Chapter 7
Several weeks had passed, and Mentrab still had not been found.
During a meeting, Isis made a startling announcement.
"Heba is fully healed." Isis said.
"What?!" came from everyone in the room.
"Isis, how is that even possible? You saw how severely he was injured. You said yourself that he was lucky he did not die." Yami protested.
"I know, but somehow, he's healed. I have never seen anything like it." Isis said.
"Could magic have been used to heal him?" Mahado asked.
"It could have been, but I know none was used. He healed on his own, and I don't know how the injury healed this quickly." Isis said.
"I believe that there is more to them than meets the eye." Shada said.
"Well, I think I'll force the mutt to tell me." Seth said.
"It could be that Jou and Ryou do not even know how. Heba never said a word, so he obviously did not want anyone to know. I don't think that directly asking him will work. He's hiding it." Atemu said.
"The question is why." Bakura said.
"Could they be a threat to us?" Karim asked.
"They have done nothing to indicate that they intend to bring harm to anyone, but be on guard. Right now, we cannot take any chances." Aknankanon said.
"Should we not try to learn what it is that Heba is trying to hide?" Mahado asked.
"Isis, have you seen anything with the Millennium Necklace?" Aknankanon asked.
"Nothing. Something blocks me from anything about Heba. It's almost as if he is protected by a powerful force." Isis said.
"We need to find our what's protecting him." Yami said.
"And why." Atemu added.
"That might not be hard. Jou and Ryou are close to him. Chances are one of them would know." Bakura said.
"Do you think they would betray Heba's trust to us?" Karim asked.
"No." Bakura replied.
"Then we be extra cautious." Aknankanon said.
Heba was straightening the room that he was staying in along with both princes.
There was a knock on the door.
Heba walked over and opened the door to find Jou and Ryou outside.
"Heba, we've really got to talk." Jou said.
Heba nodded, and the two walked in.
"Heba, our magic is driving us nuts. Something is going to happen soon." Jou said.
"Yeah. I know. My magic is doing the same thing." Heba replied.
"What does it mean?" Ryou asked.
"It means that our secret won't be so secret much longer." Heba said.
"What?!" the other two exclaimed.
"Are you crazy?! We can't tell them anything! It would be suicide!" Jou said. A gold glow started to surround him.
Ryou reached out and grabbed Jou's arm. "Jou, your magic!" Ryou cried.
Realizing his mistake, Jou calmed down, and the glow slowly dissipated.
"Jou, I know that it does seem a little crazy, but I do believe that it is the best thing to do. We can't keep this secret anymore. Besides, if our magic is driving all three of us nuts, it means that we are going to need to use it soon, and I have a feeling they'll all see it." Heba said.
"Why should we? We don't owe anyone here anything. Let them fight their own battles." Jou said.
Heba stared at Jou. "Jou, you know we can't do that. It is our duty to use our powers to aid the Royal Family, and I don't want you saying things like that. We have always used our powers to protect others. You know that." Heba said.
"Do we have to?" Jou whined.
Heba looked over at Ryou, silently pleading with him to help him out.
"Jou, Heba's right. We've always helped those in need when it truly mattered, therefore we can't change now." Ryou said.
Jou huffed, obviously not happy.
"Besides, you're still just mad that Seth constantly calls you names when you like him." Ryou said.
Jou blushed furiously and said, "I do not!"
"Jou, as strange as it is, Seth arguing with you seems to be his way flirting. Atemu and Yami have both told me that Seth doesn't usually spark arguments with anyone, least of all servants or slaves, unless he has a reason to, and they all said that these are the types of arguments he starts with people he likes." Heba said. Heba then shifted his gaze to Ryou. "Of course, there's obviously something going on between you and Bakura, too."
Ryou blushed and said, stuttering, "Wh-what do you m-mean, Heba? Bakura's my master, n-nothing more."
Heba let out a sigh. "Ryou, you are a rotten liar, just like Yugi was. You know you like him."
"You've never mentioned Yugi before." Jou said quietly.
"I'm getting to where I can." Heba replied. He looked over at Ryou. "What is going on between you and Bakura?"
"Nothing. I mean, I can tell he likes me, but I'm just slave to him, and it isn't possible. Besides, I don't want a relationship with someone I can't tell the truth to." Ryou said.
"Well, that won't be much longer. Just be ready. You'll know when the time is right to use your magic. Yugi always told us that we just have to believe and trust in ourselves, so I guess it's about time that we start taking his advice." Heba said.
"And yet, you could never take his advice when you, Jou, and Malik came up with those pranks that always seemed to get us in trouble when he told you that they were a bad idea." Ryou said.
Heba shrugged.
A moment later, the door opened, and Atemu and Yami walked into the room.
"What are you two doing in here?" Atemu asked.
"Our masters told us that we could come here if we got our assigned work done." Ryou replied.
"I had just finished mine when they arrived." Heba added.
"Well, you'd better go back to their chambers. I'm sure that they will be looking for you now that we're done." Yami said.
Jou and Ryou nodded and bowed before leaving the room.
Yami rubbed his eyes. "This Mentrab business is really starting to get on my nerves." Yami stated.
"Has he not been caught yet?" Heba asked.
"Worse than that, not a single person has seen him since he managed to escape that night he attacked us." Atemu said.
"Could someone be protecting him?" Heba asked.
"Someone has to be protecting him. There is no other explanation for it." Yami said, flopping down on the bed.
"Don't get too comfortable. You know as well as I do that after lunch, Father wants us in the throne room." Atemu said.
"I don't see why. It's a bunch of raiders that he's sentencing." Yami muttered.
"Would you like to be the one that disobeys him?" Atemu asked.
"No because he'll yell so loud that the entire palace would hear him, and I'd be grounded until you became Pharaoh." Yami replied.
"And I don't see myself becoming Pharaoh any time soon." Atemu added. He turned to Heba and said, "Go get lunch for the three of us Heba."
Heba nodded and went to the door opening it and jumped at finding Seth, Bakura, Jou, and Ryou outside, Seth's hand raised to knock.
"Sorry." Seth said before walking in.
"Thought we'd join you two for lunch." Bakura said.
"Fine." Atemu said.
Heba, Jou, and Ryou left to get lunch.
"What do you think we should do about those three?" Bakura asked.
"Right now, nothing. After all, they do what we tell them and haven't done anything threatening." Yami said.
"Heba even saved my life. If he had planned to kill me, I would think he wouldn't have bothered saving me." Atemu said.
"Unless he plan to do it himself." Seth said.
"Why would he bother getting his hands dirty if he could have someone else do it and not get in trouble for it?" Yami countered.
"Could we please get off the subject of someone trying to kill me?" Atemu said.
"Why? Uncomfortable?" Bakura asked, grinning crazily.
"I find talking about a slave thinking of killing me a little unnerving, yes." Atemu replied.
There was a knock on the door.
"Surely those three can't be back yet." Bakura said disbelieving.
Atemu opened the door to find Marik outside.
"What are you doing here?" Bakura asked.
"If you must know, I was checking on all of you. The Pharaoh told me of his suspicions and asked me to check in on you all for time to time. At least I only have one stop this time." Marik replied.
"Well, you've done it, now go." Bakura said.
"What's wrong? Do you not like being associated with a lowly guard, Bakura?" Marik asked, grinning.
"I have never liked being associated with you period." Bakura growled.
"You just don't like him because he's one of the guards that managed to capture you." Yami said.
"I'd better go. I have other things to do than baby-sit you five." Marik said before turning to leave.
"No one asked you to!" Bakura yelled after him.
Atemu shut the door before Bakura could say anything else.
"It's hard to believe that you two are best friends." Atemu said.
Bakura shrugged. "It's how we've always communicated."
A few minutes later, there was another knock on the door.
Once more, Atemu opened it to find Heba, Jou, and Ryou outside with the trays of food.
The three walked in and set the trays down, and the group sat down to eat.
Discretely, Atemu, Yami, and Bakura eyed the three slaves.
Seth, on the other hand, was obviously watching Jou.
Jou, growing tired of Seth watching him, snapped, "What is it?"
"Oh, nothing. Mutt." Seth said.
"Will you quite calling me mutt!" Jou shouted.
"Why? You are, after all, my slave. I have the right to call you what I want." Seth said.
"Just because you're in a position of power doesn't make you better than me! I'm not some cold-hearted jerk who doesn't care about anyone but himself! You care only about yourself, and I doubt that there is a person alive who can actually say that they like you!" Jou shouted. He was getting angry.
Heba and Ryou glanced at each other. They knew Jou, and they also knew that at this rate, Jou's magic would destroy the entire palace.
Seth was shocked at Jou's words. No one had ever talked to him like that before. At least, not a slave or servant.
Atemu, Yami, and Bakura stared at the scene wide-eyed and jaws dropped.
"I think that's the first time that anyone has ever spoken to Seth like that." Atemu said.
"Dang! I'm glad that someone finally told him off." Bakura said.
Jou was glaring daggers at Seth.
"Sit down, mutt." Seth said, regaining his composure. "You're stepping out of line."
"Well, excuse me for having the courage to say what I think about you! You may believe yourself to be superior to everyone else, but the cold, heartless façade you put up is annoying! Maybe people would actually like you if you'd actually look at them long enough to realize that what you say actually hurts them, but you don't seem to care! If I-" Jou's tirade was cut off by Heba grabbing him by the arm and pulling back down into his seat.
"That's enough, Jou. I think you got your point across." Heba told him, glancing at Seth.
Heba had learned to read Seth despite his emotional masks and knew that what Jou had said had gotten to the priest.
"Where did he get that kind of courage?" Yami asked.
"I don't know, but at least someone finally put Seth in his place." Atemu said.
"He had it coming." Bakura stated.
After they were all through eating, Heba, Jou, and Ryou took the dishes and headed back for the kitchen.
"You may have went a little too far that time, Seth." Atemu said.
"He hates me." Seth said.
"What do you expect? All you do is insult him, put him down, and act like you're superior in every way." Atemu said.
"At least Ryou and I are good terms." Bakura said.
"You are?" Yami asked.
Bakura nodded. "Ryou talks to me, actually. Once he got over the initial scared faze, he loosened up." Bakura said.
"Heba and I were never really on bad terms." Atemu said.
"No. You'd just like the chance to get in bed with him." Yami said.
"YAMI!" Atemu shouted.
"What? You know its true. Actually, that's true for all of you." Yami said.
"YAMI!" all three shouted, blushing.
They heard laughing and turned to see Jou killing himself laughing.
Heba and Ryou were holding in their laughter although it was clear that they were amused.
"Wh-what d-did you say t-to get them to bl-blush like that?" Jou asked between fits of laughter.
Atemu, Bakura, and Seth all gave Yami a tell-them-and-you-die glare.
Yami smirked. "Oh, you'll figure it out at some point."
"Come on. Let's go. Father's expecting us in the throne room." Atemu said, deciding that they needed to get out of their before Yami decided to play matchmaker.
"You three will coming today." Bakura said, looking at them.
Heba, Jou, and Ryou nodded., following Atemu, Seth, Bakura, and Yami out the door. The three hung back enough so that they could talk in private without the distance being noticed.
"Jou, you have to control your anger. You almost gave us away." Heba said.
"You said we'd tell them." Jou pointed out.
"Not that way. I would like to tell them in a way that is calm and rational. Not in a fit of anger." Heba hissed.
"Heba's right. Be more cautious about what you say." Ryou added.
"Okay. I'll be more careful. Sorry." Jou replied.
"How are we going to tell them, Heba?" Ryou asked.
"I don't know yet." Heba replied.
Seth looked back and saw the three were lagging behind a little.
"Will you come on, mutt!" Seth said.
"I am NOT a dog!" Jou retorted.
"Could have fooled me." Seth said.
Atemu sighed. "You never give up, do you?"
"No." Seth replied.
"No wonder you two aren't in any type of relationship. You can't be nice for two seconds." Yami said.
"I never said I wanted to be in a relationship with him." Seth muttered.
"You didn't have to." Yami said.
"We can just tell." Bakura added.
Heba, Ryou, and Jou did catch up with the four to hear the last two statements.
Heba began to grow worried. 'My magic is getting even more crazed. Whatever is causing this to happen is coming fast. Something tells me that we are going to have to act very soon.'
There's a little more action in the next chapter. You'll find out what Heba, Ryou, adn JOu are in the next couple of chapters.
R&R.
