I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of its characters and plots.
However the following characters (their powers and such) used in this fan fiction ARE mine:
Lady Aurora Phoenix
Lady Natara Fear
Lady Sapphira Star
Blaze
Chaos
Havoc
Now I know this will be different from typical stories thus the reason it is in the fantasy genre but I wanted to give Atem a family and have a way to keep an eye on him even while he was nothing but a spirit in the Millennium Puzzle... This way I could do just that. This is my first fan fic so forgive me if it is not to your liking.
"Losing Control"
Atem paced in his room. He had so many thoughts tumbling in his head and no idea how to sort through them. Anger and hatred toward Bakura for his attack. Shock and awe over the strength of lady Phoenix's powers. The rush of emotions that threatened to overtake him when she touched his neck.
What is going on with me? He yelled at himself. "This cannot be happening. Not now of all times. I cannot be falling for someone. Anyone. Let alone a stranger whom I hardly know." Atem growled in frustration and anger. He knew he needed to talk to someone, but he was not sure who exactly he could trust about this. His first thought was Isis. But he changed his mind. She seemed to be against the presence of Lady Phoenix within the palace. He only wished he knew why. Then it hit him. He knew who he could turn to. Quickly, he left his room and walked down the hall. He could see the flicker of a torches within a room a few doors down from his and he heard laughter. Turning the corner to enter the room he stopped and coughed.
"Forgive my interruption," he requested in a flustered voice. "Priest Set, may I have a word with you?" Priest Set stood quickly and looked at Kisara, who was blushing wildly.
"Of course, Pharaoh," he answered. Kisara bowed her head to Atem and then hurried out to the hall. Atem closed the door after her. "What is troubling you, cousin?" Set asked him. Atem smiled. It had been so long since Set called him that. He knew he was right to come to Set about this.
"Set, something is happening to me. With me, and I do not know what it is or how to handle it." Set gave his cousin a searching look as he tried to understand.
"Does this have something to do with the mysterious Lady Phoenix who was able to save your life earlier today?" He asked with a raised eye brow and a small smirk. Atem turned to him, his eyebrows drawn together in deep thought.
"I guess."
"What exactly have you been feeling?" Set watched the young Pharaoh walk to his balcony and begin to pace back and forth.
"It is all so… so strange. My heart feels light when she is near. I thought I was going to fall when she touched me today. It is scary to feel like I have no control."
"Atem, you must know that you cannot control everything."
"I cannot?" Atem asked with a devilish smile and a small chuckle. Set shook his head, laughing softly.
"No, you cannot, cousin. Seriously, it sounds like this is more than just admiration for her skill. Isis mentioned in passing that you have not slept very well for the last few weeks. That you spent most of your nights beside Lady Phoenix's bed. To be honest, I saw it when I first saw you holding her in the crater."
"Saw what?" Atem was half listening. His attention was drawn somewhere outside. Set shook his head again as he walked up to Atem on the balcony. With a sigh, he looked in the same direction as his cousin. There she was. Silhouetted against the light of the setting sun, Lady Phoenix had emerged onto her balcony yet again. She was looking down at the garden.
"Saw exactly what I am seeing now. The faraway look in your eyes…" Tilting his head, he peered around to see Atem's face. "Are you even listening to me?"
"Wha… huh?" Atem snapped out of his reverie. "Sorry, Set. I just …" He shook his head angrily and stormed off the balcony. "I cannot be losing myself like this. I cannot! Not now!"
"Now, wait. It may not be a bad thing. We could use her."
"She has never played the Games of Darkness. You heard her. She only knows of hand to hand combat. Magic, yes, but not like ours," Atem countered. "If she is pulled into a duel she would lose automatically if she attacked the monster as she did today. There are rules. She cannot interfere with a duel when it is started. Had Bakura and I been dueling this afternoon and she interfered like that the throne would have been his."
"Then teach her the rules. Teach her the ways of our people... She has Power, Atem. She could easily be just as much of a duel monster as any other guardian we have. You could call her into battle. She would not be interfering that way and you are guaranteed a victory."
"But that would be using her. I promised to help her and protect her. Not abuse her abilities. Plus there is no guarantee that one, she would always win, she has her limits as we saw today. And two, she may never even agree to stay. Isis has made it known that she does not wish her to stay. If the lady feels this, she is bound to leave as soon as she can. If she does not leave tonight." Set followed him back inside.
"And if she were to leave tonight? What would you do? Go back to the way things were without her? Forget she was even here? Could you forget she was even here?" Atem opened his mouth to answer but then shut it. He had not thought that far ahead. "That is what I thought." Set answered. "You do not want to let her go. A part of you would be missing. She has somehow managed to take a piece of you. The only way to manage it now is to admit it. If not to her, at least to yourself."
"What are you saying, Set?"
"I am saying you have to admit you more than care for her. That look on your face when you are in the same room with her, I know it all to well. I wear it when I am alone with Kisara."
"I knew there was something going on between the two of you," Atem said softly. Set raised an eyebrow.
"Maybe so, but at least I am admitting it. It makes it easier for me to handle myself when we are near each other."
"And if I tell her? What if she does not feel the same way?"
"From her reaction to you this afternoon, I would say there is definitely something going on within herself. If she does not feel the exact same way as you, she definitely feels something. Perhaps you should ask her."
"What? Tonight?" Set shrugged.
"Why not?"
"She has had a long day. First she wakes up after being unconscious for three weeks, and then almost instantly she battles one of the most powerful monsters we have ever faced. She is probably in bed by now." Set shook his head, as he glanced out the window of the balcony in the direction of her room.
"Actually she is about to jump off the balcony ledge," he commented in an amazed tone.
"What?" Atem hollered, racing to the balcony. "She is crazy! She will get hurt!"
"Too late," Set said as they watched her lunge herself off the balcony railing. Atem's heart felt as if it had stopped in his chest. She fell silently down toward the ground. It was only after she landed with the grace and ease of a cat did he realize he was holding his breath and released it. When she disappeared amongst the plants of the garden, he turned toward his cousin.
"I must go after her. I cannot let her leave. Not yet."
"Then go. But be gentle cousin. You do not want to frighten her away."
"Am I really that scary?" Atem asked him.
"Not scary really. Just intense. You are the Pharaoh after all," Set answered with a sly grin. Atem rolled his eyes, bid his cousin good night and swiftly moved through the palace and toward the exit to the garden.
He was half way through the garden when he spotted her. She was sitting perfectly still on a stone bench, her head lowered and her eyes closed. Her red-gold hair shone in the moonlight, as did the heart-shaped pendant at her neck. She had changed the gold on the outfit his people had given her to silver. She looked even more like an angel now than she had when he first laid eyes on her. His heart skipped beats. His pulse raced through out his body and he felt his palms begin to sweat.
This is ridiculous, he thought angrily to himself. I am the Pharaoh. I do not get nervous. I should have no problem talking to her. But his feet would not move. He felt frozen in his place. Maybe Set is right, he finally admitted. Maybe I have developed feelings for this stranger. He shook his head. No, it is true. I do care for her. Deeper than I ever thought I could have. Atem swallowed hard. Now do I tell her? And how?
