely reminiscent of an iron cell, but warmer. There was no natural light or windows to speak of, a further indication that they were deep underground. Large empty bottles, of which he had never seen, littered the dirt floor in random piles. Ryou noticed that one of the two men was holding one, half filled with an amber liquid. This man, the one in the blood red cloak, caught his eye.
His hair was shoulder length, shaggy and slightly unkempt. Pure white, it reminded him of feathers and freshly fallen snow. His right cheek bore a scar, a long slash crossed twice by similar, faded lines. The anxious Prince wondered briefly how he obtained it, but quickly decided against asking.
Troubled eyes, a vivid blue, held hazy hints of indigo, and Ryou lost himself in this strange man's stare.
The dark skinned Thief, who Ryou presumed was their King, took a long swig of flavored rum, wiping his mouth with his scarlet sleeve before speaking.
"He doesn't look the way I imagined him, too pale..." The white haired man stepped closer. With a harsh bronze hand he grabbed the chin of the boy, tilting his face up toward his own. "Bloody Christ, he's just a kid!" The man called Bakura looked disappointed, somehow.
"Yes, he is young, only fifteen." Ryou now noticed the other man, the man that had brought him here. Golden cuffs adorned his bronze wrists and upper arms. His platinum hair cast silver by the small flames of candlelight. Longer and wilder then the other mans, wisps of it seemed to go in every direction, though it suited him. A navy cape was fastened with a golden chain at the hollow of his throat. This man seemed less intimidating, but only because the boy felt he partially knew him.
"He's too young to stay here, take him to the dungeon." The King's orders were unexpectedly interrupted by a stubborn Prince.
"I am old enough!" Ryou snapped back defensively. "In three months I shall turn sixteen and be crowned the King of England! Then I will become a man."
The crimson cloaked thief raised a speculating brow.
"I do not believe you have the faintest idea of what makes a boy a man."
The thief named Marik grinned in agreement.
"He's probably still a virgin."
The young Prince felt a warm flush radiate through his cheeks.
"Well... Are you?" The head thief questioned on, poorly concealing an arrogant grin.
There was only silence from the boy on the bed.
"As I thought. I bet you've never even kissed a girl."
Eager to prove himself to these two strangers, Ryou shot back quickly with exaggerated lies.
"I have kissed a girl! In fact, I have kissed many girls, hundreds even."
The two men exchanged doubting glances before entering a fit of shared laughter.
Ryou was not pleased.
"You can't presume to judge me when you don't even know me!"
"You're right, we don't know you. But if what you say is true... Well then, you must be very experienced. You must be an excellent kisser. " Ryou did not notice the mocking tone of the Thief King's voice.
"Y-yes. Of course I am."
"Okay. Prove it." The white haired man leaned casually against the wall, as if his request was commonplace.
"W-what?" The Prince was clearly confused by his subtle remark.
"You heard me kid. Prove it."
"What? H-how? I mean I couldn't possibly..." Ryou glanced around nervously as he trailed off, racking his mind for a way out of this unpleasant situation.
"I'll make you a deal, kid. If you kiss as good as you say you do, I'll let you go."
"L-let me go?"
"Yep. I'll even escort you back to the Palace, compliments of the Sennen Thieves."
Marik stifled a cold laugh. Bakura elbowed him quickly in the ribs, mouthing words that the boy could not hear. Ryou eyed the two men wearily. He still couldn't tell if they were completely serious, or if this was just their twisted idea of fun. He hoped it was the latter.
"W-what do I have to do, then?"
"Kiss Marik." The thief Bakura nudged the man standing next to him expectantly, a playful smile extending on his face.
"H-huh? Boss, I can't. Malik would kill me." The white haired man looked disappointed, sulking almost like a child.
"Fine then. Kiss me."
The frightened boy did not respond. Surely the Prince of England was worth more than the perverse entertainment of two wanted thieves. Could they possibly make him do such a thing?
"What's wrong? I thought you were an expert at this sort of thing. Is he making you uncomfortable?" The superior thief glanced quickly to the man at his side. "Marik, leave us."
Marik rolled his lavender eyes in detest before exiting the room, leaving them completely alone.
"Now it's just me and you kid, and I'm still waiting for this amazing kiss you promised me." The crimson thief crossed his arms smugly against his chest.
"But... You're the one who ordered him to kidnap me! How could I possibly trust you?"
Bakura grinned cunningly at the troubled boy.
"I am a man of my word."
"But you're a thief, you lie for a living!"
"Now who's being presumptuous?"
Ryou glared in frustration at the arrogant man. The Thief King smiled coyly back.
"Very well... Just remember that you promised to let me go."
A promise is a promise, kid.
Ryou hung his legs over the side of the bed slowly, purposely delaying the inevitable moment. He stood confidently, convincing himself that this was the right thing to do, the only thing to do. He walked to the man leaning indifferently against the wall and immediately noticed the difference in their opposite heights. Ryou barely came to the Thief's lean shoulders.
Supported by the wall, Bakura nonchalantly inched himself slightly down.
Continuing on tip-toe, the inexperienced Prince leaned slowly in. It was quick but sweet, a gentle kiss on the lips before pulling away. Despite the child's calm demeanor, the older man sensed the trembling of the younger boy at his side.
Ryou looked up at the man expectantly, his toffee eyes wide with confused anticipation.
"That's what you call a kiss? That was pathetic!" The proud King pulled away haughtily, shunning the shocked Prince.
"I-It was not! You're just saying that so you won't have to release me!"
"Is that so?"
"Yes, you lied! I knew I couldn't trust you..."
The Princes eyes seethed with hurt and betrayal. The distraught boy mistakenly turned his back to the King of Thieves.
Bakura sighed in frustration, his golden fists clenching in angry spasms at his sides. He would not tolerate such behavior. This boy, who hardly knew him, would not get the best of him.
He reached out suddenly, grabbing Ryou's shoulders and pushing him forcefully against the wall. He found the boys parted lips and locked them quickly with his own. The sweet scent of peach rum flavored his breath. As his warm tongue slipped inside the Princes mouth, he felt the boy shudder beneath him. In the dark, Bronze hands gently fondled flushed cheeks. The boys skin burned pleasantly beneath the thief's caress. Their tongues twisted together in an elegant dance, accompanied only by the steady drum of their beating hearts.
When he pulled away the Prince was breathless. Braced by the wall, his trembling knees failed as he slid down slowly towards the floor.
Stepping back, Bakura folded his arms stubbornly against his chest.
"That'll teach you to call me a liar. Stupid kid."
Ryou's heart still pounded haphazardly in its cage. His breathing was ragged and uneven; his palms clammed over in a sweaty sheen.
The paranoid thief glanced guiltily down at the collapsed boy.
"Hey kid... You alright?"
"I'm fine." The embarrassed Prince did not look him in the eye.
"You've had quite a day. Go get some rest."
"I'm not tired."
"Do it." Bakura pointed a stern finger toward the bed against the far wall. Why was this kid so obstinate? Did he realize who he was dealing with?
Ryou got up slowly and obeyed. He lied down quietly, still confused about the kiss, still denying the severity of his situation. The mattress was exceptionally comfortable, more so than his own. The silk sheets felt cool against his sticky skin.
"I'll be gone for a bit. Stay here. And don't try anything funny, kid. There will always be someone guarding this door."
The crimson King walked purposefully out of the hollowed room. He turned and closed the heavy wooden plank that served as a makeshift door. Ryou noted dully that there was no sound of a lock or key. Though it wouldn't help him any if he was constantly to be guarded. He laughed inwardly, as this situation was not much different than that of the Palace and his Fathers new rules.
The overwhelmed boy sighed, turning on his back to look up at the dim ceiling carved jaggedly overhead. The Prince caught sight of a small crevice in the rocks above, revealing a moonlit night sky, cloudless and thick with stars. It gently illuminated the dark room, casting small patches of ghostly light onto the occupied mattress below. In a way, it soothed him.
At that moment he felt he was not completely hidden away from the outside world.
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I hoped you liked it! This is my first fic with Ryou in it, so I hope I captured his personality well! Next Chapter is The Crimson King :) Please R&R!