MMMG: And here is chapter 10!
Bakura: Finally!
MMMG: What do you mean 'finally'? It's only been two weeks.
Ryou: Ignore him, he antsy because you cut off the kiss last chapter.
MMMG: Oh yeah. -smirks evily- I did do that, didn't I?
Marik: Where am I?
Malik: Where are you? Where am I?
MMMG: Calm down. Marik, you're in the next chapter, (chapter 11), and Malik is in the chapter following, (chapter 12).
Ryou: MMMG does not own Yugioh, Disney's 'Tangled', or Disney's 'Tangled: Junior Novellization'. Enjoy the chapter!
MMMG: One other thing. If you see the name 'Akefia' in the chapter, it's there on purpose. Not everyone knows Bakura's real name, and call him by what they know him as.
And in case if you haven't noticed, I have a new cover for this story! It's the kingdom's emblem of the sun and moon intertwined with each other.
YumiStar: Yes we do love using cliffhangers.
Animesaki: I was actually blushing when I wrote that part. Glad you like OOC Atemu saying 'Hubba Hubba'. He has to tease Bakura somehow. Read the chapter and let me know if your guess was right so I can get a picture of you kissing Mokuba for ten seconds and then protecting yourself with chain saw and a gunblade when Seto comes after you.
Wordsorcereress: You'll see if Ryou gets a kiss. Yes, you can punch Pegasus and I'd be glad to help. -gets out a ball with spikes on a long chain- Ready!
Fallinghikari: Good. Wodrsorcereress and I would like to join you with our clubs and spiked metal balls.
anonimous: I knew someone was going to freak out about that. It's called a cliffhanger for a reason. I thought it was a good place to end the chapter, and cool your jets! They do kiss! Like, right now!
SailorDeathMoon: Because I'm evil! -grins madly-
Chapter 10: The truth
Pushing any uneasy feelings he had aside, Bakura let his eyes slide close, and press his tough leathery lips to Ryou's soft ones. He felt like he died and gone to the afterlife.
Kissing Ryou was the most wonderful thing he had ever done, and that was saying something since he always got a huge thrill out of stealing, but this was even better. Ryou smelled of a delightful sweet he had tried once called chocolate, and strawberries. Maybe it was what Ryou had eaten earlier, but Bakura found he didn't mind at all.
Any butterflies Ryou had earlier went flying out the window. Who knew that one kiss could calm your nerves? He sure hadn't, but really enjoyed kissing the man who smelled of the woods and, Ryou couldn't place it, but it reminded him that Bakura was dangerous. And the combination thrilled him.
When they finally pulled apart, Ryou sighed and laid his head on Bakura's shoulder. The thief didn't protest, but wrapped an arm around the teen's shoulders as he scanned the lake and the rest of the lanterns that were starting to fade from view.
And then he saw them. Standing on the opposite shore, and holding a lantern that gave green light, stood Arkana and Pandora. They were looking right at the boat, right at him, and right at Ryou. Despite the distance, Bakura held their gaze with a frown. Once they noticed he had spotted them, the twins disappeared behind some large rocks.
"Is everything okay?" Ryou asked, having lifted his head and seeing the upset look on Bakura's face.
"Huh?" Bakura blinked as he got his attention back into focus on the silver haired boy. "Yes, yes, of course. I just..."
Just what, Bakura wasn't exactly sure. But knew that as long as he had the satchel, or the crowns, Arkana and Pandora would never stop hunting for him. Frowning once again, Bakura picked up the paddled and rowed them to shoreline when he had spotted his ex-partners in crime, except this time he was ready to face them.
"Everything is fine." Bakura reassured Ryou as he tugged the boat ashore so it wouldn't float off and picked up the satchel. "There's just something I have to take care of."
"Okay." Ryou smiled.
"I'll be right back." Bakura promised.
Bakura turned to walk into the growing fog, the satchel in his hand. Amane crawled up onto Ryou's shoulder, cooing in worry. She may not have known the thief for very long, but the Kuriboh who had changed into a boy had explained the situation to her.
"It's all right Amane." Ryou soothed, petting one of her wings before looking in the direction Bakura had gone.
Ryou, their journey together, all of it had changed Bakura's view on the world. He was in love with Ryou and wanted to make things right, no longer wanting to be a thief, a lone highwayman always running away from one thing or another.
Searching the bushes, Bakura quickly found Pandora perched on a rock, sharpening a piece of wood with one of his knives. Knowing he had to tread carefully, Bakura stepped out into the small clearing and tossed the satchel down in front of him, revealing both crowns were still in the bag.
"There, you've got what you wanted." Bakura said as the man looked over at him. "The crowns are all yours. Now we never have to see each other again."
"Holding out on us again, eh, Akefia?" Arkana asked directly behind the Thief King.
"What?" Bakura growled as he turned to face the other brother.
"We heard you found something, something much more valuable than a crown." Pandora explained as he walked over, kicking the crowns aside like they were worthless pieces of trash. "We want him instead."
Any confusion Bakura may have felt vanished when the twins glanced in the direction of the boat, and Ryou. He then realized that the two must have somehow found out about the magical properties of Ryou's hair, and that's why they were no longer interested in the crowns.
Not willing to let them get to Ryou, Bakura lunged forward, and began to fight. It was the one fight he could not afford to lose.
For Ryou's sake.
Ryou stood on the bank, clutching the tall bow of the ship. Bakura had been gone an awfully long time, and was starting to get worried. Relief washed over the teen once he saw someone's shadow come closer to him.
"I was starting to think you ran off with the crown and left me." Ryou sighed with an extremely nervous laugh.
Then the shadow did something it shouldn't have. It split into two. Ryou's eyes widened as two masked men approached him, each wearing and evil looking grin.
"He did." Arkana replied to Ryou's statement.
"What?" Ryou asked, feeling confused and panicked before summon the courage he had used many time on this journey. "No, he wouldn't."
"See for yourself." Pandora smirked as he pointed out to the water.
Ryou looked to see Bakura standing at the helm of a small yacht, sailing away from the land Ryou was on and towards the kingdom.
"Bakura!" Ryou called out to the man.
But Bakura didn't reply, or even turn his head. Ryou felt crushed. Why did Bakura leave him? What had happened?
"A fair trade." Pandora grinned as he and his brother closed in around Ryou. "A couple of crowns for the boy with the magic hair."
Ryou gasped as he whirled around, still not understanding how this could be happening, how Bakura could betray him. Had Bakura really traded him and his hair for the things in the satchel, the crowns, which would bring him some reward money?
"How much do you think someone would pay to stay young and healthy forever?" Arkana asked his brother with an evil smirk as he picked up the large sack that he intended to use to catch Ryou.
"No. No, please… no!" Ryou pleaded as they bore down on him, so he turned and fled as fast as he could. "No!"
Running through the dark and fog was hard, but there was just enough light for Ryou to see where he was going. Rounding a boulder and jumping over a log, his long braid snagged on the dead wood, holding the silver haired boy back. Terrified, Ryou pulled on his hair as he struggled to get free.
And then Ryou heard a couple of thuds, grunts and more thuds. Ryou stopped for a moment, wondering what happened, but still wary.
"Ryou!" Pegasus' voice called from back where the two thugs were.
"Father?" Ryou shakily asked.
Walking back, Ryou's hair came loose. As he rounded the corner, he saw his father, looking like he had more white hair then silver and wrinkles on his face, with a large and sturdy branch in his hand, Pandora and Arkana unconscious at his feet.
"Oh, my precious boy." Pegasus said, his voice brimming with emotions.
"Father." Ryou sighed in relief, and the two ran forward to embrace.
"Are you all right?" Pegasus asked as he began to check Ryou over. "Are you hurt?"
"Father, how did you…" Ryou gasped, unable to finish his question.
"I was so worried about you dear, so I followed." Pegasus replied, wringing his hands. "And I saw them attack you and… oh my. Let's go, let's go, before they come too."
Pegasus headed towards the forest. But Ryou didn't follow. He looked to the small boat on the water that carried Bakura further and further away. Ryou slowly turned back to Pegasus, who was holding one of his green lanterns. His eyes grew blank, and his heart grew numb. Pegasus didn't say a thing, but held out his arms to the boy. Tears filled Ryou's arms and he ran into the embrace.
"You were right, Father." Ryou admitted, never having felt such deep sorrow in all of his life. "You were right about everything. I'll never leave you again."
"I know, darling." Pegasus replied in a sad and sympathetic tone as he held Ryou close, picked up his lantern, and guided the boy back towards the tower. "I know."
A small smile curled at Pegasus' mouth, unseen by Ryou. Pegasus had planned this whole series of events. He had tricked Pandora and Arkana into helping him trap the Thief King, and tie him to a ship, unconscious. He had promised them a boy with silver hair that would bring them great wealth, and then betrayed them, knocking them unconscious.
All for the sake of another lie. Once again, Pegasus had to make Ryou believe that he was the only person in the world that he could trust. And he would use any means to reach that goal.
Out in one of the kingdom's harbors, a small yacht was approaching one of the docks. It wasn't because Bakura was steering it, no. Pandora and Arkana had knocked him out cold and tied him to the mast under Pegasus' instructions. They had also tied both of the crowns tightly to Bakura's hands, knowing what would happen when the palace guards found the ship, the thief, and the crowns.
Bakura was still unconscious when the current slammed the ship into one of the kingdom docks. Two nearby palace guards, Duke and Tristan, heard the wood meet stone, and looked around from the top of the turret they were on.
"Look!" Duke gasped, seeing the sparkling gems inlaid in metal. "The crowns!"
"And looks who is steering the ship." Tristan added. "Thief King Akefia!"
"Ryou." Bakura groaned as he woke up, and looked around.
He was confused as to how he had gotten tied down to a boat, and then remembered Arkana and Pandora. They must have set him up, but all Bakura cared about now was what happened to Ryou.
"Ryou!" Bakura called out.
Bakura looked back to the other shore, desperately searching for some sign of the silver haired boy he had fallen for. But the fog was so thick he couldn't see anything over halfway across the water. Then came the sound of many footsteps of the palace guards. Turning back, Bakura could only watch and struggle as they leapt onto the boat, untied him from the ship, bind him in shackles, and drag him away.
"Ryou!" Bakura screamed as he was hauled away, desperately trying to free himself.
No one else witnessed his arrest. Except Zafiro. The faithful horse was waiting on the dock that Ryou and Bakura had departed from, and had the perfect view of the thief getting himself arrested.
Zafiro snorted, and laid back his ears in mild anger. He had promised Ryou to keep the man out of trouble for 24 hours, and the time limit was not up yet. After a quick glance at the shore Ryou was on, Zafiro followed the guards back to the palace jail. Seeing how deep the man was in the jail, Zafiro quickly turned and raced out the kingdom gates.
If he was going to free the man, he had to find help, and fast.
Heba yawned as he woke the next morning, and snuggled back into Atemu's warmth. Yesterday had been exhausting, but totally worth it. While he had yet to actually meet the king and queen, he had heard they were very nice people.
"Wake up! Wake up!" Mana yelled as she ran into their room. "You won't believe what's just happened! Wake up!"
"You have two second to leave this room before I do something rash." Atemu mumbled as he gave the best glare he could give in the morning.
"But an all-time high thief has been caught!" Mana protested. "Mahad said we could watch the court and sentence being carried out."
"All-time high thief?" Heba repeated, getting a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Get up Atemu."
"I'm moving." Atemu groaned as he sat up, the sheets pooling at their hip, but revealed that they weren't wearing anything underneath.
"A little warning next time?" Mana wailed as she covered her eyes and fled the room.
"You'd think she caught us while we were in the middle of something." Atemu scoffed as he crossed over to the nearby wardrobe to select his clothes.
"She did one time, remember?" Heba reminded his husband as he joined him, a slight limp present in his walk.
"Oh yeah." Atemu shook his head before leering at his husband.
"Keep your mind out of the gutter." Heba scolded the man with a punch. "If the all-time thief is Bakura, then where's Ryou? Was he caught to? And where's Zafiro? Wasn't he supposed to keep them safe?"
"All good questions." Atemu agreed as they quickly pulled on some clothes. "Maybe we can slip down to the dungeons and ask Bakura."
"Let's go then." Heba replied after he tugged on his sandals.
Bakura didn't move as he sat in his dark cell. It was cold, smelly, he was chained to the wall, and there was a rat in practically every direction you looked. But none of that mattered to the ex-thief, all he wanted to know was if Ryou was alright, where he was, and whether or not he was hurt or in trouble.
In all honestly, Bakura blamed himself. If he hadn't accepted the job with Pandora and Arkana, he wouldn't have stolen the crowns and gotten mixed up with those two. But then again, he wouldn't have met Ryou, either.
The cell door opened and Bakura looked up to see Captain Raphael and… Heba?
"What are you doing here?" Bakura muttered.
"We found out you were caught." Heba explained quietly as soon as he entered the cell. "Atemu is talking with the king and queen now, to see if we can postpone your sentencing."
"Oh." Bakura nodded and then a bit of his old self came back to him. "Where's Ryou?"
"That's what I was going to ask you." Heba replied with a worried look. "We hoped Ryou had been caught with you, but based on your reaction, he wasn't."
"No." Bakura shook his head. "Two other criminals knocked me out in a fight and sent me back to the kingdom with the crowns. Ryou is probably still on the opposite shore."
"I smell a rat, and his name is Pegasus." Heba sneered, a look that he had learned from his husband. "I have a really bad feeling. We need to get to the tower."
"You need to get to the tower." Bakura corrected bitterly as he held up his shackled wrists. "I'm a criminal, and they're not letting me out any time soon."
"Times up." Raphael said from outside of the cell door, not having heard a single word of the conversation.
"Find him." Bakura commanded. "And get him back here."
"Duh." Heba rolled his eyes as he exited the cell.
"You're lucky the prince and his husband are interceding on your behalf." Raphael said once Heba had exited the dungeons. "I don't get why. They're just delaying the inevitable."
Bakura didn't reply. All he could do now was hope that Heba and Atemu got to Ryou and got him away from the man called Pegasus.
Back at the tower, Pegasus had been working all morning to undo the braids and flowers that were in Ryou's hair. Plucking the last one free, Pegasus ran his youthful hand threw the silver locks, Ryou having sung for him a little earlier.
"There, it never happened." Pegasus soothed as he tossed the flower into a basket where he had collected the rest. "Now, wash up for dinner. I'm making hazelnut soup."
Ryou didn't reply to the promise of his favorite meal. He just sat on his bed with his hands in his lap and his head hung. He was dazed by everything that had happened.
"I really did try, Ryou, I tried to warn you what was out there." Pegasus sighed as he shut the curtains to the boy's room. "The world is dark and selfish and cruel. If it finds even the slightest ray of sunshine, it destroys it."
Ryou glanced up once Pegasus was gone. A soft coo had him glance over to Amane. The Change of Heart sensed how sad Ryou was and had tears in her eyes as she snuggled close to the boy. Ryou smiled at her before directing his attention to his hands.
Opening them, he looked at the kingdom flag, small and purple with a gold sun intertwined with a silver moon. Ryou stared at the flag as his thought jumped to Bakura, Heba, Atemu, the thugs at the tavern, and the people in the kingdom. What had gone wrong? Ryou flopped back with a sigh, still not truly believing that Bakura had taken the crowns and left him.
As Ryou stared at the ceiling, he noticed something. Squinting his eyes, Ryou held up his flag, pulled it away, and repeated the actions several time as he looked at his paintings. The sun and moon on the flag seemed to be in his paintings and filling empty spaces in between the art.
The kingdom's symbol fit into Ryou's art, in nearly every place on his murals. All these years, and without even realizing it, he had been incorporating the outline of the golden sun and silver moon into his work.
A flood of images filled Ryou's head as he recalled Bakura said that the lanterns were launched for the missing princes' on their birthday, his birthday! He saw the sun and moon intertwined above him, and two blurred people off to the side. The pictures shifted to the mosaic of the king, queen, and their children. The queen and the silver haired baby both had the same brown eyes, while the golden haired baby had the same eyes as the king.
And lastly, Ryou remembered how he had felt when he tried on one of the crowns when Bakura had first arrived at his tower. He recalled wondering who the person in the mirror was, and everything fell into place. At long last, Ryou knew exactly who he was.
Despite it being dark in his cell, the small window Bakura had gave the perfect view of Heba and Atemu's feet as they walked over to the fastest horses the kingdom could provide for them. They had ridden off about an hour ago, and that was the time limit they had been given. They only had one hour to bring back Ryou so he could tell his story to the king and queen, his tale of what had happened after the man had stolen the crowns.
Raphael opened the cell door, this time with Valon and Alister on either side of him. He glared at the thief with nothing less than disgust.
"Let's get this over with, Akefia." Raphael said flatly.
"Where are we going?" Bakura asked.
Bakura was hoping that Heba and Atemu had gotten back with Ryou. But the stern look from the young captain said otherwise. He was in trouble. After all, he had stolen the lost princes' crowns, and the punishment… was death by hanging, unless someone spoke in his defense and was proven right. But it looks like Heba and Atemu weren't back yet. All he could do was hope they were just getting into the courtyard now.
As the guards escorted him through the jail, Bakura spotted Pandora and Arkana in another cell. A cold furry built up in him. He had disliked them before, but he hated them now. They had put Ryou in some sort of danger. Slamming Valon and Alister to the side, Bakura seized the front of Arkana's shirt.
"How did you know about him?" Bakura demanded as he spit in anger, needing to know how they knew about Ryou. "Tell me, now!"
"It wasn't us." Arkana protested. "It was the old man."
"Old man..." Bakura questioned.
As the gears whirled in his mind, something Heba had said clicked. Pegasus used Ryou's hair to keep him young, when really he was an old man that could die at any moment. And Heba had said that Pegasus was a rat. Everything made sense.
But the guards didn't share his brainstorm. They roughly pulled him back from the bars and forced him to move forward once again.
"No!" Bakura protested as he tried to buck the men off. "He's in trouble! Let go!"
His only reply was to be shoved forward forcefully, towards his death.
MMMG: End of chapter!
Bakura: What?!
Ryou: MMMG has a thing for cliffhangers lately.
MMMG: The Snuggly Duckling rescue is next chapter. That's going to be fun. -grins-
Yugi: Where are Atemu and I?
MMMG: You went to the forrest across the water to get Ryou. You're not back yet.
Yugi: Oh.
Atemu: Please reivew! Favorite part, least favorite part, spelling/grammar mistakes, questions, etc.