Chapter 20
The day after the battle, reconstruction on the palace and the gardens began.
Since Aknankanon, Atemu, Yami, and the Priests had to do damage control with the people and explain what had happened during the battle and that they were in no danger, Aknankanon put Yugi, Heba, Jou, Ryou, and Malik in charge of the reconstruction.
"Okay. Remind me again why we are the ones that are doing this?" Jou asked.
"That's because the Pharaoh and the court have to assure the people that they are safe, and after all that happened yesterday, that could be awhile." Yugi said.
"Not to mention the fact that we were the ones who inadvertently caused all this." Heba said, glancing around as slaves were moving all of the rubble out of the gardens.
"Actually, I believe that you were the ones who caused that. The three of us were unconscious at the time that the balcony fell." Malik said, glancing at Heba and Yugi.
"Okay. Our power did that. Still, the enemy was all of ours. Plus, it's not going to kill us to try and help out. The Pharaoh has his hands full with the people panicking slightly." Heba said.
"Look. It'll help us get this organized faster if we split up." Yugi said.
"Fine. Let's get to work." Jou said.
"Yugi, Ryou, and I will handle the gardens. You two can handle the balcony." Heba said.
"Why do you two get the ground work?" Malik asked.
"Would you prefer the balcony where it just has to be repaired, or the gardens where it has to be cleaned up and repaired?" Heba asked.
"Balcony." Malik and Jou said at the same time before they headed into the place to go to the balcony.
"How did you know they'd agree?" Ryou asked.
"Because those two want the easiest job possible." Heba said.
"Come on. Let's see what we can do to help." Yugi said.
The three went to see what needed to be done on cleaning up the gardens.
Meanwhile, Aknankanon and the rest of the court had much greater stress on their hands.
"The people are not feeling very safe at the moment." Shada said.
Aknankanon had sent Karim, Shada, and Bakura out in disguise to find out what the people were thinking, and there wasn't much good news.
"They believe that they were placed in grave danger unnecessarily and think that you were not trying to save them." Karim added.
"Any more good news?" Yami asked sarcastically.
"Yami." Aknankanon said warningly.
"There is one thing that does work in our favor." Bakura said.
"What is that?" Isis asked.
"Well, what helps us is that Atemu, Seth, and I are married Heba, Jou, and Ryou." Bakura explained.
"How exactly does that help?" Mahado asked.
"Well, we all know how much trust the people had in the members of the House of Ra before it fell ten years ago." Shada said.
"Eleven." Seth said.
"Eleven years ago. In any case, they still have that trust, and knowing that they are married to us, more specifically Heba being married to Atemu, makes them feel better, especially since they saw Ra in the battle." Bakura said.
"It sounds like we need to use them being here to our advantage." Seth said.
"How exactly do we do that?" Isis asked.
"This is just something that we are going to have to give the people time to let go, but I think seeing those five might ease their minds." Bakura said.
"That will have to be up to those five." Aknankanon said.
"I really don't think that they are going to have any problem with doing this. They are always looking for a reason to get out of the palace." Atemu said.
"They'll be asked later." Aknankanon said.
"It sounds like them being here is the only thing helping us at the moment." Karim said.
"Then we'll just have it use that to help us. The good thing is that the battle was restrained to just the palace, so no one outside the palace was harmed and no damage was done to any villages around us." Shada said.
"That helps a little." Aknankanon said.
"It looks our future depends on them." Atemu said.
It was nearing dinnertime, and Yugi, Heba, and Ryou were dirty, sweaty, and tired. The three had opted to help the slaves move the rubble to get the gardens cleaned before the garden could be repaired.
"I think that we should stop for the day. We've worked all day." Ryou said.
"Agreed." Yugi said.
Heba looked out and called out, "Everyone!"
All the slaves stopped work and looked at Heba.
"We're going to stop for the day. We'll resume work after breakfast in the morning." Heba told them.
The slaves understood and began to return to the palace for dinner.
"Okay. Before we eat dinner, I have really got to bathe and change clothes." Yugi said.
"Yeah, we do. I really don't think Atemu would want me like this at all. In fact, I'm probably going to get a lecture on the fact that slaves are supposed to do all the work, not me." Heba said.
"Bakura won't care. After being gone all day, there is nothing that is going to keep him away from me." Ryou said.
"Is that a good or bad thing?" Yugi asked.
"In this case, bad because I really need a bath." Ryou said.
Heba and Yugi couldn't help laughing at the look on Ryou's face.
"Come on." Yugi said after his laughter subsided. "Let's go inside and get decent."
All three headed inside and met up with Jou and Malik.
"Hey. How did your day go?" Ryou asked.
"We're tired, sweaty, and dirty from all of this work." Malik said.
"You could have just let the slaves do all the work." Heba said innocently.
"Sitting idly by while others do work we could easily do has never been one of our strong suits." Jou retorted.
"Well, let's all get cleaned up." Yugi said.
The other four agreed and left to go to their rooms.
Atemu, Yami, Seth, Bakura, and Marik walked down the hall.
"Rough day?" Marik asked.
"What would give you that idea?" Bakura retorted sarcastically.
"It hasn't been the greatest of days. We've got quite a bit of damage control to do before we're in the good graces of the people again." Atemu said.
"Is there any good news?" Marik asked.
"The fact that Atemu and Heba are married does as well as Seth and Jou and Bakura and Ryou." Yami said.
"Explain it." Marik said.
"The people still hold a lot of trust in the House of Ra, and our marriages give them some comfort. That's our strongest point at the moment." Seth said.
"How do they feel about this?" Marik asked.
"No idea. We haven't had the chance to ask them. We haven't seen them all day." Atemu said.
"I haven't, either. I've been trying to keep the people calm." Marik said.
"Didn't go so well?" Yami asked.
"Well, it wasn't so bad this afternoon, but last evening and this morning was a trial." Marik said.
"Well, let's just hope that we can get things under control very fast." Seth said.
"Are all of you going to dinner?" Marik asked.
"No. We're just having dinner sent up to our rooms. We need a break, and we'd like to spend some time with our lovers considering we haven't been able to do that all day today." Atemu said.
"We took the liberty of telling them to send yours and Mali's up to your room, too. We figured that you wouldn't want to come down for dinner." Yami said.
"Thank you. I appreciate that." Marik said.
"We thought you would." Bakura said.
Heba stepped out of the bath and grabbed a towel, drying himself off. He let out a sigh, feeling refreshed. He heard the door open and close.
"Heba. Are you in here?" Atemu called.
"Yes. I'll be out in a minute." Heba replied. He finished drying himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist before walking out. He was surprised to find Atemu lying face down on the bed. "Atemu, are you all right?" Heba asked.
"No." Atemu replied flatly.
Heba climbed onto the bed and said, "What's wrong?'
"Stressful day." Atemu replied.
"Tense?" Heba asked.
Atemu nodded.
Heba smiled before climbing on Atemu, straddling his hips. He leaned down so that he was right at Atemu's ear and whispered, "Let me help with that."
Atemu shivered at the breath on his ear and neck.
Heba reached down and started to give Atemu a massage, working out the knots in his back.
Atemu moaned, enjoying the massage. It came to him that Heba wasn't in clothes. "Heba, are you naked?" Atemu asked.
"Why, no. I just got finished bathing and am in a towel." Heba said sweetly.
"Why were you bathing? You did that this morning." Atemu said.
"Well, I was dirty and sweaty from working outside in the gardens all day and wanted to get cleaned." Heba replied, not stopping the massage.
"Why were you dirty and sweaty? All you had to do was supervise. The slaves did all the work." Atemu said.
"Um, well, I, um, may have, sorta helped with work." Heba said.
"What?!" Atemu shouted, shooting up and knocking Heba backwards onto his back.
Heba sat up and glared at Atemu. "Warn me next time."
""Heba, why did you do all that manual labor? You know that the slaves are supposed to do the work." Atemu said.
Heba rolled his eyes. "Atemu, I am quite capable of helping, and I chose to. I like doing things. You know that." Heba said.
Atemu sighed. "I wish you would let the slaves do the work." Atemu said. He looked at Heba's almost naked form. "Than again, it did have one good positive effect."
"What's that?" Heba asked. He cried out when Atemu suddenly jumped on him and pinned him to the bed. "What the_?! Atemu!" Heba exclaimed.
Atemu smirked evilly down at him. "You've given me the perfect chance to take advantage." Atemu siad. He leaned down and started to kiss Heba's neck.
Heba let out a moan.
It was then that a knock come on the door.
Atemu growled. "Why now?" Atemu asked.
Heba smiled and wiggled out from under Atemu to grab a robe and pull it on.
"Enter." Atemu called out.
A servant came in and left their dinner before leaving again.
"Dinner in here?" Heba asked.
"Yes. I haven't been able to see you all day, and I wanted to spend the rest of the day with you." Atemu said.
Heba sighed. "Fine." He didn't notice the devious look on Atemu's' face. The next thing Heba knew, he was pinned to the bed. "Atemu!" Heba exclaimed for the second time that night.
"Well, you should have put on clothes." Atemu said wickedly.
"Atemu, we should eat first." Heba protested.
"Later. Right now, I'm hungry for you." Atemu said before starting to kiss Heba senseless and stopped any protesting from him.
Jou was relaxing in a nice bath. He let out a sigh and said, "This is nice."
"I can see that." a new voice said.
Jou didn't bother opening his eyes. "Hi, Seth. What's up?" Jou asked.
"I could ask you the same thing." Seth said.
"I helped with the manual labor, so I was tired and dirty and wanted to get cleaned up." Jou said.
"And now?" Seth asked.
"Relaxing." Jou replied.
"Hmm. That sounds like a good idea." Seth said.
Jou opened his eyes to find Seth sliding into the water as well. "Long day?" Jou asked.
"Like you wouldn't believe." Seth replied.
"What happened?" Jou asked.
"The battle yesterday caused the people o lose some of the faith they had in the Pharaoh. It's going to take some work getting their trust back." Seth said.
"I wouldn't worry too much. I'm sure that you'll be able to do that." Jou said.
"Maybe, but I know exactly what it is that I want to do now." Seth said.
"What's that?" Jou asked.
Seth jumped on Jou and pinned him to the side of the bath. "I've done nothing except work all day. I think that I have earned the chance to have a little fun." Seth said.
"Shouldn't this wait? We've got to go eat dinner." Jou said.
"Actually, I had it brought in here." Seth said.
"Then shouldn't we go eat?" Jou asked.
"No. I'd rather have fun with you." Seth said, moving even closer to Jou.
"Um, don't you think that we should at least move this to our bed?" Jou asked.
"Nope. I think that I'd much prefer to stay right here with you." Seth said.
Before Jou could protests anymore, Seth crushed their mouths together. Jou didn't even try to protest after that.
Ryou finished taking his bath and climbed out. He grabbed a towel and began to dry himself off.
Arms suddenly wrapped themselves around him, making Ryou jump. He tried to turn around, but found the grip to be too tight for him to get out of.
"You're not going anyway." a voice purred.
"B-b-Bakura." Ryou said.
"Who else has had the audacity to walk in on you when you've been naked?" Bakura demanded, his voice hard.
"N-no one, Bakura. You just startled me. You should know better than to sneak up on me like that!" Ryou scolded.
"Since when do I listen to you when you say things like that?" Bakura asked, burying his face in Ryou's hair.
"You never have. Sometimes, I wonder why I try to stop you from acting like this." Ryou said.
Bakura smirked into Ryou's hair. "I'm glad that you finally realize that, Ryou." Bakura said. He moved away and started to kiss Ryou on the neck.
Ryou closed his eyes and let out a soft moan. "Why do I get the feeling that this is going to be a long night for me?" Ryou asked.
"Because it is. I haven't had the chance to see you all day, and there is no way that I'm going to waste it." Bakura said.
"What about dinner?" Ryou asked.
"Had it brought up, but I would much rather play with you than eat." Bakura said.
Ryou sighed. "I'm going to have to ask the Pharaoh to not force you to be apart from me all day long, aren't I?" Ryou asked.
"You could, but it wouldn't do you much good. It wouldn't change how I feel." Bakura said. Bakura suddenly swooped Ryou up into his arms.
"Bakura!" Ryou exclaimed, startled.
Bakura smirked as he made his way into the bedroom. "You know how I get, and you're not going to be leaving this room the rest of the night." Bakura said. He threw Ryou onto the bed before climbing on top of him.
Ryou glanced up and gulped at the predatory look Bakura had.
It was definitely going to be a long night.
Bakura leaned down and kissed Ryou roughly.
Malik finished drying off and walked out into the bedroom stark naked. He jumped when he saw Marik sitting in the chair.
Marik has his elbow propped up on the arm of the chair with his cheek resting in his hand with a smirk on his face as he watched Malik. :What?" Marik asked innocently.
"What are you doing here? I thought the Pharaoh had you doing crowd control." Malik said, knowing the panic that had been caused.
"Well, he thought that I deserved some time off since the panic has calmed down a great deal, and this is my room, too." Marik said. Malik blushed slightly. "You could have warned me that you were in here. You could have brought someone in here with you, and they would have seen me naked." Malik said.
"If I had someone with me, I would have let you know. I really don't want anyone else seeing you like this." Marik said, eying Malik's body appreciatively and lustfully.
Malik blushed even more and reached for his robe.
Marik was suddenly by his side and gripping his wrist in the blink of an eye.
"Marik, what are you doing?" Malik asked.
"There's no reason for you to do that. After all, you won't be needing it." Marik said.
"But-but what about dinner?" Malik asked.
"Yami had it sent up here, but I'm not that hungry. Ay least, not for food." Marik said.
Malik rolled his eyes. "You have a one-tracked mind, Marik." Malik said.
"As if you don't like it." Marik said.
Malik looked at him only to be kissed hard. Malik gave in and wrapped his arms around Marik's neck, deepening the kiss even more.
Malik pulled away and said, "You know, I'm not that hungry, either." Malik said.
A split second later, Marik and Malik were both on the bed.
Yugi climbed out of the bath and dried off. He walked into his room and put on some clothes. As soon as he finished, Yami walked in.
"Hi, Yami." Yugi said. He noticed Yami's stressed features and asked, "Bad day?"
"You have no idea." Yami said before sitting on the bed.
Yugi sat down beside him and said, "What happened?"
Yami let out a sigh.
Yugi scooted back against the headboard and Yami laid his head down in Yugi lap. Yugi started to run his hand through Yami's hair. Yugi had found that doing that usually calmed Yami down, and it worked this time as well.
"What happened?" Yugi asked.
"The people are still a little frightened after what happened yesterday. They don't exactly have a lot of trust in us right now." Yami said.
"That'll change. They'll see that you couldn't have prevented it, and that you did save them." Yugi assured him.
Yami looked up at him. "Actually, you and Heba were the ones that stopped him." Yami said.
"Technically, my father and uncles did." Yugi replied.
Yami frowned. "Uncles?" he asked, raising an eyebrows.
Yugi nodded. "It's not very well known, nit Obelisk, Slifer, and Ra are brothers. Since Ra is my father, Obelisk and Slifer are my uncles." Yugi explained.
"Remind me never to make you angry, or I'll have three gods coming after me." Yami said.
Yugi laughed.
There was a knock on the door.
"That's probably dinner." Yami said.
The servant came in and left the dinner before leaving.
"Why are we eating in our room?" Yugi asked.
"Because I haven't seen you all day, and I wanted to spend the rest of the day with you. Also, Atemu, Seth, Bakura, and Marik were eating in their rooms, so they won't be seen the rest of the day." Yami said.
"Good point." Yugi agreed.
The two sat down and ate.
"How did everything go today?" Yami asked.
"Fine. Although I was tired after all the work we did." Yugi said.
"What work? The slaves do all the work." Yami said.
"Well, we've always preferred to do work. I know it sounds strange, but if it is something that we can help with, more likely than not, my brother and my cousins and I help out. We don't mind doing manual labor." Yugi explained.
"No wonder you're tired." Yami said.
Yugi shrugged. "I don't mind. In truth, I find it rather rewarding." Yugi said.
The two finished eating and sat back down on the bed.
"I'm going to hate tomorrow because it is going to be exactly like today." Yami said.
"Well, then relax tonight." Yugi said.
Yami was startled when Yugi suddenly straddled his stomach. "Yugi, what are you doing?" Yami asked.
"Can you think of a better way to forget about your problems?" Yugi asked.
But, are you sure?" Yami asked.
Yugi smirked. "Yes, I am. Of course, if you don't want to-" Yugi trailed of.
Yami's eyes darkened with desire as he flipped them so that Yugi was on the bottom. "You're not going anywhere." Yami growled.
Yugi looked up at him. "Then get started." Yugi said.
Yami leaned down and kissed him to start their first night together.
Over time, the people did regain trust in the Crown again. In a matter of weeks, thanks to the effort that Heba, Yugi, Jou, Ryou, and Malik put into it, the people completely trusted the Pharaoh again.
The palace was completely restored from the destruction that had been caused, once again, thanks to Heba, Yugi, Jou, Ryou, and Malik.
Several months after the battle, Aknankanon died.
Following his father's death, Atemu assumed the role of Pharaoh with Heba ruling by his side.
The people were thankful that such a kind ruler was in power with an equally kind husband.
Malik and Marik were walking through town.
"You realize that when Atemu finds out you shirked your duties to take me into town again, he'll be yelling." Malik said.
Marik shrugged. "It'll be worth it to have him yell at me." Marik said.
Malik shook his head. "You like getting yelled at way too much." Malik said.
"Actually, I had a different idea." Marik said, pulling Malik away from the crowded area.
"Marik, what are you doing?" Malik asked.
"Malik, we've been together for over a year now. So, I was wondering if you would marry me?" Marik said, holding out a violet ring.
Malik's eyes widened. "Yes, Marik! Of course I'll marry you!" Malik said, hugging Marik tightly.
Marik smiled. "I'm glad to hear that." He pushed Malik back to put the ring on his finger. Marik then took Malik's chin in his hand and kissed him softly.
"So, when are we going to get married?" Malik asked.
"As soon as we can." Marik replied before kissing Malik again.
Yami and Yugi were walking though the gardens.
"Yami, aren't you supposed to be in a council meeting?" Yugi asked.
"Yeah, but I snuck out." Yami said.
"Meaning Atemu will be yelling." Yugi said.
"Probably at Marik more. He snuck out of the palace with Malik." Yami said.
"There's going to be a lot of yelling." Yugi said.
"Actually, there was something that I wanted to ask you." Yami said.
"What's' that?" Yugi asked as they sat down at the fountain.
"Yugi, we've been together for a long time, and I love you with all my heart and soul. Yugi, will you marry me?" Yami asked, holding out a crimson ring.
Yugi eyes watered as he said, Yes, I will!" he hugged Yami tightly, who happily returned the hug.
Yami put the ring on Yugi's finger before kissing him. "I can't wait to get married to you." Yami said.
"When do you think that will be?" Yugi asked.
"I don't know, but I'd like for it to be soon." Yami said.
"I'd like that, too." Yugi agreed.
Yami smiled and kissed Yugi again.
That's all for Chapter 20.
I'm going to try to put both weddings in the next chapter. Otherwise, they'll be in two separate chapters.
As always, R&R.