So here I am again everyone! And I'm set on clearing Yami's name!
*checks reviews* WHOA! 7 chapters and 92 reviews??? *hands out gold stars and pixie sticks to everyone who reviewed except the flamer* Thankyou all so much! ^_^ You're all wonderful!
Flamer gets special treatment... *gives flamer big slobbery kiss* Muahaha!
To 'person': They might well have another go... and Yami ain't so bad!
To 'Ruth': *big smile* Thanks for the support - and that goes to everyone else who's on my side about that flamer! Thanks for the kind words, hope you read more!
To Neo-QueenRini1: Yami ain't so bad...
To k3n5h1nXt5uZuk1: Yami ain't mean...
To Cyberkat: Fave author list? Wow, thanks! *huggle* All 25 of you who got me on their faves list rule!
To 'tyrell': Here it is
To Demon Wolf: Yes, you have to wait till saturday... like now ^_^
To 'Yuki KIKI': *blush* Me kawaii? *hides* Thanks for the emphasis on 'author' anyways, and if you make an official request (by email or whatever) I could well write a fic (possibly a one-shot) with a B\M lemon\lime. Like my profile sez, all requests are considered!
To Anime-Crazi: I'm so glad you're enthusiastic, but please let go... it makes it so much easier to make it better...
To Shadow: Hey again ^_^ You leave Yami alone, he's still gotta explain himself! And so glad you put me on author alerts ^_^ Follow the example people!
To Dami: Aluminium pygmies? *blink* Sounds evil... don't worry, I intended to make it all better anyway ^_^
To Youko Demon and speed2: Here it is ^_^
To smarty1: I did it coz it's an integral part of the story... you'll see later (and this chapter!) And I apologise deeply to everyone for putting Yugi through that!
To Emriko: I agree entirely!
To ObiWanGirl: You love angsty romance? Oh, this chapter is so dedicated to you! Hopefully you'll love it!
Ain't it weird how the evillest chapter to date gets the most reviews to date? *shrug* Anyways, on with the show!
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yami sat at his makeshift desk, still working through the mounds of papyrus. Four days of his self-designated week had passed, and if anything the mound seemed to have grown higher. Yami mentally cursed Khnum for creating bureaucracy and, as if in an act of retribution, one of the mounds fell from the desk. With a heavy sigh, the Pharaoh bent down and began picking the papers.
While trying to arrange the papers into some sort of order, he heard the door to the room creak open. He looked up to see who it was, the world upside-down from his position.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi paused before he walked in, broom in hand. It had been three days since the whipping and, though the wounds barely hurt any more, his heart hadn't healed in the slightest. If anything, the wound had opened wider. He still couldn't understand why Yami had punished him, and the longer he took to find an answer, the less likely it seemed that he ever would. With a deep sigh, Yugi walked in, his head bowed so he wouldn't have to look at the Pharaoh.
*~*~*~*~*~*
As soon as Yugi came in, Yami felt an instant and dramatic change in the atmosphere in the room. The tension was unreal, created from a mixture of fear, awkwardness, hurt, doubt and regret. Yami thought back to the last few times they'd been alone together - the bedroom, the throne room with the grapes - and the direct contrast of moods distressed him greatly. Seeing that Yugi kept his head bowed, Yami tried to leave him be and just get on with the paperwork.
After a few minutes - each seeming like an eternity in itself - had passed, Yami couldn't take the bad atmosphere any longer. Standing up, he walked across the room until he came to a stop beside his love.
"Yugi?"
Yugi sweeping, but didn't look at Yami, instead shuffling away slightly. "Yes, oh mighty Pharaoh?"
These words stung Yami like a locust bite, and he even flinched slightly. "Please… I told you, when the two of us, you can call me Yami."
This time it was Yugi's turn to flinch as the memories came rushing back, and his face contorted slightly as if - for half a second - he'd been about to cry. "Yes Pharaoh."
Yami's eyes softened in sadness. "Yugi, what's wrong? You were never this cold, not even when you were thrown to the floor in front of me."
'That's because I loved you then' Yugi thought. Out loud, he simply asked "Why, Yami?"
Yami understood immediately what Yugi meant. Why had he been punished? Why didn't Yami let him off the hook? Sighing, he answered, "To protect you, Yugi." Sensing Yugi's confusion, he continued his explanation, walking off to gaze out the window as he did so. "We cannot let anyone find out about us, Yugi. Not your friends, not mine -" Yami mentally snorted at this - what real friends did he have to not tell? "- not anyone. We have to pretend you're just another slave."
Yugi quietly interrupted. "Are you ashamed, Yami? Because I'm a slave?"
Yami spun round to face Yugi, but he was still staring at the floor. "No Yugi! A thousand times no! But…" Yami's face darkened slightly. "A relationship between a Pharaoh and a slave would be deeply frowned upon - ours even more so, because of who we are. Should anyone find out, word would soon get to Set at some point, and…" Yami paused at this point, not wanting to state the harsh reality - dreading it, in fact. "… he'd do everything in his power to stop us. The easiest way to do it would be to remove one of us… and people would notice if a Pharaoh suddenly disappeared. A slave, on the other hand…" Yami trailed off. "Anubis forbid it, but he could easily have you killed. No-one would notice, save me. And it would kill me if that happened."
Yugi nodded slightly, the full meaning of these words slowly sinking in.
"That's why I had to have you whipped, Yugi. If I let you go, you'd be the only slave known to get away with breaking the rules. Even reducing the sentence was a huge risk. If I'd let you off the hook, it'd raise suspicions instantly, and Set would have us watched. As soon as we did anything…"
Yugi nodded again and raised his head slightly. "But Yami… it hurt so much… not just the actual whipping, but everything. They laughed at me… they taunted me… they made me so scared… and everything reminded me that you'd ordered it. It felt like it was you doing it… and it hurt so much. It tore me up inside… it…"
Yami heard Yugi choke back a sob, and saw tears shining on Yugi's ivory cheeks. Yami walked back to Yugi and slipped his arms round him, whispering comfortingly. He felt Yugi rest his head and hand's against his chest, leaving the broom to clatter to the floor, and Yami gave Yugi a gentle kiss where his neck met his shoulder. "I know it hurt, little one," he whispered. "As soon as I saw you, I nearly screamed at the thought of having to punish you. Watching you being led away was the hardest thing I've ever done." Yami felt his voice beginning to crack, and he fell silent while he regained his composure. "It hurt me too Yugi… thinking about what you were going through. But I never realised it was that bad." He gave Yugi another kiss. "I wish it wasn't like this… that we could celebrate our love freely… but we can't, and will have to fight through it."
Yugi looked up, his teary violet eyes locking on Yami's. He stared a while, as if probing, trying to find an ounce of anything that would contradict what Yami had said. He saw nothing that he could argue with - only truth and pain - and, satisfied, he returned his head to Yami's chest and slipped his arms round the Pharaoh, finally able to bring himself to return his love's embrace.
Yami felt Yugi start sobbing again, the tears falling down Yami's chest, and simply stood and hugged him, stroking the back of his head comfortingly.
"I love you Yami," Yugi whispered.
Yami didn't reply, but simply held Yugi tighter, letting his actions speak for him. They remained like that for a while, Yugi sniffling and Yami comforting him, letting the bond they had redevelop, before Yami sighed. "Oh Yugi, how can I ever show you how sorry I am?"
Yugi pulled out of the hug, leaving his hands on Yami's hips. The emptiness Yami felt when Yugi wasn't in his arms was almost unimaginable, like a part of his ka [1] had been ripped away. Yugi smiled up at Yami. "You already have. I love you more than ever, and nothing can show me more than that."
Yami smiled back at Yugi, feeling his heart swell at Yugi's simple words, before leaning down and giving Yugi a gentle kiss, feeling the air spark around them as their lips met, the sparks pulsing through Yami's body, delicate waves of raw ecstasy. He pulled back enough that they could talk, but so he could still feel Yugi's breaths swimming deliciously around his neck, could still feel the energy created between them. Closing his eyes, he let his mind wander briefly before snapping back to reality. Grinning, he asked Yugi, "How about a little treat? To celebrate us?"
Yugi raised one eyebrow coyly, and even this close Yami could see he how adorably cute he looked. "Like what?"
"Well… have you ever been in a proper bath before?"
Yugi shook his head, his nose gently rubbing against the Pharaoh's. "I only ever bathed in the Nile… you had to watch out for crocodiles, and it was always so cold!"
Yami chuckled slightly, and took one of Yugi's hands in his own. "Come with me," he purred.
Yugi smiled, then suddenly hesitated, remembering Yami's earlier words. "You sure?" he asked doubtfully.
Yami took a glance at the mounds of papyrus on his 'desk'. "Definitely," he replied firmly. With that, he led Yugi out of the room to the royal bathroom.
*~*~*~*~*~*
[1] 'ka' - ancient Egyptian concept of the soul. Interestingly enough, you could have multiple kas - queen Nefertiti reportedly had eight or nine. You could also have your ka in the wrong body, i.e. a woman's ka in a male body, which means Egyptians would have accepted transsexuals today.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Ha! See? Yami ISN'T a big meanie!
Anyways, as my way of apologising for chapter seven, next chapter is (hopefully) gonna be very fluffy and carry some humour, and then chapter 10 is gonna stop off at Lime City! ^_^
Of course, that is only if I feel it worth continuing... so get reviewing people!
Oh, and to those of you who missed it last chapter, I now have active author alerts status - so putting me on your author alerts list will mean you get an email every time I update or start a new story ^_^ So what're you waiting for?
Ja mata ne!
*checks reviews* WHOA! 7 chapters and 92 reviews??? *hands out gold stars and pixie sticks to everyone who reviewed except the flamer* Thankyou all so much! ^_^ You're all wonderful!
Flamer gets special treatment... *gives flamer big slobbery kiss* Muahaha!
To 'person': They might well have another go... and Yami ain't so bad!
To 'Ruth': *big smile* Thanks for the support - and that goes to everyone else who's on my side about that flamer! Thanks for the kind words, hope you read more!
To Neo-QueenRini1: Yami ain't so bad...
To k3n5h1nXt5uZuk1: Yami ain't mean...
To Cyberkat: Fave author list? Wow, thanks! *huggle* All 25 of you who got me on their faves list rule!
To 'tyrell': Here it is
To Demon Wolf: Yes, you have to wait till saturday... like now ^_^
To 'Yuki KIKI': *blush* Me kawaii? *hides* Thanks for the emphasis on 'author' anyways, and if you make an official request (by email or whatever) I could well write a fic (possibly a one-shot) with a B\M lemon\lime. Like my profile sez, all requests are considered!
To Anime-Crazi: I'm so glad you're enthusiastic, but please let go... it makes it so much easier to make it better...
To Shadow: Hey again ^_^ You leave Yami alone, he's still gotta explain himself! And so glad you put me on author alerts ^_^ Follow the example people!
To Dami: Aluminium pygmies? *blink* Sounds evil... don't worry, I intended to make it all better anyway ^_^
To Youko Demon and speed2: Here it is ^_^
To smarty1: I did it coz it's an integral part of the story... you'll see later (and this chapter!) And I apologise deeply to everyone for putting Yugi through that!
To Emriko: I agree entirely!
To ObiWanGirl: You love angsty romance? Oh, this chapter is so dedicated to you! Hopefully you'll love it!
Ain't it weird how the evillest chapter to date gets the most reviews to date? *shrug* Anyways, on with the show!
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yami sat at his makeshift desk, still working through the mounds of papyrus. Four days of his self-designated week had passed, and if anything the mound seemed to have grown higher. Yami mentally cursed Khnum for creating bureaucracy and, as if in an act of retribution, one of the mounds fell from the desk. With a heavy sigh, the Pharaoh bent down and began picking the papers.
While trying to arrange the papers into some sort of order, he heard the door to the room creak open. He looked up to see who it was, the world upside-down from his position.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi paused before he walked in, broom in hand. It had been three days since the whipping and, though the wounds barely hurt any more, his heart hadn't healed in the slightest. If anything, the wound had opened wider. He still couldn't understand why Yami had punished him, and the longer he took to find an answer, the less likely it seemed that he ever would. With a deep sigh, Yugi walked in, his head bowed so he wouldn't have to look at the Pharaoh.
*~*~*~*~*~*
As soon as Yugi came in, Yami felt an instant and dramatic change in the atmosphere in the room. The tension was unreal, created from a mixture of fear, awkwardness, hurt, doubt and regret. Yami thought back to the last few times they'd been alone together - the bedroom, the throne room with the grapes - and the direct contrast of moods distressed him greatly. Seeing that Yugi kept his head bowed, Yami tried to leave him be and just get on with the paperwork.
After a few minutes - each seeming like an eternity in itself - had passed, Yami couldn't take the bad atmosphere any longer. Standing up, he walked across the room until he came to a stop beside his love.
"Yugi?"
Yugi sweeping, but didn't look at Yami, instead shuffling away slightly. "Yes, oh mighty Pharaoh?"
These words stung Yami like a locust bite, and he even flinched slightly. "Please… I told you, when the two of us, you can call me Yami."
This time it was Yugi's turn to flinch as the memories came rushing back, and his face contorted slightly as if - for half a second - he'd been about to cry. "Yes Pharaoh."
Yami's eyes softened in sadness. "Yugi, what's wrong? You were never this cold, not even when you were thrown to the floor in front of me."
'That's because I loved you then' Yugi thought. Out loud, he simply asked "Why, Yami?"
Yami understood immediately what Yugi meant. Why had he been punished? Why didn't Yami let him off the hook? Sighing, he answered, "To protect you, Yugi." Sensing Yugi's confusion, he continued his explanation, walking off to gaze out the window as he did so. "We cannot let anyone find out about us, Yugi. Not your friends, not mine -" Yami mentally snorted at this - what real friends did he have to not tell? "- not anyone. We have to pretend you're just another slave."
Yugi quietly interrupted. "Are you ashamed, Yami? Because I'm a slave?"
Yami spun round to face Yugi, but he was still staring at the floor. "No Yugi! A thousand times no! But…" Yami's face darkened slightly. "A relationship between a Pharaoh and a slave would be deeply frowned upon - ours even more so, because of who we are. Should anyone find out, word would soon get to Set at some point, and…" Yami paused at this point, not wanting to state the harsh reality - dreading it, in fact. "… he'd do everything in his power to stop us. The easiest way to do it would be to remove one of us… and people would notice if a Pharaoh suddenly disappeared. A slave, on the other hand…" Yami trailed off. "Anubis forbid it, but he could easily have you killed. No-one would notice, save me. And it would kill me if that happened."
Yugi nodded slightly, the full meaning of these words slowly sinking in.
"That's why I had to have you whipped, Yugi. If I let you go, you'd be the only slave known to get away with breaking the rules. Even reducing the sentence was a huge risk. If I'd let you off the hook, it'd raise suspicions instantly, and Set would have us watched. As soon as we did anything…"
Yugi nodded again and raised his head slightly. "But Yami… it hurt so much… not just the actual whipping, but everything. They laughed at me… they taunted me… they made me so scared… and everything reminded me that you'd ordered it. It felt like it was you doing it… and it hurt so much. It tore me up inside… it…"
Yami heard Yugi choke back a sob, and saw tears shining on Yugi's ivory cheeks. Yami walked back to Yugi and slipped his arms round him, whispering comfortingly. He felt Yugi rest his head and hand's against his chest, leaving the broom to clatter to the floor, and Yami gave Yugi a gentle kiss where his neck met his shoulder. "I know it hurt, little one," he whispered. "As soon as I saw you, I nearly screamed at the thought of having to punish you. Watching you being led away was the hardest thing I've ever done." Yami felt his voice beginning to crack, and he fell silent while he regained his composure. "It hurt me too Yugi… thinking about what you were going through. But I never realised it was that bad." He gave Yugi another kiss. "I wish it wasn't like this… that we could celebrate our love freely… but we can't, and will have to fight through it."
Yugi looked up, his teary violet eyes locking on Yami's. He stared a while, as if probing, trying to find an ounce of anything that would contradict what Yami had said. He saw nothing that he could argue with - only truth and pain - and, satisfied, he returned his head to Yami's chest and slipped his arms round the Pharaoh, finally able to bring himself to return his love's embrace.
Yami felt Yugi start sobbing again, the tears falling down Yami's chest, and simply stood and hugged him, stroking the back of his head comfortingly.
"I love you Yami," Yugi whispered.
Yami didn't reply, but simply held Yugi tighter, letting his actions speak for him. They remained like that for a while, Yugi sniffling and Yami comforting him, letting the bond they had redevelop, before Yami sighed. "Oh Yugi, how can I ever show you how sorry I am?"
Yugi pulled out of the hug, leaving his hands on Yami's hips. The emptiness Yami felt when Yugi wasn't in his arms was almost unimaginable, like a part of his ka [1] had been ripped away. Yugi smiled up at Yami. "You already have. I love you more than ever, and nothing can show me more than that."
Yami smiled back at Yugi, feeling his heart swell at Yugi's simple words, before leaning down and giving Yugi a gentle kiss, feeling the air spark around them as their lips met, the sparks pulsing through Yami's body, delicate waves of raw ecstasy. He pulled back enough that they could talk, but so he could still feel Yugi's breaths swimming deliciously around his neck, could still feel the energy created between them. Closing his eyes, he let his mind wander briefly before snapping back to reality. Grinning, he asked Yugi, "How about a little treat? To celebrate us?"
Yugi raised one eyebrow coyly, and even this close Yami could see he how adorably cute he looked. "Like what?"
"Well… have you ever been in a proper bath before?"
Yugi shook his head, his nose gently rubbing against the Pharaoh's. "I only ever bathed in the Nile… you had to watch out for crocodiles, and it was always so cold!"
Yami chuckled slightly, and took one of Yugi's hands in his own. "Come with me," he purred.
Yugi smiled, then suddenly hesitated, remembering Yami's earlier words. "You sure?" he asked doubtfully.
Yami took a glance at the mounds of papyrus on his 'desk'. "Definitely," he replied firmly. With that, he led Yugi out of the room to the royal bathroom.
*~*~*~*~*~*
[1] 'ka' - ancient Egyptian concept of the soul. Interestingly enough, you could have multiple kas - queen Nefertiti reportedly had eight or nine. You could also have your ka in the wrong body, i.e. a woman's ka in a male body, which means Egyptians would have accepted transsexuals today.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Ha! See? Yami ISN'T a big meanie!
Anyways, as my way of apologising for chapter seven, next chapter is (hopefully) gonna be very fluffy and carry some humour, and then chapter 10 is gonna stop off at Lime City! ^_^
Of course, that is only if I feel it worth continuing... so get reviewing people!
Oh, and to those of you who missed it last chapter, I now have active author alerts status - so putting me on your author alerts list will mean you get an email every time I update or start a new story ^_^ So what're you waiting for?
Ja mata ne!