Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Yu-Gi-Oh!...

"Sir, are you completely and positively sure that we should be going here? Everyone in the town seems to think it's haunted or cursed!"

"Are you or are you not a member of the Royal Guard, soldier?! We laugh in the face of danger and we go wherever we are needed – even if that means going to a haunted house! If you're too scared to go on, then feel free to stay put and then explain yourself to Captain Kaiba when we find him!"

There were no further complaints from any of the soldiers in the group and they meekly followed the leader up to the entrance gate of the house.

"Keep your eyes peeled, men!" the leader ordered. "Look for any signs of our Captain or any clues to his whereabouts!"

"Sir, yes Sir!"

"Erm, Sir? The gate is locked," a soldier commented non-helpfully as they gathered in front of the massive iron structure. Peering through they could see why people thought the house was perhaps cursed or haunted – it wasn't in the best condition but still seemed solid. The yard wasn't much to look at either – full of dead plants of varying sorts and scattered debris.

The leader of the band of soldiers frowned as he regarded the rather heavy padlock on the iron gate. It was rusted just a little, indicating that it had been in place for quite some time.

"Let us see if there is another way in. Perhaps there will be something that isn't locked."

They really had no reason to be here and this was probably a giant trespassing error, but considering the state of the house they would at least try to find another way in (just in case someone was home and less than thrilled at vandalism...)

Tromping around the perimeter, the soldiers came across what seemed to be a servant's entrance, or perhaps a delivery entrance. There was oddly no lock on this gate and it creaked open with a simple push.

"Keep your eyes open and spread out," the leader commanded as they entered the grounds. The house remained silent and honestly a little foreboding as they entered. Spreading out across the yard, then men began to examine everything to see if there were any signs of life.

Inside the manor, Ryou remained with Seto in the lounge, not really being able to move him from the couch upstairs to a bedroom where he might be able to be a little more comfortable. He continued to burn with fever and she was doing all she could to try and treat the symptoms.

As she placed another cold, damp cloth to his forehead, she could begin to hear the distant sounds of someone shouting outside. Then other voices began to ring out one at a time on occasion. The girl stood and moved over to a window, peering out to see if she could see anything.

Her eyes widened and she saw what looked to be soldiers milling about her front yard. They were currently all gathered around the rather sizable dent in the ground that Seto had left and she watched them then notice the small furrows on the ground from where she had dragged the Captain of the Royal Guard inside. She pushed away from the window then and rushed from the room, for the moment not caring about her curse and what anyone would think of it. She was more concerned with getting the men to Seto – certain that they could help more than she could.

Ryou reached the solid doors of the foyer and threw all her strength into dragging them open quickly.

Then soldiers stopped what they were doing when they heard the creak of a door and noticed that the heavy oak doors that led into the manor were opening.

The leader motioned for the rest of the men to stay put and strode to the entranceway, a hand resting on the hilt of his sword just in case.

He was very surprised when a young girl appeared in the opening.

Ryou stared out at the soldiers.

Now that she had opened the door, she was a bit uncertain of what to do next. She couldn't speak and this was also the first time that "guests" had appeared. She shrank back (out of reflex) just a tiny bit as one of the men approached her.

"Greetings young lady. We are members of the Royal Guard! We seek information concerning our Captain, one Seto Kaiba. Have you possibly seen him? He's a dragon shifter and it seems there is a dragon-shaped crater in your front garden..."

Ryou's eyes darted around, studying the men briefly before she made a beckoning motion to the leader.

"Is he here?!"

Ryou's nod seemed to be all he needed and he barked orders to the other men – two would accompany him inside and the rest would remain in the front yard.

The young lady of the house led the three soldiers through the foyer and into the lounge. She pointed at the couch where Seto lay and upon hearing a soft groan from said couch, promptly forgot about her new guests and rushed to see the Captain.

Seto's eyes were half-opened and hazed with fever. He didn't seem too aware of Ryou dabbing helplessly at his face with the cold cloth, wiping away sweat. The men had followed her and they collectively gasped at the sight of their leader – looking in rather horrible condition.

"What happened here?!" the leader of the men asked, moving forward to look closer at Seto. "He is badly injured! Girl, what did you do to him?!"

Ryou looked up at him, eyes widened in fear as she rapidly shook her head, unable to voice that this wasn't her fault and that she had just been trying her best to help. She then frantically gestured to her throat/mouth before diving for the paper and writing utensil nearby, hastily scribbling down words as the man demanded to know what she was doing and why she wasn't speaking.

'He fell from the sky during a storm and landed in my yard. I do not know how he got hurt. I do not have the supplies here to take care of it properly and no one will come help me. I am unable to speak.'

After reading the words that had been near-frantically shoved in his face, the leader of the soldier group looked a little ashamed of himself for yelling at a poor mute girl.

"Why won't anyone help you? Are they that silly to think that being mute is a curse? The city folk said this placed is haunted and/or cursed..."

Ryou bit her lip and scribbled more words down, showing the leader the paper afterward.

'I was cursed as a child because my father made a mistake. The people in the city fear that interacting with me will curse them too.'

It was rather foolish, considering that for the most part, curses didn't exactly travel like diseases.

'Please take him with you. He's so ill and I cannot do anything more for him.'

"Do you have anything we can use to put together a sort of stretcher?"

Ryou watched the men leave with Seto, the way they had come in. A few extra sheets were being used as a makeshift stretcher so they could transport the injured Captain. The young Lady Touzoku watched them leave from a window, and wondered if Seto was going to survive.

A/N: This was sort of a filler chapter...sorry if it was boring.