WELL HI THERE.
I have returned. Again. If you thought To Catch A Pirate took forever to update...this one broke a record. But I really want to post another Gemshipping pirate fic. I do want to finish this one thought before I do that! So I am now suddenly motivated to write this story! Hopefully my writing has improved these past few years and the YGO shipping fandom isn't completely dead.
Wowzers! Anyways here is a chapter for the first time in YEARS! Enjoy!
Akefia stumbled up towards Mana's room, trying to calm himself down as he went. There was no point bursting into her room fuming. He kicked his feet as he walked, grumbling to himself about the stupidity of people that get everything handed to them from birth, then he turned abruptly and leaned back against the wall with a huff.
How could that stupid man look him in the eyes and claim that he was the one trapped in these Egyptian chains? Like he was the one being physically forced against his will, carted into these walls with a bag over his head? When he was actively keeping a little girl captured and using her like this?
Akila...
"Akefia?"
He hadn't realized that he'd been standing in front of Mana's door for a minute now until she opened it and noticed him there, brooding against the wall.
"I'm back." That's all Akefia could manage to mumble for a moment before he looked up and noticed something. Her thick makeup had been rubbed off and her eyes were red rimmed. "What happened?"
She pulled back inside her room, quickly rubbing at her eyes to try and hide the obvious fact that she'd been crying before she opened her door. Akefia followed her in, as she had left the door open. He was insisting to himself that he only cared because if that damned leader of the royal guard found out that Mana had gotten hurt on his watch, Akila would be in trouble. It wasn't as if he cared that she'd been crying because her expression looked just like Akila's did when they were captured.
"Nothing, everything is totally fine!" she smiled, although it appeared more like a grimace. She sat down in front of a large, ornate mirror and began to tear a brush through her hair. Akefia watched her, eyes narrowed as the girl looked at herself in the mirror.
"Princess?" he finally said, after about 30 seconds of watching her forced smile. Her hand dropped to her table, the brush clattering loudly.
"I...I'd rather you didn't call me that," she sighed. "Just call me Mana, please."
"Isn't that a little informal?" he asked with a grumble, but no sooner had he said it when he saw tears starting to trickle down Mana's cheeks. "Oh god..."
"He's...he's dying. I can see it. It's...it's happening right in front of me and I can't do anything to help him," she began to stutter out, voice shaking. Akefia never knew how to cope with crying. With Akila, he always just gave her a hug and held her until she calmed down, but he obviously couldn't do that with Mana. He was trying to come up with something to say. Anything to get her to stop.
"Listen...Mana," he started, pushing a finger to his temple in frustration. He couldn't believe he was about to attempt to console the future Queen of Egypt over the current Pharaoh's imminent death when he had caused the deaths of so many. But sitting there with a tear stained expression, she looked so similar to Akila. "It's not your fault."
"I don't know what to do!" Mana sighed, dropping her forehead onto her hands and hiding her face. "I've been so sheltered my whole life. By his own request. How am I supposed to govern like this? The people...they know. They know I can't do this. They see me as a little bimbo of a girl playing dress up."
"Stop it, Mana," Akefia sighed, finally moving forward. He hesitantly looked down at her before slowly reaching a hand out and placing it on her shoulder gently. "You know you're more than that. Where did the loud, confident girl go? That was able to coerce me into following along. "
"It's ok. I know they all talk as if I'm just...a cute accessory to Atem," she continued, leaning her head up and setting her chin on top of her hands. "I'll just...flutter to decieve."
"No! You just have to believe in yourself." Akefia felt ridiculous, but he could see his sister's kind soul shining through Mana and he couldn't help but console her. Ryou was right. She was a kind girl and she wasn't responsible for her Pharaohs disgusting decisions...yet. "You'll learn what it is you need to do. Come on now. I can...maybe I can tell you about the outside world if you're worried that you've been too sheltered?"
"You...you would help me?" Mana asked, turning her tear filled eyes up to look at Akefia. "You really would?"
"I don't know how much help I can be, but I can try. I sort of...know what it's like to be suddenly thrust into a position you don't feel prepared for," Akefia muttered, glancing away. He didn't want to give too much away and reveal his regal ties, but he honestly understood where Mana was coming from. He didn't want to a prince. He wanted to explore the world. Taste its riches. Not sit in a room with other town delegates discussing war tactics. Not that he would be doing that now anyways. The war was practically over and here sat its victor. This whole ordeal felt so strange to him. Offering help to his enemy's soon-to-be leader.
"Thank you...that's very kind of you," she smiled up at him, resting her own hand on top of his.
The door suddenly slammed open, causing Akefia to leap nearly a foot away from Mana and face the door, fists pulled up as he got into a fighting stance.
But it was merely Ryou.
"Goodness! I'm sorry!" the pale man gasped out, hands up as if to claim he comes in peace. "I didn't mean to startle you! I was in a hurry. Glad to see you're taking your job seriously though. That's a wonderful stance you have there."
"Ryou!" Mana cried out in surprise, racing towards her bathroom with the brush she was still clinging to held in front of her face. "I...I'll only be a minute! Let me just...um let me powder my nose really quickly!"
Akefia sighed as he watched her go in, undoubtedly to hide her fears and tears from her betrothed. Then he turned back towards Ryou with a scowl. He hadn't forgotten their discussion earlier and it still irritated him beyond measure.
"I'm actually here to give you something," Ryou admitted, rubbing the back of his neck as he realized he'd blasted through the door rather rudely. "It's why I was running. I wanted to catch you before Marik came to fetch you."
"What?" Akefia growled, crossing his arms.
"Just...just some more herbs," Ryou shrugged, holding out a new bag. "I noticed your bag had gotten kind of empty earlier and that you should have some more incase you run out over night. I'm not sure if they would have medicinal herbs this good down in the camp. So...I brought you more. Just in case."
"Of course the encampment won't have medicinal herbs," Akefia scowled in response, glaring. "Why would they waste their good items on the lowly people of Kul Elna. In fact why even give me these? They should go to someone of higher caliber. Right?"
Ryou sighed, glancing over at the bathroom door where Mana had run into, worried that she would overhear this conversation. She hadn't been made aware of Kul Elna yet and this is not how Ryou wanted her to find out.
"We shouldn't discuss this here. We can talk tomorrow."
"What if I don't want to talk to you tomorrow, Prince," Akefia responded, turning his chin up in defiance. He may have Akila but he wouldn't have Akefia's pride.
"Well...I want to talk to you tomorrow," the royal guard admitted. "I...you said you've traveled down the Nile. And if I can't go anymore, then I want to hear you weave your stories."
Akefia was startled to say the least. He was clearly upset with Ryou and yet he still stood here asking to be entertained by stories of his travels. Travels he wouldn't get to go on ever again.
"You're daft, aren't you?" he finally said.
"Maybe so. I...I will come find you tomorrow while Mana is still inside. But for now, take these herbs, please," Ryou insisted, shoving the bag into the crevice of Akefia's still crossed arms. Then he turned to head out of the room.
"You aren't staying to talk to Mana?" Akefia asked, frowning.
"Oh!" Ryou bristled, not turning back around as he reach the door. "No...not tonight. I just wanted to make sure you got that bag. Tell her I will see her tomorrow. It's been a long day...Marik will come to take you to the encampment soon! Goodnight."
And with that, Ryou practically raced out the door nearly as fast as he had raced in. Akefia muttered to himself, taking the new bag of herbs and shoving them into his pocket with the other one.
"Ryou! Ryou, I'm-" Mana called, opening the door finally with a freshly washed face. But she cut herself off, noticing that it was just Akefia in the room now. Her shoulder's dropped low. "Oh? Where did he go?"
"He said that he knew it was a long day and that you need your rest," Akefia covered for him. He didn't mention that Ryou seemed uninterested in staying in Mana's room any longer than he had to right now. It seemed like a bad thing to bring up when Mana was already in a fragile state of mind. "I'll just stand outside your door until Marik comes to get me. Get some sleep. Mana."
She clearly looked dejected at Ryou's deciding to leave so quickly but nodded with a tight smile.
"I'll see you tomorrow," she nodded as Akefia took his leave to wait for Marik.
Ryou was pacing in his own room, tapping at his forehead in an aggravated fashion. He couldn't believe what had come over him. Just a few words from Akefia about the "places where humans haven't touched" and he was enamored. Those were the exact kinds of places he wanted to visit. Completely new discoveries.
Against his better judgement, he thought about the slave. The way his expression changes when he sees his sister. How apparently, he did seem to care about Mana already based on the way he put himself between her and the intruder that burst into her room unexpectedly, which isn't that hard to believe. Mana was a kind girl and could charm anyone into caring about her. But Akefia did it without hesitation. Like it was an instinct and he wasn't just doing it to protect his sister.
Perhaps under his tough exterior, Akefia really was kind. And now that Ryou could understand being held captive here behind the palace walls, he could definitely understand why Akefia was so angry with him. And the rest of the slaves? They were being held here too. Just like him. It felt...wrong. He had done that, going beyond the walls and bringing them back here to waste away. It was his fault.
He understood why Akefia reserved his smiles for his sister and not for him.
"Sir? Are you alright?" Marik asked, who was still standing in the doorway of his master's room, watching Ryou pace back and forth across the expansive rugs in his room.
"Yes. Yes Marik, I'm fine. Go ahead and fetch Akefia so you can take him to the encampment. I'm sure his sister will be glad to see him again."
"You know you can talk to me in full confidence, right?" Marik whispered in response. "You seem really distressed. Is it about the Pharaoh's announcement? Or maybe Ama-"
"No! No, I'm really fine," Ryou cut him off before he could say the name. "Please. I'll be going to bed soon, so I'll be fine for the night. I'll see you tomorrow, alright? Thank you."
Marik nodded curtly and dismissed himself, leaving Ryou alone with his troubled thoughts. The thoughts that, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get off of a certain newly acquired bodyguard.
