Authors note: I still own nothing so just go on reading. I hope you like it.
Whispering Wind
A little fennec fox is cuddling up to my leg as I stand on a dune and look over the desert towards the rising sun. Yugi must be walking up to me. "Did you have that nightmare again?" He asks once he's close enough and a moment later he stands next to me and looks up at me.
"I did." I say. "I don't know why I dream that every night. Always this chained up white dragon with those piercing but cold blue eyes and always the same voice calling for help or screaming in agony. It's the fourth night in a row that I dream that. Yugi, I get the feeling that I need to help him. I don't know why but I have to help that dragon."
"There are no dragons." Yugi points out. "Unless it's a shadow monster."
"Maybe it is." I mumble, "And maybe that voice belongs to his owner."
"But who chains up a shadow monster?" Yugi asks.
"I think it's not the monster but it's master." I muse, "Maybe the person is in trouble."
"Or maybe it's just a dream." Yugi says sounding worried.
"It doesn't feel like a dream." I reply and hear that voice again. I keep hearing it even when I'm awake and it always comes with the wind. I had this before. "It feels like when I met you."
"What do you mean?" He asks, "Did you have bad dreams then too?"
"Not just that." I sigh, "I don't like talking about it since people think I'm crazy, but the wind talks to me. It whispers things to me in my dream and sometimes when I'm awake too. You remember how we found Fenny, right?"
"You heard her cry." He says. "I know that she was a good bit away but you just have good ears."
"I heard you." He replies, "I heard you cry in my sleep and I heard your cry in the wind for three days before I saw you with those slave traders."
Now he stares at me and probably thinks me crazy like so many others. My mother thought so too and I was locked up for a few years until I broke free. Also with the help of the wind calling out for me. Urging me to go. "I was with them for three days." He whispers surprised and looks at me awestruck.
"You don't think I'm crazy?" I ask worriedly.
"No I don't." He replies seriously. "And you think that person is in danger too?"
"In worse than you've been." I sigh. I can feel it with the next wind that moves over my skin. It tingles and another scream echos in my head and I shiver.
"You're okay Jono?" Yugi asks worriedly.
"I can hear him scream." I tell him honestly. "Even now I hear him."
"Do you know where he is?" Yugi asks me, looking determined and I wonder if he plans to help this person. I doubt that we can even if we want to. He's in big trouble and alone we haven't got a chance.
"Just the general direction." I reply and look towards the sun. "He's closer to the sun than we are now."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Yugi cheers. "You helped me, so why not help him?"
"I could sneak into that camp of traders and get you out easily, I even could use the escape of everyone else in those cages as a distraction to keep us both save. And my monster is stronger than their was so I had a plan B." I reply. "But with him it's different. those chains that I see and the pain he feels. There is something much worse there."
"Then we have to help him all the more." Yugi insists. "And we're not helpless either. You see his monster not him. And you say you knew that I needed help from what you saw, so I bet you know that I'm not exactly powerless when I want to fight."
"You couldn't fight the traders." I point out.
"They had monsters too." Yugi says, shivering at those memories even after all those years.
"I know." I say with a sigh, "They have more. I haven't seen them but I can feel the shadows around that dragon. We're more likely to die than do any good." I reply. "I do want to get closer though, maybe the wind will know how to help him. But they torture him, they want something from him and torture him to get it. I just don't know what."
"Then let's go." Yugi says and walks back towards the river to the camp we have there. It's just him, me and my younger sister and I really don't like letting her get into danger. But Yugi is right, I have to help him. I know that it's vital, even more important than it was with Yugi. I just don't have a clue why it's so damn important. And with another sigh I follow him.
We travel along the Nile for a few days, fearing that we might not find water even with a real desert child on my side if we leave the river. Yugi knows the desert much better than Serenity and I do, because he was born in a nomad tribe. My mother lived in a small city at the coast. My father was rarely at home because he worked on a ship, travelling the ocean. I hardly remember him, Serenity doesn't remember him at all. He just never came back from his last sea journey and I already knew that he was dead. I had seen him try to survive in the middle of the ocean after a ship wreck for a few days and told my mother about it. She had sent me to a madhouse, still believing that he would return. Back then it was still likely but even years later mother had never given up hope to see him again, even though he hadn't returned for five years when she passed away. At that time I had already escaped the madhouse where they locked me up and returned on my own.
Because no one in the city had known what to do with the young orphan girl it was decided to either sell her to slave traders or a whore house. They wouldn't have considered to let me take care of her back then, not only because I was considered to be insane. And for good reasons, since I would rather have seen her taken care of by someone more capable than me.
I was still young and was hardly able to fend for myself and with no idea on how to do so for the both of us. But I just couldn't leave her like that. I sneaked into the city and luckily she remembered me and came with me easily once I had organized a distraction by railing up some man on the marked. We still had to run from the guard that were sent after us. But I managed to get her out of there safe and sound and now she's walking with Yugi and me through the desert to our possible death. We can't win on our own.
The closer we get, the stronger I sense the shadows around that man. I still only see his dragon in my dreams and hear his voice. But I can sense the shadows around him in those dreams. I also sense his pain when I hear his voice during the day. The wind carries it to me. I even heard him beg his captures to just let him die and heard an evil laughter as a reply. I share his pain at times. I don't know why but whenever I hear him scream in agony, it rips my heart into pieces.
A whole week passed when Yugi walks up to me again one morning, on another dune much closer to him, but not close enough yet. "Are we still far away?" Yugi asks and yet again I feel his fox cuddle up to me first. Fenny is never far from Yugi.
"Yeah, but I think it's a few more days until we're there." I reply.
"Any idea on what we will face?" Yugi asks.
"A lot of shadows." I reply, "Some are powerful. And they're all so dark." I shiver while I remember the last dream. I heard a few questions of his captors. But not enough to understand much. They want some stones. Maybe they mean jewels. But I'm not sure. I just know that they want the god stones from some temple of the Pharaoh. They believe that he knows a way to enter that temple unseen but he denies it. They don't believe him, and neither do I. He lied and I sensed it but I also know that he fears them getting what they want. I just don't know why. They just want stones. So even if they are pretty and valuable stones, like rubies or whatever they are, it's nothing that needs to be feared.
"Can your monster defeat them?" Yugi asks and I remember that he has no idea what it's like at all, while I have seen his in his in my dreams. The dreams that I believe the desert wind sends to me.
"No." I reply. "I think the white dragon could, but he's tied up and can't free himself. For some reason he can't call his monster out. I just don't understand why. It's a part of us, right?"
"I have no idea." Yugi muses, "But what if we can't even use ours there? Maybe there is some spell going on?"
"I think they can use theirs, so even if it's a spell, it's only on him then." I say, "But they might be able to put us under the same spell. Either way, we need help to save him." I hear his stomach growl and I'm reminded that we couldn't eat much during the last few days because we were travelling too much to get much food. "Let's stay a little longer this morning, we need to catch some fish."
"I fear you're right." He chuckles but looks worried towards me, "Maybe you'll get some color back that way. You grow paler with each passing day."
"I'm fine." I reply and turn to walk back to the river, wishing I could walk closer to him. "We should fish as much as we can, we'll need to leave the river soon."
"Then let's get on with it." He says and follows me.
We still move further after the midday sun has passed and walk until well past sunset until I see that Serenity is close to fall asleep on her feet. We make a camp and I wish I wasn't so tired. I don't want to see that chained dragon again. I don't want to hear his voice, unable to do anything about it. But I need my rest, so I try to sleep anyway while Yugi is taking first turn to watch out for danger. He'll wake me later on, unless my dreams wake me before that.
My dream is different this night though. I see the dragon at first and hear the voice just like the previous nights but then it feels like the wind shifts and the picture changes. I see Yugi's monster. It's not watching out though as I thought it should. It's standing with another monster. I don't know who it is but I hear Yugi's voice in my dream just like I had before I found him. He's crying but not just that, I hear him beg too, "But I needed some food. Please don't hurt me, I just tried to survive."
"Find out if there are others," the monster orders, I don't know and I wake up. I look around and can't see Yugi anywhere.
I move to Serenity who is still sleeping soundly and shake her, "Wake up." I whisper urgently and once she looks at me I say, "Be quiet and hide. Find a place to hide and don't come out until I found you. Someone is close and they have Yugi. I go get him back."
"But..." She looks frightened towards me. "What if..."
"Hush." I order, "I'll be fine, I promise. And now go."
She nods, still looking scared and looks around before running towards a few dried out bushes with her blanket in her hand and I see her dig a hole. I assume she'll try to lie down and cover her blanket with sand so only her head will be out and hidden by the bushes but she can still jump up easily enough and run if needed. I walk to where I sense my friend and hope that I'm a match for that monster. I doubt it since there were more shadows close by, but I will at least try to check it out.
I just walk a little along the river when I hear voices and hide behind a dune. "There really is no one else, please." Yugi begs.
"Then why are you trying to talk us out of looking?" A harsh voice says.
"Even if, I believe him that he was just hungry." A more gentle voice says and I recognize it from my dream but don't know who it is.
"They could work with those bandits that attacked high priest Set." The harsher voice says.
And then I feel something poking my back. Guess they caught me. I slowly look around to see if I can fight that person off and see three guards with spears. So much for fighting. I sigh and one of them calls to the others, "We found someone listening from over here."
The other two grab one of my arms each and pull me up to drag me to the other side of the dune. Once I can see over it I see Yugi sitting on the floor, his hands tied behind his back and someone stands close by that looks just like him. There are a few more guards, as well as two men that are dressed differently and don't seem to belong to the guard.
"Bring him here." The man with the harsh voice says and I wonder why he's holding a scale in his hand. It has the same sign on it as the strange upside down pyramid the man closest to Yugi is wearing around his neck. It's big and odd for jewelery and I sense something dark from it. The third man is holding a key. "And tie him up too."
"Will you tell us what you're doing here now?" The man, who looks a lot like Yugi, asks. He's the one with the gentle voice and that monster I saw. They all also have a strange device on their arm and I sense power from it too, just like those things with that symbol.
"We're just travelling, just Jono and I." Yugi says, "I got hungry, you see how skinny he is, don't you? I was just so hungry and saw the smoke from the fire and wanted to get some food."
Suddenly I hardly can breath. It feels like sand is in the air and in front of my eyes I see a sandstorm out of no where. I have no idea what's going on but I see my sister buried under the sand where she hid and then it's over again. I'm on the floor between the man that had held me and still fight for breath, willing my lungs to relax. Serenity, if that storm really will rise up, then she'll be buried in that hiding place. It will be her grave.
"Three." I mumble, better she's captured with us than death, "There is a girl with us." I feel a tear running down my face and see Yugi stare towards me and look at him. "She's a bit further down the river hiding by some bushes."
"Jono." I hear Yugi mumble, "Why?"
"She'll die," I whisper, "A storm is coming."
"What are you talking about?" The harsh voice asks, the man with the scales again. "I can't see any signs of a storm rising anywhere."
"Neither can I." The third person that had been quiet so far says, "But if it does we'll be too much in the open to truly be save. We might get buried here."
I'm quiet for a moment and listen to the sound of the wind before saying, "There is a rock a bit to the south. We'd be save if we stay close to it's west side. The storm will hit from east."
"It's a trap." The man with the harsh voice and those scales says. "We mustn't go there."
"Send some man to find that girl." The man with the pyramid says. "And be gentle with her, some others should go and see if the rock is really there and if there could be a trap."
"My pharaoh, what if they try to reduce our number?" The harsh man asks.
"I'm sure we can manage." The spiky haired man says. As unbelievable as it sounds, he must be the pharaoh.
"I wish Isis was here." The one with the key states with a sad sound. "She would be able to see a storm coming.
"If she'd still be alive, we would also know where Set is." The pharaoh says, sounding just as sad. "But she's dead and can't help us now. We still have to save Set though." After that the pharaoh looks at some guards and orders them, "You'll watch them but don't harm either of them, I still don't think that they mean any harm to us, on the contrary, if he can warn us from storms, he might be useful." And then those three leave.
That name, why does it tingle so strangely whenever I hear it? Whatever, I just hope that they find my sister and bring her here safely and that we can survive that storm. It's a strong one. A little later I see some guards return and talk to those three strange man before the guards start to pack up the camp. "I guess we'll be going." Yugi says. "You think Serenity will be safe?"
"Only if they find her." I say and pray they do.
A little later I see some guards return to the by now nearly packed up camp. I feel the storm getting closer and I'm happy to see Serenity with them. She's not tied and not held by the man but I bet they still threatened her or she wouldn't have walked with them. She's brought to the pharaoh and hasn't looked at us yet. "S..."
"Don't" I say quietly, just when Yugi was about to call out to her. "She's safe for the moment and they treat her nicely enough but if she runs to us that might change."
"Sorry." He mumbles and a little later I see the pharaoh walking up to us with her and a few guards. She runs as soon as she sees us and I'm glad that no one is stopping her.
"Jono." She shouts out before she throws her arms around me. "Are you okay? You're even more pale than you were last evening."
"I'll be fine." I whisper, "We need to leave." I add and look towards the pharaoh. "I know you don't believe me but the storm is getting closer and it's strong, the storm is really strong."
"I believe you." He says and looks at the guards, "Untie them." I look at him in surprise. "Your sister told me something very interesting when I talked about your prediction about the storm. You found Yugi through dreams, didn't you?"
I stare at him and wonder if he thinks us all crazy now. "I did." I say, they're less likely to think of us as a threat if we're just mad and will lock us up. I escaped from such a place before and can do it again.
"And you found that fox that is following and cuddled up to Yugi too." He says with a smile on his face.
"Yeah." I reply and wonder what he's going on about.
"And now you're here because you're seeing a white dragon with blue eyes that is being hurt and want to save him." His face changes, gets more tense and I know that he is looking after him too. But why? Is he a friend or does he want to hurt him too?
I decide to hope that he's a friend and can help us. They did ask the dragon about stones in a temple of the pharaoh, so it makes sense that they know each other and might even be friends. "I do see him. He's in pain. But we need to leave or we'll all be buried alive."
"You trust him?" The man with the harsh voice asks.
"I do." The pharaoh says, "The rock is in the open even more than we are now and would be bad for a trap because we could see it coming from a distance and use the rock for protection, also if the storm hits the way he says, it would give us much better protection than we can hope for here. We go." After that he looks back to me and says, "And we'll talk some more after the storm. I want to know what you know, and I want to know everything."
I just sigh while he orders everyone to get ready and a guard to stay close to us three. Figures that he won't let me get away now. But it might be good to be with those people. I sense so much power from the pharaoh alone that they can safe that dragon much easier than I could.
A little later we've walked to the stone and by then I could fall asleep on my feet and I know that Yugi feels the same. Even Serenity is very tired and she doesn't stay up half the night to keep watch as we do. We can't rest for long before the storm hits. Everyone is moving as close to the rock and the makeshift shelter created there as they can. The storm really is fierce and his voice that comes with it screams in my head, while I can faintly see the chained up dragon in the storm, I can hardly hear the others over his cries of agony. "Please stop this."
"I'm coming." I whisper into the wind, "I promise I'll save you."
"Stay away." He says and I feel that he means me. He heard me. "They're too strong."
"I'm not alone." I tell him, praying that he can still hear me, "The pharaoh is with me."
"Warn him." He orders, his voice pained and then he screams.
"Who are you talking to?" I hear another voice, evil and malicious.
For a moment there is nothing but pain, such a strong pain that I hear my own voice scream with the dragon and then I feel darkness creep up around me and the last thing I hear before the darkness takes over is my dragons voice saying, "The stones, tell him to protect the gods."
When I wake up again the storm is gone and I see Serenity smiling at me, "He's awake." She screams and I hear footsteps around me.
I see the pharaoh approaching and sit next to Yugi on my other side than Serenity is. "You gave us quite a scare, screaming like that all of a sudden. What happened?"
"The gods." I whisper remembering his last words. "I have no idea what it means but he told me to warn you. You're to hide the stones and to protect the gods."
"Did he say anything else?" The pharaoh asks.
"No." I whine and feel tears running down my face. "He's getting too weak. If they don't stop, they'll never get the information they want. They'll kill him."
"What information do they want from him?" He asks me, now looking worried.
"They want to know a way." I reply. "They know that he knows about a secret way into a temple of yours and they want to know it to steel the god stones. I don't know what it is but he's scared that they get it and denies to know the way but he does."
"How do you know that he knows?" The pharaoh asks curious while waving a few guards to him.
"I feel it." I mumble and sit up, my head spins and I feel so weak but it's getting better again the further the wind from that storm goes. "I feel when someone lies. The wind feels different then."
"I have no idea what you mean with the wind feels different, but I believe you." The pharaoh tells me and then looks to the guards while giving them an order, "Go to the palace and make sure that the guards of my temple is increased. I also want the city gates better protected as well as the royal garden."
"The royal garden?" The guard asks confused.
"Do as I told you." The pharaoh orders and the man leaves. So the secret way goes from there. After that he looks at me. "Can you tell us where Set is?"
The tingle again. "Is that the man with the white dragon?" I ask, still not certain.
"Indeed." The pharaoh confirms. "He has such a dragon and I really want to find and help him. After all he's my friend as well as my cousin."
"He's somewhere in that direction." I say and point to where I sense him to be.
"Can you move?" The pharaoh asks kindly.
"I have to." I reply, "He's getting weaker. I can't let him die." Another tear is rolling down my face and I wipe it away. A little later we're moving again. The one with the scales still looks at me suspiciously. The one with the key seems to be rather curious.
Another three days pass while we're with the pharaoh and his men. We have plenty of food now that includes dried food mostly after we left the river and travel from waterhole to waterhole. Yugi is helping with that. He knows about waterholes that the pharaohs men don't know. I'm mostly quiet while Serenity is trying to talk to me from time to time. But I don't feel much like talking and only give one or two words as a reply until she gives up. Yugi is with the pharaoh most of the time and I soon feel that there is some form of connection between them. I don't really know what it means yet but I know that he's safe with the pharaoh. On the evening of the third day the pharaoh walks up to me again. "He's very close now." I tell him. "I think we'll find those bandits that took him by noon."
"Do you know anything about their hideout?" He asks.
"I'm sorry." I say and shake my head, "I don't see things the way they are. The wind only shows me what things are on the inside, not what they appear to be."
"You mean like seeing the monster in ones soul rather than seeing their face?" He says and I'm impressed how fast he understands what I mean.
"They're strong." I say. "Their monsters are dangerous and dark. Full of hate and greed."
"Not a promising combination." He muses with a smile. "But we'll win. Don't worry about Set, he's very tough."
"I know." I whisper, another tear escaping my eyes, "But they hurt him so badly."
It's quiet for a moment before he speaks again, "There is something else I'd like to talk to you about."
"What is it?" I asks curious now.
"I don't know if you've noticed, but I've spent a lot of time with Yugi." He starts.
"I know." I reply, "And I know that there is some form of connection between you. I don't know what it is though."
"I love him." He states with a smile, "And he gave me every reason to believe that he returns those feelings. I want him to stay close to me but he's so worried about you."
"Tell him that we'll be fine." I say and look towards the stars in the sky. I really don't want to sleep tonight. He's growing so weak and I don't want to dream about his death as I did with my fathers. Watching helplessly.
"I intend to do better." He smiles at me. "I'd like to offer you a place in the palace. Your sister can come there with you and your ability to predict could be helpful."
I smile weakly at the thought of Yugi staying in a building but say, "I don't know if I can be of help. I can't really control what I see. But I'd like to stay close to Yugi."
"Then you'll come with us?" He asks again.
"I will." I say and yawn before rubbing my forehead a little.
"You're not well, are you?" He sounds worried.
"I feel his pain." I mumble. "Not exactly the same but I sense that he's in pain and that troubles me greatly. I don't like it. And at times, I really do share the pain with him and feel it just as strongly and exactly the same way, but that's rare. It only was really bad when the storm was hitting us and there isn't another anywhere close."
"Try to rest." He says softly. "I'll take care of the rest."
"I'll try." I say and lie down while he walks to some guards and talks to them. And a little later I see the dragon again, he's weak and not speaking at all tonight, he's hardly moving within his chains. "I'm coming." I whisper in my dream and hope that he still hears me but there is no reaction. After watching for just a little while I feel him getting weaker and wake up from the fear that he might be dying. Tears run over my face and I sit up again. I look around and see to my surprise that the sun is already rising.
"You three should stay here with the guard." The pharaoh tells us, while Yugi, Serenity and I sit with him for some breakfast. "We will go to an old building close by. I had some people scout ahead and they said that we should reach it by noon easily."
"I'd like to come." I say, feeling the need to go to him myself.
"You're sure it's a good idea?" The pharaoh asks worriedly.
"He needs me." I insist. "I can feel it."
"Your feeling got us this far." He replies with a worried frown on his face. "I guess it's only fair to keep listening to it."
"I want to come too." Yugi begs the pharaoh. "Maybe I can help?"
"I doubt that you can, my love." The pharaoh looks into Yugi's eyes, "And I would feel much better knowing you a safe distance from the fight."
"Will it take long?" Yugi asks, sounding worried.
"I assume we'll stay there over night, depending on how long it takes to take them all down and on how long the healer will need to tend to Set before he can be moved." Pharaoh Atem muses. "But I'm sure we'll be back around noon tomorrow."
"Watch Serenity for me, please." I tell him to make him feel more useful when he stays.
He sighs and looks down a little and after the breakfast is finished we get ready to leave. Only a handful of guards stay behind with Serenity and Yugi. It's a particularly hot day and after while I feel that something isn't right with him, my white dragon is scared about something. "We'll be too late." I mumble and see the pharaoh looking at me while I speed up a little, "They know we're coming." I say more clearly this time.
"Hurry." The pharaoh orders and everyone tries to speed up and we reach the place a little sooner than planned but I still fear the worst.
When we get there at least ten shadow monsters appear coming from over thirty man. All hardened warriors from what I can see. The guards run towards the people that don't have a monster and there are about as many of them as the bandits. The pharaoh and the two others that have an item with the same symbol as his upside down pyramid all raise their arms with that strange device and summon a monster using it.
Their monsters start to fight the bandit's ones and the pharaoh and his men even summon another monster with that device. "He's dying." I mumble. The monsters and men are battling but it takes too long. "I won't let you die." I nearly scream and then I feel my monster come forth. I don't care what happens when they see it. I heard that some were sealed. I have no idea what it means other than that the owner dies but I don't care, it doesn't matter as long as I can keep him alive. My dragon helps the others monsters but we're still only about even. I see and feel the little fennec fox at my leg before I see that yet another monster appears. Yugi's silent magician and he grows to his full potential for the first time that I see it and soon after we have the upper hand.
A little latter all the opponents are either dead or tied up. A few of the guards died as well in the battle and I'm sad about it but the worst is that they couldn't find Set in their search. I know that he's here but I'm not sure where.
I try to feel him while I hear the pharaoh question the men. One seems to be leading them, he gives all the answers. And I know his voice. I would recognize that evil and malicious voice anywhere. He's the one who tortured my dragon and I wish I could just kill him. I still try to ignore him and that voice and try to picture my dragon in my head. I never tried to hear what the wind whispers to me before. It always just came to me but I have to find out where he is. "We just defended ourself when you attacked." The man says. "We never had a prisoner here. You must have the wrong group."
"He's here." I whisper, certain that it's true and hope that the pharaoh believes me. It's quiet for some time and no one says a word. I feel everyones eyes on me and try to ignore it. "Where are you?" I ask him, sensing him a little but it's so weak. Like he's already dead. It takes another moment during which I fear that we're too late and then I'm with him. I feel it all again, just like I did in the storm. It's dark and the dragon tries to use it's claws to free himself. Now it's a cage holding him and there is no wind around him. I can hardly breathe but I move a few steps to where I know he's hidden and fall to the ground starting to dig.
"Help him quickly." I hear the pharaoh's fearful voice order and he too is at my side within seconds. Yugi is digging too and soon I feel wood under my hands. Once we have it freed one of the guards pull me aside while another lifts it. I can hardly keep my eyes open, I feel so weak and then I see them pulling a brunet man out of a barrel that was buried there and I just know that it's my dragon.
He opens his eyes and looks right into mine. He looks so weak. "Amber." He mumbles weakly and there is a faint smile on his bruised lips, "I was sure they're red." And then my eyes close and I could bet that his do too.
When I wake up again I feel a hand moving through my hair. The hand is bigger than Yugi's or Serenity's and stronger too. I open my eyes and see Set leaning against a rock looking into the distance. He has many bandages and I still see even more bruises but his eyes are open and it's his hand that moves through my hair. "How do you feel?" I ask and he looks at me.
He smiles a little smugly and says, "Much better now that you're awake again too. Did you have to sleep so long and have me worried?"
"Sorry." I mumble at him with a smile.
"Do you also know where my diadank and my rod is?" He asks looking a little smug.
"I've got no idea what you talk about." I mumble sleepily, closing my eyes again and wonder what he's missing. It's quiet for a while and his hand is still messing up my hair. It feels strangely good and I wish I could stay like this forever but it's getting light. I guess I really did sleep for some time and it'll be time to go back to the others soon. I have to see if Serenity is okay since even Yugi left her alone. But I don't really want to leave my dragon and have a feeling that she doesn't need me anyway right now.
I only think of how relaxing his hand is for a while when I sense a spark of power similar to the upside down pyramid and that device the pharaoh and his men used to summon more than one monster. Maybe that's a diadank. With a sigh I stand up. "Where are you going?" He asks sounding upset and I see him try to stand up but it clearly is hard for him.
"Wait here." I tell him with a smile, "I'll be back in a moment. I just think I found out where that stuff you looked for is. I sense it, a dark and dangerous power, just like that of the pharaoh's upside down pyramid."
"Puzzle." He mumbles. "It's called a puzzle."
I just shrug and walk towards a guard and ask if he can help me get something for Set? He looks over towards the high priest and after a nod from Set the guard follows. I walk towards the well and sense the water beneath it, even so I can't see it. I sit on the edge and hear Set ask, "What are you doing?"
I ignore his question because he'll see it in a second anyway and look towards the guard. "Just pull me back up." And then I jump down. It's deep all right but the water is too and I still need to get down a bit further after the water stopped my fall. I can't see a thing down here and just go by my senses. I grab the objects I sense and push against the floor with my feet. A moment later I'm back up.
"Jono?" I hear Set shout and while I still gasp for air he already shouts my name again, "Jono, answer me dammit."
"Jono?" I hear Yugi's worried voice now. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." I shout back up once I have enough air. "And I think I got everything."
"You stupid idiotic fool." I hear Set mumble. His voice resonating from the well's walls.
The end of a rope is thrown down to me and I put Set's two items into my belt before I try and grab the rope. "I got it." I shout once I found it in the darkness and feel the guard pulling me up. I move my legs against the wall of the well to avoid getting my skin scratched by the rocks. Once I'm up I look into the blue eyes of an angrily glaring Set who by now is standing there. I climb over the well's wall and pass the two items I fished out of the water to Set, asking, "Is this what you've been looking for?"
"It is." He grumbles. "But I just asked you if you knew where it is, not to happily jump down a well and possibly break your stupid neck."
"Don't be silly." I reply, "The water is way too deep and no one else could have found it. It's pitch black down there."
He just grumbles something and sits down again with his back to the well. Sweat is on his forehead and he gets pale again. "You should have stayed back there. You still need to rest."
"You've been out longer than me and just happily jumped down a well." He grumbles. "And you expect me to just sit around there?"
"Sure." I say and shrug. "I think I've been mostly sleeping towards the end anyway and you're still wounded."
He just glares at me before looking away grumbling something I don't hear and this time the wind doesn't tell me, so I let it pass. A little later the pharaoh is walking over to us and moves his arms around Yugi's waist saying, "We need to be going. The healer advised us to make a gurney for Set."
"I ride." He says and glares at the pharaoh.
"You need to rest." I tell him.
Set glares at me for a moment until he says, "I ride and you'll ride with me where I can keep my eyes on you, stupid fool."
"Whatever." I mumble before adding, "Stubborn fool."
"Then I guess we have something in common." He mumbles, still looking angrily. I wonder what I've done to him to make him look so pissed at me? I just saved this moron's life and got his precious diadank and rod back, so why does he have to glare at me so much? I liked it better when I was still lying there and he messed up my hair. With a sigh I stand up and help him up too when a horse is brought. I help him on the horse and want to get up behind him but he moves back on the horse and looks towards a guard who then grabs me and lifts me up before the priest. I guess he wants that to have his eyes on me and I let it slide, even though I feel ridiculous being lifted up like that. I do glare at him for a moment though and just earn myself an even worse glare.
"I bet Serenity will be happy to see that you're fine." Yugi says, smiling towards me. He sits in front of the pharaoh the same way I sit in front of Set.
"I bet she'll be, and I can't wait to see her again." I say and sigh.
"You're not mad that I left her alone with the guards?" Yugi asks.
"Not really." I reply. "I'd still wish at least one of us could be there to keep an eye on her but I think she's fine, so I guess it's okay."
Suddenly Set is making the horse go faster for a moment and doesn't slow down until there is some distance between us and the pharaoh's horse. I look at him and see him glare into the distance. His face is getting more pale and he looks like he's in pain. I use one hand to hold the reins of the horse and pull his arms a little to make him lean forwards against me. He takes that silent offer and leans against me, relaxing a little for a moment. It's still quiet and I look back to Yugi who is cuddled against the pharaoh. I guess it'll only interrupt if I try to get the horse back there and sigh. I still have no idea why Set is so upset with me and I wish I'd know. I look at him again, the stare still in place and for some strange reason, I find it cute and just have to smile.
"Who is she?" He asks after a while.
"Who? Serenity?" I see his glare increasing but he doesn't say anything and just looks even more pissed. "She's my little sister and I have to take care of her since my parents died."
I see his glare decreasing, finally he seems to calm down, even though I have no idea why. Maybe he feels sorry for me because my parents died? I hear him sigh and feel him relax even more. "I heard you'll be staying in the palace?"
"I guess." I say and shrug, "At least for a while. It will make it easier for Yugi to get used to it. He already had a hard time getting used to the way Serenity and I lived, just because we didn't move around as much as his tribe used to. Living in a building and not moving around at all will be strange for him. But I think he'll manage for the pharaoh. He really likes him a lot."
"Do you intend to leave again?" He asks sounding more upset again and I felt him tense a little when I said that I'd stay at least for a while. I wonder why.
"I don't know yet." I reply. "I guess that depends on how much Serenity will like it there."
"Then I'll make sure that she'll never want to leave it." He states and I look up into his smug face. "Spoiling her rotten should do the trick."
"Why would you want to do that?" I ask surprised. He doesn't even know my sister, so why does he want her to stay?
He just grins at me for a moment with that smug expression and then replies, "I told you, I want you to stay where I can keep an eye on you. And if you go where she goes, I'll have to make her stay, so you'll stay with me."
I feel the heat rise to my cheeks and look away for a moment. My heart is pounding like mad and it's only getting worse when he moves one of his hands to one of mine to entwine his fingers with mine. "You have to promise me something though." He says.
"And what would that be?" I ask. His head is resting on my shoulder and his whispered voice so close to my ear that I can feel his breath on my skin. It tingles in a strange but very pleasant way.
"Don't risk your life for me again." He whispers and another one of those pleasant tingles ghosts over my skin, causing me to get goosebumps.
"I never did that." I argue. "I knew that it was safe to jump down that well and as I told you, no one else could have found it down there."
"That's not what I meant." He says and those goosebumps increase with the next wave of pleasant tingle from his whispering voice. Why does he have to have such a nice velvet voice? "I meant that you should have stayed behind like I heard Atem suggested. You shouldn't have fought those bandits with him."
"But they'd never have found you in time." I insist, "You were already running out of air down there. You'd be dead."
"I don't care." He whispers and I bite my bottom lip to stop myself from making it audible just how much his voice effects me right now but fear that the heat that rises to my cheeks is making it quiet plain. "Your life is so much more important to me than mine."
"Then why don't you see?" I mumble blushing even more, "That your's is more important to me the mine too."
"If that's the case," He whispers and then his lips gently touch the skin beneath my ear. And even biting my lip doesn't stop a small sound from escaping my lips. "Then I'll have to make sure that you'll always stay by my side where I can keep you safe." And then his lips continue to taste my skin and it feels so damn good.
"I guess," I mumble still trying to keep the pleased sounds that escape my lips to a minimum since we're not exactly alone. There are a few guards around even if they are a safe distance for now. "I guess I'd really like that."