Yugi heard a scary noise. Rubbing his eyes, he looked around for the noise, but he didn't see it. Pulling the covers up, he lay quietly. Maybe, if he didn't move, the monster wouldn't get him. That logic made sense to his five year old brain. Laying still, he heard more noises from downstairs. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his mouth as he heard in his ear a whispered voice, "Yugi! Be quiet and come with me. I'll keep you safe." He didn't know the voice, but it sounded kind. Looking over, Yugi couldn't see who it was, just that it was a figure just a little taller than Yugi, but definitely not his grandfather. Getting up, Yugi followed the darkly clad figure. The figure led him out into the hall and to a wardrobe at the end of the hall. Opening the door, Yugi was pushed inside gently. "Shh, stay quiet. Gramps will come get you soon."
After forever, the door opened, Gramps standing in the doorway and picking up Yugi. Wrapping his arms around Gramps' neck, Yugi whimpered, shoving his face in the strong man's chest. "Gramps, what happened?" he mumbled.
"It's okay, m'boy. We are okay. Somebody tried to break in our house, but nobody got hurt. How did you get in here from your room?" Gramps asked, taking Yugi down to the kitchen and sitting him in a chair as Gramps started making hot chocolate.
"A tenshi." Yugi said. He had no other words for it.
"Oh, is that so?" Gramps chuckled. "Well, good. The bad men went into your bedroom, so it's good that you weren't there."
"Get up." Yugi was woken from his sleep. Blinking, he sat up, rubbing his eyes. He hadn't had that dream in a long time. Looking around, he saw Yami standing in the open doorway, in jeans and a black tank top. Nodding sleepily, Yugi got up and quickly slipped on jeans and a shirt and shoes. Turning to look at Yami, he followed obediently as Yami led him down a staircase. Going to a cafeteria, Yami grabbed some eggs, a biscuit, and some coffee and went and sat down at a table. Yugi quickly grabbed some food and coffee as well and went, standing and looking for a place to sit. Yami looked up and motioned that Yugi could sit across from him.
Yugi did so, and ate quickly and quietly. He was finally able to study Yami covertly as well. He noticed that Yami's hair seemed to be dyed, as some of his hair seemed to be blond down to the root, while others had black looking roots. Shrugging, Yugi just kept eating. Yami didn't seem the especially vain type, so maybe the dye was to help him blend in. Of course, Yugi realized he didn't know Yami and maybe Yami was exceptionally vain. He certainly had the looks to be vain. Yami was gorgeous! Biting his lip, Yugi felt bad about thinking that about Yami when Tea had done nothing wrong to him. Frowning, Yugi had no clue how he was supposed to handle this and his personal life, since it seemed pretty obvious that you don't go around talking about this assassin's group. Noticing Yami was done, Yugi put the last bite in his mouth, swishing the coffee afterwards. Yami stood and led Yugi out. "You don't talk much, huh?" Yugi asked. Yami didn't respond, just kept walking. Yugi sighed. Well, this will be fun. Walking into a small room with a table with all kinds of different blades, Yami went and leaned against a wall. Yugi looked at him, blinking. "What do I do?" Yugi asked, looking at Yami.
Yami simply looked over Yugi's shoulder. Yugi heard footsteps behind him and turned to see who made the footsteps. Gasping slightly, Yugi stuttered at the sight he saw. "B...Bakura?"
Bakura stalked up, frowning. His white hair hung crazily around his face, his hard espresso eyes taking in the sight in front of him. Looking up past Yugi's shoulder at Yami, he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "What is this fucking horseshit?" Bakura asked, cigarette in his mouth as he took a puff.
"Duke wants him trained." Yami stated from behind Yugi, not moving.
"And you are his Handler?" At seeing something Yugi didn't see, Bakura scoffed. "What the fuck did you do to fall out of favor, fuck Duke's dog?"
Yugi looked at Bakura, then over his shoulder at Yami, who hadn't moved, then back to Bakura. "What's going on?"
Bakura blew a smoke ring, appraising Yugi. "He's never gonna make it." Bakura eyed Yugi up and down.
"Hey!" Yugi frowned, forgetting to be shocked by Ryou's boyfriend being wrapped up in this. Balling his fists, he ground out, "I'm tougher than I look."
"Bakura is our knives specialist. He will teach you about blades, and about how to take a cut." Yami stated from behind Yugi. Yugi turned around, eyes large.
"He's going to do what?" Yugi asked, incredulous, staring at Yami.
Yami simply stared at Yugi. "Yami doesn't tend to talk much, Shrimp." Bakura stated as he walked up to Yugi. "You came here willingly?" Bakura asked, staring at Yugi. As Yugi nodded, Bakura grunted. "Fine, but remind Ryou of that when you see him." As Bakura picked up a knife, he twirled it in his fingers. "Knives don't jam, they don't run out of bullets, and they are easy to hide. You wanna kill someone, you gotta learn to use this." Holding the switchblade by the blade, he offered the handle to Yugi. Reaching out tentatively, Yugi grabbed the handle as he felt a blade slice into his side. Eyes wide, Yugi looked down to see Bakura pulling out a different blade from Yugi's side, blood spilling from the wound.
"Bakura!" Yugi yelped in surprise at being stabbed by his best friend's boyfriend, grabbing his side as Bakura stared at him dispassionately.
"Easy to hide." Bakura reaffirmed, cleaning off the blade as Yugi looked for help from Yami, who didn't move. Bakura grabbed Yugi by the hair, holding a blade to Yugi's neck. "You have to be able to take cuts, move through the pain, work through it, and keep working. Until you do that, you can't get whatever you are seeking." Bakura whispered in Yugi's ear. "You got that?"
As the tears fell from the pain, Yugi stood, holding his side. A memory of Gramps smiling flittered through Yugi's thoughts. Nodding, Yugi stood, looking at Bakura. "Again." Yugi said through gritted teeth.
()()()
Several hours later, Yugi limped over to Yami, cuts in several places, bleeding a great deal. "Follow me." Yami stated, turning and walking away, not looking over his shoulder. Limping, Yugi followed into a stone room supported by several stone pillars. Yugi noticed there were several large square pool looking structures in the floor, full of a pale liquid. Yami stopped at one. "Strip." Yami ordered.
Normally, Yugi would be embarrassed, but he was hurting too bad to care. Stripping off his clothing, Yugi stood in front of Yami naked. Yami's eyes roamed over him, saying nothing. Coming over, Yami held out a hand to Yugi. "Grab my hand and step down into the pool." Nodding, Yugi grabbed Yami's hand. It was warm and soft...not what Yugi was expecting. As he stepped down into the liquid, it felt warm and tingled on Yugi's skin. As he sat down, Yami pulled on his arm slightly, guiding him to lie down. "Lay down."
Yugi looked around. "What is this place?"
"It's the Revival Room. In this room cuts, bruises, broken bones, everything-it heals in hours, not days. The concoction made by The Healer increases the white blood cells and speeds up the process." Yami explained, nudging Yugi to lay down.
Letting go of Yami's hand, Yugi looked confused. "Are you kidding me?"
"No." Yami stated. "Lay back. I'll come for you in a couple hours." Walking away, not waiting for Yugi to obey, he nodded at someone as Yugi lay back down, submerging everything but his face in the liquid.
Yugi lay, floating in the substance for quite some time. It was rather relaxing. After a bit, he heard walking. Suddenly, he heard a voice he never thought he would hear here. "Well, let's see how you are heal...Yugi?!"
Yugi opened his eyes and looked up into the doe eyes of his best friend.
"Ryou?" Yugi yelped, sitting up.
Noting the injuries on Yugi, Ryou made him lay back down. "Yugi! What are you doing here?" His fingers started probing Yugi's body, checking the cuts.
Yugi winced when Ryou touched a particularly tender spot. "I...Yami came and collected me a couple days ago, when me and you were supposed to go to the movie. He brought me here and I found out that Gramps was murdered by Dartz. Duke gave me twenty four hours to think about it and he had Yami come get me after that time. I decided to join, so they gave me a bedroom and then Yami came and got me this morning, taking me to train with Bakura. Oh, and Bakura wanted me to make sure I told you that I came willingly."
Ryou said nothing, eyes troubled. After a few moments, he helped Yugi sit up. Looking Yugi over, Ryou leaned back on his heels. Frowning, Ryou looked at Yugi. "Yugi...that doesn't make sense."
Yugi finger combed his wet hair back out of his face. "What do you mean?"
"Well, Yami...he doesn't Handle."
"Um...what is Handling?" Yugi asked. He had heard it a couple times.
"A Handler is an experienced assassin who trains and molds a new recruit. Duke has never had Yami Handle anyone, ever. He views Yami as too valuable to waste his time as a trainer. Yami was born in here. His mother and father were assassins."
Yugi looked at Ryou, his forehead wrinkling. About then, Yami walked up. "He healed?" Yami asked. Ryou looked up guiltily and nodded. "Your poker face still needs work, Healer. Yugi, come on." Yami said, holding out Yugi's clothes as Ryou handed Yugi a towel. Drying off, Yugi blushed as he pulled on his clothes quickly. He was naturally modest and feeling better already, and being naked in front of Yami was just increasing his embarrassment. Looking up when finished, Yami turned and walked off, Yugi following obediently.
Taking Yugi to a small, pale gray room, Yami ushered Yugi in, shutting the door behind him. Looking at Yugi, he raised an eyebrow as Yugi stared back, amethyst eyes showing fatigue and curiosity. Walking up to Yugi, Yami stopped directly in front of the teen, looking down by about four inches. "What are you going to tell your girlfriend?" Yami asked.
"Huh? Oh, Tea? Well, I won't tell her anything about this. You don't have to worry about that." Yugi said. "She won't be back from her grandparents' home til Friday anyways."
Yami stared at Yugi for a moment. Yugi stared back, noting how gorgeous Yami really was. Finally, "You have to be able to see through the bullshit, Yugi." Yami stated, face still impassive.
"Huh?" Yugi asked, confused.
"Follow me." Leading Yugi out to the motorcycle, Yami handed Yugi a helmet that was not blacked out this time. As Yugi put it on, he climbed on behind Yami. As Yami sped into the night, Yugi just held on, wondering where Yami was taking him. After a long time, it seemed to Yugi, Yami pulled over, parking the bike. Motioning for Yugi to follow, Yami led Yugi to the side of a small house. Crouching, Yami motioned for Yugi to do the same. As he did so, Yami handed Yugi a pair of binoculars and motioned for Yugi to look through the shade drawn window. Yugi frowned, shaking his head no. He was not going to spy on someone. Yami's mouth set in a grim line as he pushed the binoculars at Yugi and again pointed at the window. Yugi shook his head no again. Yami stood, Yugi standing as well, ready to leave. Yami suddenly was behind Yugi, a leg wrapped around Yugi's legs, a hand wrapped around Yugi's neck to hold him in place. Yugi realized that Yami was very strong. As binoculars were shoved in Yugi's face, Yugi saw through the window shade...and he stopped. He saw Tea...and a man he didn't recognize. They were in bed, asleep, and Tea didn't appear to be wearing any clothes. Yugi stopped struggling and slumped as recognition dawned on him. Slapping the binoculars away, Yugi just slipped to the ground. Pulling Yugi to his feet, Yami took him back to motorcycle.
Yugi looked up, eyes glassy. "How did you know that? That she'd be here cheating on me?"
"I'm an excellent spy." Yami stated, as if that explained everything. Yugi looked up, confused. Yami said nothing, just handing him the helmet back. Yugi just put it on, climbing woodenly on the bike behind Yami. After returning to his new home, Yugi just trudged up to his room, falling on the bed, crying himself to sleep.
()()()
The wind was ruffling through Yugi's hair as he rode his bike. He circled the park, waving at Gramps as he rode proudly by. He had just gotten the bike as a present for his seventh birthday. Gramps waved back, then went back to his book. As Yugi took the curve again, he saw a man sitting by a tree, crying. Yugi stopped his bike and walked up, keeping a bit of a distance. "A...are you okay?" Yugi asked the man. He didn't like to see people hurting.
"I lost my puppy, Tato. He got scared and ran off into the trees over there. I called and called for him, but he hasn't come out from that tree and I'm too big to get him."
Yugi looked off towards the trees the man motioned to. He played in them a lot. "Well, I'm small...maybe I could help you?" Yugi asked.
The man wiped his tear stained face and smiled. "You'd do that for me?"
Yugi nodded. "Sure!" Heading for the tree the man pointed at, Yugi got down on all fours, looking for the dog. "Tato! Tato! C'mere Tato!"
Suddenly, Yugi felt arms around his waist and a hand over his mouth, holding him tight. Dragging him towards a clump of trees,Yugi struggled, his eyes opening wide. As his stomach coiled in fear, he was suddenly laying on the ground, looking up at the tree branches. Looking around, he saw a figure dragging the man into the woods. As Yugi got up and rushed for his bike, he heard a voice that sounded familiar. "Yugi, you have to be careful."
Yugi stopped and turned around. "Tenshi?" Yugi asked tentatively.
"I'm not an angel." the voice said.
"W...were you the one who helped me a couple years ago?" Yugi asked.
There were a few moments of silence, then, "Yes."
"Gramps said it saved me. So, you are my tenshi." Yugi said, walking closer to the voice. Hearing a rustling of leaves and branches, Yugi rushed forward, but couldn't find anything...not his tenshi, not the bad man, nothing. Frowning, he heard Gramps calling for him. Walking out of the woods, he saw Gramps by his bike. Trotting up, Gramps let out a big sigh, hugging him.
Opening puffy eyes, Yugi yawned. He had no idea why he was having these dreams of his tenshi. He hadn't dreamt of him in several years. Sitting up, he saw Yami sitting on a chair by Yugi's bed, reading a book. Looking up, Yami closed the book. "I was going to wake you up in fifteen minutes. Get ready, you have more training today."
Nodding, Yugi got up and headed to the shower, quickly rinsing off. Putting on clothes, he walked out. Yami led Yugi to the cafeteria. Yami grabbed some food, sitting down at a table. Yugi grabbed some food and sat down by Yami, not waiting for an invitation today. Eating quickly, Yugi noticed that there were a lot of people there, but he didn't see Joey. "Um...do you know where Joey is?" Yugi asked.
Yami looked up. "On a mission." Yami responded, finishing his coffee.
"Oh." Yugi finished quickly and followed Yami out. "What am I learning today?" Yami said nothing, just kept walking. Yugi followed, frowning. He shook his head as thoughts of Tea started to float in his mind. They were definitely broken up, he just had to figure out how to break up with her. After a few minutes, Yami led Yugi to a room filled with guns. Inside was a man with shaggy longer brown hair. Looking up, he raised an eyebrow at Yami.
"Yugi, this is Mokuba. He's our gun specialist. He will teach you how to use, strip, reload, and disarm firearms." Sitting down, Yami pulled out a book and began to read.
"Are you going to shoot me?" Yugi asked warily.
Mokuba laughed. "No, but I can tell you've met Bakura. C'mon, let's learn about guns."