Of Mages and Elves: Meetings
Author's notes: Well, I seem to have confused a few people -.-; If you were completely confused by the last chapter, here are the species/mini-stats of the characters.
Yami- elven prince with mage training; Yugi- human noble with some shielding magic; Ryou- elven noble and palace healer; Bakura- half human, half elf, can meld with the shadows; Malik- human, apprentice mage; Ishtal- human, master mage; Pegasus- master mage, human; Seto- half human, half elf, mage; Mokuba- half human, half elf; Anzu- elven noble; Joey- human peasant; Honda- human peasant.
I hope that helps clear up some confusion ; Sorry about that. Now, without further ranting, on with the story.
Disclaimer: Do I own it? Think about it, NO!
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Pegasus' reddish eyes glinted in amusement as the white haired thief stepped from the shadows. The half-blood's ability to merge with the darkness made him difficult to predict, and a valuable spy. Bakura scowled, shifting the unconscious body in his arms and dropping it unceremoniously to the floor. Ryou let out a dull, unconscious moan.
Pegasus stepped gracefully from the dais, kneeling beside the elven boy, examining him, his red robes pooling around him like dripping blood. Even in his unconscious state, Ryou flinched at the contact. Bakura's eyes narrowed. He slapped himself mentally. Why did he care what happened to the brat? Pegasus smirked, watching Bakura's reaction out of the corner of his eye.
"A pretty find, who exactly is this little elf?" he asked, standing and brushing off his robes.
"His name is Ryou. I don't know much else. The Prince seemed pretty pissed when he saw me thought," Bakura smirked. Pegasus' dark smile darkened further.
"Then you made a mistake. I don't tolerate mistakes," he told the thief. Bakura's eyes narrowed.
"What does that mean?" he hissed. Pegasus nodded to two of his guards.
"Take the boy, I have business with this one," he told them. One of the men lifted Ryou from the ground while Pegasus just smirked at the annoyed half-blood before him.
"What do you want now?" Bakura growled, bracing himself for a fight. A burst of pain caused sparks to fly behind his eyelids. He slumped to his knees, hand to his head and a shocked look on his face. Pegasus loomed over him, eyes dancing.
"I have to punish you for your mistake. If the Prince saw you he might track you to me, and we can't have that." There was another blast of energy, this one visible as tendrils of dark power cutting through the thief's pale skin. Bakura felt his body growing numb and bit his tongue, refusing to cry out. Suddenly the pain stopped. Bakura felt dazed, his eyes refused to focus.
"Remember Bakura, your life was in my hands the moment we met. Take him away," Pegasus snapped to another guard. Bakura felt someone take hold of his arms. He was just barely conscious as he was dragged from the room.
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A loud crash echoed down the hall from Yami's office, causing Anzu to jump. She had been coming to tell the Prince that preparations for him to leave for Dmark had been completed. The blue-eyed elf cautiously cracked the door open to find Yami leaning against his desk with his head bowed. Various papers and boxes that had formerly sat on the desk were scattered and floating around him.
"Yami-sama?" she asked. Yami glanced up at her, a wearied expression in his crimson eyes.
"Anzu?" he asked. Anzu walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Are you still worried about Ryou?" she asked. Yami nodded, his eyes clenching tight.
"I was right there, I should have been able to save him," he told her.
"You can't beat yourself up about it. None of us could have saved him before his captor vanished," she told him. "He'll be alright, his heart is strong." Yami nodded.
"But he's to gentle. They could shatter his body in a second. I just hope we can find him before something truly awful happens. Now what did you want to see me about?" he asked. Anzu smiled.
"The staff is ready for your departure," she told him. Yami nodded.
"Thank you Anzu."
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Malik had inspected every inch of the room over and over again, and each time he had come to the same conclusion. The only ways out were the door and the window, and quite possibly the locked closet in the corner. The violet-eyed apprentice was currently going through Ishtal's desk, searching for anything that could be used as a lock pick and mentally kicking himself for not memorizing the lock spells Shadi had given him last week.
Malik finally came across a thin letter opener and smirked. Swiftly he made his way to the door and stuck the metal in the lock. The letter opener fit perfectly. He was about to turn it when a burst of magic knocked him back. The blond cursed. *Figures a Master Mage would have spelled locks,* he thought bitterly.
Malik slumped back onto his cot, glaring at the now melted letter opener in his hand. Stupid lock spells.
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Ryou came too in a dark room, completely unaware of where he was. Not sensing anyone nearby, he stood and began to explore the room, wincing at his severe pounding headache. He glanced up sharply when he heard the door click; backing towards the corner as two cloaked heads came into view. With a dull 'umph', another figure was shoved into the room, slumping against the wall.
Ryou approached the figure cautiously as soon as the door was closed. It was Bakura, a severely abused looking Bakura. His body slumped heavily against the wall and various bleeding cuts crisscrossed his arms and chest.
Ryou knelt beside his kidnapper, golden light glowing in his hands. He placed them over one of the more serious wounds, allowing his healing powers to take hold. As harsh as the other was, Ryou couldn't just sit there and let him suffer.
Bakura flinched, his eyes snapping open. He immediately slapped Ryou away.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!" he snapped. Ryou cowered, hand pressed against his stinging face.
"I was just…"
"Never touch me again!" Bakura snapped venomously. How dare the boy touch him! He wasn't so weak he needed the pity of some pampered elven noble!
"I'm sorry," Ryou replied, eyes downcast. Bakura spat at the boy.
"Who needs the help of a worthless, pathetic weakling like you? If you ever touch me again, I'll rip your throat out through your stomach with my bare hands!" he snapped. Ryou shivered at the thought.
"Yes sir."
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Seto Kaiba swept into Pegasus' anteroom, a dark scowl crossing his features. Pegasus smirked at him and nodded.
"You called for me?" Seto asked coldly. Pegasus' smirk widened.
"Yes I did, Kaiba-kun. I have a mission for you," he told the tall, ice-eyed half-blood.
"What is it?" Seto snapped, expression annoyed.
"I want you to find Prince Yami of the elven kingdom and get rid of him before he becomes a nuisance," Pegasus told him.
"And if I refuse?"
"You can't refuse, Kaiba-kun, you know that," the silver haired mage smirked. "Not if you want your poor brother to stay safe." Seto's eyes narrowed.
"Fine," he said. "You keep your hands off my brother, I'll do this job for you."
"I know you will, Kaiba-kun."
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A crowd had gathered around the palace courtyard to greet the young elven prince and his attendants. The council had gotten word only two days before that Prince Yami was on his way to speak with them.
Yugi stood on tiptoe, trying to see around the crowd. He was extremely excited, having never seen an elf before in his life. The violet-eyed boy felt a light tap on his shoulder and turned to see the blond servant boy he had met earlier.
"You won't be able to see anything down here," Joey told him with a wink. "Come with me and we'll find a better spot to watch the action." Yugi smiled brightly and followed the bond to a low roof at the edge of the courtyard. Joey offered Yugi his hand. "Here, I'll give you a hand up." Yugi took the offered hand and let Joey lift him up the roof. Once he had climbed up, he moved, glancing around as Joey scrambled up behind him.
"There were only two other people on the roof, a brunette young man about Joey's age with dark eyes and a redheaded girl, probably a little younger, with smiling teal eyes. Yugi turned to Joey for an explanation. Joey just grinned.
"This is my sister Shizuka and my best friend Honda. Guys, this is Yugi, the one I told you about," he told them. Shizuka smiled, eyes still trained more on the crowd while Honda nodded to Yugi.
"Look!: Shizuka shouted excitedly, pointing to the gate. A troop of armed guards surrounding a pair of horses had entered. Atop the horses sat two figure, one male and one female, and one who looked remarkably like Yugi.
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Yami surveyed the crowd around him. It wasn't large; he hadn't expected a large reception. Beside him, Anzu smiled slightly.
"Well, we're here," she said. Yami nodded absently. A small group of people sitting on a roof at the far end of the courtyard caught his eye, particularly the small boy sitting on the edge with his feet dangling over the side. The child-like figure watched the crowd with obvious delight. A guard came up beside Yami's horse.
"My lord, we've been asked to follow the palace guards. Thy request that you dismount so the grooms can look after the horses." Yami nodded to the elven guard and dismounted with cat-like grace, Anzu following his example. The two elves followed the guard through the gawking crowd and up the stairs, into the palace.
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Yugi had a slightly disappointed look on his face.
"What's the matter?" Honda asked him. Yugi shrugged.
"I just thought they'd look more special, you know, like something out of a legend. But they look so much like us. Why do people think it's so bad if we mix?" he asked. Joey shrugged.
"I've always been told that half-bloods are… unnatural. There's something dark about them," he said solemnly. Yugi gave him a thoughtful glance.
"Maybe it's because we're so mean to them," he said. Joey nodded.
"Maybe," he said, and glanced around at the dispersing crowd. "I should get back to the kitchens. Honda, can you take Shizuka home?" Honda nodded and grinned.
"I'd love to," he said, a little more suggestively than necessary.
"HONDA!" Joey yelped, smacking the brunette over the head. Honda held up his hands, laughing.
"Hey, hey, I was just kidding alright. I won't lay a finger on her," he told Joey. Shizuka just shook her head, completely used to her brother and his friend's antics.
"I sure hope not!" Joey snapped. Yugi giggled, watching to two fight. Then he glanced at the crowd.
"I should get back too, my grandfather will probably be looking for me," he said. He smiled at the three. "Thank you for being so kind to me." Joey nodded to him.
"No problem Yugi," he said, winking. "Just make sure you don't forget us." Yugi smiled.
"No way!"
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Author's note: ^_^ I hope you're enjoying. Hopefully my explanation cleared up a few things for you. See ya in the next chapter!
-Cat