Some notes at the end! (Disclaimer: I own nothing but the crazy ideas within my head)
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Three Kings: Chapter 4
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Atemu had finally gotten Seto off his back. The brunette had quite honestly been starting to piss the crimson-eyed Don off with all his talk about the finances. Yes, Atemu realized they had a situation on their hands, but it wasn't like he could do anything about it right now. They hadn't found out who was pulling money out of the family's pockets, so there wasn't anyone to go after… yet.
If Atemu was being totally honest with himself, Kaiba should have been the one to run the business, but Atemu's father was older than Kaiba's, so Atemu got the "privileged right" to have the job. He had become the Don when he was 16, hardly knowing what to do, he wasn't ready to take the position, but didn't have much of a choice. Luckily, Seto had bailed him out of more shit than he could recall. Being the only real family Atemu had left, he felt a strong connection to the brunette, even if said blue-eyed CEO was kind of a jerk, ok not kind of, he was the epitome of the word.
Yugi had come into the picture at a not-so-great time, but Atemu couldn't help but be intrigued by this boy. He was so, innocent, naïve, and so trusting. He was, seemingly, the complete opposite of Atemu. Where they looked so similar, they also differed in the same extremes. Atemu chuckled thinking back to the fake name Yugi had first given him, Higure… more like Nikkou 1… If Yugi was like the light, then Atemu was like the dark.
Atemu worked his way to the restaurant's kitchens, checking over the menus and preparation details listed on the back wall. He hadn't been to Domino in quite a while to check in on things, but this restaurant seemed to be flourishing. Sure it maybe wasn't in the best of shape appearance wise, as Seto had so kindly pointed out, but Atemu started to think it was about time he put in the extra cash to fix this place up. He was actually half surprised Mai hadn't done it herself; she grew really attached to this side business. Atemu was sure she enjoyed working as a restaurant owner more than she did working for the mafia, she had joined when she was at a low point in her life… crime wasn't really her thing, but she was actually pretty good at roughing people up and getting the job done. Plus, it paid the bills.
"Hey, he wants to ask you something…" Said a voice from behind Atemu.
Atemu smirked and turned around to address Mai, "Well, speak of the devil."
"What? You talking about me?" Mai looked around and gave him a funny look, "To whom? If I may ask?"
Atemu chuckled and waved his hand dismissively, "Just myself, but don't worry about it. Now, what did you need to ask me, Yugi?"
Yugi cleared his throat slightly, trying to get the dryness to go away, the same anxious worry that held him back from saying quite a few things to this guy about his new predicament.
"Look, I… I think that since I technically work for you, I should have the right to know your name." Yugi explained.
Atemu looked at him and sighed, "Alright kid."
"Really?" Yugi lit up, the innocence again amusing Atemu.
"But," Atemu hesitated, "I think we should make it a little more interesting than just some boring meet and greet."
Yugi's amethyst eyes started to show a hint of worry, "Ok… and by that you mean?"
The King's own crimson orbs flared with delight, "You said you liked to play games, right?"
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The two were huddled together over a computer in a cramped room. It wasn't the best hide out, but it would have to do for now.
"Look, he hasn't even tried to track us yet."
"Really? What an idiot, it's not like we've got the greatest security system on our side. He's got Seto freaking Kaiba working for him and he's not trying to track us?"
"Yeah, one of our spies said he saw that they had an intruder in their last meeting, I don't know whether it was another organization or not, but sounds like the King has his hands a little full."
The darker one smiled, "Great… then he won't miss another chunk from his savings."
The lighter looked at the darker in anticipation, "Are you sure?"
"Positive."
"What if he's trying to track us and doing a good job of not letting us know… what then?"
"Then he tracks us and kills us."
"That's encouraging." The lightered turned to begin working at the small computer, reading over numbers and figures, they hesitated, "Wait…"
"What?"
"Look, an alert is going off."
"Shit. Turn the computer off, now." The dark figure growled
The monitor went black.
"That was too close. We'll try back later. Maybe get a new computer. What we took from the King's little group should support us for now."
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Seto threw his brief case onto the desk, clearly fed up with having to wait on Atemu to take action. He truly did love his cousin as family does, but he couldn't believe the amount of interest he had taken in this Yugi kid. What if he was a spy, what if he let what he saw slip, what if he went to the cops and let them know about Seto's involvement with Atemu? There were too many risks involved. Sure the cops had tried to pin Seto before, but they never had anything more than him being Atemu's cousin, if they got any evidence on him, that would be the end of Kaiba Corporation and the end of a good amount of The King's financial support. It was easier having a clean company running most of the money; you can only get so much from telling people that they had better pay up for their protection. Domino had its crime rings though, and the King was known for excellent protection services… after all, their mafia was a higher standard. They didn't mess around with petty theft, and didn't kill people very often. They had rules, regulations, guidelines, hell, even morals if you wanted to call them that.
But Seto didn't much care for whoever was trying to mess up what they had going. After all, he believed that this mafia family was just what this city needed to get the low level thugs off the citizen's backs. If it hadn't been for the Three Kings Mafia, half the city of Domino would be over run by guys stealing grannies' purses. Well, maybe not to that extreme, but crime rates would certainly be higher.
And, Seto always thought to himself, at least they weren't doing something like selling drugs to kids… I mean come on; there were plenty of mafias in the surrounding cities that were doing a lot worse than the Three Kings. The Mafioso of the Three Kings weren't allowed to sell drugs, Atemu had a problem with it, so he banned it, and they also were of course banned from theft and kidnapping.
'Although,' Thought Seto with a scowl, 'what would you call what we did to Yugi?'
Maybe taking someone hostage was somehow different from kidnapping to Atemu. Seto didn't know what was going through the King's mind, but usually a situation like Yugi was dealt with quickly and quietly…
And while killing wasn't usually their thing, there was always the exception. After all, this kids only living relative was his Grandpa… it's not like there would be a huge investigation…
Seto shook his head trying to clear his thoughts, 'Atemu sees something in him… I've got to trust his judgment. For now.'
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"Do you always suck this bad at chess or is this your first time playing?" Atemu asked lazily.
Yugi scoffed, "I do not suck at anything."
He quickly realized how wrong that sounded and continued.
"I'll have you know I'm usually one of the top chess players around…" Yugi quickly blurted out, "I demand a rematch."
Atemu smirked, "No way."
"Fine. How about a different game?"
"Oh really, what did you have in mind?" Atemu asked, genuinely curious.
"Well, have you ever heard of a game called Duel Monsters?"
"Yugi…I—" Atemu caught himself about to give away that he owned almost half the rights to Kaiba Corporation… of course he knew about Duel Monsters… "Yes, I've heard of it."
Yugi blushed, "Uh well, yeah! How about that?"
Atemu chuckled, "Let me just go grab my deck."
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Seto sat at his desk, clicking furiously away at the charts, cradling a cell phone against his cheek. Papers littered his desk. Even though it was late at night, the CEO was focused completely on his computer and his phone call.
"They must have noticed you some how to cut the computer's connection just in time," Seto spat.
"Yes sir. We don't know how yet though." Said the voice from the other side of the line.
"Look. Do me a favorite and find Bakura and tell him to get his lazy ass up here now."
"Yes sir."
Seto slammed the cell phone down. They were so close to catching these mofos… and once they did, Seto swore it would be war.
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"And that takes out the rest of your life points!" Yugi exclaimed, celebrating a victory over the wine-eyed man.
"Hmm. I think you cheated." Atemu said quite seriously.
"What! I would never cheat!" Yugi said leaning over the table, one hand clenched up next to his face in opposition, trying to drive home his honesty and integrity.
"Hah, I guess," Atemu grinned, "Well if you did win fair and square, I guess I owe you a name."
Yugi nodded, satisfied, and sat back in the booth with a grin, "That's right. So let's have it, boss."
The corner of Atemu's lips twitched, but it was almost sad, " Tell me, Yugi, have you ever heard of a group called the Three Kings?"
Yugi thought, he wasn't sure, but the name did sound slightly familiar… maybe he had heard it on the evening news…
-A Few Weeks Prior-
Yugi was sitting on the counter in the game shop… his legs swung gently as he watched the television sitting out in the storefront. The TV wasn't usually on, but since it had been such a slow evening, the young boy decided to go ahead and watch it for a bit.
'The Domino Public is advised to stay indoors this evening as reports of a fight has broken out between the street gang, Le Protêt, and the infamous mafia, the Three Kings. Gunshots have been fired on the corner of…'
Yugi remembered seeing a picture of some unknown gang leaders on the television, but no one memorable. He saw that the Three Kings mafia was a group rarely crossed.
-Present Time-
"Ah… do you mean that mafia that supposedly has its headquarters in Domino? The same group that made the news a few weeks ago?" Yugi asked.
Atemu nodded, trying to gauge Yugi's reaction, "Yes, that group."
"Sure, I've heard of them… but hey! What does this have to do with your name, you're just stalling…"
Atemu let the sad smile slip back onto his face, "No Yugi. I'm not stalling. This has everything to do with my name. See, around here, they call me the King."
Yugi's eyes widened, "You mean you're… you're the head of Three Kings?"
Yugi felt his pulse quicken, he was sitting across from a mob boss? He just beat a freakin' mob boss in a card game and now he was probably about to be killed, maybe he wasn't allowed to know this guys name!
"Yes. I am."
"W-Wait so… what happens to me n-now?" Yugi stammered.
"What do you mean? You're already under our care." Atemu said with a confused look, "You'll work here. Obviously now that you know you're on the mafia's watch, we can't just have you wandering around."
Yugi gulped, maybe he could run away from this place… Atemu saw the fear creeping into Yugi's eyes and sighed. He reclined against the booth's seat and ran a hand through his multicolored hair.
"Look, Yugi. No one wanted you to get involved. But trust me," Crimson eyes met and locked onto Amethyst, "this is the best thing for you… and your grandfather."
Yugi's weak spot had been hit, "I know… Seto said something about that… that me working here would keep Grandpa safe…"
Atemu nodded, "If any rival gang or mafia found out that you knew what was going on here, they'd be all over your family, and they'd do anything to get information out of you."
"But I hardly know anything!" Yugi protested, "I didn't even get to hear half of what you guys were talking about last night and now…"
The high school student stopped and attempted to subdue a yawn. Atemu looked up at the clock, it was 4 in the morning.
"You must be exhausted," Atemu said looking down at the younger boy, "Just go to bed."
"Where do I sleep?" Yugi let out meekly.
Atemu sighed gently and stood up, "Follow me."
The two headed back down the same hall past the kitchens, and then past the room Yugi had gotten the uniform from. They finally came to the end of the hallway and Atemu pushed aside a curtain. They were in a sort of lobby area; no one else was around, probably already going to bed after the day's commotion. Yugi followed Atemu to the third door on the back wall and entered it when Atemu flicked on the light. It was a pretty simple area, a desk, a bed, and a closet. The walls were a nice blue color, though Yugi guessed it would look nicer with some sunshine coming through the window (which he noticed had bars across it).
"The bathrooms are marked out in the lobby. This space is for employees only. This can be your room. We could always bring things from your home... pillows, sheets, books… anything that makes you feel comfortable." Atemu explained.
Yugi stopped looking around the room to look back at Atemu.
"Why?"
Atemu's face scrunched up in question, "What do you mean, why? Why what?"
"Why go through all this trouble just to have me here?"
Atemu's face relaxed, "You think we're too soft for a mafia or something?"
"N-No?" Yugi didn't want to offend him.
Atemu saw Yugi's face, innocent and confused, when he began to laugh.
"Sorry Yugi, you've just got the… the best expressions." Atemu had to stop himself from saying cutest.
Yugi blushed, "I just don't know why you guys don't… I don't know, lock me in a prison or something."
Atemu grinned, "Servitude is so much more fitting."
Atemu watched the redness on Yugi's face continue to grow and he chuckled, he didn't want to tell the shorter boy that not only did he want Yugi under 24/7 watch, he had actually looked into the Game Shop and knew it wasn't doing so hot in finances itself. If Yugi worked here, he'd make more than enough to help his Grandpa out… but Atemu decided the little game boy could figure it out himself.
"Well," Atemu sighed, "I'll let you be then."
"G-Goodnight."
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1 Nikkou (Japanese) : Sunlight
Soooo? What did you guys think? Who do you think is behind the money issues? :3 To be perfectly honest I'm not sure where I'd like to go with the plot in this story yet (again) so I'm toying with some different ideas.
ALSO: PLEASE be aware that I am going to be house sitting this entire week, I also got a new job as a cashier (woo), and have several meetings to attend this week. That being said, this story has honestly just been flowing, I don't feel like I'm writing it half the time but more that it's just... writing itself I suppose? I hope you all have been enjoying it and I just wanted to say that I'm very sorry if it takes a while for the next chapter to come out! I've got three pages of chapter 5 written so far, so I'm hoping to continue knocking 'em out ;) !
Please review if you can and help me out!