Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from the anime. I do own the plot, Wellingshire Manor (for this chapter at least), Leonardo Marrison, the titles, and Yami's female persona.
A/N: DON'T HATE ME! DON'T KILL ME! IT'S ALL GOING ACCORDING TO PLAN! (heh-heh-heh, Corpse Bride...)
Chapter Ten
Athena broke across the property line at a breakneck speed and she took in the scene before her with growing fear.
Wellingshire Manor was completely engulfed in flames, devouring the building from the inside out, from the ground up. She made a fast scan of the property and found that nobody had made it out of the mansion yet.
Without waiting long enough to bring the gelding to a halt, Athena launched herself out of the saddle and hit the ground running toward the front door of the manor, tearing the cloak from her shoulders as she ran, uncaring who saw her wearing a personal arsenal on her body. Ignoring the ache in her ribs, she braced herself and threw her weight completely into the brittle, burning door and it crumbled under her assault. She found several servants, Mahado, Isis, and Mokuba already in the entrance hall. Some had been wary of crossing through the fire, others just couldn't get a grip of the smoldering hot door handle in order to get the door open.
As Athena came barreling into the mansion, she gestured urgently for them to make their escape while she searched for her charge. Yugi wasn't on the ground floor, and she only had a matter of time until the manor came down around her head. She began coughing, her eyes burning from the heavy smoke, but she pressed forward.
Without paying any heed to the ones now rushing out of the manor into the front courtyard, Athena made a rapid search of all of the rooms on the first floor. She found Serenity unconscious on the floor of the kitchen. She sank to her knees beside the older woman and turned her onto her back. She pressed her ear to Serenity's chest and was relieved to feel her heartbeat, albeit slower than normal, and Athena hooked her arms under Serenity's and dragged her up off the ground. She got Serenity up to her feet and wrapped one of her arms around Athena's shoulders, and she all but dragged the cook toward the door.
Seto rushed inside just as Athena got past the entry to the kitchens and she called to him, "Take her." She commanded, and Seto moved to obey. If he felt indignant over her tone, he didn't show it. After Seto relieved her of Serenity's burden, Athena raced up the winding staircase to the upper level of the manor, opening every door that she passed to find Yugi.
There were a few servants lying in the corridor, but when Athena checked them, it was already too late. Athena knew her time was running out, and she had to find Yugi.
When she reached Yugi's bedchamber, she kicked the door in and made a quick sweep of the suite. Finding it empty, she moved to the adjoined door that led to her own suite and she quickly removed that obstacle.
She scoured the room, turning over furniture until she found Yugi underneath her bed. She pulled Yugi out and felt for a pulse. Her heart sank when she could not find one. Athena hoisted the boy into her arms, once again ignoring the burning pain her ribs caused, and she rushed toward the exit. Once she got outside, she dropped to her knees and started to do chest compressions, counting rapidly in her head before she pinched Yugi's nose and blew lifesaving air into his lungs. She continued to do this four times, heedless to the fire still going on behind her.
What seemed like hours, but was only twenty seconds, Yugi let out a light, shallow cough that succeeded a longer, harsher coughing fit.
"Oh, thank the gods." She breathed, and helped Yugi to sit up.
She scanned the rest of the courtyard, taking a headcount.
Seto had taken out several more servants, a few soldiers, and his uncle Raphael from the burning mansion, but Athena immediately picked up on the one missing link.
Shooting to her feet, she rushed for the manor once more.
"Athena no! The house is going to collapse any second!" Seto shouted after her.
"Forget it, I am not leaving her." She shouted back without breaking stride, and once more entered the mansion.
"Damn it all." Seto grumbled before he tried to follow after Athena, but just as Athena disappeared inside, a wall of fire roared up over the entrance, too thick and too hot to jump through.
Athena made it back up to the upper level, she continued search the upper level. She picked up on something. Faint and distant but definitely distinguishable, it was a voice crying out for help.
Athena followed the voice until it brought her to what appeared to be an attic.
Athena climbed up the ladder leading to the hidden door in the ceiling, sweeping the room to find Rebecca crouched in a far corner, shivering in fear, tears streaming down her face.
"Stay there and do not move. I am coming over." Athena said soothingly, and the young girl's head shot up at the sound of Athena's voice.
Athena carefully treaded over toward the terrified girl, and one time when she set her foot down, the floorboards caved beneath the pressure. She shuffled back to keep from falling, but the hole that separated Athena from Rebecca was gaping, and it proved that the floor after that spot was just as decayed. Athena refused to let herself panic as she scanned the uppermost level of the mansion for anything she could use. She found an overturned box with lengths of rope. She grabbed one and as she held one end, she tossed the other toward Rebecca, who caught it in her trembling hands.
"All right, Rebecca. Stand up nice and slow." Athena instructed as coaxingly as she could.
"I cannot."
"You can. I promise, I won't let anything happen to you. I will get you out of here, but you will have to trust me. Now come, stand up."
Rebecca's expression solidified into determination as she ever so gently pushed herself to a standing position.
"Good girl, now take small steps toward me. That-a-girl." Athena continued as she watched Rebecca walk toward her. She took about five small steps before the floorboards beneath her began to creak threateningly.
"All right. Now jump." Athena ordered, her voice not leaving any room for argument.
"But I cannot."
"I do not want to hear you say that again. Just trust me. Jump." Athena commanded, her tone hardening.
Rebecca gulped in fear but nodded as she slowly bent her knees for leverage and then she launched herself over the hole and Athena caught the girl against her, stumbling slightly under the other girl's weight and the excruciating pain in her ribs. With Rebecca's momentum, Athena shuffled backward the way she had come, pulling Rebecca with her as she got back toward the hidden door. Athena dropped to her stomach and lowered Rebecca through the door and set her on her feet below before she pulled herself through the opening, and she landed in a crouch on the floor.
"Come on, lets get out of here." Athena said as she grabbed Rebecca's hand and started to run back toward the entrance hall with Rebecca struggling to keep up.
Before they reached the staircase going toward the entrance hall, they found their path blocked by Kalim, looking singed from the heat, but smirking like a maniac.
"We meet once again, darling Athena. I believe I have a score to settle with you." He spoke smoothly, mockingly.
Athena growled low in her throat before she nudged Rebecca behind her, "Head back toward my suite. Go out onto the balcony and you'll find a rope tied up to one of the railings. Use that and climb down, head around to the front courtyard and stay there with the others." She instructed.
"But what about you."
"That does not matter right now." Athena hissed, Rebecca gasping at being the focus of Athena's dynamite temper for once. "Just do as I say." She barked.
With new-forming tears trickling down her face, Rebecca whirled and did as Athena demanded, her heart pounding a mile a minute in her chest.
She made it to Athena's suite and found the rope that had been tied to the last spoke of the railing, unaccustomed to the action, Rebecca awkwardly lowered herself over the railing, taking the rope in her hands as she slowly shuffled down its length until she lost her grip and dropped the last three feet to the ground. She landed on her backside.
Rebecca groaned as she rubbed the abused area before she got up on her feet and rushed around to the front of the mansion to find most of the residents already out front.
Seto saw her first, "Where is Athena?" He demanded.
"She is still inside! There was this man there and he cut us off. She told me to get out by way of rope from her bedchamber balcony." Rebecca lowered her head, ashamed of her cowardice.
"What!? That stupid chit!" Seto raged, equally aimed toward both Athena and Rebecca, but mostly toward Athena. How dare she think so little of herself!
Just as Seto had worked up the resolve to try and get through the fire blocking his way to Athena, the mansion started to collapse.
"ATHENA NO!" Yugi screamed at the sight, his eyes swimming with tears.
Seto ground his teeth as he witnessed the manor breaking down to its foundation, with Athena still stuck inside. A burning ache began low in his stomach at seeing such a horrible sight.
The fire brigade picked through the shambles of what had once been Wellingshire Manor. Seto, Yugi, Raphael, Rebecca, and Mokuba all stood by as the individual authorities searched the ruins for any sign of their companion. Bitterness welled within Yugi as he watched the scene. It had been over two hours since the mansion had collapsed, and the fire brigade only made it out to the property half an hour ago. Athena had been right; Englishmen were lazy fools, only caring for themselves. If the fire brigade had been here earlier, Yugi would not have to handle all of this pain and anger bubbling up inside. Athena would be standing right beside him now, coaxing him into a state of relief, whispering encouragements that things will turn out all right. She would say that accidents like these happen everyday and it had nothing to do with his coming to live with these people…
Yugi closed his eyes tightly as he tried to fend off the unnecessary guilt, the tears that seemed to be falling endlessly throughout the afternoon and into the evening. He hated waiting. He wanted Athena here with him now, not missing or, God forbid, dead.
He bowed his head, and his tears leaked through his eyelids, and he sobbed quietly, his breath hitching as he struggled to keep people from noticing him weeping.
An arm draped across Yugi's shoulders and pulled the boy into their side. Yugi looked up and found that it was Seto of all people offering him comfort…and he seemed to look worse off than Yugi.
His expression was incredibly unreadable, that was for sure, but it was his eyes that betrayed his true feelings. Seto's cerulean blue eyes were echoing a deep pain that he had been inflicted with since seeing the mansion fall. The suspense must be getting to him too. His hands clenched so tight that they began to tremble, and Yugi saw Seto's Adam's apple bob slightly in Seto's through as he swallowed in his anxiety.
"Do you think that she made it out, Seto?" Yugi asked. He did not want to believe that Athena was gone forever…like his mama and papa. He desperately scrambled for some kind of hope.
It took Seto a long while to answer him, so long that Yugi began to believe Seto would not answer him at all.
When he did, his voice was quiet but sounded slightly strained, "I do not know…but she is strong for a woman. Fire may not be enough to bring her down."
Yugi tried to smile, thinking that Seto's reply was better than outright saying that she was. It served to give Yugi a little comfort, but not a lot.
They watched a little longer as the fire brigade members pushed aside wood and spackle aside, still searching.
As they began to feel like they would not find anything that night, since the sun was quickly setting and darkness would soon engulf them, a single voice rang out, "I found another body. This one obviously did not die by fire."
As those words were spoken, Seto and Yugi could swear they could hear an eerie, mocking laughter rising up through the night, masculine and harsh. Well…someone was happy this night…
Yugi buried his face against Seto's side, as he wept into Seto's tunic.